The Department of Applied Behavioral Science offers a curriculum through which students learn how to examine and address problems of social importance across the lifespan. Students receive training in the application of behavioral science to improve the human condition through prevention and intervention. The department’s master’s program in applied behavioral science satisfies coursework requirements for Board Certification in Behavior Analysis and, in most states, licensure as a behavior analyst.
Admission to Graduate Studies
An applicant seeking to pursue graduate study in the College may be admitted as either a degree-seeking or non-degree seeking student. Policies and procedures of Graduate Studies govern the process of Graduate admission. These may be found in the Graduate Studies section of the online catalog.
Please consult the Departments & Programs section of the online catalog for information regarding program-specific admissions criteria and requirements. Special admissions requirements pertain to Interdisciplinary Studies degrees, which may be found in the Graduate Studies section of the online catalog.
Admission to the M.A. Program
For admission in the fall semester, please view the application deadline and all required application materials on the Graduate Admission page of our departmental website. Students may be admitted for the spring semester, but there is no filing deadline.
Eligibility criteria for admission to the M.A. program follow Graduate Studies’ admission policy. To be considered for admission to graduate status in the program, a student must hold a bachelor’s degree. Non-native speakers of English must meet English proficiency requirements.
For admission with full graduate standing, the department recommends that applicants complete 12 credit hours of undergraduate or graduate course work in behavior analysis, behavioral science, psychology, education, or related fields, and 6 hours in experimental methods, research design, or statistics.
Among the department’s application materials is a list of department faculty members. Please review the faculty members and descriptions of their research, scholarly, and professional interests on the department's website. Applicants should select any faculty members within the application whose research interests match their own. These faculty members review the applicant's materials. An applicant is accepted when one of the faculty members consent to admit the student. This faculty member becomes the advisor of record.
Admission to the Online M.A. Program
For admission in the fall semester, please view the application deadline and all required application materials on the Graduate Admission page of our departmental website. Eligibility criteria for admission to the M.A. program follow Graduate Studies’ admission policy. To be considered for admission to graduate status in the program, a student must hold a bachelor’s degree.
For admission with full graduate standing, the department recommends that applicants complete 12 credit hours of undergraduate or graduate course work in behavior analysis, behavioral science, psychology, education, or related fields, and 6 hours in experimental methods, research design, or statistics.
Among the department’s application materials is a list of department faculty members. Please review the faculty members and descriptions of their research, scholarly, and professional interests on the department's website. Applicants should select any faculty members within the application whose research interests match their own. These faculty members review the applicant's materials. An applicant is accepted when one of the faculty members consent to admit the student. This faculty member becomes the advisor of record.
A full list of the required application materials can be found on the Graduate Admission page of our departmental website.
Non-native speakers of English must meet English proficiency requirements.
M.A. in Applied Behavioral Science Degree Requirements
The master’s program trains highly competent scientist-practitioners in applied behavioral science. It requires course work on the basic principles and conceptual foundations of behavioral science and its research methods but emphasizes course work and training in applied and intervention research (e.g., assessment, analysis, intervention, evaluation). Its objective is to advance empirically based solutions to problems of individual and societal importance, both local and global.
The master’s program follows a junior-colleague model. Students work closely with their advisors and join them in many aspects of professional development. This includes designing and conducting research, preparing manuscripts for presentation and publication, presenting and publishing those manuscripts, and engaging in all facets of the responsible conduct of research. Students typically work with one advisor, but may work with other faculty members or have co-advisors. If a student’s or advisor’s interests change, students are free to change advisors.
The M.A. degree requires 30 credit hours: 21 hours in 6 content areas, 3 hours in a practicum, and research and elective courses. Students also must propose, conduct, write up, and orally defend an empirically based thesis. The following 7 courses are required:
- Ethical, Legal, and Professional Issues (3). Instruction in ethical principles in the conduct of research (e.g., informed consent, data analysis), legal issues in professional conduct (e.g., plagiarism, copyright), and professional skills (e.g., journal reviewing, professional communication). ABSC 841
- Principles of Behavior I (3). The science of behavior (e.g., observation, experimentation), laboratory methods, basic behavioral principles (e.g., reinforcement, stimulus control), and their applications (e.g., early childhood, disabilities). ABSC 861
- Research Methods I (3). Strategies and tactics of scientific research (e.g., objectivity, empiricism), the logic of experimentation (e.g., validity, reliability), measurement and direct observation, and experimental designs for single-subject and time-series analyses. ABSC 735
- Conceptual Foundations I (3). The history and philosophy of behavioral science, contemporary advances in basic research for application, the analysis of everyday behavior (e.g., cognition, emotion), and current issues in the discipline and the profession (e.g., relations between basic and applied research). ABSC 800
- Applied Behavior Analysis I (3). The characteristics of applied behavioral research (assessment, analysis, intervention, evaluation), intervention research (clinical, community), applied procedures and programs, social validity, and ethical issues. ABSC 746
- Applied Behavior Analysis II (3). A second graduate course on the characteristics of applied behavioral research (assessment, analysis, intervention, evaluation), intervention research (clinical, community), applied procedures and programs, social validity, and ethical issues. This requirement could be met through one of the following courses: ABSC 788, ABSC 802, ABSC 805, ABSC 961, and selected/approved ABSC 890 or ABSC 893 courses.
- Experimental Analysis of Behavior (3). Measurement of behavior, data collection analysis and graphic representation, and experimental design with particular emphasis on single subject design. ABSC 799
- Research or Intervention Practicum (3). A supervised practicum course in either basic or applied research or behavioral interventions.
Course List | Code | Title | Hours |
| ABSC 870 | Practicum I in Behavioral Psychology | 1-6 |
| ABSC 871 | Practicum I in Behavior Analysis: _____ | 1-6 |
| ABSC 872 | Practicum I in: _____ | 1-6 |
| ABSC 875 | Practicum in Community Health Promotion | 1-6 |
| ABSC 876 | Practicum in Community Development | 1-6 |
This course work also satisfies 7 of the course requirements and the thesis requirement in the doctoral program.
Thesis Defense:
For the M.A. degree, students are required to propose, complete, write up, and orally defend an empirically based Master’s thesis. While working on the thesis, students will enroll in ABSC 899 Master's Thesis in Applied Behavioral Science with their faculty advisor. Students must write and defend the thesis in front of a thesis committee. The thesis must meet minimum department and University requirements. The thesis is successful if a majority of the committee members vote to pass it.
M.A. in Applied Behavioral Science Degree Requirements
The online master’s program trains highly competent scientist-practitioners in applied behavioral science. It requires course work on the basic principles and conceptual foundations of behavioral science and its research methods but emphasizes course work and training in applied and intervention research (e.g., assessment, analysis, intervention, evaluation). Its objective is to advance empirically based solutions to problems of individual and societal importance, both local and global.
The online master’s program follows a junior-colleague model. Students work closely with their advisors and join them in many aspects of professional development. This includes designing and conducting research, preparing manuscripts for presentation and publication, presenting and publishing those manuscripts, and engaging in all facets of the responsible conduct of research. Students typically work with one advisor, but may work with other faculty members or have co-advisors. If a student’s or advisor’s interests change, students are free to change advisors.
The online M.A. degree requires a minimum of 30 credit hours: 21 hours in 6 content areas (required courses), 3 hours in a practicum, and research and elective courses. Students also must conduct, write up, and orally defend an empirically based thesis. The following courses are required:
- ABSC 850 Principles of Behavior Analysis (3). The science of behavior (e.g., observation, experimentation), laboratory methods, basic behavioral principles (e.g., reinforcement, stimulus control), and their applications (e.g., early childhood, disabilities).
- ABSC 851 Ethical, Legal, and Professional Issues in Applied Behavioral Science (3). Instruction in ethical principles in the conduct of research (e.g., informed consent, data analysis), legal issues in professional conduct (e.g., plagiarism, copyright), and professional skills (e.g., journal reviewing, professional communication).
- ABSC 854 Experimental Analysis of Behavior (3). The basic principles of operant and respondent conditioning in the context of basic non-human and human subjects research.
- ABSC 770 Within Subjects Research Methodology and Direct Observation (3). Strategies and tactics of scientific research (e.g., objectivity, empiricism), the logic of experimentation (e.g., validity, reliability), measurement and direct observation, and experimental designs for single-subject and time-series analyses.
- ABSC 771 Introduction to Applied Behavioral Science (3). The characteristics of applied behavioral research (assessment, analysis, intervention, evaluation), intervention research (clinical, community), applied procedures and programs, social validity, and ethical issues.
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O applied behavioral analysis content area course (3 credit hours) from the following list:
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ABSC 773 Applied Behavior Analysis in Complex Organizations. An examination of the theory, principles, and methods of behavior analysis and their applications to problems of human behavior in complex organizations such as businesses, industries, human service organizations, and governments.
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ABSC 852 Behavior Analysis in Developmental Disabilities. A graduate seminar that includes an overview of the behavioral characteristics of various developmental disabilities and examination of empirically-supported behavioral approaches to the study and treatment of developmental disabilities.
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ABSC 853 Behavioral Assessment. A graduate seminar on the strategies, tactics, and ethics of functional assessment in the larger context of behavioral assessment (e.g., nomothetic and idiographic approaches).
- ABSC 772 Conceptual Foundations of Behavior Analysis (3). The history and philosophy of behavioral science, contemporary advances in basic research for application, the analysis of everyday behavior (e.g., cognition, emotion), and current issues in the discipline and the profession (e.g., relations between basic and applied research).
- ABSC 871 or ABSC 872 Research or Intervention Practicum (3). A supervised practicum course in either basic or applied research or behavioral interventions.
Thesis Defense:
For the M.A. degree, students are required to propose, complete, write up, and orally defend an empirically based Master’s thesis. While working on the thesis, students will enroll in ABSC 899 Master's Thesis in Applied Behavioral Science with their faculty advisor. Students must write and defend the thesis to a thesis committee. The thesis must meet minimum department and University requirements. The thesis is successful if a majority of the committee members vote to pass it.
