Undergraduate Students

When I was in the 8th grade, my junior high school had a career day. One of the presenters was a psychologist from the local university. Out of absolute boredom and hoping to get out of a math class, I attended his presentation. I was hooked. On that day, I decided I was going to be a psychologist and, now, some 40 years later, I am doing exactly what I believed I wanted to do.

I hope that many of you, having chosen to study psychology, are doing exactly what it is that you want to do. The magic about psychology is that such a broad and diverse discipline, can accommodate many different talents, intentions, and plans. Some of you intend to go to graduate study in psychology and become teachers, researchers, or professionals. Others of you may well use your undergraduate training in psychology as a spring board to other professions: law, medicine, political science, human factors, management, etc. All of these disciplines are well served by an undergraduate degree in psychology. Some of you may not know what work you want to do, but simply know that you are fascinated by the study of the human experience.

To all of you, I welcome you to our shared discipline. The Department of Psychology at Auburn University provides a sound basic introduction to this discipline. Well grounded in scientific foundations and yet, also, aware of our social responsibilities, our courses can provide you with new and fascinating understandings of human behavior. The department has a number of exceptional psychology faculty from whom you can get the very latest thinking and research in their respective areas and from whom you can expect interest and support for your personal and career objectives.

So let me take this opportunity to welcome you to your department and encourage you to find what you need to achieve your objectives in your academic study and your life. Welcome and good luck!

Dr. Barry Burkhart

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Last updated on April 8, 2004