Biopsychology at Messiah University
Following the biopsychology degree program at Messiah University opens doors to a variety of careers, including medicine, clinical psychology, cognitive neuroscience, psychopharmacology, neuropsychology, behavioral genetics, experimental psychology, evolutionary psychology, comparative psychology and more.
If you are interested in the biological basis of human and animal behavior, and underlying psychological processes, such as learning, memory, perception, attention, motivation, emotion, and cognition, then you are well suited for the versatility of a degree in biopsychology at Messiah University. This program is one of only two such programs within the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities.
As a biopsychology major at Messiah University, you'll be able to:
- Immerse yourself in challenging courses such as pathophysiology, anatomy, cell biology and immunology
- Dissect a human cadaver in our state-of-the-art lab
- Take courses that prepare you to go on to medical school
- Have the opportunity to conduct malaria/AIDS research at Macha Mission Hospital in Zambia in collaboration with Johns Hopkins
- Join current research projects such as: developing a cognitive test for Alzheimer’s patients; functional MRI studies of children's brain activation during math problem solving; brainstem secretion following acute pancreatitis; drug affects on PTSD; or begin your own research project
- Gain firsthand experience using scanning and transmission electron microscopes, mammalian tissue culture facilities, and molecular biology techniques, along with other sophisticated equipment to analyze cultures and manipulate molecules
- Take advantage of the flexible curriculum and choose to study abroad in locations like New Zealand, South America, Zambia, Panama, South Florida, Costa Rica, Bolivia, Argentina and Chile
- Practice interviewing, counseling or conducting research in our state-of-the-art observation rooms with recording capabilities and microphones, allowing instructors to speak to participants
As a graduate of the biopsychology program, you will be equipped to secure positions such as:
- Graduate student in neuroscience, psychology or public health
- Medical school student
- Researcher or research assistant
- Pharmacy technician
- Laboratory and research tech
- Genetic counselor
- Positions in science-related business, sales and law
For more information on career planning for the biopsychology program, visit the Messiah University Career and Professional Development Center.
Messiah's nationally recognized internship program places students in a variety of biopsychology internships. Biopsychology also secure research opportunities on and off-campus. A few examples include:
- Occupational therapy clinic
- Research institution
- Rehabilitation therapy
- Physical therapy clinic
- Penn State Hershey Medical Center
- Messiah's summer research program
Collaborative learning
This hybrid major bridges the gap between the Departments of Biological Sciences and Psychology and offers a biopsychology degree with two science tracks: one with majors-level biology courses for those who plan to attend medical or graduate school, and the other for allied health professions.
Professional-grade equipment
As a student at Messiah University, a top Christian university in Pennsylvania, you'll be afforded comprehensive research opportunities using state-of-the-art equipment and learning techniques. We're equipped with interview rooms and group observation areas that have recording capabilities; we have EKG, EEG, EOG, EMG equipment; and you can even work with a cadaver lab, a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) machine, environmental growth chambers, tissue culture hoods and incubators, phase contrast and fluorescence microscopes and a scanning electron microscope.