UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA
Orlando, Florida
Department of Psychology

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BACKGROUND:
Title: Applied Experimental and Human Factors Psychology (PhD)
Est: 1988
Semester
Granted last 3 years: 20
Part-time: no
HFES student chapter: yes
Program: This program is patterned after the scientist-practitioner model of the American Psychological Association. It adheres to the guidelines established by the Committee for Education and Training of APA's Division 21 (Applied Experimental and Engineering Psychology). Students receive training in the content and techniques of human factors psychology, including statistical quantitative procedures, experimental design, survey methods, computer techniques, and other research methodologies. In addition, students must select a concentration area. The concentration may be in human-computer interaction, team training, visual performance, human factors aviation, or other areas of interest with the adviser's approval. A dissertation representing a significant research contribution to the field is required. The program seeks to develop the capacity to design, conduct, and apply human factors research in a variety of professional settings. Consequently, a variety of research, consulting, and internship arrangements are included in the program. Accredited by: HFES.
Contact: Mustapha Mouloua, AEHF Psychology, University of Central Florida, Psychology Department, Bldg. 99, 326, Orlando, FL 32816-1390; 407/823-2910; mouloua@mail.ucf.edu.
Catalog: (Online) http://www.graduatecatalog.ucf.edu

APPLICATION:
Deadlines: 12/15
Fee: $30

ADMISSION REQUIREMENTS:
GPA: 3.5 (avg)
GRE: 306 v + q (avg)
Other: Bachelor's degree with courses in statistical psychology and in the general area of experimental psychology; courses in research methodology calculus and in computer programming.
Research: high
Work experience: medium
Letters: high
Interview: low

ADMISSIONS:
Students applying last year: 42
Accepted: 14
Entered program: 10
Openings/year: 10

TUITION AND FEES:
Resident: $352.31/hour
Nonresident: $1145.01/hour

FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE:
% receiving: 100
Amount: $10000-$18000
Available: fellowship, TA, RA, scholarship, not tuition exempt
Apply: before submitting application

DEGREE REQUIREMENTS:
PhD: 84 semester hours, course and candidacy exam, research and internship required, no languages, 5 years

CURRICULUM:
Required courses: Human Factors I, II, III (9), Advanced Research Methodology I, II, III (12), Human Cognition and Learning (3), Physiological Psychology (3), Sensation and Perception (3), Human Performance (3), Advanced Human-Computer Interaction (3), Human Factors Professional Issues (3), Visual Performance (3), Human Computer Interaction (3), Internship (6), Doctoral Dissertation (15)
Electives: Multi-Media System (3), Institutional System Design (3), Ergonomics in High Tech (3), Animation in CBI (3), Ergonomics (3), Organizational Psychology I (3), Advanced Social Psychology (3)
Required courses outside department: 6 (Internship)
Recommended courses outside department: 15 (Doctoral Dissertation)
Offered: summer
Class size: 10

RESEARCH/TEACHING OPPORTUNITIES:
Research facilities: Research and support facilities are available on campus in the Psychology Department as well as in other departments, such as Computer Science and Engineering. Facilities are also available in a research park adjacent to the university. On-campus facilities include the Team Performance Lab, the Visual Performance Lab, the Center for Applied Human Factors in Aviation, and the Center for Research and Education in Optics and Lasers. Excellent simulation, training, and virtual environment capabilities are available through the Institute for Simulation and Training in conjunction with U.S. Army and Navy labs. Private research organizations in the area also provide facilities to students. Graduate student office space is available through Psychology Department facilities.
Teaching: Students are trained to perform in the classroom and to give professional presentations in industrial and government settings. To facilitate this training, teaching positions for a variety of undergraduate psychology classes are available through the Psychology Department as well as through local community colleges. Before a student accepts a teaching position in the department, he or she must complete a mandatory teaching seminar as part of the offered curriculum. Departmental teaching positions are competitive and provide excellent experience. All students are encouraged to pursue them.
Current research: Team performance with complex industrial and military systems, group decision making, performance assessment and devices for people with disabilities, human factors concerns in aging, display interfaces within flight management systems, flight training systems, visual-vestibular interaction with simulator systems and virtual environments, alarms and warnings for interface designs, task allocation within automated systems requiring supervisory behavior, synthetic speech comprehension in high-workload environments, visual performance with various transportation systems, driver distraction, and human-robot interaction.

STUDENT STATISTICS:
Active: 21 men, 28 women
First-year students: 10
Mean scores: PhD: GRE 1230, GPA 3.6

FACULTY:
Corey Bohil, PhD 2002, U of Texas at Austin; cognition, signal detection theory, and human performance
Clint A. Bowers, PhD 1987, U South Florida; team training
Peter Hancock, PhD 1983, U Illinois; stress and performance
Florian Jentsch, PhD 1997, U of Central Florida; team performance, aviation psychology, human-robot interaction
Mustapha Mouloua, PhD 1992, Catholic U America; automation
Mark Neider, PhD 2006, Stoney Brook U; visual performance, driver distraction
Edward J. Rinalducci, PhD 1966, U Rochester
Eduardo Salas, PhD 1984, Old Dominion U; teams and training effectiveness
Valerie Sims, PhD 1996, UC Santa Barbara; applied cognitive
Janan Al-Awar Smither, PhD 1985, Johns Hopkins U; aging and technology
James Szalma, PhD 1999, U of Cincinnatti; individual differences, stress and human performance, vigilance

RETIRED EMERITUS PROFESSORS:
David Abbott, aviation psychology, quantitative methods
Richard D. Gilson, PhD 1968, Princeton U; information processing, aviation psychology, flight training systems
Ben Morgan, PhD 1968 , University of Louisville; team training

[Updated May 2012]