Psychology In Our Everyday Lives

Ever wonder why psychology matters? In this fascinating course, you’ll take a deep dive into the variety of specialties and career paths available in the field. You’ll explore how basic tools, such as research and statistics, apply the methods of psychology to deliver valuable insights. You’ll learn to use tools that are vital to success no matter what your future holds, skills like critical thinking and creativity—the stuff of everyday lives.

Program Dates

Multi-length courses available throughout the year

Eligibility

For students ages 13 and up

Fees

$1495

Discover the “Why” Behind the Science of Psychology

Explore the Purpose and Goals of Psychological Science

Psychology is all about understanding, predicting, and influencing—sometimes with the goal to change an outcome. Study the myths, social efforts, and influential figures that shaped this science.

Learn How Research and Statistics Support the Goals of Psychology

Statistics and research methods are the pillars of psychology, allowing us to know how the brain processes information to translate to behavior. See how research methods produce statistics.

Study Human Factors and Organizational Psychology

Discover two fast-growing applied psychology subdisciplines, and how they are helping improve society. Understand tangible ways these subdisciplines play out in our everyday lives.

Learn How Cognitive and Health Psychology Affect our Daily Lives

Study the interplay between mind and body. How are health and cognitive psychology connected? Delve into two new areas: cognitive and health psychology.

Review the Hottest Topics in Psychology Today

Learn how areas of psychology are evolving, how psychology promotes collaboration and gives us new advances, such as AI, mental health and social media, and healthy workplaces. 

Explore Potential Careers in Psychology

The material covered in this course will give you insights into the many careers available in psychology, such as clinical psychologist, consumer psychologist, and forensic psychologist.

How You Will Benefit

  • Be able to describe the purpose and goals of psychology.
  • Understand how research methods and statistics provide insights to human behavioral trends.
  • Know how different areas of psychology connect to one another and other sciences.
  • Become familiar with the ways psychology can be used to address society’s needs.
  • Be able to identify the potential career paths in psychology.
  • Earn a Certificate of Completion from Rice University.

Teenage boy working on a computer

Three Learning Advantages Designed for You

Capstone Project

Create a 3-minute “news” video where you act as an anchor and present a summary of a news article that addresses a local, national, or global problem that you care about. Using what you’ve learned about psychology, address 3 project parts:

  • Problem Identification
  • Solution Approach
  • Presenting Your Information

Mentoring

You’ll receive guidance from a mentor who can support you and deepen your learning experience. You can expect:

  • Encouragement and direction on all assignments. 
  • Inspiration, motivation, and confidence to help you excel in your studies. 
  • Brainstorming and ideation to help you prepare for your capstone project.

Flexible Learning

  • 100% online learning that works with your schedule.
  • Flexible format: you’ll learn through video lectures that allow you to tune in anytime that works for you.
  • 20-30 hours of total instruction and course work, 
  • Tech-forward interactions, including engaging multimedia, real-life simulations, and curated assignments.
  • Guidance and support from mentors.

Apply Now for the Next Available Course

All course options have the same educational content, learning materials, and number of assignments. We are offering a condensed version of the course in order to accommodate students’ individual schedules.

Hear From Our Students

You should take this course if you have an interest in the field of psychology, but don't know where to start. It covers all the basics and various subfields so you can narrow down what is most interesting to you, personally. This program is also unobtrusive to your life as it is online and can be completed at a pace off your choice, as long as everything is finished by the end of the cohort. Also, if you are interested in attending Rice University, their precollege program is a great way to see what studying at Rice might be like, as many students and professors are featured in the course. - Samantha, psychology student from the US.

Taking this course truly opened my eyes and broadened my perspective on the discipline. It deepened my interest in psychology by introducing me to areas I hadn't considered before. One of the most valuable aspects of the course was how it addressed common misconceptions about psychology. The course didn't just focus on the theoretical and practical aspects; it also tackled the myths and realities associated with studying psychology. This honest and comprehensive approach helped me develop a more realistic understanding of what a career in psychology entails. Overall, it was a wonderful experience that significantly enriched my academic journey. - Elizabeth, psychology student from TX.

I believe this course would be fit for anyone who wants to expand their knowledge in psychology. This course helped me learn how psychology is used in our every day lives. It helped me learn about many different types of jobs that can be done through psychology as well. I also had fun learning about different kinds of psychology experiments such as the Bobo Doll experiment. This course is a mixture of education and fun! I truly believe anyone interested in psychology would love it! - Layal, psychology student from TX.

Danielle King, Ph.D.

Course Designed by Rice University Faculty

Danielle King, Ph.D.

Assistant professor of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Rice University

Dr. King’s research focuses on the topics of employee resilience, resources, racial identity, and voice. Her work has been published in both peer-reviewed scientific journals and in popular media outlets, including Harvard Business Review and Forbes. She is the 2022 recipient of the American Psychological Association Achievement Award for Early Career Psychologists, and was designated by the Association for Psychological Science as one of the 2023 “Rising Stars.”

Meet Your Mentors

Rice University Precollege Program Psychology Course Mentor, Brittany

Brittany

Holds a bachelor's degree in psychology and a master's degree in counseling. Also works as an academic advisor.

Rice University Precollege Program Psychology Course Mentor, Marcus

Marcus

Currently a graduate student in Experimental Psychology as well as a Neuroscience researcher. Teaching assistant for Research Methods and Statistics course.

Rice University Precollege Program Psychology Course Mentor, Fiona

Fiona

Holds a bachelor's degree in psychology and is working towards a maste'rs degree in neuroscience.

Want to Know More?

Sign up for more information and we’ll be in touch.

Admissions

Our application process is easy. You can expect a prompt decision.

Frequently Asked Questions

How will you be graded? What are assignments like? How much time do you have to turn around a project? When do you find out if you’re admitted? Find answers to your questions here.

Scholarships

We offer need-based scholarships for participating students who exhibit high potential and an inability to pay the full tuition. 

  • If you haven’t applied to the program, apply here. After submitting your application, click “Apply for a need-based scholarship” on the confirmation page to request a scholarship.  
  • If you’ve already applied to the program, sign in to your profile to check your scholarship status. If we don’t have a scholarship request on file, click “Apply for a need-based scholarship” to request a scholarship.