Vice Chancellor: Prof. Dr. Khalid Aftab

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Since 13-10-07

Department of Psychology

 

Introduction

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GC University Lahore has the unique distinction of starting MA classes in Psychology in 1926, making it the second institute after the University of Calcutta, to launch a Postgraduate Programme at that time. The MA Psychology Programme was launched jointly with the Department of Psychology of Forman Christian College (FCC) Lahore.

 

For a long, the discipline of Psychology remained a part of Philosophy and classes were held jointly till 1961. In 1962, the Department of Psychology was established as an independent Department under the chairpersonship of Prof. Muhammad Ajmal, a renowned psychologist, teacher, scholar and mentor of international stature.

 

Before 1962, the Departments of Psychology and Philosophy were chaired jointly by an array of distinguished professors: Prof. G. C. Chatterji, Prof. Qazi Aslam and Prof.  Hamid-ud-Din. Prof. Humair Hashmi became the Officiating Chairperson of the Department when Prof. Muhammad Ajmal was promoted to Principal, Government College Lahore in 1972 and later as Vice Chancellor, University of the Punjab. Subsequently,

Prof. G.N. Chatterji

Prof. Qazi Aslam Prof Dr. Muhammad Ajmal

Dr. S.M. Rehman chaired the Department till 1973, when he accepted an advisory assignment with the Pakistan Army. Prof. Syed Azhar Ali Rizvi took over as Chairperson after his departure. The nomenclature of the Postgraduate Degree in Psychology was changed from MA to MSc in 1973. The proposal to change the nomenclature had been put forward by Prof. Muhammad Ajmal and Dr. S. M. Rehman. Prof. Muhammad Akhtar Qureshi succeeded Prof. Rizvi as Chairperson of the Department and Dr. Kausar Suhail became the Chairperson of the Department in 2002.

Facilities

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To make education more interactive and to increase the conceptual clarity of the students, formal teaching is supplemented with scientifically designed classroom activities, workshops, seminars, extension lectures, and the use of audio-visual aids. The Department has links with numerous hospitals and organisations for academic and research purposes.

 

Departmental Library

 

The Seminar Library at the Department has the latest books on all important disciplines. A number of national and international research journals are available for students in the Library. The Departmental Library is computerised, consisting of more than 4, 000 books and 2, 330 research articles. To facilitate research activities of both faculty members and students, a Psychology database, "PsycINFO", consisting of thousands of research papers, has been installed on the Library’s computers.

 

On-line access to full-text articles of the American Psychological Association:

 

On-line access to the APA Database “PsycARTICLE 2007” is now available and is based on APA’s full-text journal articles database. Researchers can search thousands of articles from hundreds of peer-reviewed journals from 1894 to the present. To facilitate research articles of faculty members and students, a psychology database, “PsycINFO”, consisting of hundreds of thousands of research abstracts has already been installed on the Library’s computers.

 

Testing and Research Centre

 

The Testing and Research Centre at the Department has more than 100 tests relevant to the fields of Clinical, Social, Developmental, Counselling and Cognitive Psychology. With purpose-built furniture, the place is comfortable for studying and administering tests to clients peacefully. 

 

Research

 

Conducting research offers the exciting opportunity of working in one’s area of interest under the close supervision of an expert. Our objectives are to ensure regular guidance thorough support and to ensure a timetable with realistic but strictly followed deadlines, specified for the completion of students’ empirical work. Our aim is to arm students with knowledge and research skills necessary to address wider intellectual problems faced by the community in academic and professional settings. To achieve this, we continue to develop a number of strategies and facilities.

 

Research Groups

 

·   Family Express Emotions and Psychopathology Group

·   Positive Psychology Group

·   Emotional Intelligence Group

 

Research Facilities

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Research facilities include an extensive computer system for on-line access to electronic research databases. The Departmental Library is linked to the official research database of the American Psychological Association, PsycINFO, and PSYNDEX with Test Finder. The Department’s self-constructed research database on diverse areas of Psychology consists of 20 CDs and 25 self-compiled research volumes.

 

Research journal

 

The “Pakistan Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology” (PJSCP) is published by the Departments of Psychology and Clinical Psychology, GC University Lahore. The “Pakistan Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology” is a research journal published on an annual basis. The PJSCP provides a forum for dissemination of findings related to social and clinical areas of Psychology, in addition to other fields. The journal aims to enhance the understanding of social, environmental and cultural factors in the etiology and outcomes of mental health problems as they affect individuals and society.

 

Seminars, Lectures, Workshops

 

The Department offers it students, ample opportunities to interact with the international scientific community. We encourage seminars/workshops by guest speakers from both local and foreign universities and attendance at these events is compulsory for students.

 

Academic/Professional Links

 

Research activity is reinforced by our links with foreign universities, clinics, hospitals, NGOs and local and multinational organisations. The Department of Psychology is linked to the University of Birmingham.

 

Academic Programmes

 

At present, the Department offers BSc 4-Year (Hons.), MPhil and PhD Degree Programmes.

 

Teaching Methods

 

Teaching at all levels of education in Psychology is highly interactive and offers a combination of formal lectures, workshops, presentations by the students, quizzes, audio-visual learning aids, open-book assignments, group tasks and other innovative learning projects.

 

Assessment

 

Assessments are carried out by students' performance in written exams on theory as well as performance in technical skills, learning programmes, practical tasks and research projects.

 

Seminars, lectures, workshops

 

Weekly seminars are organised on a regular basis to enhance the conceptual clarity of the students and to keep record of their participation as well as of learning.

 

Extension Lectures by the Faculty

 

Our Programme of Extension Lectures by faculty members in their area of interest provides the students an additional opportunity to investigate directions for their research. Each Extension Lecture comprises a two-hour session with an exhaustive question/answers session.

 

Curriculum and Course Evaluation

 

In designing our courses, we aim to provide our students both with a broad knowledge of contemporary Psychology and with the opportunity to specialise in the topics which interest them. In order to be in line with the rapidly changing scientific world, the Department continues to review, modify and update its curriculum in order to find out the missing as well as redundant items at all levels of education in Psychology. 

 

Future Prospects

 

Students who graduate with this Degree have a number of job options. Their consumption in different fields is very quick. They can work at hospitals as Clinical Psychologists and educational institutes as teachers. They are also hired by the Armed Forces of Pakistan, the Federal Public Service Commission and the Punjab Public Service Commission. Psychologists are also in demand at human rights’ organisations and NGOs.

 

Courses

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BSc (Hons.) Psychology

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Year – 1

Course Code

Course Title

Credit Hours

Semester

PSY – 1101

Introduction to Psychology

3

I

PSY – 1201

Theories of Personality

3

II

 

Year – 2

Course Code

Course Title

Credit Hours

Semester

PSY – 2101

Human Relations

3

III

PSY – 2201

Cognitive Psychology

3

IV

PSY – 2202

Abnormal Psychology

3

IV

 

Year – 3

Course Code

Course Title

Credit Hours

Semester

PSY – 3101

Neuroscience & Behavior

3

V

PSY – 3102

Statistics in Psychology

3

V

PSY – 3103

Research Methods

3

V

PSY – 3104

Social Psychology

3

V

PSY – 3105

Psychology Assessment

4

V

PSY – 3201

Experimental Design & Data Analysis

3

VI

PSY – 3202

Information Processing: Sensation & Perception

3

VI

PSY – 3203

Developmental Psychology

4

VI

PSY – 3204

Clinical Psychology

4

VI

PSY – 3205

Statistical Analysis on Computers

3

VI

  

Year – 4 

Course Code

Course Title

Credit Hours

Semester

PSY – 4101

Culture and Psychology

3

VII

PSY – 4102

Educational Psychology in Practice

3

VII

 

Elective 1

3

VII

 

Elective 2

3

VII

PSY – 4299

Research Project

3*

VII

PSY – 4201

Neuroscience and Psychopathology

3

VIII

PSY – 4202

Positive Psychology

3

VIII

 

Elective 3

3

VIII

 

Elective 4

3

VIII

PSY – 4299

Research Project

3*

VIII

 

Electives

Course Code

Course Title

Credit Hours

PSY – 4203

Counselling Psychology

3

PSY – 4204

Psycholinguistics

3

PSY – 4205

Forensic Psychology

3

PSY – 4206

Human Resource Management

3

PSY – 4207

Organisational Behaviour

3

PSY – 4208

Health Psychology

3

PSY – 4209

Psychology, Art & Literature

3

PSY – 4210

Music Psychology

3

PSY – 4211

Indigenous Perspectives in Psychology

3

PSY – 4212

Human Relations in Management

3

PSY – 4213

Innovation & Entrepreneurship in Psychology

3

PSY – 4214

Gender Studies in Psychology

3

 

Psychology as an Allied Subject

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Year – 1

Course Code

Course Title

Credit Hours

Semester

PSY – 1101

Introduction to Psychology (F)

3

I

PSY – 1201

Theories of Personality (F) 

3

II

 

Year – 2

Course Code

Course Title

Credit Hours

Semester

PSY – 2101

Human Relations (F)

3

III

PSY – 2201

Cognitive Psychology (F)

3

IV

 

M.Phil Psychology

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Year – 1

Course Code

Course Title

Credit Hours

Semester

PSY – 7101

Research Methods

3

I

PSY – 7102

Seminar in Qualitative Research

3

I

PSY – 7103

Statistics in Psychology

3

I

Optional Courses: The students will select one from the following four options

PSY – 7104

Industrial / Organisational Psychology I :

Organisational Behaviour

3

I

PSY – 7105

Educational Psychology I