The I/O area made a clean sweep as students took first prize in all the student award categories at the 2026 Canadian Psychological Association and Dr. Ramona Bobocel was awarded the Distinguished Contributions to I/O Psychology Award from CSIOP.
Dr. Igor Grossmann and Dr. Dan Smilek have been recognized with 2026 Arts Awards of Excellence in Research and Teaching, respectively. We look forward to celebrating with both Igor and Dan at the 2026 Celebration of Arts event in the Fall. Congratulations, and thanks to the students and faculty who initiated these nominations!
The Humboldt prize is awarded to scientists for fundamental discoveries, new theories, or insights with lasting impact.
We are pleased to share that Dr. Megan McCarthy has been awarded the Excellence in Online Course Design Award for her design of ARTS 140.
Megan was nominated by students and selected from a highly competitive pool of 75 candidates, an impressive achievement that reflects her passionate dedication to high-quality teaching.
Awarded annually to the best thesis or major paper in Cognitive Science at the University of Waterloo. The Prize recognizes an original contribution to any field of Cognitive Science; work that transcends disciplines is encouraged but not required. Selection will be based on the originality and excellence of the contribution to our understanding of the mind and on demonstrated independence in making that contribution.
The 2026 Psychology Discovery Conference (PDC), held on April 14th, was a resounding success, bringing together over 150 attendees for a dynamic celebration of psychology research.
The Psychology Department is pleased to announce that Dr. Christine Purdon was elected to be a CPA Fellow. This distinction is reserved for members who have made a distinguished contribution to the advancement of the discipline of psychology and have given exceptional service to their national or provincial associations.
Research led by Carla Rumeo, fourth year PhD student at the University of Waterloo (under the supervision of Jonathan Oakman on the Psychological Intervention Research Team), has been featured in an APA Article Spotlight — "Psychotherapy lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada."
Psychology is delighted to share that our colleague Geoff Fong has been awarded the Doll-Wynder Award from the Society for Research on Nicotine and Tobacco (the world’s leading professional society of the scientific study of nicotine and tobacco).
According to Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU), UW’s psychology department ranks among the top five in Canada, and within the top 100 globally. This distinction was earned through ARWU’s rigorous research-focused criteria which include the presence of highly cited researchers, publications in Nature and Science, and per-capita academic performance.