News

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. 

Please join us in celebrating that Dr. Kate Ratliff has been named a Tier 1 SSHRC Canada Research Chair in Intergroup Attitudes! Kate is an Associate Professor of Psychology and the area head of social psychology.

Along with her CRC, she has also received a grant from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s John R. Evans Leaders Fund (CFI-JELF) to support her research infrastructure.

Congratulations!!!

Please join us in congratulating Dr. Ramona Bobocel on being recognized as the recipient of the 2025 Distinguished Contributions Award from the Canadian Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology. This award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding and sustained contributions to the field of Industrial-Organizational (I-O) Psychology in Canada. 

Dr. Clara Colombatto is one of 26 researchers at the University of Waterloo to receive funding from the Canada Foundation for Innovation.