The credit system corresponds with the hours of participation. That is, each 1/2 credit is approximately 1/2 hour of participation. Experiments which run 30 minutes or less are worth 1/2 credit; experiments that run more than 30 minutes but no more than one hour are worth 1 credit; experiments that run more than one hour but no more than 1.5 hours are worth 1.5 credits, and so on.

In addition, only 5 out of 6 of your course credits can come from online (web) studies. This means that if you are required to complete 6 credits, then 5 of them can come from online studies. You will need to get the rest from in-person studies or research papers, or a combination of both.

Yes, you must use Sona if you want to earn credit by participating in experiments.

No. The credit you receive from one experiment may be put towards one class and one class only. The one exception is that the prescreening questionnaire (DSUR) can count for multiple classes. If you would like to use the prescreening questionnaire for multiple class, after you have completed the questionnaire, email the Subject Pool Coordinator, at spcoordinator@ucdavis.edu. Provide your student ID and the class(es)/section you want credited.

After you participate in a study, the experimenter will record your credit electronically. Some, but not all, online studies give automatic credit. Generally, credit will be given within two days. Please be patient; if an experimenter is running large sessions, it may take some time to record everyone’s credit. However, if a week or more has passed and your credit is not reflected in your profile, you may contact the experimenter confirm that your participation will be credited.

It can take up to 48 hours to receive credit for participating in an experiment. Please be patient.

Before I run the end-of-quarter credit reports, I will make sure all credits are posted.  I will not finalize credit reports if there are any pending credits.

For internet studies, you should print out either the confirmation page at the end of the survey, or the last page of the survey and keep them until you verify that you have received credit. If you don’t receive credit within 48 hours, then you should contact the experimenter.

If your credits are incorrect please contact the experimenter and try to correct the problem. If you are unable to resolve the problem with the experimenter, then contact the Subject Pool Coordinator, at spcoordinator@ucdavis.edu.

At the end of the quarter, your assigned credit balance will be submitted to your professor. Make sure that you choose the correct class on the Sona site and assign your credits to that class, because this is how your professor will get your credits at the end of the quarter. If you are in a class with multiple sections (e.g., PSC 1, PSC 41), be VERY CAREFUL to choose your correct section.