R Points

Undergraduate R Point Requirements
Prescreening
Access Sona Systems
Information for Instructors and TAs regarding
What are R-Points?
How do I earn R-Points?
How do I create my R-Points account?
What is an RUID?
How do I find my RUID?
How many R-Points do I need to earn this semester?
What if I forget my Sona-Systems password?
How can I change my Sona-Systems password?
What if I need to cancel my research appointment?
What do I do if the researcher does not show for my appointment?
What can I do to earn R-Points if I do not wish to participate in research?
What if I am under 18? Do I still have to complete my R-Point requirement?
What happens if I do not complete my R-Point requirement?
Access Sona Systems

R-point Requirements:
Day class students are required to earn 7 total R-Points. Evening class students are required to earn 5 total R-Points. Students enrolled in Principles of Psychology 101 and 102 concurrently are only required to complete R-points for one class. If one or both of these classes is a day class, the student is required to earn 7

Prescreening:
All students are invited to participate in prescreening. Students can earn 2 of their required R-Pts by completing the prescreening survey online. Prescreening can take no more than 45 minutes to do, and cannot be part of classroom time. Prescreening must be completed online by the date specified by the Subject Pool coordinator. Students who are in enrolled in 101 and 102 concurrently may only complete the prescreening once.

Information for Instructors and TAs regarding Sona-systems and R-points
Sona-systems: http://rutgers.sona-systems.com
Students will be able to obtain a username and password online using Sona-systems.
Students should obtain a username and password during one of the first lab sessions.
The Subject Pool coordinator will instruct students and their TAs in accessing and using the Sona-systems website during the first week of classes. Important dates (e.g., last day to sign up for experiments) will also be posted on Sona-systems. The Subject Pool Policy Manual is available for instructors and researchers on the Psychology Department website.
The Sona-systems website is http://rutgers.sona-systems.com

What are R-Points?
For partial credit towards completions of Principles of Psychology 101 and 102, students are required to participate in research conducted in the psychology department. In exchange for participating in research studies, students earn "R-Points".

How do I earn R-Points?
The first step towards earning R-Points is to create an online user account with Sona-Systems. Once your account has been created, you can log in to the system and participate in a prescreening survey worth 2 R-Points. Your participation in the survey is entirely voluntary and you may decline to complete the survey if you so choose. If you do decline to participate, this may affect the number of studies you will be qualified to sign up for during the semester. To participate in the prescreening survey, log onto Sona-Systems and select the study entitled "Prescreening Survey". This may be the easiest 2 R-Points you can earn this semester.
Over the course of the semester, you can earn your remaining R-Points by signing up for and participating in research studies. You will use your Sona-Systems account to schedule your research appointments.

How do I create my R-Points account?
Creating an account is simple and easy, and takes five minutes. To create your account, go to http://rutgers.sona-systems.com, and follow the instructions on the Quick-Guide stapled to this page. Using the system allows you to sign up for studies, cancel study times, and track your R-Point progress. Each study listed shows you a brief summary detailing what it's about, the time it takes place, how many R-Points you will earn by participating, and the name and contact information for the researcher conducting the study.
When creating your Sona-Systems account, please use your RUID as your User ID.. Using your RUID makes it much easier for the subject pool coordinator to track your R-Points progress and assign your credit properly.

What is an RUID?
Your RUID is your 9-digit student identification number. It is NOT your social security number.

How do I find my RUID?
For detailed information on how to obtain your RUID, please go to the following website: http://www.newark.rutgers.edu/news/ruid.php#newark

How many R-Points do I need to earn this semester?
Fall and spring semester day class students are required to earn a total of 7 R-Points over the course of the semester. Evening class students are required to earn 5 R-Points. Summer session day and evening class students are required to earn 5 points.
If you are enrolled in both Principles of Psychology 101 and 102 concurrently, you are only required to earn R-Points for one class. If one of your classes requires 7 points, you must earn 7 R-Points total for both classes. If both of your classes require 5 points, you must earn 5 points total for both classes.

What if I forget my Sona-Systems password?
If you forget your password, simply go to http://rutgers.sona-systems.com and click on "Lost Your Password". Your password will be e-mailed to you.

How can I change my Sona-Systems password?
To change your password, click on the menu item entitled "My Profile". Therein you can follow the prompt to change your password for logging on to the website.

What if I need to cancel my research appointment?
If you need to cancel participation in a study for any reason, you can do so online through Sona-Systems up until the cancellation deadline listed on the study information page. You can still cancel your appointment after the deadline without earning a penalty, so long as you contact the researcher by e-mail or by telephone (if listed). You must contact the researcher prior to the time the study is set to commence in order to avoid earning a penalty. Failure to show for a study (without canceling) will result in a 1-point increase in the student's R-Point requirement.

What do I do if the researcher does not show for my appointment?
If the researcher fails to show at the designated time, you will still earn your R-Points for that study. If researchers are not present within 10 minutes of start time, go to the psychology main office to report the event, or contact the subject pool coordinator James Thomas at jpthomas at(@) psychology.rutgers.edu.

What can I do to earn R-Points if I do not wish to participate in research?
Students have the opportunity to summarize a research article from an APA approved journal as an alternative to the R-point requirement. You must complete one summary for each R-Point. Summaries should be typed (not hand written) 1 page long, double-spaced, 1-inch margin, pt 12 or smaller font size. Papers must be submitted no later than the last day of scheduled classes (before the beginning of pre-exam "dead week"). The provisions for alternative participation appear on the Psychology Department web page and are listed in detail on the Sona-Systems website under the menu "FAQ".

What if I am under 18? Do I still have to complete my R-Point requirement?
Underage students are not permitted by law to take part in psychological research without parental consent. Therefore, students who are underage as of the first day of class are excluded from the psychological research subject pool. However, underage students are still required to complete their R-Point requirement by writing a total of four 1-page summaries of peer-reviewed journal articles in psychology. Additionally, underage students are required to sign an experiment waiver form and provide proof of age to the subject pool coordinator, their professor, or their graduate student TA. Experiment waiver forms are available by request via e-mail from the subject pool coordinator.
Because summer sessions are much shorter than spring and fall semesters, underage students taking class during the summer must complete three article summaries total.

What happens if I do not complete my R-Point requirement?
If you fail to complete your R-Point requirement this semester, your grade for the course will be temporarily dropped 1 letter grade (So, your hard-earned "A" will become a temporary "B"). You can amend this reduction by completing your R-Point requirement the following semester. Your grade will be changed following completion (in this example, back to "A"). If you fail to complete the requirement the following semester, the grade will become permanent. Please be aware that your temporary grade reduction will be factored into your current grade point average. Once you complete your R-point requirement and your grade resets to the grade you earned, this will be reflected in your grade point average.