10 Best College Majors for Introverts

Some people are talkative, thrive around people, and enjoy social settings. Others don’t – they feel energized by being alone, take time to make decisions, and are super self-sufficient. Neither one is good or bad, just different! The first type of person is often referred to as an extrovert, while the second is an introvert.

If you find yourself identifying more with the introvert description, then it is possible that the thought of going to pick a major and future career might seem a bit daunting. What if you pick a major that involves a lot of group work and discussions, and you don’t thrive in group scenarios? What if the career you think you want actually requires you to be spontaneous and conversate with people, and that’s not your forte? 

Never fear, for we’ve put together a guide to the best college majors for introverts. No matter what type of introvert you are or where your interests lie, there’s a strong chance that one of these majors may be right up your alley.

Typical Qualities Of An Introvert

First, it’s important to realize that there is no one definition of an introvert. There are many different types of introvert personalities, and many psychologists even view introversion as a spectrum. The word introvert means to “to turn inward”, but that can mean many different things. Here’s a few type of widely accepted introvert personalities: 

• Social Introvert: This is the more stereotypical definition of an introvert. They are the kind of people who get their energy not from being around people but from being alone. They don’t thrive in large audiences or crowds but rather in small groups. This isn’t to say that they’re anti-social or don’t like being around people. That’s just not where they get their energy. Social introverts will thrive in a major/career that involves mostly individual work and maybe the occasional group project. 
• Thinking Introvert: Thinking Introverts are those people who like to take the time to analyze and introspect on their interactions. They are very thoughtful and self-aware about how they’re affecting others, and they have a great self-understanding. Any career that involves analyzing, specifically analyzing people, would be ideal for a thinking introvert. 
• Restrained Introvert: These introverts are thinkers. They don’t like to be rushed, and they don’t like to be put on the spot. Instead, they prefer to take their time and be slow and deliberate with their actions. This means that when they do act, they are very rarely wrong. Thus, restrained introverts would thrive in any career in which they can be pragmatic with little room for error. 

How We Made This List 

Since there are different types of introverts, and each person is of course unique, it’s hard to come up with a catch-all list that will appeal to all introverts. However, we pieced together this list based on qualities of the major that we feel at least one type of introvert shares. For example, you’ll see some majors that involve very little group work as a nod to the social introverts. You’ll also see some very technical majors that leave little room for error or ambiguity. Those are for the restrained introvert.

If you are an introvert, you may not find every major on the list appealing, but hopefully by reading through the descriptions and understanding why we’ve chosen each of these majors for introverts, you’ll start to understand what kind of environments various majors offer and maybe even piece together what kind of work environment you want in the major you pursue. 

College Major Ideas For Introverts 

1. Computer Science 

If you have the logical and technical skills to learn complicated computer programs and code for multiple hours a day, you should absolutely consider a career in computer science. Not only does this major offer a lucrative post-college career and salary, but it is perfect for both social and restrained introverts. You’ll usually find yourself doing work by yourself in the major, with small group projects in between. You’ll also find that computer programming is very detail-oriented work, where a single misplaced semicolon could make the entire code fail. This makes it perfect for those pragmatic restrained introverts who leave no room for error. 

2. Accounting

Accounting is one of those math-heavy majors that are perfect for those who enjoy doing detailed, analytical work on their own. Most accounting majors spend most of their time alone, learning how to prepare tax documents, financial reports, and the like. This makes it perfect for social introverts. Furthermore, accounting is all about mastering complicated financial principles and summarizing everything in a structured format with no mistakes. A restrained introvert would thrive with such a task.

3. Marketing

This may not intuitively sound like the right major for an introvert, but it certainly can be. Marketing is all about figuring out how to present things in a way that appeals to people and speaks to their senses. It is as much about understanding people’s psychology as it is about the actual presentation of the product itself. Marketing majors often spend time by themselves figuring out how best to sell products, though there is some group work from time to time. Moreover, you’ll be focusing on analyzing how humans make decisions. Thus, this major and career path is ideal for both social introverts and thinking introverts.

4. Economics 

Economics is a very wide field with a ton of different applications. If you choose an economics major, you can either go the technical route and master the detailed art of econometrics and other predictive economic analyses. This path would be great for a restrained introvert. You could also go more towards the route of an economic historian or an environmental economist, in which you spend your time analyzing the economic activity of previous countries, regions, or even people to understand economic models and how they work in the real world. Thinking introverts might enjoy this path. Either way, the economics major involves a great deal of working by yourself or in small groups on analytical research projects, so the social introvert might feel at home as well.

5. Art 

This liberal arts major involves individuals not only honing their drawing, painting, sculpture, photography, and other skills, but also spending a lot of time alone figuring out what medium and form is going to speak to people and convey your work’s meaning. It also involves a great deal of imagination and precise skill as you create your masterpieces. You will also analyze other pieces of art and learn about their history. For these reasons, an art major could be ideal for both a social introvert and a thinking introvert. 

6. Psychology/Counseling 

Most schools don’t have a counseling major, but more schools than not offer a psychology major, which covers the same concepts. Psychology is all about understanding the human mind and how people think. It gives you a deep understanding of what makes people tick, both from the standpoint of the brain and neuroscience but also in terms of how and why people act and make decisions in the way that they do. Moreover, a lot of this study of people happens either alone or in small lab settings, so you won’t have to worry about working with large groups of people with this major. If you’re a thinking extrovert or a social extrovert, this might be the right path for you. 

7. Engineering 

There are many different types of engineers – aerospace engineers, mechanical engineers, electrical engineers, and more! The curriculum of each type of engineering does tend to vary, especially in the upper division courses, but the underlying experience in the major is the same. Engineers do a lot of very technical work in the STEM field, which requires sharp analytical skills and a penchant for accuracy. Furthermore, this work is often done alone or in a small group setting for various research projects. Since engineering is so diverse, any type of introvert with a knack for STEM skills could be happy pursuing an engineering degree.

8. Public Policy 

Public policy is all about crafting and understanding the laws that govern everyday life, including how they affect people. Laws and regulations are complicated, and they require a great deal of analytical skills and attention to detail to understand. It’s also important to figure out how to avoid legal loopholes and fully account for a policy’s consequences. The precise thinking of a restrained introvert and the introspective approach of a thinking introvert would be great for a public policy major.

9. Finance 

If you decide to major in finance, you’re entering a major in which you will need to develop deep analytical skills as you learn how to master techniques in business analytics, financial planning, and other similar fields. Finance majors learn how to thoroughly and accurately take thorough inventory of a client’s financial situation, and any mistake in those calculations could cost the business quite a bit of money. So with a finance major, it’s important to be deliberate and correct with your work. With this in mind, restrained introverts ought to consider this major for their future.

10. Biology/Chemistry

Biology and Chemistry (or BioChemistry, if you’d like to combine it) are both degrees in which you explore a particular field of science in depth and become a subject-matter expert on research in the field. A hard science degree like biology and chemistry involves a lot of work in relatively small groups in a lab setting, and the career of a biologist or chemist usually involves even less human interaction in a lab. So if engaging with lots of people is not your forte and you have the hard STEM skills to succeed in the major, this is certainly the major for you.  

While you’re considering what major you want to pursue and which bachelor’s degree you want to earn, you may also be considering your chances of getting into the colleges of your choice. We want to help you answer that tough question, so we at CollegeVine now offer a free chancing engine that will tell you your chances of acceptance at the colleges of your choice, based on your academic and extracurricular profile. As a bonus, we’ll give you expert tips on how to improve your profile and make it more competitive for college admissions. Sign up for your free CollegeVine account to get started!