The List of All U.S. Colleges With a Psychology Major

Looking to study a subject that gives you insight into human behavior and enables you to help the people around you? Psychology is an important discipline that applies to many different careers and teaches you important skills for your academic, professional, and personal life. With behavioral studies at the heart of economics, marketing, public health, and politics, It’s no wonder that psychology is one of the most popular college majors available.

Why Should You Study Psychology in College?

Career Prospects

When people think of psychologists, they tend to focus on clinical psychologists—those who work directly with patients. However, there are many different areas in which psychologists specialize, such as research, forensics, academia, military, health, and others.

To be a psychologist, you must earn a doctorate such as a Ph.D. or a Psy.D. But you can apply your bachelor’s degree in psychology to a wide range of fields and occupations including:

• Human resources specialist
• Substance abuse counselor
• Therapist
• Social worker
• School counselor

(NB: You will need to earn a master’s degree for some of these occupations.)

Skill Development

Psychology programs will help you develop important hard and soft skills, including critical thinking, analytical, collaboration, problem-solving, and research. Even if you don’t choose a career in psychology, these skills will be attractive to employers and will serve you well in any job. Moreover, the skills you learn in your psychology courses will help you throughout college.

Understanding Human Behavior

At its core, psychology is the study of behavior, human development, and the brain. In your psychology courses, you’ll learn about how and why people act the way they do, motivations, common diagnoses, and more. This will enable you to gain insight into yourself and others and give you new perspectives on your interactions and relationships.

How Can You Increase Your Chances of Acceptance?

While most undergraduate psychology programs don’t offer direct acceptance into the major, many will ask you to note the subject you intend to study on your application. To become a psychology major, you should develop a strong science and social science profile, excelling in courses such as biology. You should, of course, enroll in any psychology course your school offers, such as AP Psychology; if your school doesn’t offer any psychology courses, you may choose to self-study the AP exam. You should also look into taking relevant courses at a community college or summer program.

Admissions committees will want to see extracurriculars that show dedication to the study of psychology. For instance, why not start a peer counseling club at your high school? It’s also a good idea to participate in community service such as tutoring, volunteering at your local community center, or taking part in similar activities.

If you’re a freshman or sophomore in high school, we can help you develop a strong profile for acceptance into an undergraduate psychology program. Through our Early Advising Program, we’ll pair you with a graduate from a top 30 institution who will guide you through the process of choosing your courses and extracurriculars and advise you on the grades and test scores you’ll need for admission.

Juniors in high school should be ready to work on their college plans. Through our College Strategy Program, we’ll help you create a college list with safety, target, and reach colleges with psychology majors that appeal to you in terms of location, fit, study body, and other factors. We’ll also work with you on devising a plan to maximize your chances of admission into a top psychology institution.

Which Colleges Have a Psychology Major?

How We Help Students Improve Their Chances

Curious about your chances of acceptance to your dream school? Our free chancing engine takes into account your GPA, test scores, extracurriculars, and other data to predict your odds of acceptance at over 500 colleges across the U.S. We’ll also let you know how you stack up against other applicants and how you can improve your profile. Sign up for your free CollegeVine account today to get started!