What Classes Should I Take For Psychology Major?
According to the National Center for Education Statistics, more than 115,000 students majored in psychology in the graduating class of 2018. That made it the sixth most popular major in the country. With so many people picking psychology as their major these days, psychology classes in college are absolutely packed.
But a lot of those bright-eyed freshmen don’t even really know what the classes required for a psychology major even are. What courses are required for a psychology major aren’t set in stone, of course. Psychology course requirements will vary from college to college and from concentration to concentration.
The psychology courses required for a specialization in forensics will be pretty different from those you find in an industrial-organizational track, for example. And, you might be wondering, what are all those track options; what are the majors in psychology? Well, the fact is there are so many possible specializations within the field of psychology, that you almost can’t list them all.
Forensic psychologyClinical psychologySocial psychologyIndustrial-organizational psychologyCounseling psychologyDevelopmental psychologyChild psychologyNeuropsychologySchool psychologySports psychology
Still, you will find some psychology courses in common everywhere, whether through campus-based programs in clinical psychology or online schools for psychology offering programs in forensic psychology. That’s exactly what we’ll be covering here in this guide.
And psychology classes aren’t the only subjects you will study as a psychology major. You will have to take the required general education courses for your university as well. Many of those will be in subjects that are also relevant to psychological practice, including everything from math and biology to communications.
Your psychology major classes are where you will spend most of your junior and senior years, however. In the best undergraduate psychology schools, you’ll have plenty of choices for those upper division classes. So, you arrived here because you’re wondering what courses to take to become a psychologist, or what courses are required for a psychology major? The classes we list here are some of the most common that are required for psychology majors.
But you’ll find that each school, concentration, and even type (bachelor of science versus bachelor of arts) of psychology degree has its own unique requirements. You’ll need to consult your department advisor for specifics. This about the point where you’re wondering, is psychology a hard major? Any serious student of psychology will tell you that they are challenged in their studies, but with so much fascinating stuff to explore, even the hard parts are fun.
At the college level, there’s a big difference from that basic psychology class you took in high school. But 115,000 students can’t be wrong! Psychology is a challenging major, but it is challenging in a fun way. As long as you enjoy studying mental processes and people, you’ll be fine.
Contents
Where should I start with psychology?
How to Start Your Career in Psychology – To start a psychology career, you’ll need to get at least a master’s degree (for school psychology) or a doctorate to practice in other specialties. To get licensed to practice psychology, you’ll need to earn the required degree, pass a state and/or national exam, and fulfill other licensing requirements,
But your practice of psychology really starts during your supervised internship. Internship requirements vary, but it generally takes two years to complete your supervised practice (about 3,500 hours), at least one year of which is done after receiving your doctorate. Working under a mentor takes some of the pressure off, and he or she can advise you when you have questions or work with hard-to-treat clients.
Once you’ve successfully finished your internship, you can apply for a license, and begin practicing on your own. Back to top
What is the highest paying field in psychology?
Psychiatrist – Psychiatry is one of the most common career paths for psychology majors. Psychiatrists are physicians who specialize in mental health. Like any medical doctor, they diagnose and treat illness through different strategies. Psychiatrists prescribe medications for patients with mental illnesses.
What are the 7 of psychology?
Perspectives in Psychology – Psychology is the study of people’s minds and behavior. Many psychologists defined and have presented different looks towards the interests and explanations of human behavior. Reasoning this, many perspectives in psychology emerged.
Why is studying psychology valuable?
Reasons to study psychology – There are many reasons to study psychology, from career prospects to personal interest. Psychology is a fascinating area of study. It will help you understand human behaviour and mental processes and allow you to better understand how we think act and feel.
If you are considering studying psychology you probably already know what an interesting subject it is to study. Our psychology courses look at some of the important questions such as why do people act the way they do? What shapes our personality? How do we learn and change throughout our life? If you are interested in a deeper understanding of the human condition you should consider studying psychology.
This is a good enough reason in itself but there are several other reasons why you should consider a course in psychology.
What kind of math is used in psychology?
What kind of math do you need for psychology? – The APA suggests that most of the math requirements in psychology revolve around statistics and quantitative analysis. You’ll use this as a practicing psychologist to interpret scientific data and theories in the field, or as a researcher to articulate and provide evidence for those theories yourself.
What subject is psychology?
Body Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behavior. Psychologists are actively involved in studying and understanding mental processes, brain functions, and behavior. The field of psychology is considered a “Hub Science” with strong connections to the medical sciences, social sciences, and education (Boyack, Klavans, & Borner, 2005).
What is psychology for beginners?
Psychology is the study of the human mind and behavior. While explorations of these two subjects date back thousands of years, the formal science of psychology is actually quite young. During the late 1800s, Wilhelm Wundt formed the first experimental laboratory devoted to the study psychology, officially marking the beginning of psychology as a discipline separate from philosophy and physiology.
What exactly is psychology? What do psychologists do and where do they work? What can a person do with a psychology degree ?
Let’s tackle some of these all-important questions in this quick introduction to the subject of psychology. Get a brief overview of the topic that will help guide further study of this fascinating subject.
What is the easiest field of psychology?
Psychology, the field of study that focuses on thinking and behavior, blends aspects of social and natural sciences as well as clinical mental health practice. Colleges and universities offer many different types of psychology degrees at various levels of study and in different areas of specialization.
Undergraduate psychology degrees are easier to get than graduate-level degrees, of course. Factors such as whether the program is more heavily based in science or liberal arts affect the level of difficulty. At the graduate level, the master’s degree in industrial-organizational psychology is probably the easiest to attain.
As doctorates go, the Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) degree may be easier than the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.).
How do I know if I have interest in psychology?
Signs That You’re a Psychology Major – Here are 15 sure-fire signs that you are a psychology major:
People think you are a mind reader. When you tell people what you are majoring in, they ask if you can read their mind. You spend more time on APA format than any other subject. Your edition of the APA publication manual is dog-eared and the pages are filled with yellow highlighter marks. All of your friends seem to have undiagnosed psychological conditions. You have tried to diagnose yourself and your friends with mental disorders. During your abnormal psychology class, you found yourself constantly discovering new symptoms that explained why your friends behave the way they do. You utilize behavioral training to solve everyday problems. You once used operant conditioning to train your roommate to stop leaving their dirty laundry on the floor in your apartment. You can’t stop psychoanalyzing everyone in your life. You are pretty sure that your academic advisor has an oral fixation — they’re always chewing on something, be it a pen, their fingernails, or a stick of gum. You spend more time in the library than you do in your dorm room. You are an old pro at writing APA papers and lab reports. Introduction, method, results, discussion — you know the parts of a psychology paper like the back of your hand. You are known as the “listener” in your social group. All of your friends come to you for advice and you love being able to help. You truly do enjoy listening to people talk about their problems, trying to figure out why they think and behave the way they do, and coming up with solutions that might help. You have used the phrase “correlation does not equal causation” more times than you care to admit. You also find yourself critiquing news articles that your friends share on Facebook because they constantly seem to confuse correlation with causation. Psychology experiments are a lot more interesting now. When you volunteer for a psychology study, you find yourself trying to figure out what the independent and dependent variables are and what the researcher’s hypothesis might be. You can tell the difference between negative reinforcement and punishment — and you get really frustrated when people confuse the two. Which is great, because I’ve even heard many graduate students say that they are still not 100% clear on some of the major behavioral concepts such as reinforcement, punishment, the unconditioned stimulus, and many other important terms. You often find yourself having to define psychological terms to your friends and family because you keep using them in daily conversations. And you are starting to think that psychology should be a required class for all students, not just psychology majors. After all, wouldn’t the world be a better place if everyone had a better understanding of the human mind and behavior? Whenever you hear the word nature, the word nurture immediately pops into your head. You also have a much deeper appreciation for how these two forces interact to influence many different aspects of development. When you meet someone new, you immediately assess which stage of psychosocial development they are in and how well they are coping with the primary conflict at that stage. You also tend to evaluate which stage of psychosexual development they might be stuck in or whether or not they ever progressed to the formal operational stage of cognitive development, You have a dog named Pavlov, a cat named Thorndike, and a rat named Skinner. Doesn’t everyone name their pets after their favorite theorists? You’re no longer terrified of statistics. You understand what significance levels, t-tests, standard deviations, and z-scores are. That doesn’t mean you enjoy statistics, however. You definitely still hate statistics.
By Kendra Cherry Kendra Cherry, MS, is the author of the “Everything Psychology Book (2nd Edition)” and has written thousands of articles on diverse psychology topics. Kendra holds a Master of Science degree in education from Boise State University with a primary research interest in educational psychology and a Bachelor of Science in psychology from Idaho State University with additional coursework in substance use and case management.
What to expect when learning psychology?
Common Coursework Psychology Majors Can Expect – Introductory courses for a psychology major include general psychology, research methods in psychology, statistical methods in psychology and a lab course like psychology as a natural science. A general psychology course covers the core types of psychology, the history of the young science, and the relations between the brain, behavior and experience.
Psychology lab courses give students experience conducting research, designing experiments, learning observation and measurement techniques, and analyzing behavioral data. Students who have met prerequisite requirements can enroll in more specific courses like developmental psychology; learning and behavior; social psychology; theories of personality, drugs and behavior; affective neuroscience; child psychology; introduction to clinical psychology; and an independent study project.
Most schools offer course credit for independent research projects, though they may require a certain GPA and approval of a student’s topic through the psychology department. To complete the major, schools usually require courses in math, social science and physical science.
Do you write papers in psychology class?
The most common types of written assignments in psychology courses include literature reviews, research reports, and journal critiques, although application papers will sometimes be assigned as well. Application papers are usually short papers that require students to apply course concepts to personal experiences.
What is the easiest psychology to learn?
Psychology, the field of study that focuses on thinking and behavior, blends aspects of social and natural sciences as well as clinical mental health practice. Colleges and universities offer many different types of psychology degrees at various levels of study and in different areas of specialization.
Undergraduate psychology degrees are easier to get than graduate-level degrees, of course. Factors such as whether the program is more heavily based in science or liberal arts affect the level of difficulty. At the graduate level, the master’s degree in industrial-organizational psychology is probably the easiest to attain.
As doctorates go, the Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) degree may be easier than the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.).
Is it worth taking a psychology course?
9. Great career prospects – Psychology is first and foremost a vocation. But that doesn’t mean your studies won’t also earn you a good living. If you want to practice as a psychologist, you will have to take specialized training (usually at Master’s level) and become a counselling psychologist or a psychotherapist.
Depending on your specialization you can also work as clinical psychologists in hospitals or clinics, evaluating and giving tests to patients in addition to regular sessions, facilitating group therapy, couples therapy, child therapist, individual therapy (one-on-one), therapy using play methods or expressive methods like body movement, and much more.
As a counselling psychologist or psychotherapist, you can work as your own boss, or as part of a team, or join an NGO and be involved in projects that support the mental health of your community. There is a lot of room for creativity and further development.
