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How Popular is the Psychology Major in College? | Trends and Future Expectations

Key takeaways

According to Data USA’s data from 2023, 208,888 psychology bachelor’s degrees were granted
According to NCES’s recent data, 129,609 psychology degrees were conferred in 2021 to 2022
The highest number of psychology degrees awarded is in Los Angeles County, CA
Psychology majors in college is popular due to reasons such as:
- Versatile career paths and options
- Preparedness for a grad and post-grad degree
- Potential for personal growth
- Chance to build important transferable skills
- Have increasing relevance in various industries

Psychology college degrees are on a roll, with increasing popularity by each passing academic year. Colleges are seeing a greater influx of more and more students choosing this highly interesting and intriguing field. Let’s explore how popular it is and what makes it such a go-to choice.

Psychology degree popularity — trends and insights

We already know that there is an increasing awareness of mental health issues, conditions, disorders, and challenges that everyone faces. This means that more and more consideration for mental health is becoming part of our day-to-day life, such as in the workplace, relationships, and mainstream healthcare.

As a result, psychology is a hot and in-demand college major that prepares students for a career as human behavior specialists. The scientific study of human behavior and mental processes not only makes the psychology major in college complex but also makes it quite interesting. The real question is, how popular is a psychology major in college? Let’s dig in!

According to Data USA’s data from 2023, psychology is one of the most popular college majors. In 2023 alone, over 208,888 psychology bachelor’s degrees were granted. Moreover, the same data reports that there is an overall growth rate of over 3.96% for the number of people employed in the psychology field. In addition to this, here are some additional stats you would want to know:

The highest number of psychology degrees awarded is in Los Angeles County, CA
The highest concentration of psychology degree recipients are New York, NY, San Diego, CA, and Los Angeles, CA
The most popular type of psychology degree is a bachelor’s degree

In addition to this, the growth in popularity of psychology majors in college is not an isolated occurrence. Over the years, psychology majors’ popularity has been growing, and we can see that from the following table, provided by the NCES’s recent data:

Year	Number of Psychology Bachelor’s Degrees
2011–12	109,099
2012–13	114,446
2013–14	117,312
2014–15	117,573
2015–16	117,447
2016–17	116,859
2017–18	116,436
2018–19	116,550
2019–20	119,989
2020–21	126,950
2021–22	129,609

Moreover, the same source also tells us that psychology makes up to be well over 6% of the total degree conferred in 2021-22, with business bachelor’s degrees being in the lead. In addition to this, there were also many graduate and post-grad psychology degrees conferred.

According to the NCES, 33,661 master’s degrees in psychology were conferred during the academic year 2021-22. Additionally, 6,685 doctoral degrees in psychology were also conferred in the academic year 2021-22.

Why is the psychology major in college so popular?

Psychology majors in college popualrity

Different people have different reasons for choosing any particular psychology major. When it comes to choosing a psychology major in college, there are a few common reasons that we find.

Professor Patrick Harrison says that most people choose psychology majors in college because they are inherently social creatures, and have often had exposure to therapy themselves. This makes them curious about their own mental health, as well as help and understand their family and loved ones better. This is a great insight from someone who has had so many students in this very field.

However, this alone does not explain why psychology degrees is rising in popularity so quickly.

Let’s explore more!

Lots of career options to explore

Clinical psychology, forensic, developmental, cognitive, counseling – the list goes on. And this list is only related to core psychology career paths that involve patients and therapy. This means that there are so many other career paths that are available for psychology graduates that do not require therapy or lciensure even — such as HR management, market research, UX research, and I-O psychology. Therefore, it is safe to say that psychology majors in college are one of the most rewarding, versatile, and meaningful paths students can choose for themselves.

This makes it an excellent choice for people who are confused between liberal arts, humanities, and business track degrees. Since psychology graduates easily find jobs in large corporations and business-focused paths such as HR and research, this is the ideal and go-to choice for many.

Read more: Psychology Career Outlook 2026

Here are some common psychology degree jobs you can explore:

Market Research Analysts	$76,950
Psychologist	$94,310
Marriage and Family Therapists	$63,780.00
Postsecondary Teachers	$83,980.00
School and Career Counselors and Advisors	$65,140.00
Social Workers	$61,330
Sociologists	$101,690
Substance Abuse, Behavioral Disorder, and Mental Health Counselors	$59,190
Survey Researchers	$63,380
I-O Psychologist	$154,380
UX Researcher	$113,102
Training and Development Specialists	$65,850

In addition to this, some of the most common employers and job settings for psychology careers are:

Mental hospitals
Private practices
schools/colleges/universities
Outpatient clinics
Community mental health centers
Large corporations hiring I-O psychologists
Employee/organizational development departments
Research firms
Non-profit organizations
Courtrooms for forensic psychologist
Prisons and correctional facilities
Teletherapy platforms
Social services
Government agencies, like the FBI for a mental evaluation

Also read: Counselling vs Clinical Psychology — Which Career Path Should You Choose?

Preparedness for a graduate and post-grad education

A psychology college degree is one of the most important and solid foundations for continuing higher education, such as a master’s or a doctoral degree. It goes without saying that clinical psychologists only get licensed to work independently or have private practices when they have a PhD or PsyD.

Therefore, a bachelor’s degree in psychology sets you up for it, preparing you not only academically but also mentally to take the next step for your future. Moreover, psychology college majors also prepare you with essential skills needed in the higher-education field, such as giving you skills like report writing, data analysis, communication, and critical analysis.

So, because psychology programs train students to analyze data, interpret research findings, and apply theory to real-world problems, graduates often transition smoothly into rigorous post-graduate academic environments.

Potential for personal growth

A good psychology student learns how to study and understand human behaviors and patterns in other people. But more importantly, the same psychology degree in college also teaches the students to understand themselves better.

Moreover, the various courses and electives in a 4-year degree program explore topics such as personality, emotions, motivation, mental health, and human development, fostering deep self-awareness and emotional intelligence. As a result, the courses help students:

Improve communication and interpersonal relationships
Develop empathy and cultural awareness
Build resilience and emotional regulation skills
Better understand stress, motivation, and decision-making

Due to this, many psychology graduates often reflect back on how their education helped them become much more confident, emotionally regulated, and develop stronger leadership skills.

Essential transferable skill development

A huge factor that makes psychology majors in college such a popular choice is that it offers diverse career options. You can become a business-focused I-O psychologist, an HR manager, or a marketing expert. So, how does a psychology degree make that possible?

A comprehensive psychology degree helps students gain highly transferrable skills that are valued across industries—not just in mental health careers. The curriculum involving lab work, assignments, research projects, and applied coursework sets a strong foundation. Some of the most important transferable skills include:

Critical thinking
Analytical skills
Research methodology
Report writing
Problem solving
Decision making
Verbal communication
Teamwork
Leadership
Ethical reasoning
Data interpretation
Data management

These competencies make psychology graduates competitive in fields such as business, marketing, human resources, education, healthcare, technology, criminal justice, and nonprofit work.

Increasing relevance

Psychology remains popular because it is highly adaptable to evolving job markets. As industries increasingly focus on user behavior, mental well-being, workplace culture, and data-driven decision-making, psychology skills are more relevant than ever.

Before, psychology was a clinical-focused field where the work mostly revolved around counseling, therapy, and one-on-one client management. However, today it is much more versatile, interlinked with different fields and specialties. So, you will find psychology being relevant across various fronts, making it a go-to choice in colleges.

Psychology’s popularity has to do with the post-pandemic world, where mental health awareness and sensitivity has grown. In addition to this, digital behaviors are much more complex than simpler human behaviors decades ago. This makes cyberpsychology a must-have for most businesses as well as healthcare systems.

This also brings us to the conclusion that Industrial-Organizational psychology is also much more important today, as complex human behaviors work together in structured organizations and cooperations. All of this tells us that there is a bright future for psychology jobs and career outlook. The BLS also reports that there will be a growth in psychology jobs at the rate of 6%, from 2024 to 2034.

List of colleges offering top psychology undergrad degrees

College and Program Name	Program name	Tuition Cost
Stanford University	Psychology (BA)	$22,577 per quarter (source)
Harvard University	Undergraduate psychology program	$65,536 (source)
Princeton University	Psychology major	$68,140 (source)
Purdue Global	Bachelor’s in Psychology in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)	$13,356 per academic year (Source)
Arizona State University	Psychology, BS	$17,434 per year (source) $35,167 per year (source)
Capella University	Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a specialization in Applied Behavior Analysis	$19,460 for 24 months (Source)
University of California, Irvine	Psychology BS	$13,602.00 per academic year (source)
Arcadia University	Bachelor of Arts in Psychology	In-state: $49,980 annually (source) Out-of-state: $49,980 annually (source)
University of Nevada, Reno	B.S. in Psychology (Behavior Analysis)	$8,655 per academic year (source)
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor	Undergrad Psychology	In-state: $18,346 (source) Out-of-state: $63,962 (source)
University of California, Berkeley	Psychology Department at Berkeley	In-state: $17,478 (source) Out-of-state: $55,080 (source)
Purdue Global	Bachelor’s in Psychology in Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA)	$13,356 per academic year (Source)
Capella University	Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a specialization in Applied Behavior Analysis	$19,460 for 24 months (Source)

Note: Data is as of February 2026.

Psychology and other popular college majors

In the following table from NCES, we get a side-by-side comparison of different college majors, in terms of the number of degrees conferred for each major. This helps us understand the popularity of each major and also understand the increase or any possible decrease in the popularity.

Year	Business	Health professions and related programs	Social sciences and history	Biological and biomedical sciences	Psychology	Engineering
2019–20	387,881	257,327	161,219	126,616	119,989	128,337
2020–21	391,352	267,993	160,851	131,515	126,950	126,042
2021–22	375,418	263,765	151,109	131,462	129,609	123,017

From the table, it is clear that psychology majors in college have a steady and growing popularity. More importantly, it is the only college major that sees a steady increase, as the rest of the college majors, such as business and engineering, experience a slight decrease in the numbers.

Conclusion

In summary, psychology majors in college are a popular choice among young students for various reasons. Reports tell us that the number of students enrolled in psychology majors in college is steadily increasing, with higher success rates than in other majors. You can explore a number of career paths with psychology majors in college. Therefore, it is definitely a good choice for young and enthusiastic students.

Frequently asked questions

What jobs can you get with a psychology degree?

A psychology degree opens doors to both clinical and non-clinical careers. However, the jobs and career paths available to you depend largely on your education level and specialization area. Some common psychology jobs are:

Market Research Analyst
Social Worker
UX Research Assistant
Clinical Psychologist
Human Resources Specialist
Forensic Psychologist
Marriage and Family Therapist
Postsecondary Psychology Professor
Case Manager
Behavioral Health Technician
Training and Development Specialist

Is psychology harder than nursing?

Psychology and nursing are challenging in very different ways. There is no universal comparison between the two, but there are certain characteristics that you can explore, such as:

Psychology is more theory and research-focused, while nursing degrees are clinically intensive
Nursing focuses on biology, pharmacology, and other such medical areas, while psychology focuses on human behaviors and mental processes
Psychology programs and practice can be less physically demanding, while nursing tends to be physically rigorous

Overall, both the degrees and college programs have their own pros and cons in terms of how challenging they are. As long as you are interested in the field and are hard-working, both degrees have manageable challenges.

How much math is in psychology?

Psychology is not math-heavy, and does not include advanced calculus or engineering-level mathematics. This does make psychology majors in college a go-to choice for many students. However, it does require basic statistics and data analysis. So, most psychology programs include:

Introductory statistics
Research methods
Data interpretation (often using software like SPSS)

What are the specializations in psychology majors?

Psychology majors in colleges have varying coursework, as well as specialization tracks. Colleges and institutions offer specialization tracks based on their resources and faculty availability. However, a general list of popular psychology specializations are:

Clinical Psychology
Counseling Psychology
Behavioral/ABA Therapy
Developmental Psychology
Cognitive Psychology
Social Psychology
Forensic Psychology
Industrial-Organizational Psychology
Neuropsychology
Health Psychology
School Psychology