High school is a foundation for college; in college, you can specialize in the type of education that you want and put yourself on a path for success in the future. One of the biggest parts of college is choosing a major and a school that works for you. So it’s around that time when college applications are due and most of them are turned in, that students are waiting and anticipating to see how the future of their careers might go. 

Every year there are different trends within this application system, and this year one of the biggest was people applying towards a Psychology major. More commonly called a “Psych” major, this major focuses on human behavior and mental processes, including the mind, brain, and social interactions (U.S. News). In this day and age, especially with the contribution of the pandemic, mental health and its discussion has become increasingly more important and prominent in society. 

Another aspect of the Psychology major is that this particular major offers a plethora of career opportunities. There are a lot of different types of psychology that you can specialize in and also a lot of different jobs that can be anything from a human resources worker to a therapist. It is said to be “one of the most versatile majors, allowing students to gain a wide range of skills and flexibility with their career paths” (Johnson and Wales University).

Another pro of the major is that Psychology can help you understand yourself and the people around you a lot better. Through this major, you learn a lot about yourself, your personality, and the way that behaviors work. All of these can contribute to you being able to gain a deep sense of empathy for others and help you get farther in your personal relationships. 

A career in Psychology also allows you to have more flexibility in your work schedule and your work environment. Over 27% of people in the psychology field are self-employed, meaning that all of their money is going towards themselves and they are their own boss which is ultimately the goal of many. Psychology opens up a number of doors for a person, making it a lot more attractive for someone who is not particularly sure of what they want to do in life, which is a common case for a lot of people going into college. 

Overall, it is pretty clear as to why Psych is becoming a more prominent major. Adil Ismail (10) says that “Personally I’m not sure what major I want to choose for college but Psych is I definitely something I want to look into”. If you are a person looking into what they want to do in terms of their college career and beyond, I would highly recommend looking more into Psychology and deciding if it’s something that works for you.