Viewing the world through a psychological lens helps us understand the forces that shape human behavior and mental life. With Gettysburg College’s psychology degree program, you’ll learn to broaden your understanding of human behavior as you investigate psychological questions creatively and scientifically.
Gettysburg’s Psychology Department offers students the options of a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) in psychology degree or a neuroscience minor. Students pursuing the psychology major take engaging classes and conduct original self-guided or faculty-led research, integrating a multitude of diverse sociocultural contexts by critically analyzing data.
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Why study psychology?
Along with learning about the multifaceted functions of the human brain and how they correspond to one another, studying psychology allows you to understand who you are as an individual. The Psychology Department’s psychology major and neuroscience minor incorporate fresh, evolving perspectives to each course that support you on a path to a career in psychology, such as becoming a psychologist, counselor, or therapist.
While many psychology students begin their careers in the field of psychology, some go on to work in health care, education, research, business, government, or marketing, with others continuing their pursuit toward a graduate degree in psychology and other graduate programs in health professions, business, law, and education. Ultimately, a psychology degree can translate to various professional industries that benefit from hiring individuals who have a concrete understanding of the human condition.
Explore the learning outcomes of a psychology degree at Gettysburg College.
Major in psychology
Psychology majors at Gettysburg explore the field of psychology by enrolling in laboratory classes, conducting independent and collaborative research, attending seminars, and engaging in internships on or off campus. Psychology majors enroll in courses that incorporate topics such as adult psychopathology, developmental psychology, psychopharmacology, and neuroscience.
Students’ academic coursework serves as a supplemental foundation toward independent or collaborative research within the psychology major. These classes, labs, and collaborative experiences give students the confidence to apply their research methods toward the fundamental frameworks of psychology to excel in whichever career they choose.
Students meet the psychology major requirement after completing nine psychology courses and two natural science courses. As a result, they encounter ideas from various disciplines throughout their psychology degree studies.
Review the complete psychology major requirements.
Minor in neuroscience
The Psychology Department’s neuroscience minor takes an interdisciplinary approach to studying the relationship between the brain and human behavior. The minor consists of four core courses and two electives. Electives for the minor incorporate topics such as chemistry, biology, anatomy, and philosophy, giving students insight into the connection between the mind and body through a careful examination of relevant sociocultural contexts.
The neuroscience minor is open to all Gettysburg students, with oversight for the minor provided jointly by the Biology Department and Psychology Department. Please speak with your advisor if you are interested in declaring a neuroscience minor.
Explore the neuroscience minor.
Curriculum
Students seeking a psychology major or a neuroscience minor take core courses, electives, and engaging labs that deepen their understanding of the field of psychology. Both the psychology major and neuroscience minor investigate subjects involving the brain and behavior, allowing students to explore diverse topics that pique their interest.
Explore all psychology courses.
What makes Gettysburg’s Psychology Department different?
Gettysburg College connects students with faculty members who are passionate about involving students in their research and opening doors to explore ideas and engage in thought-provoking dialogue about psychology beyond the classroom. Students discover how to ask questions that are meaningful to them, gather evidence, and test their hypotheses.
Through these research opportunities, students acquire the enduring skills of problem solving, adaptability, and creativity skills that they can take with them beyond Gettysburg into graduate school or career settings.
With its focus on the liberal arts and sciences, Gettysburg College’s faculty members and students work collaboratively to pursue research on topics they’re passionate about studying.
View student opportunities or the psychology FAQs for guidance on how to structure your psychology degree studies at Gettysburg.
Undergraduate research
Through the psychology degree program at Gettysburg College, students will discover how to take an empirical approach to the field as they participate in engaging courses and conduct labs that explore topics such as the following:
Through student-faculty research collaboration and peer and individualized research, the Psychology Department at Gettysburg College prepares students to inquire and absorb as much information as needed to be successful. These research opportunities are hands-on within the Psychology Department and the Cross-Disciplinary Science Institute (X-SIG), which has allowed psychology students to share their research and have their work published.
Discover the possibilities for research in Gettysburg’s Psychology Department.
Career preparation
Students may seek out graduate study beyond a bachelor’s degree in psychology. Gettysburg’s Bachelor of Arts in psychology prepares students for careers in counseling, clinical psychology, psychiatry, or therapy.
Working in the field of mental health often requires licensure and a graduate or doctoral degree depending on the state you choose to work in. Earning a bachelor’s degree in psychology prepares students for postgraduate study in the field. Students with a psychology degree may also want to branch out of the field of psychology further into occupations within human resources, education, government, management, and sports.
The Gettysburg Network and connectGettysburg
Every Gettysburg student has access to the Gettysburg Network via the connectGettysburg platform. As the College’s online engagement, networking, and mentoring platform, connectGettysburg offers endless connections for networking with Gettysburg’s more than 32,000 alumni.
Student life opportunities
At Gettysburg, student life opportunities are abundant. Psychology students may find themselves working together with the Psi Chi Honor Society or making lifelong connections on campus during their first year at Gettysburg.
Psychology research funding
Whether conducting individual or collaborative research, psychology majors who choose to engage in individual research have several funding options available to them. Students who wish to pursue research directly through the Cross-Disciplinary Science Institute (X-SIG) can explore available sources of funding.
Our distinguished faculty’s publications
Be inquisitive inside and outside the lab with Gettysburg’s Psychology Department
With a Bachelor of Arts in psychology, you gain insight into how the human brain works, allowing you to apply the knowledge gained from your research to situations in your career. The coursework and undergraduate research opportunities within the psychology major encompass a wide range of multidisciplinary perspectives, requiring an empirical approach to the interpretation of data.
Students in the Psychology Department at Gettysburg emerge equipped with the breadth and depth of knowledge and enduring skills to conduct analytical and interpretive analysis on whichever problems come their way within the field they work.
