3 answers
Lileah
Student
Summerville, Georgia
1
Question
Updated
691 views
How difficult would it be to take biology and psychology
I was deciding on dual majoring, and I kinda want to explore both. I plan on attending Berry college for my education.
Login to comment
3 answers
Michelle M.
Actress
3276
Answers
Updated
Michelle’s Answer
Hello, Lileah !
Double majoring is difficult on its own let alone bunching something like biology and psychology together. It's a very heavy load, more expensive, unnecessary and can be stressful and impede on students getting the good grades they want because it is a lot of pressure. The big reason it is not a good idea from my viewpoint is because, in the end, employers never ever require a college degree that is a dual major. Your degree should target the career that you want to go into.
Biology is a good major, with classroom attendance, exams, projects and many times lab work. Doing a double major without first knowing the demands of the paths can be something that ends up being overwhelming. A major in Psychology prepares one for a career in the mental health field, so unless you plan to go into behavioral or mental health work, I would not suggest it as a major or part of a double major. You can take psychology courses as General Education requirement and/or electives. It should only be a Major if you're going into that targeted field of work.
At the minimum, a college Major consists of taking, in general, 30 credits in your major for your degree. With dual enrollment, you would have to complete 60 credits for two majors (plus general education courses) and pay for those extra 30 credits, so in that way, it's more expensive than one Major. You may have to take 6 - 8 classes a semester or not finish in four years. That is way too much of a course load for students to be burdened with. I once read that Double Majoring is too much, that many students drop it at some point and therefore, there are no statistics on how successful it is. It may be better to gear one's Major to their career goal, major in one thing for undergrad and do a Masters in whatever subject they were going to double major in only if it pertains to their career goal.
Instead of being overwhelmed with classes, lab work, projects, papers to write, etc., I believe that students do very well with one Major that is appropriately geared to the field of work they plan to pursue. Students should also have time for a campus life and some enjoyment, social interaction in a relaxed way.
It's really something that you'll have to decide but I like to advise students to make choices that will provide the best academic experience they can have. College is not supposed to be overwhelming or unfocused as double majoring can be. I would never consider double majoring but think about if you can stick with it and be sure you can make the commitment to the demands that it will require.
I hope this point of view is helpful among other advice you will receive and I wish you all the best !
Double majoring is difficult on its own let alone bunching something like biology and psychology together. It's a very heavy load, more expensive, unnecessary and can be stressful and impede on students getting the good grades they want because it is a lot of pressure. The big reason it is not a good idea from my viewpoint is because, in the end, employers never ever require a college degree that is a dual major. Your degree should target the career that you want to go into.
Biology is a good major, with classroom attendance, exams, projects and many times lab work. Doing a double major without first knowing the demands of the paths can be something that ends up being overwhelming. A major in Psychology prepares one for a career in the mental health field, so unless you plan to go into behavioral or mental health work, I would not suggest it as a major or part of a double major. You can take psychology courses as General Education requirement and/or electives. It should only be a Major if you're going into that targeted field of work.
At the minimum, a college Major consists of taking, in general, 30 credits in your major for your degree. With dual enrollment, you would have to complete 60 credits for two majors (plus general education courses) and pay for those extra 30 credits, so in that way, it's more expensive than one Major. You may have to take 6 - 8 classes a semester or not finish in four years. That is way too much of a course load for students to be burdened with. I once read that Double Majoring is too much, that many students drop it at some point and therefore, there are no statistics on how successful it is. It may be better to gear one's Major to their career goal, major in one thing for undergrad and do a Masters in whatever subject they were going to double major in only if it pertains to their career goal.
Instead of being overwhelmed with classes, lab work, projects, papers to write, etc., I believe that students do very well with one Major that is appropriately geared to the field of work they plan to pursue. Students should also have time for a campus life and some enjoyment, social interaction in a relaxed way.
It's really something that you'll have to decide but I like to advise students to make choices that will provide the best academic experience they can have. College is not supposed to be overwhelming or unfocused as double majoring can be. I would never consider double majoring but think about if you can stick with it and be sure you can make the commitment to the demands that it will require.
I hope this point of view is helpful among other advice you will receive and I wish you all the best !
I truly appreciate your response, and dual majoring seems to make a whole lot of unnecessary stress, work, and costs. I’m very grateful for another’s perspective on this subject. Thank you.
Lileah
You are welcome for the advice !
Michelle M.
Karin P.
Lecturer, Academic Advisor, Career Coach
1085
Answers
Göttingen, Lower Saxony, Germany
Updated
Karin’s Answer
Hi Lileah,
A bachelor program is a full-time program designed to keep students pretty busy with a reasonable workload. Taking on a double major is extremely challenging and usually not necessary. When you are trying to force two different programs together you'll run into scheduling conflicts and you'll wear yourself out trying to get all the homework, lab reports, readings, projects etc done in time.
Please consider what you want to achieve by taking on a double major. Do you have a clear vision for your career where you would need both a biology and a psychology bachelors? Or do you just want to keep two different career options open? Or maybe you just don't want to make a decision? I can understand the desire to learn everything that's interesting. But it's really not helpful. Focus on either biology or psychology, keep a great GPA and spend any extra energy on doing some undergraduate research and/or internships. That's going to be way more impactful for your career development and employability. Whatever major you decide on, you can take some classes of the other major as electives if you want to.
If you want to work as a clinical psychologist, you'll need to complete a bachelors (4 years), masters (2-3 years) and doctorate in psychology (4-7 years). You will then need 1500 to 6000 hours of supervised clinical practice (depending on your state). Before you can apply for your license to practice as a psychologist in your state, you'll take the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP). By the time you are practicing, your biology major will be a distant memory and not needed.
If you want to be a biologist, there are many different specialties and career options. For some, a bachelors might be enough, for others you'll need a graduate degree as well. You could go into the healthcare field, you could become a bio researcher, you could become a zoo director, you could go into biotechnology or an environmental field or work in the pulp and paper or food industry. Take a bit of time to explore what all a biology degree entails and if any of these careers appeal to you. Also check out the multitude of sub-disciplines and interdisciplinary degrees that involve biology. A psychology degree is not needed.
There are few careers that are at the intersection of biology and psychology. They are mostly medical/pharmaceutical and neuroscience careers in research. Even then, you won't need all the courses that are part of the second degree. A bachelors program is a very broad introduction to different facets of the field. You don't need to e.g. dissect leaves if you want to work in neuroscience. You can take a few classes that might actually be relevant for your career goal. You also don't suddenly stop learning at the end of your undergrad. You can do a masters program that is in an interdisciplinary field you are interested in. Or you can go to medical school to go into psychiatry or to pharmacy school to go into pharmaceutical research.
If you absolutely must have biology and psychology in your undergrad, e.g. your interest is in biological foundations of behavior, neuroscience etc and you have a clear vision what you want to do with it, there are some integrated programs you could consider. Some examples:
Wagner College has a major in biopsychology: https://wagner.edu/psychology/major/biopsychology/
Tufts University has a degree in biopsychology: https://as.tufts.edu/biology/academics/undergraduate-programs/babs-biopsychology
Northeastern offers combined degree programs e.g. in Behavioral Neuroscience: https://cos.northeastern.edu/admissions/undergraduate/combined-majors/
Illinois Institute of Technology has a double major: https://www.iit.edu/academics/programs/biology-bs-psychological-science-bs (it's still a double major with a heavy workload, but at least it's meant to be taken as a double major and you won't have as many scheduling conflicts as you would have when taking 2 unrelated degrees).
I hope this helps! All the best to you!
KP
https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/biology-with-psychology-careers
A bachelor program is a full-time program designed to keep students pretty busy with a reasonable workload. Taking on a double major is extremely challenging and usually not necessary. When you are trying to force two different programs together you'll run into scheduling conflicts and you'll wear yourself out trying to get all the homework, lab reports, readings, projects etc done in time.
Please consider what you want to achieve by taking on a double major. Do you have a clear vision for your career where you would need both a biology and a psychology bachelors? Or do you just want to keep two different career options open? Or maybe you just don't want to make a decision? I can understand the desire to learn everything that's interesting. But it's really not helpful. Focus on either biology or psychology, keep a great GPA and spend any extra energy on doing some undergraduate research and/or internships. That's going to be way more impactful for your career development and employability. Whatever major you decide on, you can take some classes of the other major as electives if you want to.
If you want to work as a clinical psychologist, you'll need to complete a bachelors (4 years), masters (2-3 years) and doctorate in psychology (4-7 years). You will then need 1500 to 6000 hours of supervised clinical practice (depending on your state). Before you can apply for your license to practice as a psychologist in your state, you'll take the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology (EPPP). By the time you are practicing, your biology major will be a distant memory and not needed.
If you want to be a biologist, there are many different specialties and career options. For some, a bachelors might be enough, for others you'll need a graduate degree as well. You could go into the healthcare field, you could become a bio researcher, you could become a zoo director, you could go into biotechnology or an environmental field or work in the pulp and paper or food industry. Take a bit of time to explore what all a biology degree entails and if any of these careers appeal to you. Also check out the multitude of sub-disciplines and interdisciplinary degrees that involve biology. A psychology degree is not needed.
There are few careers that are at the intersection of biology and psychology. They are mostly medical/pharmaceutical and neuroscience careers in research. Even then, you won't need all the courses that are part of the second degree. A bachelors program is a very broad introduction to different facets of the field. You don't need to e.g. dissect leaves if you want to work in neuroscience. You can take a few classes that might actually be relevant for your career goal. You also don't suddenly stop learning at the end of your undergrad. You can do a masters program that is in an interdisciplinary field you are interested in. Or you can go to medical school to go into psychiatry or to pharmacy school to go into pharmaceutical research.
If you absolutely must have biology and psychology in your undergrad, e.g. your interest is in biological foundations of behavior, neuroscience etc and you have a clear vision what you want to do with it, there are some integrated programs you could consider. Some examples:
Wagner College has a major in biopsychology: https://wagner.edu/psychology/major/biopsychology/
Tufts University has a degree in biopsychology: https://as.tufts.edu/biology/academics/undergraduate-programs/babs-biopsychology
Northeastern offers combined degree programs e.g. in Behavioral Neuroscience: https://cos.northeastern.edu/admissions/undergraduate/combined-majors/
Illinois Institute of Technology has a double major: https://www.iit.edu/academics/programs/biology-bs-psychological-science-bs (it's still a double major with a heavy workload, but at least it's meant to be taken as a double major and you won't have as many scheduling conflicts as you would have when taking 2 unrelated degrees).
I hope this helps! All the best to you!
KP
Karin recommends the following next steps:
Chinyere Okafor
Educationist and Counseling Psychologist
1185
Answers
Port Harcourt, Rivers, Nigeria
Updated
Chinyere’s Answer
Hello Lileah,
Biology and psychology work so well together that it's a beautiful combination. You'll see the connections between behavior, the body, and the brain from two different perspectives. Yes, it is difficult, but if you are organized and have good time management skills, it is not impossible.
Go for a balanced schedule to avoid taking demanding scientific and writing classes in the same semester because you need to prepare a significant quantity of lab work and research papers. You'll also have access to close faculty mentorship at a school like Berry; make the most of it as soon as possible.
Check out courses in neuroscience, biopsychology, or health psychology if you're interested in how the two disciplines interact. They are the ideal balance between your two passions and may lead to future jobs in research, mental health, or medicine.
Curiosity is your best study tool here, and you'll succeed.
Best wishes!
Biology and psychology work so well together that it's a beautiful combination. You'll see the connections between behavior, the body, and the brain from two different perspectives. Yes, it is difficult, but if you are organized and have good time management skills, it is not impossible.
Go for a balanced schedule to avoid taking demanding scientific and writing classes in the same semester because you need to prepare a significant quantity of lab work and research papers. You'll also have access to close faculty mentorship at a school like Berry; make the most of it as soon as possible.
Check out courses in neuroscience, biopsychology, or health psychology if you're interested in how the two disciplines interact. They are the ideal balance between your two passions and may lead to future jobs in research, mental health, or medicine.
Curiosity is your best study tool here, and you'll succeed.
Best wishes!