With my growing interest in counselling, and psychology being a broad major, in what area I should focus my attention when choosing a related minor?

A good minor to have in helping you in psychology is Sociology. This area of social sciences focuses on how people behave and why they behave in a society. Sociology can be incorporated with psychology to give you a broader understanding of people and their behavior and thought processes.
From my experience, mini ring in sociology helped me understand how and why people in various countries behave the way they do.
There are other areas of study that could also help with applying psychology. You may consider anthropology, biology or neuroscience.
I hope this helps!

Hi Jesse,

You have been offered some very great and sound advice from Dr. Finn and Mr. Keemer. I would also like to piggy-back on their responses. I would consider the areas of Psychology that you feel the most passionate about, and choose a minor accordingly. For instance, if you wanted to specialize in substance abuse counseling, then you should find classes that relate to that area. Additionally, you want your minor to be something you could fall back on in the long-run. Your minor can be anything, but I would stick with something close to your major. Speak with your academic advisor, as well as your peers who are completing the same degree program. I received my Associates degree in Psychology, but entered my undergrad program as undeclared. I didn't know if Psychology was truly where I wanted to be. I finally declared a major in my Bachelors program in Secondary Education to become a certified teacher. That program was taking way too long for me and my school implemented a Liberal Studies program. I got accepted into that program, and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Liberal Studies with a focus on Interdisciplinary Studies. I would not however recommend anyone pursue that degree program. I call it the "I didn't quite know what I wanted to do with my life" degree. LoL. I had a bunch of random classes, so it was a fit, and I wanted to be done with undergrad. After graduation, I moved overseas to teach children English, and while there I enrolled in an online Masters program in Psychology. Psychology was/is simply my passion! I completed a general Psychology program, with a specialization in culture. My doctoral program is Clinical Psychology, as I chose a licensure program. That is also something you must consider since you stated you wanted to pursue your doctorate. Do you want to be licensed for practice in your state, or do you just want a general Psychology degree to teach or do research? There are limitations as to what you can do with each. I know this is a lot of info, but you sound like you really know what you want, so you will need to prepare to eliminate wasted time and money. Here's a link you may find of interest. Please feel free to reach out if you have any other questions!! Best of luck to you Jesse!!

https://www.verywell.com/what-should-i-minor-in-if-im-majoring-in-psychology-2795147

Dear Jesse,

It has been many years since I was an undergraduate so my personal experiences may be out of date. I minored in English and history, but other students I knew minored in biology, sociology, mathematics, computer science, education, etc. If you are in college, or when you get there, the psychology department faculty can tell you what minors they recommend.

While this doesn't directly address your question I encourage you not to declare a major too quickly, since there may be fields of study you are not even aware of now. In my case, I started out as a physics major and did not know psychology existed as a field until a friend took an introductory course and told me about it.

Whatever your eventual decision I wish you luck in your studies and career pursuits.

Ray Finn, Ph.D.