B.A. in Psychology
Program Information
The Bachelor of Arts in Psychology is an exciting
discipline, and at UMBC @ Shady Grove, students can share and
participate in that excitement!
The UMBC's Psychology department provides an exceptional opportunity for students
to see how basic laboratory research can be translated into treatments, interventions,
and policies that improve the quality of life. Interested undergraduates work
with internationally recognized researchers at the cutting edge of science. In
recent years, students have participated in studies of such issues as the neurological
basis of laughter and yawning, how rats and people regulate eating, how infants "bond" to
their parents, how non-human species learn complex tasks, the relations between
behavior and heart disease, and what society can do to foster social and academic
success of disadvantaged youth.
The Psychology program now has three concentration areas for students to explore:
- Personnel and Industrial Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Human Services Psychology
Students choose to major in psychology for many different reasons. Some students see the psychology major as the first step towards a career as a psychologist and plan to continue their studies in graduate school. Other students choose psychology because it fits into their more immediate occupational plans; majoring in psychology is a good way to start a career in social work as well as many other social service and public sector professions. Psychology is also often a first step toward careers in advertising, business, civil service, personnel/human relations, public relations or any other field that includes extensive work with people. Many psychology majors go on to law or medical school. Finally, many students major in psychology just because it is interesting and fun. (If you ask your instructors, you are likely to find most of them started in psychology because they simply enjoy psychology!)