Psychology

Contains Stem Majors

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Total Degrees​
Awarded in 2016

172,996

growing 1.59%

Median In-State​
Public Tuition

$6,904

growing 3.85%

Median Out-of-State​
Private Tuition

$30,132

growing 2.32%

Average Wage

$66,047

growing 2.09%

People in Workforce

2.54M

growing 4.56%

Average Employee Age

41.1

declining 0.447%

About

Institutions

Employment

Diversity

Skills

About

The locations with the highest concentration of Psychology degree recipients are New York, NY, San Diego, CA, and Los Angeles, CA. The locations with a relatively high number of Psychology degree recipients are Palo Alto, CA, Summerland, CA, and Peoria, AZ. The most common degree awarded to students studying Psychology is a bachelors degree.

Photo by Neil Conway

Institutions

Information about the types of higher education institutions that grant degrees in Psychology and the types of students that study this field. Liberty University awards the most degrees in Psychology in the US, but Richmont Graduate University and Michigan School of Professional Psychology have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Psychology.

Tuition costs for Psychology majors are, on average, $6,904 for in-state public colleges, and $30,132 for out of state private colleges.

The most common sector, by number of institutions, that offers Psychology programs are Private not-for-profit, 4-year or above institutions (953 total). The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded, is Public, 4-year or above (98,152 completions).

Institutions

Institution with the Most Degrees Awarded in Psychology

  1. Liberty University

  2. Capella University

  3. Florida International University

The most common sector, by number of degrees awarded in Psychology, is Public, 4-year or above (98,152 completions).

The following chart shows the share of universities that offer Psychology programs, by the total number of completions, colored and grouped by their sector.

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Tuition Costs for Common Institutions

$6,904

Median In-State Public

$30,132

Median Out of State Private

Liberty University has the most Psychology degree recipients, with 2,518 degrees awarded in 2016.

The following bar chart shows the state tuition for the top 5 institutions with the most degrees awarded in Psychology.

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Specialized Colleges

Highest Concentration Institution

  1. Richmont Graduate University

    100%

  2. Michigan School of Professional Psychology

    100%

  3. Divine Mercy University

    100%

Out of all institutions that offer Psychology programs and have at least 5 graduates in those programs, Richmont Graduate University and Michigan School of Professional Psychology have the highest percentage of degrees awarded in Psychology, with 100% and 100%, respectively.

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Degrees Awarded by County

Counties with the Most Degrees Awarded in Psychology

  1. Los Angeles County, CA

  2. New York County, NY

  3. San Diego County, CA

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest number of degrees awarded in Psychology by year.

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Growth in Awarded Degrees

Counties with the Fastest Growing Number of Degrees Awarded

  1. Donley County, TX

  2. Lake County, FL

  3. Harvey County, KS

This map shows the counties in the United States colored by the highest growth in degrees awarded for Psychology.

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Employment

Information on the businesses and industries that employ Psychology graduates and on wages and locations for those in the field.

The average salary for Psychology majors is $66,047 and the most common occupations are Counselors, Social workers, and Elementary & middle school teachers.

The industry that employs the most Psychology majors is Elementary & secondary schools, though the highest paying industry, by average wage, is Cement, concrete, lime, & gypsum product manufacturing .

Wages

Yearly Income for Common Jobs

$66,047

Average Wage in Workforce

± $1,106

2.09%

1 Year Growth

± 2.34%

The average salary for Psychology majors is $66,047 and the most common occupations are Counselors, Social workers, and Elementary & middle school teachers.

This chart shows the average annual salaries of the most common occupations for Psychology majors.

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Highest Paying Locations

Highest Paying Pumas

  1. Auburn Gresham, Roseland, Chatham, Avalon Park & Burnside PUMA, IL

  2. Greater Largo City PUMA, FL

  3. Between Loop I-610 & Beltway TX-8 PUMA, TX (79500US4804615)

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States colored by the average salary of Psychology majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Psychology majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

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Occupations

Most Common

The most common occupations Psychology majors, by number of employees, are Counselors, Social workers, and Elementary & middle school teachers.

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Most Specialized

Compared to other majors, there are an unusually high number of Psychology majors working as Psychologists, Counselors, and Other therapists, including exercise physiologists.

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Highest Paid

The highest paid occupations by median income for Psychology majors are Physicians & surgeons, Chief executives & legislators, and Other financial specialists.

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Occupations by Share

2.54M

2017 Workforce

± 38,805

4.56%

1 Year Growth

± 2.09%

The number of Psychology graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 4.56%, from 2.43M in 2016 to 2.54M in 2017.

The largest single share of Psychology graduates go on to work as Counselors (7.41%). This chart shows the various jobs filled by those with a major in Psychology by share of the total number of graduates.

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Industries

Most Common

The most common industries that employ Psychology majors, by number of employees, are Elementary & secondary schools, Hospitals, and Colleges, universities & professional schools, including junior colleges.

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Highest Paid

The highest paying industries of Psychology majors, by average wage, are Cement, concrete, lime, & gypsum product manufacturing , Pharmaceutical & medicine manufacturing, and Miscellaneous paper & pulp products.

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Industries by Share

2.54M

2017 Workforce

± 38,805

4.56%

1 Year Growth

± 2.09%

The number of Psychology graduates in the workforce has been growing at a rate of 4.56%, from 2.43M in 2016 to 2.54M in 2017.

The industry which employs the most Psychology graduates by share is Elementary & secondary schools, followed by Hospitals. This visualization shows the industries that hire those who major in Psychology.

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Specialty Locations

PUMAS with a relatively high number of Psychology majors

  1. West Hollywood & Beverly Hills Cities PUMA, CA

  2. Carr 2-Carr 111 PUMA, PR

  3. Carr 2-Carr 100 PUMA, PR

This map shows the public use micro areas (PUMAs) in the United States where there are a relatively high population of Psychology majors.

Note that the census collects information tied to where people live, not where they work. It is possible that Psychology majors live and work in the same place, but it is also possible that they live and work in two different places.

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Diversity

Demographic information on those who earn a degree in Psychology in the US. The average age of a person in the workforce with a degree in Psychology is 41.1, and the most common degree type these workers hold is a Bachelors Degree. Female employees are more likely to hold Psychology degrees, and White students earn the majority (94,091) of the degrees.

Workforce Age

41.1

Average Age in 2017

± 0.198 Years

0.447%

1 Year Change

± 0.692%

This chart shows distribution of ages for employees with a degree in Psychology. The most common ages of employees with this major are 29 and 27 years old, which represent 3.35% and 3.27% of the population, respectively.

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Degrees Awarded

The most common degree types awarded to students graduating in Psychology are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Associates Degree.

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Workforce Degrees

The most common degree types held by the working population in Psychology are Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree, and Doctorate degree.

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Gender Imbalance for Common Institutions

Female (77.8%)

Most Common Gender with a Degree in this Field

This chart shows the granted degrees by gender at the 5 institutions that graduate the most students in Psychology.

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Race & Ethnicity by Degrees Awarded

Most Common Race or Ethnicity

  1. White

    94,091 degrees awarded

  2. Hispanic or Latino

    30,096 degrees awarded

  3. Black or African American

    19,687 degrees awarded

This chart shows the number of degrees awarded in Psychology for each race & ethnicity. White students earned the largest share of the degrees with this major.

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Race & Ethnicity by Gender

Most Common Race/Ethnicity and Gender Combination

  1. White Female

    53,365 degrees awarded

  2. Hispanic or Latino Female

    16,587 degrees awarded

  3. White Male

    15,476 degrees awarded

This chart illustrates the differences by gender for each race & ethnicity of Bachelors Degree recipients in Psychology. White Female students, who earn most of the degrees in this field, are the most common combination of race/ethnicity and gender.

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Global Diversity

Most Common Countries of Origin

  1. Mexico

    23,015 degree recipients

  2. India

    20,548 degree recipients

  3. Philippines

    15,037 degree recipients

High Relative Number of Students

  1. Georgia (country)

    4.28 times more than expected

  2. Saudi Arabia

    3.91 times more than expected

  3. Belgium

    3.7 times more than expected

There are a relatively high number of people that were born in Georgia (country) that hold Psychology degrees (4.28 times more than expected), and the most common country of origin by total numbers for non-US students earning a degree in this field is Mexico (23,015 degree recipients).

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Skills

Data on the critical and distinctive skills necessary for those working in the Psychology field from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Psychology majors need many skills, but most especially Reading Comprehension. The revealed comparative advantage (RCA) shows that Psychology majors need more than the average amount of Science, Social Perceptiveness, and Active Learning.

These two visualizations, one a radial chart and one a bar chart, show the same information, a rating of how necessary the following skills are for Psychology majors. Toggle between "value" and "RCA" to see the absolute rating of that skill (value) and the revealed comparative advantage (RCA), or how much greater or lesser that skill's rating is than the average. The longer the bar or the closer the line comes to the circumference of the circle, the more important that skill is. The importance of Science is very distinctive for majors, but the Reading Comprehension, Active Listening, and Social Perceptiveness are the three most important skills for people in the field.

Radar Distribution

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Bar Chart

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