Psychology is one of the most popular majors in the country that straddles the sciences and the humanities. Students who pursue an undergraduate degree in psychology go on to graduate school, medical school, social work, marketing, education, and more. The lessons of psychology are applicable across so many paths and through so many avenues, and nearly every top college and university in the United States has a strong psychology program.
This gives students interested in psychology a lot of options. You could go anywhere in the country, which is awesome, and pursue a dream school that has a stellar psychology program and that also has all the social and cultural opportunities that you’re excited about as you look towards college — from intimate liberal arts communities to massive schools that emphasize Greek life.
The secret to getting into your dream school for studying psychology isn’t an amazing transcript, and it isn’t impressive SAT or ACT scores, though. Those are actually just the starting point. It’s assumed that to be seriously considered you have the grades and scores to stand out. What actually makes the difference aren’t those things on paper, it’s what you do outside of the classroom.
In this post, we are giving you the must-do list for juniors interested in psychology who are aiming for a highly-selective school. These are the activities that we support our students in pursuing, and they are what you need to be doing, too.
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There is no one-size-fits all plan for getting into a dream school, and there is no single activities list that offers juniors interested in psychology what they need to achieve their goals. Instead, it is all about personalization. Below, we break down the four crucial categories that you must be addressing. Then, you need find the best way for you to make it your own. We do this alongside our students, supporting them through deeply personal activity and academic journeys. Now, let’s dig in.
CLUB LEADERSHIP
There probably isn’t a psychology club at your school, but this isn’t an excuse to not be involved with school activities. Look at the list of clubs that you are currently a part of — not sports teams, academic clubs — and pick one that you have been committed to for a while and have a strong community within. Once you’ve picked a club, we need you to become the club head by senior year.
If you are already on a path towards becoming a club head, that is awesome. Keep going! If this isn’t the trajectory you are already on, you need to meet with the current club leader(s). Don’t ask how you get their role, though. Instead, ask them how you can best support them in reaching their goals as leaders. Similarly, meet with the faculty leader. What do they want to see happening in the club, and how can you help make that happen?
If you haven’t been actively involved in a club at school, that is a problem. You could have been super busy with sports or music or commitments outside of school, and that is theoretically fine — but it is also an issue. This is because schools want to see that you are an active member of your school community, and that you’ll be a similarly involved member of their community. So, how do you fix this when you’re already a junior and the clock is ticking? Joining an existing club is an uphill battle because they have members who are already vying for a leadership role. Instead, we would advise that you start a club. Yes, it’s like diving into the deep end of the pool day one. Do it. Pick a focus that is related to service, psychology, or another interest, and recruit an initial group of members and a faculty advisor. Treat this like a legacy project. The club will outlive your tenure in high school, and that’s pretty cool.
SERVICE TO YOUR COMMUNITY
As an aspiring psychology major, it is extremely important that you are active in community service within your community. There are a few parameters that you must meet, though, to make this investment of time and effort truly useful from a college admissions perspective. First, the volunteering must be in-person. There are ways to support nonprofits without being there in-person, but that doesn’t do what we need it to do for you.
Next, we need you to being this work long-term. By long-term, we mean that you are volunteering regularly (once a week at minimum) for at least 6 months. As a result, this volunteering will be local. That’s what we want. Traveling outside of your community to volunteer does not improve your application for the vast majority of colleges, and can actually undermine your chances of acceptance.
Finally, we need you to have a leadership role — but it doesn’t need to come with a title. You should be working within an organization or non-profit, and would ideally leading a group, event, initiative, or program within that larger umbrella. This could be a fundraising initiative, but it doesn’t have to be. In fact, fundraising initiatives can become too much about the money and too little about relationships and story. So, the key piece isn’t raising four figures, but having meaningful experiences that relate to giving back to your community.
RESEARCH
The most overlooked avenue for extracurricular exploration among high schoolers is research. We support our juniors through engaging independent research projects that empower them to dive into a particular piece of the field of psychology, going beyond what is accessible in a class at school. The goal, of course, is to have something to show for the effort. Often this means publication, either through a publication at school and a journal open to high school students (there are many).
Ask your parents, too, if they have friends who are in the field of psychology. You may be able to assist with their research, although there are significant limitations due to patient confidentiality.
SUMMER JOB
We advise most of our students to get a ‘real’ job (at least 10 hours per week) before applying to college. This typically means a summer job, and can often be a much larger time commitment. There are a number of reasons to have a summer job that go beyond college applications, but looking at it solely through the college lens the reasoning is quite simple: work ethic and story.
Working, especially in a customer facing role, like scooping ice cream, creates stories that stand out from those entirely centered around school-based programming. It also illustrates that you are a dependable member of a team, something colleges are hungry for as they put together a first-year class.
Applying to college is tough, and you technically haven’t even started yet. However, there is a lot that you can be doing now to make senior fall a much more pleasant experience. Taking action now pays off, big time — so get going.
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