I’m a freshman, and this is my second semester in college. I’m just wondering if it is a good idea to major in psychology and minor in computer science since I’ve been taking these two courses from my first semester, and I’m really interested in these two fields. People might give me advices such as double majoring in both majors, but the thing is that computer science major requires a lot more credits than majoring in psychology, not to mention the time it takes to graduate. Bt the way, my school doesn’t offer psychology minor degree.
What do you mean by a good idea? Personally I don’t think too many major/minor combinations are bad ideas, if the student is sufficiently interested in both areas. They don’t even need to be related to each other. Are you asking whether there is overlap, whether there’s a market for them together, whether they combine well…? Simply asking if they’re a good idea is a very broad question.
Psychology + computer science can lead to the field of human-computer interaction, which is the study of how people use technology and how to best design computer and technological systems so that humans can use them seamlessly. In the common hiring parlance, this is often termed “user experience” (UX) or “user interface” (UI). This is actually my field. If you have a deep interest in tech but really want to approach it from the lens of a social scientist, then it’s a great way to combine two majors and enter the field. UX is pretty big right now, and UX/UI researchers and designers can make good money. In fact, if I could go back in time this is probably a combination I’d pursue myself as an undergraduate.
You don’t have to adhere to a strict major/minor. If your school doesn’t have a psych minor, you could always make your own by taking 5-7 classes in the area if you majored in computer science. If you wanted to do an “almost double major” you could do that, too - major in one, but just take a lot of courses in the other one. You don’t have to stop at a minor - if the minor requires 7 classes but the major requires 15, you could always stop at 10 or 11 for example.