<p>I’m currently a senior in high school wanting to major in psychology. I know American has strong political science and business departments, but the few things I’ve heard about their science department are generally negative. Does anyone have any personal experience with their psychology department?
Though I haven’t visited, the things I’ve been reading online about the university make it seem like I’d be a good fit. I’m just worried it wouldn’t be a great fit for my major- and after all, I am there for an education.</p>
<p>Well, first of all, Psychology is considered a social science, not a science, so the reputation of AU’s science department isn’t relevant. My D was a Psych major at AU (started in another field, so it’s not as if she chose AU for that major). She had some professors who were very good, some not so good. Psych is a pretty popular major–I seem to remember a long line of Psych majors on the stage getting their diplomas at graduation–but it’s not an area the school is particularly known for.</p>
<p>I suggest you look up the bios of the Psych profs at AU on the school website and see what their specialities are, i.e., in what areas the’ve done their research and writing. I’ve found that regardless of the courses they’re assigned to teach, most profs manage to shoehorn their pet subjects into the curriculum, so knowing this info can be helpful in predicting your classroom experience. You’ll also be able to gauge the likelihood that the department’s staff will be conducting research you may want to participate in. Of course, thus advice goes for any college, not just AU.</p>