Deciding between Biology, Psychology, and Political Science as a major.

Hello Everyone! My name is Luke and I am currently a High School Senior. I will most likely (though not certainly) be attending Indiana University – Bloomington next fall! Though lately, I have been really struggling with determining which major I should pursue. I am torn between Bio, Psych, and Poli Sci. Each subject I find very interesting though I am not sure where to go. The careers I have definitely considered going into the most would be either becoming a Civil Rights/Environmental Lawyer or staying in academia and doing research/teaching. I have heard both of these fields are definitely rather competitive so I would really appreciate a major that would allow for some alternatives. I have also heavily considered double majoring (people have told me psych and poli sci are not too work intensive relative to bio). Sorry, I know so much of this is very specific to me, though I do hope someone out there might have some insight for me. Thanks so much!

Why don’t you take an intro course in psych and one in political science, and see how they “feel”. I assume that you have the background in biology.

If you want to do environmental law, why don’t you do the BSES degree at O’Neill? In general, it seems like you may find O’Neill to be a good place for your interests.

Thanks for the advice!!

I will say that most of the majors you listed would require more than just a BS or a BA. You probably would need to go to grad school. If you really want to be a lawyer, you can major in anything undergrad, but a more liberal arts major may better prepare you to take the LSAT. If you were more interested in being an environmental lawyer, a BS in environmental science (which in ways, is similar to biology) with a JD might be marketable. Majoring in a STEM field may make you stick out more in law school admissions; however, your GPA may be deflated rather than inflated.

You have college, though, to explore the fields. You can change around your major and choose what feels right.

Polisci is more reading/writing, biology is more science, and psych falls somewhere in the middle.

I never realized how old this was until I started typing it up! Whoops! But, I hope that nonetheless, it still helps you in some way! I’m a high school senior too, and I know how stressful picking majors is.