<p>I plan on getting my BA in psych and I began to wonder if I should take Calculus or Statistics? I do plan on going to grad school in the future. Someone told me that grad schools look down upon psych students who DON'T take calculus and just take Stats for an "easy" way out. Is this true? I don't really want to take Calculus if I don't have to but I signed up for it anyway just in case. Is Calculus necessary for grad school? Will it diminish my chances at a phd program? Or it is farce? Can I just take all Statistics classes throughout college? Thanks.</p>
<p>You’ll need to use statistics for psychology. You won’t need calculus.</p>
<p>That being said, calculus is a great subject and would be beneficial to your analytical skills. But stats is the necessary math.</p>
<p>Quantitative skills are valued in graduate psychology admissions.</p>
<p>Whether or not you need to take calculus for a psychology major, depends on the particular department. I’ve seen a number of departments that do require calculus. It is more likely in departments that offer both a BA and a BS psychology major. The BS degree might require calculus and some coursework in supporting sciences (Biology and/or Chemistry or Physics), whereas the BS degree does not. When a specialized neuroscience track within the major is offered, it also is more likely that calculus is required for that track. </p>
<p>At most schools, psychology is one of the more popular majors. Calculus is not necessary for many areas of psychology, so my suspicion is that some departments have used a calculus requirement to screen out students who are more interested in studying about “nuts and sluts” than pursuing a rigorous scientific approach to psychology.</p>
<p>its a way of thinking mathmatically so yes</p>
<p>Many social science research methodologies are based on statistics, and you’ll need an understanding of basic calculus to understand statistical theory. So yes, take some calculus. It’s not too terribly difficult.</p>