<p>hi i was wondering where are the best colleges if u wanted to major in psychology or genetics, specifically in the West Coast. And i want to know how the UC's, Stanford, Pomona, and Reed fare in these majors. Thanks!</p>
<p>The most constraining factor would be the genetics major. Not many colleges offer it. Every college has psychology. For psych, I would go where the overall reputation of the college is best. Stanford has an excellent reputation in psychology. For genetics, the only college I know of offering a bachelors in genetics in the West are Texas A&M, U Cal Davis and Cal State Stanislaus. A few other BS programs in genetics are Emory, Hampshire, Dartmouth, Rutgers, Cornell, SUNY Environmental Sci, Ohio State, Clemson, Bennington. If you major in Biology, you can take courses in genetics. Every college has Biology. That would give you more options.</p>
<p>In California, Santa Clara U has an excellent psychology program. </p>
<p>If you're interested in genetics, you might also look for strong programs in Molecular Biology - that usually delves into genetics. UCSD has an excellent molecular bio. department (<a href="http://biology.ucsd.edu/biosections/mole.html%5B/url%5D">http://biology.ucsd.edu/biosections/mole.html</a>) with opportunities for internships in biotech research firms right off campus. However, UCD, UCB, UCLA and UCSB are also strong for bio. Stanford, of course, would be another excellent choice. A few other schools with good bio departments: Whitman (Washington state), Pomona, Occidental, Harvey Mudd. Reed is great for biology but you'll have to check on what they offer in terms of focusing on genetics. In fact, You are going to have to do some legwork to investigate where your interests would be best served - go to the websites of the various schools, look at their biology department sites. What research is being done? What courses in genetics specifically are offered? Etc.</p>
<p>yea i sorta realized that there arent a lot of genetics majors rite after i turned off my computer, so i thought to myself "Doh!" But thanks a lot for the info. Another question: in some colleges they offer the major "biopsychology". What does that entail?</p>
<p>Psychology comes from the brain and from the endocrine system. Psychology is basically what the brain does. Biopsychology is about the biological basis of psychological phenomena. It is about the anatomy, chemistry, and function of the brain. It is a very interesting and promising field.</p>