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Open Career Doors with a Psychology Degree
Whether you want to pursue research on human behavior, go into business, or dedicate yourself to public service, a bachelor's degree in psychology can open the door to a fulfilling, lifelong career.
At LVC, we combine an in-depth study of psychology with courses in cognitive science, human development, and clinical treatment to prepare you to work in a variety of settings. You'll learn the broader skills employers seek, too—including creative and critical thinking, writing, presentation, and analysis.
But we don't just want you to talk about human behavior in the classroom. We’ll help you get extensive experience through labs, student-faculty research, and for-credit internships. Pursue a capstone independent research project to develop the skills you'll need for graduate study, or gain career experience through an internship with local employers like Penn State Hershey Medical Center, Lebanon City School District, and Domestic Violence Intervention.
Discover Your Degree Pathway
- Tailor your degree to your interests and career goals by pursuing a related program, like biology, neuroscience, criminal justice, or digital communications.
- Become proficient in your degree requirements, from principles of psychology to behavioral genetics.
Related Programs and Minors
Conduct Research and Gain Hands-on Experience
We want you to choose upper-level courses based on your interests and skills and pursue self-directed research opportunities that will help you stand out on graduate school applications or with employers.
Our psychology faculty includes practicing experts in fields like behavioral genetics, the psychology of gender, emotion regulation, and cognitive, clinical, and developmental psychology.
Each faculty member has their own lab where they conduct research, and you can gain additional experience through student-faculty collaborations.
With faculty mentoring them, our students have conducted research on topics including:
- Academic grit mindset, and motivation
- Infant vocalization
- The relationship between genetics and susceptibility to peer pressure
- Mapping cognitive word associations to a concept like God
- Pseudoscience and decision-making
- College students, writing skills, and cognitive habits of mind
Do a quick Google search for “Lebanon Valley College baby babbling,” and you'll see that Professor Rachel Albert has received a lot of media attention for her research on how infants learn language—including on NPR's Hidden Brain podcast! Dr. Albert and the rest of LVC's psychology faculty will include you in their work to understand human behaviors and the brain.
Get Work Experience Through Internships
You can also gain experience in psychology-related careers through our for-credit internship program. Develop clear career goals or identify potential employers, as you explore a variety of careers for students with a psychology degree. Psychology majors have served as interns for:
- Harrisburg State Hospital
- Lebanon County Commission on Drugs & Alcohol
- Lebanon City School District
- Domestic Violence Intervention
- Sexual Assault Resource & Counseling Center
- Quittie Glen Center for Mental Health
- Penn State Hershey Medical Center
Interested in Graduate School?
Joining a student-faculty research project prepares you to conduct in-depth independent research for your major capstone project and stand out on graduate school applications.
Your research could also be published in peer-reviewed journals or presented at scientific conferences. In the past five years, psychology majors have delivered poster presentations at conferences such as the Annual Meeting of the Eastern Psychological Association and the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality.
What Makes Studying Psychology at LVC Special?
- Conduct collaborative research projects with our faculty members, who specialize in areas such as cognitive learning styles, infant vocalization, and the concept of self.
- Join a student-faculty research project, design your own, or take your career plan for a test drive with an internship.
What You Can Do with a Psychology Degree
An LVC bachelor's degree in psychology prepares you for a multitude of careers, whether you choose to work in public health, clinical practice, or research and analysis. Almost half of our students pursue graduate school in fields like clinical psychology, counseling, occupational therapy, forensic psychology, and law, but your psychology degree opens an array of career opportunities. We'll prepare you to work in many settings, from a counselor's office to a research hospital.
Recent psychology graduates work as therapeutic staff support, pharmacy technicians, and health information management specialists. They also pursue graduate degrees at universities such as Penn State College of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Johns Hopkins University, and Loyola University.
- Participate in a peer mentoring group for prospective psychology majors.
Upcoming Psychology Events
I loved being a student in the LVC Psychology Department because it felt like a family away from home. I always felt my professors were invested in me as a person and wanted me to do well.
Kathryn DeBlock ’09, M.A., Director of School and College Counseling, Mount Saint Dominic Academy
$79K
Median income for psychologists across all industries (2018)
46%
of LVC psychology majors go on to graduate school
70%
of LVC psychology majors pursue internships as their culminating experience
