Best Psychology Programs in Indiana for 2027

Content courses at Notre Dame fall into two groups, and you take at least two from each. Class A covers social, developmental and clinical perspectives, with courses such as Personality Psychology and Introduction to Clinical Psychology. Class B covers biological, cognitive and learning processes, including Cognitive Psychology and Introduction to Cognitive Neuroscience. Around those sit a one-credit seminar, a four-credit statistics course and a four-credit methods course, two 40000-level senior seminars, and one more course from either level, for 30 credits in all. Seniors endorsed by a faculty member can write a two-semester thesis, and the departmental honors designation requires an A in the thesis course, a passing grade in Advanced Statistics and a faculty committee's approval. Neuroscience and Behavior is a separate BA in the same department.

Minimum Credits

30 credit hours of psychology courses.

Required Courses

Science, Practice and Policy Seminar; Statistics for Behavioral Sciences; Methods for Behavioral Sciences.

Content Groups

At least two courses from Class A and two from Class B.

Senior Seminars

At least two courses at the 40000 level.

Senior Thesis

Optional two-semester sequence; faculty endorsement required.

Program Sources: Requirements | Psychology Major | University of Notre DameSenior Thesis | Psychology Major | University of Notre Dame

Ball State's 42-credit psychological science major, offered as a BA or a BS, centers on four foundation areas: individual differences, learning and cognition, diversity, and biological. You take one course from each. Before those, you take Introduction to Psychological Science, Statistics, a four-credit Research Methods course, Professional Ethics in Psychology and Career Planning in Psychology, plus a math course. The upper-level work adds six credits of 300 or 400-level work and six of 400-level work, and a capstone of either a Research Seminar or Department Honors in Psychology. Students can join the Psi Chi honor society, take approved internships or immersive learning projects, and qualified students may start graduate coursework through the Accelerated Master's Program in Psychology or Clinical Psychology.

Major Credits

42 credit hours.

Statistics

PSYS 241 with a C or better; approved substitutes include ECON 221 and SOC 382.

Research Methods

PSYS 284, four credits.

Capstone

Research Seminar or Department Honors in Psychology.

Accelerated Master's

Available in Psychology and Clinical Psychology.

Program Sources: Major in Psychological Science (BA/BS) - Ball State UniversityBachelor's in Psychology | Major in Psychology

Forty credit hours of psychology courses form the major at IU Indianapolis, and the BA and BS share them. You take Introduction to Psychology, Ethics and Diversity and Career Planning, then Statistics, Research Methods and a Research Methods Lab, four foundation courses in lifespan development, behavioral neuroscience, cognition and social psychology, and three content courses from options such as Health Psychology, Introduction to Counseling and Industrial/Organizational Psychology. A capstone laboratory, capstone seminar or honors research project finishes the major. The degrees differ in School of Science requirements: the BA asks for first-year world language proficiency, while the BS asks for more math and four science lectures, two of them in biology or chemistry. A separate BA is reserved for Ivy Tech Associate of Science in Psychology graduates who transfer with junior status.

Major Credits

40 credit hours, all under PSY course designations.

Research Sequence

PSY-B 305 Statistics, PSY-B 311 Research Methods and PSY-B 312 Research Methods Lab.

Capstone Options

Capstone Laboratory, Capstone Seminar or Capstone Honors Research.

BA Requirement

First-year world language proficiency.

BS Requirement

Two math courses beyond college algebra and trigonometry, plus four science lectures.

Program Sources: Undergraduate Degree Programs : IU Indianapolis BulletinPsychology - Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) - TSAP: Degrees

Methods and statistics come first in UIndy's 37-hour psychology major, taken as Foundations of Psychological Sciences I and II, followed by a four-course content core in social, brain and behavior, cognitive and lifespan psychology. A writing and professional development course prepares you for the capstone, and two Readings courses let you dig into diversity, cognition and emotion, biological bases, human development or clinical psychology. Electives can be a Research Practicum, which you may take up to four times, or an internship. The department strongly encourages a concentration, such as Clinical and Counseling Studies for future counselors and clinical psychologists, or Neuroscience for neuropsychology paths, and an Aging Studies certificate is also an option. Pre-physical therapy and pre-occupational therapy students follow adjusted guides.

Major Credits

37 credit hours with a C- or higher in each course.

Methods and Statistics

PSY 124 Methods and PSY 125 Statistics.

Content Core

Social, Brain and Behavior, Cognitive and Lifespan Psychology.

Concentrations

Clinical and Counseling Studies, and Neuroscience.

Capstone

PSY 476 Capstone in Psychological Sciences, after PSY 400.

Program Sources: 2026-2027 Curriculum Guide for Psychology Majors, University of IndianapolisBS in Psychology | UIndy

Both a BA and a BS in psychology are available at Valpo, and each comes in a 27-credit or a 40-credit version. Anyone headed to graduate school is advised to take the 40-credit pathway. Everyone takes General Psychology with its lab, Statistical Methods, Research Methods and Professional Development in Psychology, then four content courses chosen from Life Span Development, Social Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, Physiological Psychology, Learning and Human Cognition. Two courses with labs at the 200 level or higher come from areas like physiological psychology, conservation psychology, cognitive development, human cognition and neuropsychology. Valpo students train animals, use EEG equipment and program experiments, and psychology students who want to keep going can enter an early entry master's in clinical mental health counseling.

Credit Pathways

27 or 40 psychology credit hours for either degree.

Research Courses

PSY 201 Statistical Methods and PSY 202 Research Methods in Psychology.

Content Courses

Four of six: life span, social, abnormal, physiological, learning and human cognition.

Lab Courses

Two psychology courses with labs at the 200 level or higher.

Graduate Pathway

Early entry master's in clinical mental health counseling.

Program Sources: Psychology Program - Valparaiso University

Every DePauw psychology major ends with a senior thesis and a departmental exam, so plan the ten-course major around them. PSY 100, PSY 214 and PSY 215 (Research Methods) come first, then two courses from each of two content groups, two laboratory courses numbered 200 or above and four numbered 300 or 400. The thesis is either a one-semester integrative review of the scientific literature or a two-semester empirical study that you design, run and write up. The exam covers areas such as cognitive, developmental, learning, personality, physiological and social psychology, and you need 70 percent or better on every section to certify for graduation. Majors also take two courses in natural science, computer science or math outside psychology.

Major Size

Ten courses.

Required Core

PSY 100, PSY 214 and PSY 215.

Senior Thesis

PSY 493 (one semester) or PSY 495 and PSY 496 (two semesters).

Departmental Exam

Three-part exam; 70 percent or better on all sections.

Laboratory Courses

Two at the 200 level or above, in addition to Research Methods.

Program Sources: Psychology Major and Minor Requirements - DePauw University

Statistics in Psychology and a four-credit Research Methods course are the core of Saint Mary's 35-hour psychological sciences major, and you complete at least two lab courses beyond methods. After an introductory course and Orientation to Psychology, you pick two courses at each of three levels, from Child Development and Neuropsychology at level two to Abnormal Psychology and Learning and Memory at level three to Psychology of Violence, Hormones and Behavior and Clinical Psychology at level four. Three credits of applied work come from a practicum in clinical and community psychology, independent research, independent study or an internship. Seniors take either the two-semester Quantitative Senior Seminar or a single Senior Seminar. Study abroad is easier if you take statistics in your second year, and the department works with Education on Indiana licensing in secondary social studies.

Major Credits

35 to 37 credit hours.

Research Courses

PSYC 324 Statistics and PSYC 325 Research Methods (four credits).

Applied Work

Practicum, independent research, independent study or internship for three credits.

Senior Seminar

Quantitative Senior Seminar (two semesters) or Senior Seminar in Psychology.

Teaching Licensure

Indiana secondary social studies, with the Education Department.

Program Sources: Psychological Sciences, Bachelor of Arts - PSYC | Saint Mary's CollegePsychological Sciences | Saint Mary's College

A two-semester Research Methods/Statistics sequence, a one-credit Finding Success in the Psychology Program course and one 400-level seminar frame Butler's 35 to 37 credit psychology BA. The seminar can be Advanced Applied Neuroscience, Psychological Testing, History of Psychology, an advanced seminar in cognitive, biological, social, developmental or applied psychology, or an Honors Thesis. You also take at least one course in each of the content areas, from Cognitive Processes and Biological Bases of Behavior to Child Psychology, Social Psychology and Psychology and Law. The remaining 10 or more credits are psychology electives, and up to six credits of internship or other experiential learning count toward them. If psychology is one of two interests, Butler also offers combined majors with anthropology, criminology, philosophy, political science and sociology.

Major Credits

35 or 37 credit hours.

Research Sequence

PS 210 and PS 211, Research Methods/Statistics I and II.

Capstone

One 400-level seminar or Honors Thesis.

Experiential Credit

Up to six hours from PS 391, PS 396 and PS 496.

Combined Majors

Psychology with anthropology, criminology, philosophy, political science or sociology.

Program Sources: Program: Psychology, BA - Butler UniversityPsychology Major/Minor | Butler University

A culminating experience closes the Psychology BS at Indiana State University: a Senior Capstone on workforce and graduate school readiness, Field Work in Psychology, or a Psychology Thesis of three to six credits. Before it, the 45-credit major requires General Psychology, Careers in Psychology, Diversity and Ethics in Psychology, Statistics in Psychology and Psychological Research and Writing. At least six courses come from a list of nine that includes Social, Developmental, Cognitive and Physiological Psychology, and nine more credits are psychology electives. Faculty labs focus on ADHD, trauma and dissociation, forensic psychology, brain stimulation, serious mental illness, environmental psychology and sexual violence. The degree can be taken on campus or online, and the three-year degree map lays out a path to finish in three years.

Major Credits

45 semester hours minimum, with at least 18 psychology credits from Indiana State.

Required Core

General Psychology, Careers in Psychology, Diversity and Ethics, Statistics in Psychology and Psychological Research and Writing.

Elective Core

At least six of nine courses, from Health Behavior to Psychopathology.

Culminating Experience

Senior Capstone, Field Work in Psychology or Psychology Thesis.

Delivery

On campus or online.

Program Sources: Program: Psychology Major - Indiana State UniversityPsychology Degree (BS) | Indiana State University

Finish the Associate of Science in Psychology with the required GPA and you are guaranteed a place in the psychology bachelor's program at one of 14 state-supported Indiana colleges and universities, including Indiana University, Purdue University and Ball State. If you don't qualify for guaranteed admission or your school isn't a partner, the Transfer Single Articulation Pathway moves you to any public four-year school in Indiana with junior status. The 60 credits split into 30 of Indiana College Core, one student success credit and program courses: Research Methods in Psychology, Lifespan Development, Introduction to Social Psychology, Rhetoric and Argument, Introduction to Ethics and a second-level French, Spanish or German course. The degree can be finished in four semesters, at campuses across the state or through distance education.

Credit Hours

60 total: 30 general education, 29 program-specific and 1 student success.

Research Course

PSYC 212 Research Methods in Psychology, four credits.

Psychology Courses

Introduction to Psychology, Abnormal Psychology, Lifespan Development and Introduction to Social Psychology.

Transfer Routes

Guaranteed admission to partner universities, or TSAP transfer with junior status.

Language

French, Spanish or German Level I and Level II.

Program Sources: Program: Psychology, AS - Ivy Tech Community CollegePsychology - Ivy Tech Community College