Psychology is the scientific study of the human mind and its functions. Psychology has many branches, most of which are explored at an undergraduate level, and some schools approach the study by dividing the curriculum into areas such as cognitive psychology, developmental psychology, social psychology, and biopsychology. Those who study psychology often work as psychologists, psychotherapists, social workers, counselors, teachers, and researchers.

“International relations” can go by many different names. Commonly referred to simply as “IR,” international relations or international affairs is the study of how the politics, economics, and laws of different nations are interrelated and connected on a global level. At many schools, IR is a subfield of political science and public policy. More and more often, it is also being replaced by the term “global studies,” which is less associated with poly-sci. The strongest programs and majors for IR are often found at larger research institutions, but many small liberal arts colleges also provide fascinating programs and opportunities to delve into IR. We list the best 11 majors and programs here. 

In addition to being one of the most popular majors for students who plan to attend medical school, Biology majors often graduate to become biochemists, research scientists, biologists, physician assistants, environmental scientists, botanists, and much more.  

A strong Russian program equips students with an understanding of the history, culture, language, art, and literature of Russia. In order to understand and examine the region from a global perspective, Russian programs are often inclusive of material about Eastern Europe and the relationship between Russia, the United States, and the rest of the world. Students who major in Russian often go on to work in the fields of government, education, law, research and cultural analysis, and diplomacy and public service.

Sociology is the study of the development, structure, and functioning of human society; and sociology majors examine how societies function by looking into individual experiences and connecting them to larger social issues. Sociology allows us to enter into the worlds of others and understand their values, beliefs, and traditions.

Economics is the study of the allocation of scarce resources. It’s a social science primarily involved with the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. Studying Economics helps students examine global and social issues such as trade, the environment, poverty, growth, regulation, and unemployment.

Linguistics is a field that focuses on the science behind language, its structure and analysis, and communication. It is an interdisciplinary field that combines principles from anthropology, psychology, philosophy of language, history, and often, computational analysis/statistics. This combination of social and science makes it a prime candidate for a strong major within a liberal arts institution. We’ve gathered a list of the best linguistics majors and programs at small liberal arts schools throughout the U.S. below.

Physics is one of the oldest academic disciplines and the field underlies all of the natural sciences. Because of that, you’ll often come across majors, or tracks and paths, such as astrophysics, biophysics, chemical physics, geophysics, and more. There are many career paths that a physics major can take, including but not limited to: research science, teaching, engineering, and working in the healthcare and technology industries. 

Biochemistry, also known as “biological chemistry,” is a field that specifically investigates the seemingly infinite chemical processes that occur within or directly relate to living organisms. There are three main subfields within biochemistry: protein science, metabolism, and molecular genetics. Because of its highly technical and scientific nature, it can be difficult to find a top-notch undergraduate (B.S.) biochemistry degree and department at smaller liberal arts schools. We think that this a missed opportunity, because we see biochemistry as being prime for a student interested in investigating the overlap between, say, biochemistry and ethics, sociology, or psychology, for students who want to pursue a public health route. Or, math, statistics, or computer science for students who want to go into tech. We’ve compiled a list of the best biochem majors and programs at small liberal arts schools throughout the U.S. 

Some students may assume that if they want to study math in college, larger universities make more sense because of their graduate-level programs. Math courses at larger schools are often bigger ones that get split into small groups taught by TAs (and TAs can be great!) and not by the research professors themselves. Students often don’t get the opportunity to work across disciplines in the same way they do at liberal arts colleges (LAC). It’s important to know that you can still find advanced, rigorous math courses at small LACs, and the advantage of a LAC is that you can then study subjects that aren’t math, too.