Psychology Degrees, Schools, and Careers in Indiana

The Midwest can often be an overlooked destination for students enamored with the colleges on either coast. But states like Indiana prove that the Midwest more than holds its own when it comes to degree-granting institutions and options for a postsecondary psychology education. The state has less than 60 degree-granting institutions when for-profit institutions are excluded but the state has a legitimately good combination of public, private, and for-profit schools that Indiana offers worthwhile education programs to students with all different interests. Perhaps more troubling is that the rate of Indiana high school students enrolling in college is declining. The good news is that the state is still one of the leaders in terms of producing psychology degree-holders. According to the most recent subject-specific degree data from IPEDS, Indiana produced 2,374 psychology bachelor’s degree recipients and they also produced another 400 psychology master’s degree recipients over the same period of time. Clearly interested students have a lot of options for psychology education.

Indiana has increased its spending on higher education in the past five years and as a result the state has all different types of psychology degree programs ranging from doctoral degree programs in clinical psychology to bachelor’s degree programs and there are even schools that offer psychology coursework or a psychology minor without actually offering a degree. With so many quality universities and programs to choose from, students need to have a pretty good understanding of the career path they want to take because unlike other degree subjects, the education requirements to becoming a psychologist are strict in Indiana as they are in every other state and the degree you earn will determine how many doors in the industry will be open.

A bachelor’s degree in psychology is not a bad route to take if a student wants to become a practicing psychologist, but standing alone, the bachelor’s degree does not qualify anyone to become a licensed psychologist. In order to become a licensed psychologist in Indiana, the applicant must first have earned a doctoral degree in psychology or a related field according to Indiana law. This is part of the reason why so many students who do earn a bachelor’s degree in psychology continue on to study the subject at the graduate level. A bachelor’s degree can serve as an excellent psychology knowledge foundation for graduate school, or it can help recipients gain employment as a psychologist assistant or research aide. Read about IN psychologist licensing requirements.

Indiana has colleges and universities with all of these programs and other programs in different psychology specialties as well but with more than 50 degree-granting institutions to choose from, it can be hard to do thorough research and cover all the bases, so we helped by not only singling out some of the more well-known psychology schools near the state capital of Indianapolis as well as a number of excellent schools with psychology degree programs that are spread out across the state as well. Just remember that this is only meant to be a sampling of the offerings, there are plenty of other schools that won’t be mentioned that have psychology degree programs worth checking out as well, so students should just make sure to do their research.

Indiana is loaded with schools boasting excellent graduate psychology degree programs. Indiana University at Bloomington and Purdue University both offer nationally ranked clinical psychology degree programs as well as nationally ranked psychology PhD programs. Indiana State in Terre Haute also has a nationally ranked clinical psychology degree program and both the University of Notre Dame in South Bend and Ball State University in Muncie offer nationally ranked psychology PhD programs to interested students.

There are also universities like Earlham University in Richmond and Evansville University that don’t have the same prestige as IU and Notre Dame but still have reputable psychology departments that regular churn out accomplished graduates.

Indianapolis Psychology Degrees, Schools, and Careers

For as many excellent universities and psychology degree programs in Indiana that aren’t located in or directly around Indianapolis, the state capital still manages to have a few excellent psychology degree programs nearby as well as a flourishing professional community of psychologists that represent a lot of opportunity for aspiring psychologists looking to start their career in Indianapolis. The University of Indianapolis has a nationally ranked clinical psychology degree program and other schools like Butler University and Marian University offer well-respected and popular undergraduate psychology degree programs to interested students. There is also IUPUI, which has a recognized psychology department for students interested.

Those looking to start a psychology career in Indianapolis will be pleased to know the city has a sizable community that is active and offer opportunities to recent graduates looking to jumpstart their psychology careers. In May of 2022, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that Indianapolis had about 1,400 professional psychologists working in the Indianapolis-Carmel metropolitan area. Clinical and counseling psychologists in the area have an attractive average salary at $78,530.

Online Psychology Schools in Indiana

It should come as no surprise to learn that when it comes to fully online psychology degrees offered by state-specific institutions, that Indiana University in Bloomington once again carries the torch for the rest of the state. The school’s online offers are prolific and include individual fully online psychology courses and an online bachelor’s degree in psychology as well. Purdue University offers online psychology coursework and Indiana State University offers the same type of thing. There are also a handful of community colleges, including Ivy Tech Community College that offers introductory psychology courses online.

The best place for Indiana students to find fully online psychology degree programs is at some of the national online psychology schools that work with Indiana students. Schools like Grand Canyon University, Northcentral University, and Walden University all offer fully online doctoral degrees while other schools like the University of Phoenix, Keiser University, and Kaplan University offer online bachelor’s degree programs in psychology and related subjects.

Indiana also requires that some of its continuing education requirements for psychologists be met through distance education programs, so professional psychologists should look into online psychology education as well.

Career Opportunities for Psychologists in Indiana

Indiana may not seem like a Midwestern hub for professional psychologists but judging by the current status of the industry and its projected growth down the road, it is a place for aspiring professional psychologists looking to ply their trade. The BLS reported that as of May 2022, the state of Indiana had around 2,800 professional psychologists within the state and those psychologists were earning an annual average wage of between $83,500 and $95,380.

As if that wasn’t enough, the Indiana Department of Wage Information estimates that employment of clinical, counseling, and school psychologists in Indiana will grow 12% by 2030 and they also predict there will be an additional 300 job openings during that same time.

2022 US Bureau of Labor Statistics and Indiana Department of Wage Information job market trends and salary figures for Indiana psychology professionals are based on national data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed July 2023.

Featured Indiana Schools with Psychology Degree Programs