by our College Data Analytics TeamCollege Factual reviewed 305 schools in the United States to determine which ones were the best for doctor's degree seekers in the field of psychology. Combined, these schools handed out 6,582 doctor's degrees in psychology to qualified students.
What's on this page: * Our Methodology
Your choice of psychology for getting your doctor's degree school matters. Important measures of a quality psychology program can vary widely even among the top schools. Below we explain some of the most important factors to consider before making your choice:
A school that excels in educating for a particular major and degree level must be a great school overall as well. To take this into account we include a school's overall Best Colleges for a Doctor's Degree ranking which itself looks at a host of different factors like degree completion, educational resources, student body caliber and post-graduation earnings for the school as a whole.
Average early-career salary of those graduating with their doctor's degree is one indicator we use in our analysis to find the schools that offer the highest-quality education. That is, everyone wants their doctor's degree to be worth something, and salaries are one measure of determining that.
The metrics below are just some of the other metrics that we use to determine our rankings.
Our full ranking methodology documents in more detail how we consider these factors to identify the best colleges for psychology students working on their doctor's degree.
Since picking the right college can be one of the most important decisions of your life, we've developed the Best Psychology Doctor's Degree Schools ranking, along with many other major-related rankings, to help you make that decision.
Below you'll see a list of the best colleges and universities for pursuing a doctor's degree in psychology. Only those schools that rank in the top 15% of all the schools we analyze get awarded with a place on this list.
Washington University in St Louis is one of the best schools in the country for getting a doctor's degree in psychology. WUSTL is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Saint Louis.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Washington University in St Louis
University of Pennsylvania is one of the best schools in the country for getting a doctor's degree in psychology. UPenn is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Philadelphia.More information about a doctorate in psychology from University of Pennsylvania
Duke University is a great choice for individuals interested in a doctor's degree in psychology. Duke is a large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Durham.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Duke University
University of Notre Dame is one of the finest schools in the United States for getting a doctor's degree in psychology. Notre Dame is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large suburb of Notre Dame.More information about a doctorate in psychology from University of Notre Dame
Located in the small city of Princeton, Princeton is a private not-for-profit university with a moderately-sized student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Princeton University
Located in the city of Evanston, Northwestern is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Northwestern University
The Chicago School Los Angeles Campus is a small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Los Angeles.More information about a doctorate in psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Los Angeles
Located in the midsize city of Cambridge, Harvard is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Harvard University
Located in the large city of Chicago, The Chicago School Chicago Campus is a private not-for-profit school with a small student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Chicago
Columbia is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of New York.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Columbia University in the City of New York
The Chicago School Washington DC Campus is a fairly small private not-for-profit school located in the large city of Washington.More information about a doctorate in psychology from The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Washington DC
UChicago is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a doctorate in psychology from University of Chicago
Located in the city of Newton, William James College is a private not-for-profit college with a small student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from William James College
Georgetown is a very large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Washington.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Georgetown University
Located in the rural area of Palo Alto, Pacific Graduate School of Psychology is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Palo Alto University
Carnegie Mellon is a large private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Pittsburgh.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Carnegie Mellon University
Located in the small city of Santa Barbara, Fielding is a private not-for-profit university with a small student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Fielding Graduate University
Located in the city of Ithaca, Cornell is a private not-for-profit university with a fairly large student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Cornell University
Located in the city of Houston, Rice is a private not-for-profit university with a medium-sized student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Rice University
Located in the medium-sized city of Ann Arbor, U-M is a public university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from University of Michigan - Ann Arbor
Located in the city of Nashville, Vanderbilt is a private not-for-profit university with a large student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Vanderbilt University
Emory is a fairly large private not-for-profit university located in the city of Atlanta.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Emory University
Adler is a small private not-for-profit university located in the large city of Chicago.More information about a doctorate in psychology from Adler University
Located in the city of Los Angeles, USC is a private not-for-profit university with a very large student population.More information about a doctorate in psychology from University of Southern California
UCLA is a very large public university located in the large city of Los Angeles.More information about a doctorate in psychology from University of California - Los Angeles
Learn about other programs related to Psychology that might interest you.
Here are some additional great schools for Psychology students that almost earned our Best Psychology Doctor's Degree Schools award.
| Rank | College | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 46 | The University of Texas at Austin | Austin, TX |
| 47 | University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Champaign, IL |
| 48 | Iowa State University | Ames, IA |
| 49 | The Chicago School of Professional Psychology at Irvine | Anaheim, CA |
| 50 | Boston University | Boston, MA |
| 51 | Fuller Theological Seminary | Pasadena, CA |
| 52 | University of California - Santa Barbara | Santa Barbara, CA |
| 53 | University of Georgia | Athens, GA |
| 54 | Michigan State University | East Lansing, MI |
| 55 | Fordham University | Bronx, NY |
| 56 | University of Pittsburgh - Pittsburgh Campus | Pittsburgh, PA |
| 57 | University of Rochester | Rochester, NY |
| 58 | Boston College | Chestnut Hill, MA |
| 59 | Texas Christian University | Fort Worth, TX |
| 60 | Yeshiva University | New York, NY |
| 61 | Nova Southeastern University | Fort Lauderdale, FL |
View the Best Psychology Doctor's Degree Schools for a specific region near you.
| Major | Annual Graduates |
|---|---|
| Clinical, Counseling & Applied Psychology | 4,156 |
| General Psychology | 1,554 |
| Child Development & Psychology | 726 |
| Other Psychology | 146 |
