The field of psychology has a broad variety of studies and requirements. Nowadays I find myself hearing people taking up psychology as their preferred majors or subjects. In a relatively short amount of time, psychology has been a growing choice for young students.
As more people want to go for this topic, here’s some valuable information for my students who’re struggling to pick. Now let us begin.
Let me brief you first though. Psychology is much more popular now than it used to be, why? Simply because it seems more fascinating than the rest. It helps us understand ourselves and others and there's many profitable career options that make it ever so valuable.
Careers
It is not necessary to become a psychologist to implement your degree. Let’s see a few job options that you may find appealing.
Clinical psychologist: Clinical psychologists use their skills to help those who have mental and behavioral disorders. This is done by creating treatment plans, prescribing medication and providing diagnostic tests.
Forensic psychologist: Use their knowledge of human behavior to answer questions in legal matters, this can include whether or not someone is mentally stable/fit enough to stand trial, they can help those who are suffering from trauma after being victim of a crime and help them testify in court.
Neuropsychologist: People who have cerebral function problems are treated by neuropsychologists. Neuropsychologists assess a patient’s memory, language and attention to create a treatment plan.
Market research analyst: Use their knowledge of consumer behavior to understand what kind of products customers would be willing and able to buy. Some specific tasks in this job could be using software (statistical) to analyze data and writing reports using this data.
Lawyer: Attorneys may use their psychology studies to examine witnesses during trials, negotiate and choose a jury during the trial. To be an attorney they must have a JD degree and pass state bar examination.
Teacher: Teachers may apply their knowledge into understanding and connecting with the students in school, helping them develop and teaching smoothly. Teachers need a teaching degree and a state license in order to be employed.
Degrees
Wait a minute, let’s take a step back from all this adulting. Before you start working you need a degree. All these jobs I’ve listed out need some specific degrees, and some don't require post-grad! It depends on what you want to achieve with a psychology degree that helps pick a path, because not everyone who takes psychology continues it post-grad. Psychology isn’t a subject that only helps you in a specific career field. Due to its range, many people use psychology as a tool or in better words “foundation” for their further studies / career.
Associate degree: This is approximately a two year undergraduate program which provides students with familiar theories and main principles of psychology, this can be used as a “base” for earning a bachelor's degree. It is also useful to apply in further studies after graduating.
Masters: A masters degree is specifically for those who want to prepare for a career in the psychology field, including business, criminal justice and more. This can be a stepping stone to qualify for licensure and with this degree, you will have specialized knowledge about principles of human behavior. Time taken for a masters degree can vary but it takes around two years or one at the minimum.
Doctor of psychology (PhD): This program lasts for about three years and it deals with clinical psychology of humans or other species and explores/research various treatments and help understand the root of the problem.
ABA (Master of science): This is an applied behavior analysis master’s program which may lead to careers that apply studies of behavioral psychology. Students develop skills to work with individuals diagnosed with impairments such as autism, development disabilities, etc. Studies last for about 2 years and require undergrad GPA and a fee at the very least.
MAP (Master of arts in psychology): This course’s period lasts around two years, and focuses on teaching students (in-depth) about clinical, health, work, social and neuropsychology.
Colleges
While applying you may be asking yourself what college seems best for you, this list may help you decide which college suits your requirements!
University of Oxford, United Kingdom- £9,250
University of California, Berkeley, United States of America- $16k (after aid)
National University of Singapore- SGD 38.2k
Carnegie Mellon university- $37k (after aid)
University of California San Diego- $15k (after aid)
University of Calgary
( Akhila Naram. )
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