Careers In Psychology - A Great Number Of Options Come From A Psychology Degree
There are many who think that the role of a psychologist, often referred to as
a ‘shrink’, is restricted to lending a patient ear to a man, woman
or child, reclining on the famous ‘psychologists’ couch’, narrating
his or her life story. The psychologist is expected to ask leading questions,
to get deeper into the patient’s life, and finally counsel and offer valuable
guidance. Reality though, is far removed from this scenario. Today, careers in
psychology span nearly every area of human interaction – be it a business
house, hospital, school, sports, armed forces, research and many more.
Generally speaking, a psychology degree is considered to be essential for most
of the careers in psychology. Regardless of expertise, a graduate training enables
you to work and be considered as a Psychologist, though an undergraduate degree
in psychology can be useful in a variety of careers. Psychology careers can
be broadly divided in three functional areas :
A. Those for which a psychology degree is essential
B. Those for which other graduates can also apply, though a degree in psychology
can offer added advantage.
C. Those which are open to any discipline.
A: Given below is a list of careers for which a psychology degree is essential
:
- Clinical Psychologists
- Counseling Psychologists
- Educational Psychologists
- Forensic Psychologists
- Health Psychologists
- Occupational Psychologists
- Psychotherapy Psychologists
- Research Psychologists.
B. Those jobs for which other graduates can also apply, though a qualifying
in psychology can offer added advantage.
Areas of market research, nursing jobs, promotion and publicity, sales, human
resource development and management, career support and counseling are all areas
for which a psychology degree will provide an added advantage over graduates
of other disciplines. A degree in psychology can be a good option for changing
career paths also – as the practical training involved to acquire a degree
in psychology, provides adequate experience to start a new career path.
The reasons for which psychology graduates will score over others is because
they have knowledge and training for assessment of personality, intelligence
and attitudes, interviewing techniques, questionnaire design and analysis, child
development, and the methods of teaching and learning.
C: Psychology careers open to graduates of any discipline
Graduates of any discipline can apply to any job which requires a graduate
degree. For example, armed Forces, police, management training and accountancy.
most employers in these areas, often seek candidates with adequate ‘human
management’ skills and a degree in psychology definitely scores over the
rest.
As is evident from the above, there are many careers in psychology which can
be pursued, as a continuation of your present job, to start a career or even
when you want to switch career paths. The most important point to remember is
that a scientifically-trained psychologist is an invaluable asset to any organization
where there is human interaction is at play. Not to mention the treatment areas
where another human is unfortunate to have lost his mind. You could also pursue
a career as a teacher of psychology working in schools, colleges or universities,
where you could teach at a number of levels.
Psychology Course
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