Psychology is a very popular major at many universities and colleges. Many students choose to go into a psychology major because they find it interesting and or want to help people, which is great. However, because so many people end up taking on psychology as a major, there is a fear among undergraduates and others that they won’t find a job or one that makes them feel like they are doing meaningful work.
Thankfully, though, there are many jobs that psychology-related or not psychology-related that can utilize the skills acquired through such a major. Some examples of careers that a person can have are a cognitive psychologist, an abnormal psychologist or even a sports psychologist. However, as for me, the careers in psychology that interested me are a neuropsychologist, school psychologist, health psychologist, developmental psychologist and a marriage and family therapist.
The first psychology career that spiked my interest was becoming a neuropsychologist. A neuropsychologist focuses on the brain and how it can affect or “influence a person’s cognition and behaviors” (Careers in Psychology). Similarly, neuropsychologists also consider how cognition and behavior may be affected by illness or injury. Neuropsychologists also conduct research or go into a “clinical setting” where they assess brain-based disorders or traumas, like Alzheimer’s. To become one a person must get a bachelor’s in psychology, a master’s in neuropsychology, get a doctorate, and undergo some postdoctoral studies.
The salary of a neuropsychologist then is about $89,038 on average, although it could be less or more depending on the amount of experience an individual has had. What I like about this career, though, is that it is related to neurology, which is an interest of mine, and it doesn’t require me to go to medical school. Overall, I find the career of a neuropsychologist to be interesting and one of my top picks.
Second of all, I like the career of a school psychologist. School psychologists, in general, help students on an individual basis for both educational and personal concerns. They help students to overcome difficult situations, personal matters, and even educational problems that could affect their academics. Furthermore, school psychologists can also organize group therapy sessions when a problem is affecting the entire school or big portion of the student body. This is, therefore, an important career that helps to better the lives of students and how they succeed in an academic environment.
The educational requirements to become a school psychologist, though, are that a person has to obtain a bachelor’s in psychology, a master’s in psychology or sociology, and must be certified and licensed. A school psychologist will also make about $73,270 per year. However, what I like about this career is that I get to help kids who are struggling academically and be a support for them so that they can succeed. It is for this reason and because of the career itself, that I became interested in the career of a school psychologist.
The third career that I thought was interesting was a health psychologist. A health psychologist studies the relationship between physical illnesses or conditions and things like emotional, social, and behavioral factors. Specifically, they study how such factors can cause physical illnesses, “while in other situations they may be the result of physical illness” (Health Psychologist Career Guide). Also, in a research type of setting, health psychologists study in-depth what causes or motivates an individual to seek professional help.
The education requirements for a health psychologist are getting a bachelor’s degree in psychology, a master’s in health psychology, a doctorate in health psychology, and one year of supervised internship. A health psychologist must also be certified, especially when they go into a clinical setting. The salary for such a profession though is about $78, 690 on average for the whole nation. This is some of the basic information about health psychologists, however, what I like most about it is the fact that I would get to study how certain factors can affect diseases and I would also not have to go to medical school, which is something I would like to avoid. Overall, this is why I like the career and some basic information about it.
The fourth career I looked into was a developmental psychologist. A developmental psychologist investigates how the development aspects like social cognitively and physically in the different stages of life. Typically, developmental psychologists do more research and determine whether certain behaviors are due to the genetics of the individual or the social environment they are in. So to become a developmental psychologist, a person must get a bachelor’s in Psychology, a master’s degree or an internship, a doctorate in developmental psychology, and clinical work and licensing.
The clinical work and licensing is more required if a person intends to work in some sort of hospital or health setting. After the education requirements are accomplished and an individual has some experience in the field, they will earn about $75,230 annually. This career, though, is interesting to me not only because of what the job is itself but because I could study the development of teens per say and learn more about how teens develop as they get older, emotionally, mentally and even socially. It is for this reason and because of the career information itself, that I found the career of a developmental psychologist to be intriguing.
Last, of all, I investigated the career of a marriage and family therapist. In short, they help others manage and deal with their own problems. They encourage families and couples to express their feelings and they help them to develop effective strategies when dealing with stressful situations like a divorce or break up. Furthermore, the study and analyze how people in these relationships interact with one another and how this can affect someone’s mental health.
However, to become a marriage and family therapist, a person must get a bachelor’s degree of any major, a master’s in psychology or marriage and family therapy, have supervised clinical work, and get licensed. These education requirements are not much different from other psychology careers, but the salary does differ quit about with this one. Specifically, a marriage and family therapist only makes about $49,170 annually, which isn’t bad, but is still a lot lower than some of the other careers discussed previously.
Despite the decrease in pay, though, I do enjoy this career and find it interesting because I would be able to help families and couples to get along better and understand one another. I also really like how with this profession I would be able to help families and couples during hardpoints in their relationships and in their personal lives. Therefore, a marriage and family therapist is a beneficial career that I find very interesting despite its lower pay.
As it can be seen, there are a lot of different careers that are psychology related. There are a wide variety of psychology careers, but nonetheless, each one is important and better influence or benefit humanity. Marriage and Family therapists, for instance, can help families and couples to understand one another more efficiently and help them when they are going through stressful times like a divorce or even death within the family.
Similarly, other careers can have an important impact as well to people and how they behave, perform, or think in any situation. Therefore, I think that it is important that people go into a psychology career because it those people that will make a difference in the society of today’s world and make it a better place for the future.
