Majoring in Psychology? Is it crazy?

[lizard]

Dear god no.

Signed,
Has a Bachelor's in Psych, Graduated Summa Cum Laude, and Feel Absolutely Worthless

[Deleted]

May 6, 2013 22:15:22 GMT -5 @kande818 said:

May 6, 2013 22:13:18 GMT -5 @lovespugs said:

For the most part, you need an advanced degree to do these jobs too. 

Ditto what everyone else had said above.

No, you don't. All of these jobs require a BSN. I know plenty of ADNs that work in the clinical setting. Research and school nursing are BSN jobs. Administration may required bedside experience and/or an advanced degree.

ETA: 6 months experience in a 'related medical field' most here get Medical Assistant diploma.

Ok, I should have said it like this. I run a University campus and here, for research or teaching, an MA is required. 

Nonetheless, there's a 3 year wait list for BSN and you have to have 6 months experience to apply (state of Cali BON regulation). Not worth nursing here for most unless you are prepared for a long time in school.

[Deleted]

May 6, 2013 22:01:39 GMT -5 fuckyourcouch said:

You need at least a masters degree to do anything with it.

My h has a BA and MA in psych and was going to do his doctorate but decided to do organizational psych/leadership for his MA instead to do HR. he absolutely loves it.

This is me - I did an MS in Industrial/Organizational psych and work in HR. I think it was a good route for a psych major that doesn't want to get a doctorate. If I had to do it over I'd focus less on I/O and more on organizational leadership, but HR is a fun place to work and I do find I use my BS psych degree sometimes. 

I think you can work in HR without an advanced degree and a psych major, but you'll start out at an entry level position. Most of my coworkers don't have an advanced degree but have been in HR for a long time. 

[Deleted]

i started out majoring in Psych then realized what everyone here is saying. now i'm going for psych nursing.

[Deleted]

I see that I was paged. Hi pinkplasticdoll

A few things:

They have pretty much transitioned all PT programs to doctoral level - and all should be doctoral level within the next five years.

If you go back to school, make sure your grades are stellar, pretty much all medical programs are becoming very difficult to get into.

If you are not looking for a physically demanding job - stay far away from physical therapy.

[Deleted]

I did actually use my BA in psych for five years, as a mental health case manager, but I was ridiculously poor.   I eventually moved on to law school and went into a mental health related practice area (I'm a child welfare specialist and represent parents whose children are being taken away by social services so I deal with child psych issues daily and at least 3/4 of my clients have serious mental health issues) before I felt like I was fully using  my psych skills and able to pay the bills at the same time.   Unless you want to go past a BA, I'd consider something else.

[lolc]

My single biggest regret was majoring in Psychology. Halfway into it I decided I loved I/O psychology and wanted to go that route. Except, when I went to apply for every and all sorts of HR jobs after college, I got faced with "minimum 3-5 years experience required." Nice. Not even a way to get my foot in the door (that I could see) except for internships that I could never be a part of because I had to work my way through college.

Unless you plan to keep going (on to your PHD) with psychology, I would say steer clear of it. Find a major that can easily transfer to a "real" decent paying job. If I could do it all over again, I would go into nursing. Or accounting if I was any good at math. Because at this point, after being a SAHM for years and years.... my only option with my useless degree is retail. And I had to work retail (management) out of college. I always have and always will HATE retail.  

[gretchenindisguise]

u/s tech.

that's what I'd go back to be.

[booknerd]

I have a B.S. in Psychology and am currently working on a Master's degree to be a therapist. In my state you only need a Master's to open a private practice. Idk about other states but depending on where you live you may need a PhD.

A note about grad school: It sucks. Majorly. And that's after four years in undergrad. Make sure it's what you want if you go for it (obviously) because it's a lot of reading and writing and looking at research.

[shopgirl07]

What about becoming a Physician Assistant? It would be less physical than nursing in most cases and is also a versatile degree.

If you're still doing your undergrad, you could load up on the science classes that would be pre requisites for the PA program. It's essentially a master's degree, one year of didactic and one year of clinical rotations. Mid level providers are very much in demand right now.

[Jalapeñomel]

How far are you into your undergrad?

[coribelle26]

I just wanted to echo the recommendation for an MSW. I have a BA in Psychology and and an MA in Counseling, and since I've decided I don't want to be a school counselor or a therapist, there's not much left to do with either degree. (Out of undergrad I took a job as a receptionist that grew into other roles, and it turns out I liked that better than counseling.)

With an MSW, if you get burned out on the therapy gig there are plenty of other options for your degree (adoption/foster care, school, hospital, substance abuse, etc.). Just be aware that you may need to get additional certificates if you want to practice in some other area besides your original specialization.

[snickers]

May 6, 2013 21:53:48 GMT -5 @reannalynne said:

Everyone I know with a bachelors in psych works in retail. You need at least a masters to do something with it, preferably a doctorate.

This. It is the only reason why I chose not to do my degree in psyc. It sucks, because psychology is freakin awesome.

[karmasabiotch]

Social Work will give you more opportunities with a bachelor's degree. Getting a Masters or Psy.D is the best way to go if you want to work as a Psychologist.

[anlo]

Hi bonquiqui!

Another psych major here advising not to do it, unless you're really really sure that grad school is in your future. In fact, I was SURE I wanted to go on for a PhD, until senior year of undergrad, so be reallllllly sure lol. I think that I/O psych programs are a great non-PhD option, but I think they have a pretty good emphasis on math skillz and GRE scores to get in. Not saying you don't have that, just FYI

An MSW will open a lot of doors. If you are interested in research-y stuff, you might even consider pharmacy. If you are looking to be done after your bachelor's, nursing or ultrasound would be great options. Good luck deciding! It's hard to pick but it's an exciting time too.

[bonquiqui]

I appreciate all of your advice!  You all gave me things to think about, and I realized that I really need to explore some of these other options.  I really wish life came with an instruction manual lol

[Gato]

I can think of three people who got their degree in Psychology. One went on to become a dentist. Don't know much else about her. I am close to the other two, though: one did work in a research lab for a few years, then got his masters in city planning. He administers grants for low-income housing now. The other also hung out working for a prof for a few years after getting her BA, then completed a masters in counseling and now is a career counselor at a university.

The low income housing guy makes over 100K. The career counselor makes somewhere between $60-75K. These are both in the Midwest, so that's not bad. They both like their jobs and their chosen career in general. IDK, if psych interests you, I say why not? As you discover in what area you'd like to specialize, you can continue on to get your masters.

[studytime45]

Hey BQQ. You've gotten some great advice in this thread. I just wanted to add that my degree is in Biology and Psychology (double major, but it's an HonBSc degree). I'm graduating in the spring and am starting nursing school in the fall.

The bottom line is this: you pretty much need further schooling if you get an undergrad psych degree, but having a degree in general is a good thing. If it's something you're truly interested in, research your options, but know that you might be in for more school than you had once thought.

Message me if you have any other questions. I'd be happy to help my favourite makeup diva. lol

[Ohhmm(bligo)]

I've been accepted to start work on a BA in Psych, and I'm well aware of the fact that my career is going NOWHERE until I get a masters, which makes me cry all night. I think you need to figure out a set career path first.

[Saint Monica]

I wish I had ML/gbcn when I was in kolledge

[margotmacomber]

May 7, 2013 20:08:57 GMT -5 Saint Monica said:

I wish I had ML/gbcn when I was in kolledge

werd

[Saint Monica]

May 7, 2013 20:13:56 GMT -5 margotmacomber said:

May 7, 2013 20:08:57 GMT -5 Saint Monica said:

I wish I had ML/gbcn when I was in kolledge

werd

I have to wonder if I would have had the brains G-d gave little doorknobs to listen and apply the advice from here

[bonquiqui]

May 7, 2013 20:15:44 GMT -5 Saint Monica said:

May 7, 2013 20:13:56 GMT -5 margotmacomber said:

werd

I have to wonder if I would have had the brains G-d gave little doorknobs to listen and apply the advice from here

 I wish i had you guys back when i was a kollege kid and then i would already be edumakated.  Now I am an old kollege lady, and am axing for advice.  You guys are brill!

[margotmacomber]

May 7, 2013 20:15:44 GMT -5 Saint Monica said:

May 7, 2013 20:13:56 GMT -5 margotmacomber said:

werd

I have to wonder if I would have had the brains G-d gave little doorknobs to listen and apply the advice from here

I probably wouldn't. I was going to keep going to school zomg why would I ever NOT want to get my PhD?   :^)

BECAUSE AIN'T NOBODY GOT TIME TO PAY FOR THAT SHIT

[tizzy]

May 6, 2013 22:48:07 GMT -5 frkls said:

my cousin works as a recreational therapist for the VA and loves it, ifyou're looking for PT alternatives. she does the sports and fitness stuff as well as the art and games and all that.

I second this option. My degree is in recreational therapy and I worked in the field for almost 10 years. It is a really fun and interesting field that does not require an advanced degree. I have heard that several schools that used to offer it have stopped(and not a ton of schools offered it in the first place), but I don't know for sure. Also they pay isn't great. Since you're interested in psychology you may be interested in working in a psych hospital as a recreational therapist, which is what I did. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

[mollz007]

It is possible to get a job related to psychology with a BA, but it is hard to come by. Usually, to do anything with psychology for a career you need to go to grad school. If you want to be a clinical psychologist that usually requires a phd. You can get a masters in counseling, however. I was considering doing that for awhile. (I got my BA in psych)