Michael. said 9 years, 9 months ago:

It’s different for alot of countries out there, but I’ll give you what I know about American standards and practices.

You’ll need at least a 4 year degree, schools will already have a course plan for you but you can take electives that you think will supplement what you want to do with your degree, (I for example also studied criminal justice). Again, depending on what you want to do with your degree you may need additional schooling/degrees, like a Master’s degree which will be at least another two years of school, or medical school, or a PhD.

Psychology is a massive field, you can easily find something that suits your interests. A friend of a friend for example does hiring for offshore oil rigs with their degree. One of my teachers was a psychological counselor for the state prison for 15 years. Again, its a very broad field but you don’t have to decide right away.

TinyPanda said 9 years, 9 months ago:

Not sure what good looks have to do with it but anyway! The first thing you should start on is your 4 year degree. The more psychology classes you take the more you learn whether or not you really want to have a career in psychology. You’ll also learn what fields of psychology you’re interested in–there are so many! A lot of the people I know who got degrees in psych are going on to do social work or counseling. The rest of your questions can really only be answered by the university you attend, because coursework and time spent in the program vary from school to school. Good luck!

Riss said 9 years, 8 months ago:

My paragraphs are in the order of your questions! Sorry, I got a bit carried away…

If you are only interested in seeing patients, you could get your masters in social work or counseling. That would save you about three to four extra years of schooling. If you are interested in doing research and teaching at the college level, you would need a Ph.D. Depending on your interests, you could get a Ph.D. in social psychology, developmental psychology, health psychology, etc. To my knowledge, only clinical or counseling Ph.D. programs allow you to do all three (therapy, teaching, and research).

Typically those who are interested in pursuing a career in this field major in psychology at the Bachelors level, which gives you a good foundation. The courses you should enroll in depend on the area of psychology you’d like to take. I didn’t pick up a minor and used my extra classes to take more psych classes, which is what I’d suggest to you if you aren’t entirely sure. But if you have an idea, definitely message me! I’d love to talk more about this!

Getting a bachelors takes four years, a masters takes two, and a Ph.D. program can take four-five years, thought generally five (four years of classes, research, and clinical settings and an extra year used for an internship).

My advice would be to start getting involved in clinical settings asap (particularly in college). I did an internship at a nearby hospital’s inpatient unit, and I also did research with a professor for a year. But if you sign up for volunteer work at a hospital, even if it’s arts and crafts, it still counts as clinical work because you’re showing a commitment to that area. But definitely network with professors and get involved with research they’re doing if you are interested in Ph.D. programs. Research experience is your key to get in, since those programs tend to be very competitive.

SO MANY FIELDS. Health psych, clinical psych, counseling psych, developmental psych, personality psych, forensic psych, neuropsych. Take as many classes in as many areas as you can, and figure out which ones appeal to you!

Like I said before, if you have any questions, definitely message me.