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Question about Psychology

Discussion in 'General Support and Advice' started by Zaio, Apr 19, 2013.

  1. Zaio

    Zaio Guest

    Hi EC,

    I'm going to be training for psychology soon, as I'm entering sixth form and trying to sort out my plan so I'm prepared. I'm thinking about the future costs of university and courses, and there's only so much student loans and reserved cash can cover.

    So... I intend to work part time in sixth form and university. Once I received my master's degree, I intend to work towards a doctorate. Now, here is the question I'm unsure about: If I am working towards a doctorate, can I work part time as a therapist with my master's degree? I'm unsure if companies allow this at all, as obviously patients will prefer to see one shrink instead of changing, and I understand that my part time working would be inconvenient for the patients.

    I think either my choices are to work part time with my master's (if I can, that is), or just keep working part time with random jobs for a slight income, or work as a therapist full time for a couple years to earn some cash, then go back and finish my doctorate. I would much rather stay at it and get my doctorate as early as possible though.

    So, any thoughts? Suggestions? Thanks.

    All the best.
     
  2. BloodyRose3000

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    You can't work as a licensed therapist until you have a Ph.D/Psy.d. You're pretty much screwed until you get it... at least in America. A masters degree in psychology can get you a job as school psychologist, otherwise it's a dead end. Most people go straight to their Ph.D program after getting ther B.A., and many schools will pay for your education as you work on their research.
     
  3. Zaio

    Zaio Guest

    Mhmmm I think you can work as a therapist and marriage councilor over here with a master's, but a mental health specialist requires a PhD, which is what I aim to be. I suppose I'll try and just get my PhD right away, I'm probably looking too far ahead here because I'm not sure how much cash I can get in loans. I might be able to get my PhD without needing to get an intermediate job. Thanks :slight_smile:

    All the best.
     
  4. Chip

    Board Member Admin Team Advisor Full Member

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    That's completely untrue. There are many, many masters-level therapists, and many opportunities to work in an intern/supervised setting after attaining a masters and before completing a Ph.D, at least in the US and Canada, and as far as I know, the Canadian and British systems are pretty similar.

    Additionally, I don't know about the UK, but in the US, you can do a MSW (Masters of Social Work) which has a much wider scope of practice than a masters in psychology does, and gives you a lot of options in addition to just doing therapy, such as working with children, elders, disabled people, and so forth. Many of these positions can be had while you are still a masters student, and you still get the counseling/therapy training that a psychologist would get.

    So you might want to look into the possibility of getting an MSW, and then going from the MSW to the Psy.D. or Ph.D in psychology. It would be a few extra courses to go from the MSW to the psychology doctorate, but it might be worth it given the wider scope of practice and the numerous job opportunities while you are still in school.

    If you do go for the masters in psychology, there are definitely jobs to be had doing counseling/therapy once you have the masters, but there are definitely more for an MSW than there are for an MA/MS in psychology, counseling, or a related degree.
     
  5. Ettina

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    You can also be a counselor with little or no training at all, but that's a lot lower paying (or sometimes even a volunteer position). It does look good on a resume, though.