Psychologist Career Essay

Psychology is the study of human thought, emotion and behavior. Someone who is trained in this discipline is a Psychologist and he or she has a variety of options when deciding on an area of specialization. There are three general types of psychology: Research, counseling, and applied. Research Psychologists study and observe human behavior in an attempt to understand and interpret why people do what they do. They also study the effect of different behavior tendencies. Counseling and Clinical Psychologists help people solve life and mental health problems. Applied (educational, industrial, or ­organizational) psychologists apply theories to real life situations. Their goal is to increase productivity and functionality of students or workers.

Of the other careers I was looking at, psychology offers (potentially) the best salary. I’m not sure if I’d be able to handle the debt of investing in starting my own psychology practice, so I would have to look into places that are hiring. I should look more into the School Psychologist career, or I could look at other psychologists to work for or even partner with. Other than the debt of starting the career, I would probably enjoy the job very much. I really feel like this career would be a fulfilling one, and helping people would help me achieve that. Another reason I might be good at psychology is that I have a need to achieve (as I learned in the StrengthsQuest and in the Values worksheet,) and to become a licensed Psychologist, you at least need to have a master’s degree. I don’t think any of my values would be challenged if I chose this career path, especially since building real relationships is one of my major strengths (as revealed by basically all of this semester’s work,) and building a (albeit, professional) relationship with the

Although I might be able to pay it off a few years after I landed a job, the debt might really wreak havoc on how I want to live. I want to be able to travel and explore a bit before I get married, and being buried in debt and homework might put a damper on that. It is my belief, however, that if it is God’s will for me to become a Psychologist, there will be a way for me to do so, as long as my relationship with him stays strong. One way I could both help with the debt and gain experience is to work with Psychologists as an intern or an assistant until I finished school. This would really help with me earn a better wage, or if I learned enough, even open my own practice. On a scale of 1-10, I would rate this job a 9. If I could more easily attain this, I would jump on the opportunity, but at the same time, part of my fascination/imagination of becoming a Psychologist would be the prestige of earning it through many years of school. Anyhow, this is still a major interest for me, and I am, as of right now, planning in Psychology, and making out further plans as I get closer to that