Future Psychologists

Hi All

There are a lot of people on here who want to become psychologists of some sort and I thought it would be good to have a thread to talk about our plans/work experience etc.

Part of my degree was in psychology but not enough to get GBC. I have starting studying for a degree with the OU and am considering counselling psychology in the future, or perhaps clinical, I've only seriously thought about it over the last year.

What are other people considering?

Scroll to see replies

Reply 1

The Pale Dreamer

I would like to go into educational psychology :smile:

Reply 2

~ Purple Rose ~

PS Reviewer

Original post by The Pale Dreamer

I would like to go into educational psychology :smile:

Miss PD

(edited 5 years ago)

Reply 3

Hogwartz

Original post by ~ Purple Rose ~

Hi All

Hi me too i want to choose psychology as a degree. :smile:

I see you also are a PS helper, could you possibly help me with mine?

Reply 4

~ Purple Rose ~

PS Reviewer

Original post by Hogwartz

Hi me too i want to choose psychology as a degree. :smile:

I see you also are a PS helper, could you possibly help me with mine?

If you post your statement in this forum http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=240 either me or one of the other psychology helpers will review it for you :smile:

Reply 5

EloiseStar

I was really interested in Forensic Psychology before and you can pick up a lot of information from the government website 'next step'... you can search for most types of psychologist.
https://nextstep.direct.gov.uk/planningyourcareer/jobprofiles/Pages/default.aspx

Also, if you're thinking about doing psychology at degree level, make sure you take a BPS accredited course.

Reply 6

Id and Ego seek

If I pursue the path of Psychology, I hope to go into Psycholinguistics or Evolutionary Psychology.

Reply 7

El_Sid

I want to be a Clinical Psychologist and have hoped to do this for the past four years or so. Although I'm constantly reminded how extremely competetive the field is to get work in which is a bit of a pain, so I hope to gain as much work experience as possible whilst studying for my degree.

Reply 8

Ebuwa

I want to pursue educational psychology

Reply 9

Hogwartz

Original post by ~ Purple Rose ~

If you post your statement in this forum http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/forumdisplay.php?f=240 either me or one of the other psychology helpers will review it for you :smile:

Okii dokiie, but be ready because i want you to see it. :smile:

Reply 10

Hogwartz

Original post by Ebuwa

I want to pursue educational psychology

What does educational psychology involve? :smile:

Reply 11

*Elizabeth*

I'm currently a Trainee Health Psychologist, so I'm on track to become a Chartered Health Psychologist in approximately 2 years time. Currently in my first year of a Professional Doctorate in Health Psychology.

http://www.bps.org.uk/careers-education-training/how-become-psychologist/types-psychologists/becoming-health-psychologis-0 (more detail about health psychology if anyone is interested!)

Also thinking about applying for clinical psychology training- but we shall see! (ie I think a need a break from studying!).

(edited 12 years ago)

Reply 12

Saffie_11

Hello

I'm currently in my final year of the Doctorate in Educational Psychology. I'm happy to try and answer some questions regarding the job and/or training if that helps!

Best wishes

Saffie

Reply 13

Ebuwa

Original post by Saffie_11

Hello

I'm currently in my final year of the Doctorate in Educational Psychology. I'm happy to try and answer some questions regarding the job and/or training if that helps!

Best wishes

Saffie

Great, I have someone to bombard with questions. I'll PM you.

Original post by Hogwartz

What does educational psychology involve? :smile:

An educational psychologist is concerned with helping children or young people who are experiencing problems within an educational setting with the aim of enhancing their learning through psychology.

Reply 14

Mmrawrr

Becoming either a clinical or education psychologist seems pretty appealing at the moment. But I will wait till I get a Bsc in Psychology done first and then decide. :smile:

Reply 15

bwfcboy93

Hi, i really wanna become a clinical psychologist or a consumer psychologist - advertising and such :smile:

it sounds amazing - getting work experience in a care home should be amazing, still waiting to hear back from them

Reply 16

Mad Cat Lady

Hello, I'm in my first year of a psychology degree at the moment but I've no idea what to do with it! I wanted to be an educational psychologist and then I wanted to specialise in eating disorders and then sleep disorders, and then I heard psychiatrists get paid a lot of money and that swayed me a little, but it's so difficult to get work experience with psychologists and psychiatrists because of confidentiality issues and such. So I'm really rather stuck!

Reply 17

AreebWithaHat

Original post by Mad Cat Lady

Psychiatry is a field of medicine so you would have to do a medical degree first. They do get paid a lot of money and it is a very easy field to go into as not many medics want to be psychiatrists. Perhaps post-graduate medicine is something to look into?
Hope this helps :smile:

Reply 18

*Elizabeth*

Original post by Mmrawrr

Becoming either a clinical or education psychologist seems pretty appealing at the moment. But I will wait till I get a Bsc in Psychology done first and then decide. :smile:

Might be a good idea to start looking at gaining some experience as a care assistant and/or support worker supporting populations seen by a clinical psychologist (ie older people, people with mental health problems, people with learning disabilities, children, adolescents etc etc). Care homes are always looking for people! I managed to obtain two jobs - care assistant and a support worker job- with zero direct care experience (although I had to initially hide my educational background!)

If you want to be a clinical psychologist- experience is really very important, as is leaving with a good high 2.1/1st from a BPS accredited undergraduate degree in psychology.

Working with different client groups should help you make a decision as to whether clinical psychology is for you.

Reply 19

*Elizabeth*

Original post by bwfcboy93

Hi, i really wanna become a clinical psychologist or a consumer psychologist - advertising and such :smile:

it sounds amazing - getting work experience in a care home should be amazing, still waiting to hear back from them

Care homes are always looking for staff. I found two care home jobs via the direct gov website. Keep pestering them! :smile:

If you want to be a clinical psychologist (CP) then I would definitely recommend obtaining as much experience as possible- non graduate jobs include care assistant, support worker, samaritians volunteer, victim support volunteer, befriender volunteer. Graduate psychology jobs include Assistant Psychologist, Research Psychologist, Research Assistant in Psychology etc etc. As well as other relevant jobs- ie Occupational Therapists, mental health worker, etc etc. You will also need a very strong academic background- ie try to aim for a really good undergraduate degree (ie a high 2.1 overall average) and/ or strong postgraduate qualifications and publications will also help.

Clinical psychology doctorate admission tutors tend to look for applicants with a strong application as well as strong interview performance. Their also looking for people with a wide range of experience working in different settings where clinical psychologists tend to work (NHS units, hospitals, academic units) and different clinical populations that clinical psychologists work with (mental health, learning disability, older people, children, adolescents, offenders, families, carers). Also depends on where you apply. Some courses prefer applicants with a strong academic background, whereas others prefer applicants to be reflective and a wide range of experience. Some courses also have pre-admission tests, where the best peforming applicants on research methods exams obtain interviews for clinical training. All in all, depends on where you apply!

Best of luck :smile:

(edited 12 years ago)