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Degree and Career in Psychology

hi, I just have a few questions and queries about psychology degrees and career prospects.

One of the two potential courses I want to apply to at university is either Law or Psychology with a big part of me leaning towards psychology as I have a greater interest in it, but I'm just not sure whether it is worth doing it or not. Ive been looking into the employment rates for psychology in the UK and it says that around 2/3 of people with an undergraduate degree end up employed and around 8% don't get employed at all makes me wonder if its worth pursuing;
- Employed (62.9%)
- Further study (15.5%)
- Working and studying (9.6%)
- Unemployed (7.8%)
- Other (4.2%)
(Source: https://www.sugarman.co.uk/candidate-support/how-employable-is-a-degree-in-psychology )

I also have some questions round pay as well; like what is average salary of people who graduate with a psychology degree around maybe 3, 5 or 10 years after graduation? I looked into this but can't find any concrete, consistent answers.

This may not sound as cohesive as I probably wanted but I just thought id try and ask a few questions.
Original post by kzadboy7
hi, I just have a few questions and queries about psychology degrees and career prospects.

One of the two potential courses I want to apply to at university is either Law or Psychology with a big part of me leaning towards psychology as I have a greater interest in it, but I'm just not sure whether it is worth doing it or not. Ive been looking into the employment rates for psychology in the UK and it says that around 2/3 of people with an undergraduate degree end up employed and around 8% don't get employed at all makes me wonder if its worth pursuing;
- Employed (62.9%)
- Further study (15.5%)
- Working and studying (9.6%)
- Unemployed (7.8%)
- Other (4.2%)
(Source: https://www.sugarman.co.uk/candidate-support/how-employable-is-a-degree-in-psychology )

I also have some questions round pay as well; like what is average salary of people who graduate with a psychology degree around maybe 3, 5 or 10 years after graduation? I looked into this but can't find any concrete, consistent answers.

This may not sound as cohesive as I probably wanted but I just thought id try and ask a few questions.

@kzadboy7
Psychology is a fascinating subject to study (I actually did by BA in Sociology, but my MSc is in Psychology), but I would say that the job market is saturated with people with Psychology degree's. It is a subject where you need a well-defined plan - for instance you need to do doctorate level study to be classed as a qualified Psychologist in the UK by the BPS.

A lot of social science graduates I know typically went into the public sector as teachers or social workers (which required post graduate study) or they went onto graduate programs for medium sized companies if they lived near a big city. Teachers, if full time typically earn £34k at the top of the ladder, although the workforce has a lot of casual work especially at H.E level.


Marc
Arden University Student Ambassador
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Nerol
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Original post by kzadboy7
hi, I just have a few questions and queries about psychology degrees and career prospects.

One of the two potential courses I want to apply to at university is either Law or Psychology with a big part of me leaning towards psychology as I have a greater interest in it, but I'm just not sure whether it is worth doing it or not. Ive been looking into the employment rates for psychology in the UK and it says that around 2/3 of people with an undergraduate degree end up employed and around 8% don't get employed at all makes me wonder if its worth pursuing;
- Employed (62.9%)
- Further study (15.5%)
- Working and studying (9.6%)
- Unemployed (7.8%)
- Other (4.2%)
(Source: https://www.sugarman.co.uk/candidate-support/how-employable-is-a-degree-in-psychology )

I also have some questions round pay as well; like what is average salary of people who graduate with a psychology degree around maybe 3, 5 or 10 years after graduation? I looked into this but can't find any concrete, consistent answers.

This may not sound as cohesive as I probably wanted but I just thought id try and ask a few questions.

To move into a career in psychology, you need to be prepared for a substantial amount of postgraduate training. The BPS careers website offers a lot of information around careers in psychology and the requirements and routes for each: https://careers.bps.org.uk/

Most psychology careers are extremely competitive and require years of building up experience and training. Many psychology students are interested in pursuing a career in Clinical Psychology (myself included). Getting onto the DCLinPsy program is notoriously difficult, as these programs are extremely competitive. However, once completed, jobs are practically guaranteed. Qualified Clinical Psychologists within the NHS start at Band 7 (£37,570) and salaries can increase as experience or further training is gained.

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