Psychology degree and progression after
Reply 1
Reply 2
Hi there 🙂
I was in the same boat as you when I was a student studying psychology. I knew the degree could open a lot of doors as its very varied, but I wasn't 100% sure what I wanted to do either. Some examples of where some potential jobs you could look into are:
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Clinical psychologist - although you will likely need to do extra studying for this such as a masters and a doctorate
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Research assistant/associate - if you are keen on the research side, you could go onto become a professional researcher within a team. Usually RA contracts are fixed-term, but if you wanted to progress in the field you could potentially look into doing a masters or a PhD programme, apply for associate posts and go into academia. You could have your work published in journals and maybe even teach at a university!
Some other roles you could look into which are indirectly related could be...
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Marketing or market research
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Copywriting and/or journalism
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HR, for example in a big financial organisation
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Data analyst/statistician
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The police force or the intelligence service
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Teaching at a school, potentially children with special educational needs, a college or sixth form
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Wellbeing counselling
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Working in university admissions or recruitment
You can find more here and here! The main thing is, psychology is a degree which teaches you a lot of skills - data analysis, critical writing, leadership, influencing, and tailoring your communication style to different audiences - which will make you an attractive job candidate in a lot of fields. You don't need to know what you might want to do yet, perhaps start thinking about what parts of your course interest you the most and go from there?
I hope this helps, all the best!
Holly
University of Bath
Reply 3
Hi @Aarondyte!🌟
I totally get it—thinking about employability while studying psychology can feel overwhelming, but trust me, a psychology degree opens up so many amazing opportunities!🚀
First, there are careers where a psychology degree is essential, like becoming a clinical psychologist, educational psychologist, forensic psychologist, or occupational psychologist. These roles often require further study, but they’re incredibly rewarding paths where you can make a real difference in people’s lives.🧠🎓
Beyond psychology-specific careers, your degree gives you valuable skills that employers in many sectors love. For example, you could work in:
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Human Resources: Helping with recruitment, employee well-being, and workplace dynamics.
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Marketing and Advertising: Understanding consumer behaviour and creating effective campaigns.
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Research and Data Analysis: Using your analytical skills to uncover trends and insights.
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Education: Teaching, educational consultancy, or working with special educational needs.
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Healthcare and Social Services: Supporting mental health initiatives, counselling, or community programs.
Psychology grads also thrive in fields like criminal justice, tech (user experience), and management because of their expertise in understanding people and behaviour. Your ability to analyse data, solve problems, and communicate effectively makes you a fantastic candidate for a wide range of roles.📊🖥️
If you’re unsure about your career path, remember that psychology gives you flexibility and options—you’re not locked into just one thing. Many universities, including Essex, offer career support and guidance, so take advantage of that!
Keep going—you’ve chosen such an exciting field with endless possibilities. If you ever want to chat more about your options, I’m happy to help. You’ve got this! ✨
Warm wishes,
Essex Student Rep - Renaldas ✌️
Reply 4
Hello,
My name is Alex and I'm a second year Psychology student. There are a ton of career options with Psychology, due to it being one of the most flexible subjects. Prospects has a fantastic website detailing career options - it tells you what the careers might involve, what hours you might work and what education and training you might require. A lot of the jobs I mention here have their own profiles on prospects, so I'd take a look!
Directly relating to Psychology
If you love psychology and want to use it in your career every day, you could become a:
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Clinical Psychologist
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Counselling Psychologist
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Educational Psychologist
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Health Psychologist
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Therapist (speech and language, cognitive behavioural, psychotherapist etc. - good opportunities in the NHS)
Indirectly relating to Psychology
If you want to apply your knowledge in other areas, you could become a:
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Teacher
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HR officer
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Neuroscientist
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Careers adviser
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Researcher or research assistant
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Data analyst
Not relating to Psychology
Just because you studied psychology doesn't mean it's only useful to get you jobs in that field. You could do a grad scheme - a scheme ran by a company who specifically looks to hire graduates and train them to do specific jobs. There are some ran by the NHS and some ran by the Police Force and you can find others on websites such as Indeed and LinkedIn. Your careers team should help you understand these better and apply when the time comes!
Psychology is very flexible, and this is just a short list of what can be achieved. I'd suggest looking at career profiles on Prospects and see what calls out to you, and maybe chatting to your careers department.
Hope this helped
-Alex, Student Ambassador
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