Psychology is a popular college major for students. While many will pursue Master’s and Doctorate degrees that offer direct professional employment in their fields, others seek immediate employment after graduation. Students want to know what career opportunities are available for a psychology major in this job market. Psychology majors who do not plan to pursue additional education immediately after graduation should consider what extra coursework can enhance their professional portfolios. This can help students develop and shape work interests while providing a better resume for employers to peruse.
Employment Counseling and Training
Corporate and government positions exist for those who can counsel and train current and future employees. Psychology majors have skill sets, training, and generally experience that can be useful in this career choice. Experience with understanding employee behaviors, strengths, and weaknesses, can help match potential trainees with appropriate training opportunities to ensure a higher rate of success and fewer failure due to bad placement and evaluation of skill sets.
Residential Youth Programs and Group Home Employment
There are positions available for college graduates in a variety of jobs in programs dedicated to youths at risk. Those in psychology have an advantage, because this field of study gives them some insight. Psychology also offers students guidance when following the directions and programs established by certified professionals. Many of these programs provide college graduates with post-college work experience and some even offer the opportunity to pursue postgraduate college degrees with college educational incentives. This can be an advantage for those who are seeking to stay in the field and require both experience and financial assistance to pursue further education.
Substance Abuse Programs
Another area which hires college graduates to work in counseling based programs is substance abuse programs. Students, again, work under the guidance of certified professionals, but do have the chance to gain valuable experience in therapeutic situations. It is a chance to gain resume experience before determining if further education in the field is a direction to be pursued.
Heath Care Social Work and Patient Assistance Programs
These positions can start as entry-level positions, but often require further in house and later additional education and certification to become fully qualified in the positions. Many hospitals, nursing homes, and city governments provide social workers to help the elderly and others manage the health care network. Psychology majors with good communication skills will find their skills work well in this field. The field requires an ability to evaluate incoming requests from patients at multiple levels. Many times, it is the questions people do not ask that require social workers to help patients discover valuable answers to in a timely fashion. For instance, many patients come to a senior social worker seeking a walker for Mom when in fact help that is far more serious is required. This is where psychology majors with great communication skills prove invaluable in helping families get to the important questions they may not even know they need to ask.
Psychology majors looking for alternate career options should consider what fields strongly interest them and realize their education has given them great skills to help them prepare for most fields. While additional training may be required to meet specific qualifications and certifications, there are skill sets that psychology majors bring to that field others do not posses.
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