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For those who graduated with a degree in psychology, what types of jobs did you end up working and how did you find them?

 

I finished my 4-year degree in April and I'm having trouble finding a job. I'm getting desperate to make money but I don't want to settle for something I could have got with a highschool diploma because I now have a $30000 student loan to pay off!

 

I don't want to work weekends, in retail, in a restaurant, on an assembly line, or at a call center and it needs to be full-time. Are my criteria unrealistic in your opinion? I don't think they are.

 

I've been looking on online job banks and applying for receptionist, social worker, and human resource positions. I have had one interview in the three months I've been looking and it wasn't successful. Any advice? I'm beginning to loose my confidence.

 

Thanks

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It is very hard to find a good paying job in the field of psychology if you hold a 4 year degree. From what I've seen, most jobs are in group homes or in clinical settings but do not pay well at all. Many times nonprofit organizations (i.e. domestic violence shelters) require staff to have psych degress but they do not pay too well either.

 

I always advise people to get a master's degree in psychology. That's what I did and only then did I start making good money.

 

Areas that pay well within the field of psychology are careers related to higher education, research, & psychological testing.

 

I currently work at a university as an advisor and counselor college students who have disabilities. In order to do so I had to get my master's degree and a counseling license. Having a graduate degree also allows me to teach undergraduate psych courses at the community college, which is a good way to earn extra money.

 

I think you should plan on continuing your education at some point. It's worth the investment. In the meantime I think you are doing the right thing by looking at human resource positions. Also try looking for positions in research at local colleges, universities, hospitals, etc. Even if they do not pay well for a bachelor's degree they do help to build a good resume for the future.

 

Most importantly, don't give up. It's a GREAT field that is interesting and rewarding.

 

Good luck with your job search,

 

BellaDonna

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I graduated with a psych degree and worked in group homes and day programs just to get experience and see if it was something I wanted to continue with. They did not pay great, but it was liveable if you don't have high rent or cost of living. When you decided to get your psych degree, was it because you wanted to be a psychologist or you just enjoyed the major? If it's the former, I agree with the advice that you will eventually need a master's degree.

 

There is also the option of any of the jobs you've been trying for (human resources, etc.) along with a one or two-night a week restaurant/bar job, or something similar. That could just be the money you put towards your loan, and your regular salary can be for you. I know you said you don't want those types of jobs, but when it's part-time and temporary it really isn't bad, and can ease the burden of debt.

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Advertising firms? Research and developement companies?

 

When I was looking at a psych degree I found that you really do need a Masters degree or better to make any kind of money.

 

I do imagine those areas I listed were on the Bachelors degree list of jobs and would probably pay well.

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Psychology is one of the hardest disciplines to get a job in, one of the reasons because it took off in popularity and now there is a flood of graduates into the field...and not enough jobs.

 

You need to think about what area of psychology interests you the most and specialise in it. You should of some idea of this after studying all the different modules...developmental (kiddies) biological (could go into sports psychology) criminal (forensics) etc etc i could go on.

 

I got a psychology degree like you in May this year. I specialised in kids and sports. I was either going to do a teacher training course...but here in UK they are impossible to get on (ive made posts about this before so wont ramble on) and ive waiting damn long enough to prove how good a teacher i would be so its the UK's loss and i am now doing a 2nd degree in something else....motorsport engineering, technology and management. So my sports psychology will come into play with that.

 

Not one of my 30 odd friends who also graduated with a degree in pscyhology have foundwork because there isnt any...not at degree level. As someone lse said you need to do a masters in a specialisation and then PRAY PRAY PRAY for the luck to land on your feet and get you a good job. The degree is just far far too popular now (well here in the UK at least) and there simply isnt enough jobs even when people have masters...

 

So suck up the debt...your going to get a lot more if you do a masters or further qualifications. And in the meantime dont be too picky about jobs...whatever pays the bills hey?!

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I'm grateful for this post. I'll definitely make sure to go on and at least get my Master's. I have no desire to wind up poor, destitute and a bum just because I only have a measly four year degree in a worthless discipline.

 

I'd better get my ass working hard from now on!!

 

Thanks.

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I'm grateful for this post. I'll definitely make sure to go on and at least get my Master's. I have no desire to wind up poor, destitute and a bum just because I only have a measly four year degree in a worthless discipline.

 

I'd better get my ass working hard from now on!!

 

Thanks.

 

A masters won't do that for you. A masters likely will make you overqualified for most entry level jobs that will lead to your said goal.

 

What will help you is good people skills, good presentation and the ability to write a killer cover letter and resume. Not to mention your ability to network.

To not be poor you need to know how to find a genuine opportunity and exploit it - this often entails knowing where to find a job that will lead to promotions, knowing how to get those promotions, knowing how to live cheap, nowing how to save and knowing how to invest. There are a lot of things you need much more than a college education that college just doesn't teach.

 

A masters degree just makes your educators rich. If there is sufficient demand in a field IMO it will not require you to have a masters, if it does, it is a safe bet that once you get there the money won't because there is a flood of masters applicants.

 

Things tend to have a way of evening out the cost/benefit when there is not an excess of demand. Also into that equation you have to factor in the probabilities of success. For example, accountants at a high level will make huge salaries but with the influx of bacherlor of commerce graduates how likely is it that a given graduate will EVER become a CPA. You need to factor that into the equation for your potential gain.

 

Generally there are not that many good jobs out there.

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You live in Australia. I live in the same place as our OP. She would know more so than either of us how hard it is to get a job with a crappy 4 year degree in a worthless discipline like psychology. I'm truly sorry I even took it in the first place. Business is where it's at. I wish I had majored in business or something similar instead.

 

Not only has it affected my love life, it has royalled ****ed me over career-wise too. I'm in a rough spot now. I have to redo some stuff just to get my grades good enough to possibly even consider going for my M.A. or I can graduate with a lousy 4 year degree that isn't worth the paper it's printed on. Damn it.

 

I'm not looking for "entry level" low wage jobs. I know precisely what I need to do. And an M.A. is certainly the minimal requirements for it. Hell, I'd be foolish to even stop there. I had originally planned on going for my Ph.D but my grades were kind of bad in second year, so I dropped that plan. Well, I'm obviously going to have to get serious about bringing up those grades so I can even be considered for grad school!

 

If you read the OP, you'd know I'm in the same worthless field as she is. There are NO JOBS out there for us with a lousy and utterly worthless degree in psych. Period.

 

To do what I want, and not be stuck with a dead end job as the OP was also afraid of, I certainly need at least an M.A. Anything less... is simply unacceptable. So I need to get my ass in gear and stop wasting more time and money!

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I have a psychology degree. As you know, it is very difficult to work in the field without grad school under your belt (but there are some jobs.) I had one job in the field working with youth with behavior problems and have since decided this wasn't for me.

 

After that, I worked as an Administrative Assistant, an IT Recruiter, and currently as the Education Director for a non-profit arts organization. Basically know that your degree offers you a wide range of opportunities, but like all fields, it's getting the experience that is necessary.

 

Getting my first job out of college was tough and it wasn't 9-5 M-F. The pay was ok, but I was certainly worth more. Depending on your situation, it may be smart to loosen some of your demands. Being willing to take less than perfect jobs for the experience. And, sadly, depending on your situation, you may need to take an additional part time job to pay the bills. But after you have some experience, you can begin moving up and looking for jobs that match your desires better.

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A masters degree just makes your educators rich. If there is sufficient demand in a field IMO it will not require you to have a masters, if it does, it is a safe bet that once you get there the money won't because there is a flood of masters applicants.

 

A very profound and true statement. I think there are some professional grad degrees out there where this does not apply (MBA, JD, MD etc....) but in general helping some pompous professor publish papers won't bring you closer to a job in most cases. If there is a need for people in a certain field, a bs/ba degree and a good personality and work ethic should be more than enough.

 

I know classmates who are going for a PhD in engineering because they can't find a job they like....why then would you get even more education in a field in which you can't find a job your interested in or job period?

 

For example, accountants at a high level will make huge salaries but with the influx of bacherlor of commerce graduates how likely is it that a given graduate will EVER become a CPA. You need to factor that into the equation for your potential gain.

 

The big four (in U.S.) are up or out environments. They are lucrative for many at first but pay off for few in the end. I still think it's a safe and potentially lucrative career path in the end. I agree that people choose a career looking at the exceptions rather than the obvious demand/supply economics of the situation.

 

Generally there are not that many good jobs out there.

 

Developed countries (us, western europe, japan, australia) are experiencing a serious overflow of educated people with fewer lucrative jobs. In the U.S., politicians and wall street are highly disingenuous in telling people that we are replacing high tech and industrial jobs with "higher value products" and "value added services". In reality this is complete BS. Drive around a community under new development and construction. Do you see big tall office buildings or new research campuses. NO...you an obsessive endless sprawl of retail and restaurants. Our new economy indeed.

 

You see, intelligent people are becoming less and less necessary in developed countries and yet more and more people are going to college expecting they will find a professional job. Welcome to the new economy, and good luck.

 

You live in Australia. I live in the same place as our OP. She would know more so than either of us how hard it is to get a job with a crappy 4 year degree in a worthless discipline like psychology. I'm truly sorry I even took it in the first place. Business is where it's at. I wish I had majored in business or something similar instead.

 

I majored in engineering and it isn't that much easier. I just got a call back for my seventh (7) round of interviews for the same company. What a waste of time.

 

To do what I want, and not be stuck with a dead end job as the OP was also afraid of, I certainly need at least an M.A. Anything less... is simply unacceptable. So I need to get my ass in gear and stop wasting more time and money!

 

If you get into a sales, management, finance trainee program you may still have a shot to go into business and get an mba after a few years. Probably not an elite program, but even a degree from a 2nd-3rd tier program will get you a starting pay around 60-70k (usd). You won't end up a big shot ceo but it is a career path.

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The fact of the matter is, some degrees and additional qualifications are over-subscribed for the amount of jobs there are in the real world. Here in the UK the government has pushed for years and years to get more and more people into university...just for them to realise that coming out of it there are less and less jobs for their trained field...

 

Psychology in particular has been oversubscribed for the last few years as its popularity has increased...the same goes for a lot of degrees for example computing degrees 10 years ago were few and far between and 10 years ago when you had a computing degree you were snapped up, even in small areas where i live, as my dad did a masters in computing science and had offers flooding in. Now 10 years on, nearly all universtities do various types of computing degrees...and the market is so so oversubscribed...there are thousands of graduates each year going into a job field where there arent that many jobs...

 

dad struggled to get a job last year in computing with his masters...he now works as an it technician in a school. Could get onto teacher training for I.T teacher. Just like i couldnt get on to primary school teacher training...thousands of graduates wanting to be teachers...only being able to apply to 2 universities to train at a time...them only take 20-30 people each year and hundreds and hundreds of applicants applying.

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I was under the impression that engineering disciplines (mech, civil, electrical)will still land you an almost guaranteed "good job".

 

Eng. will always get you a good job b.c most ppl are either not intelligent enough, lack the necessary academic techniques, or are too lazy to get through the program in sufficient numbers. At least that is what I have been led to believe.

 

I have never heard of a Graduate Mechanical Engineering on a forum complaining he or she cannot find a job. Also their starting salaries are enormous.

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