Clinical psychology is a career path that fascinates many individuals who have an insatiable passion for psychology. This career path is a great fit for those who like to help people even though it sometimes gets pretty stressful.
Careers in clinical psychology require a strong personality to face the challenges that may appear down the road. Careers in clinical psychology are diverse and in high demand. Clinical psychologists can find jobs in different places like hospitals, health centers, or governmental institutions. However, job settings for clinical psychologists largely depend on the degree level and experience a person has. Read on…
Education
If you’re seriously interested in clinical psychology, determine what degree program will help you to enter this profession and meet your career goals. Setting your education goals for the graduate degree definitely means getting off to a bright start. This career involves not only personal commitment but also a good academic preparation. To become a self-employed clinical psychologist one must get a Doctoral Degree in psychology. Undergraduate degree holders can start their professional activity straight out of school, but they cannot qualify for the clinical practice. They provide counseling services rather than psychological treatment. Careers in clinical psychology for Master’s Degree holders offer much more job opportunities as compared to those with Bachelor’s Degrees. These individuals find jobs in governmental and private settings working in hospitals, healthcare centers or mental homes.
The most important thing that you need for becoming a professional in clinical psychology is experience. The more experience you gain, the better professional you’ll become. Careers in clinical psychology are pretty much competitive, therefore you need to get valuable practical knowledge to get the edge over the others. High level of professional sophistication will be definitely appreciated. Competent clinical psychologists expand their clientele through other doctors’ recommendations or positive feedback from their past patients. Remember, first you work for your name and then your name starts working for you.
Counseling
Careers in clinical psychology often involve counseling. The main duties of individuals working as counselors are to help people to cope with depression, anxiety, family or relationship problems. Simply put, those who carry out patient counseling provide emotional healing for people with less complicated psychological problems. Professionals that have counseling expertise are usually employed by schools or private companies.
Psychotherapy
Careers in clinical psychology that involve psychotherapy are quite demanding. This kind of job requires serious training and clinical practice. Psychotherapists administer treatment to combat severe psychological issues. Psychologists involved into psychotherapy mainly work in clinical settings. In their scope is diagnosing and providing patients with effective treatment. They can indicate whether a patient needs medication or not. Psychotherapists can also attend court trials to determine sanity of suspects.
Psychiatry
Careers in clinical psychology embrace the area of psychiatry. Since many mental disorders are treated with the help of medication, there must be people responsible for making prescriptions. Basically, this is what psychiatrists do. Diagnosing the severity of patients’ mental disorders and administering meds are main duties of a psychiatrist. Specialists in psychiatry work only in clinical settings.
