WHY CHOOSE “PSYCHOLOGY”?

If you’ve studied psychology in college, or know someone who has, you’ve undoubtedly heard the claim that psychology majors can’t get jobs. A recent investigation into the question of whether there are too many psych majors reveals that this is not the case, as published in the report: “Are There Too Many Psych Majors?” The AMERICAN PSYCHOLOGICAL ASSOCIATION responding to concerns about psychology being “too popular” as a major, prepared this white paper to examine the facts about the employ-ability of psychology majors. The surprising results show that in contrast to the view that it prepares students for very little of practical value, the undergraduate psychology major is one of the best choices a college student can make.

Before we answer the question of why psychology is such a sound choice for a major, let’s tackle the myths about the psychology major that many prospective students believe.

Based on the APA these are the four most common misbeliefs:

You can become a therapist with a bachelor’s degree.

Although many students think they may be one or two courses away from being a “doctor” the truth is that becoming a therapist needs training. That said, you can pursue many jobs in the mental health field with four solid years, plus practicals or internships, of courses within the major. However, it’s not true that…

You can’t get a job in an area of psychology with a bachelor’s degree.

You can’t become a licensed psychologist unless you have graduate training plus additional hours of supervision, but the skills you gain as a psychology major translate well into many jobs, especially in entry-level positions. We’ll talk more about this shortly.

Psychology is an art, not a science.

There may be applications of psychology to the arts, but the field is a science, one that is increasingly gaining recognition as a “STEM” (Science-Technology-Engineering-Mathematics) discipline.

Psychology is easy.

Many people believe that psychology is nothing more than “common sense” and therefore is an easy field to master. In reality, the study of psychology involves rigorous training in topics ranging from statistics to neuroscience, and all psychology majors must complete a set of in-depth core courses based on this knowledge.

Now that we’ve laid these myths to rest, it’s time to examine the evidence showing the true advantages of majoring in psychology. Workforce analyses of psychology majors show that psychology graduates do get jobs using their degree. They may not be “psychologists” until they complete their graduate training, but they put their psychology skills to use. According to the report, over 40% of bachelor’s level psychology degree holders work in for-profit jobs in business and industry. The next largest group, between 20–30%, work in educational institutions. Approximately 15–20% work, respectively, in government and not-for-profit organizations. The remainder are self-employed. Although fewer than 25% of all psychology majors actually work in the field of psychology after graduation, they do qualify for entry-level positions in fields as diverse as marketing, sales, advertising, rehabilitation or psychiatric services, real estate, social work, child care, parole, and career counseling. According to the College Majors Handbook, and as reported in the white paper, the top 10 occupations that employ bachelor’s level psychology majors include management, sales, social work, personnel, health care, and financial specialists.

Unfortunately, those who work in psychology-related fields directly tend to earn less than those in other science disciplines. In 2006 terms, the median annual salary of bachelor’s level psychology majors was $30,000. In 2010, APA estimated that the starting salary for a psychology major is $36,400. Within related fields, the highest incomes are earned by psychology majors who become medical and health services managers, and the lowest are preschool teachers and teacher’s assistants. The median income is admittedly less than the $51,000 earned by a mechanical engineer, and less in fact than other science-related disciplines. One reason for the lower earnings of psychology majors is not that the degree is worth any less, but that education and many social services fields are severely underfunded. If you want a job with a bachelor’s degree in teaching or human services, you will sacrifice your salary, no matter what your college major.

Fortunately, however, many psychology majors do go on to complete a graduate degree, which will benefit their career earnings potential. The white paper reports that 40% of psychology majors complete some form of graduate training, placing psychology among the highest of all undergraduate majors in post-graduate degree completion.