Psychology

[JonBonham]

Hi, I am in the process of laying out some kind of life plan, still in highschool but want to be prepared for post. So what does civfanatics think of going for a PhD in Psychology? As much as I admire the STEM degrees and those with a predisposition for arithmetic, sadly those are not my strengths. So, how useful do you view the above and degree and the field itself, is it practical and applicable or mostly mumbo jumbo.... and what else would you recommend? Thanks for any input!

 

[Synobun]

Hi, I am in the process of laying out some kind of life plan, still in highschool but want to be prepared for post. So what does civfanatics think of going for a PhD in Psychology? As much as I admire the STEM degrees and those with a predisposition for arithmetic, sadly those are not my strengths. So, how useful do you view the above and degree and the field itself, is it practical and applicable or mostly mumbo jumbo.... and what else would you recommend? Thanks for any input!

I too was going to get into psychology in the past. However I then realized that I needed a few calculus courses, and I decided that my hatred for math overpowered my desire to help people. I do not need complicated math equations in order to assist people with their issues.

You might think it's worth it, though.

 

[Kyriakos]

What about Psychiatry? Psychology is interesting, but if you want to practice then you probably should look at that direction too.

Not meaning to start another heated psychology vs psychiatry debate, it just seems that psychology by itself is little more than applied philosophy.

 

[Lillefix]

Phd you say? Well, my humble suggestion is that you take one step at the time if you understand what I mean. Don't plan too much and be flexible.

 

[madviking]

I can tell you that you'll change what you want to major in many times before you actually graduate. Let alone when you graduate from grad school. And what Lillefix said.

 

[Yoda Power]

To be honest, thinking you can plan that far ahead when you're only still in high school is a sign that you need more life experience.

 

[squall78]

Well you can take general ed classes first in college to get them out of the way, and so you don't have to declare a major yet. Most people end up switching their majors, or get a job totally unrelated to their majors, so this will give you enough time to see if it's what you really want.

 

[_random_]

Psychology majors have about 6% unemployment rates and low salaries. This can change if you get into a decent graduate program, but that's really tough. That's not to say you shouldn't go for it if you really care about it, but you have to have a lot of brains and dedication. And as a high school student, I can testify that the vast majority of us don't really have what it takes to dedicate ourselves so strongly to something. Consider yourself warned.

 

[Lillefix]

Psychology majors have about 6% unemployment rates and low salaries. This can change if you get into a decent graduate program, but that's really tough. That's not to say you shouldn't go for it if you really care about it, but you have to have a lot of brains and dedication. And as a high school student, I can testify that the vast majority of us don't really have what it takes to dedicate ourselves so strongly to something. Consider yourself warned.

I don't think salary should be an issue when choosing career path. Unemployment rates are more important, but 6% isn't exactly shockingly high.

 

[_random_]

I don't think salary should be an issue when choosing career path. Unemployment rates are more important, but 6% isn't exactly shockingly high.

If you're going to go into a great deal of debt, you'd best have some plan and ability to pay it off. 6% for generic Psychology isn't too high, but Clinical Psychology is at 20%. I'm not trying to discourage the OP if that's legitimately what he's interested in, but being aware of potential negative consequences isn't a bad thing.

 

[El_Machinae]

I'm a giant fan of psychology, and I think the field is only going to get better. You'll need a strong math background, though. Not the scale that engineers need to take, but certainly on par with the other sciences. There's a lot of math if your work is going to have any value.

Society doesn't value psychology very much, and so it's not the easiest turning a psychology degree into money. The best uses of psychology in the corporate world tend to be 'for evil', so it's somewhat demoralizing if you've noble intentions.

The science of psychology, though, is amazing.

 

[Hygro]

What about Psychiatry? Psychology is interesting, but if you want to practice then you probably should look at that direction too.

Not meaning to start another heated psychology vs psychiatry debate, it just seems that psychology by itself is little more than applied philosophy.

Psychiatry is very interesting, but it's also very different. Psychiatry requires going to medical school, about the most competitive process in any macro-academic train.

 

[Integral]

Unlike some of the others in this thread, I'm not going to tell you you're planning too far ahead. Then again, I decided to get an Economics PhD at the tender age of 16. I ended up not changing that plan.

Standard advice...
1. If you can, go to a college that has a good psychology department. Your letters of recommendation will be extremely important and you will benefit from having well-known and respected letter writers. That means, to some degree, choosing your undergraduate college based on the strength of its graduate psychology program.

However, you should keep outside options open. Apply to a wide range of colleges and go to a school that has strengths in a variety of majors. You may wish to switch majors despite your convictions now.


2. Take a year of calculus. Self-explanatory.


3. Once you're in college, get involved in the psychology department as early as possible. Find out if you can work as an undergraduate research assistant or teaching assistant. Get to know three professors very well. You will need them to write strong letters of recommendation for you.


4. Do well and get a good (3.7+) GPA. 3.8+ in major.


5. Write at least one good paper so you can have a writing sample to submit to graduate programs.


6. Corollary: plan to complete the honors program in your department, if applicable.


7. Use your summers wisely. Spend one in the private sector, one in the government, and one doing research for a professor.

The PhD is a research degree. If you do not plan on going into academia or working as a researcher, do not get a PhD. It will take too long and be too costly relative to other options.

 

[Narz]

I'm a giant fan of psychology, and I think the field is only going to get better. You'll need a strong math background, though. Not the scale that engineers need to take, but certainly on par with the other sciences. There's a lot of math if your work is going to have any value.

Society doesn't value psychology very much, and so it's not the easiest turning a psychology degree into money. The best uses of psychology in the corporate world tend to be 'for evil', so it's somewhat demoralizing if you've noble intentions.

The science of psychology, though, is amazing.

Agree 100% with this. I wanted to major in psychology too but also wondered how the heck I was going to make a career out of it (I had no desire to be a drug peddler or therapist) so I delayed majoring in anything & left college. If I had it to do over again I would have majored in psychology & gone into research.

 

[innonimatu]

You don't plan any PhD while in highschool! You simply can't. Muse about it... ok. Just make sure you don't take it seriously, it'd be a waste of time.

Locking yourself into wanting any specific PhD years in advance would be folly. The idea is that one learns and in the course of learning discovers what is interesting enough to be worth following as a career.

 

[Elta]

Assuming you are American: get 30 credits, get your prerequisites out of the way and stay open minded about your major.

Changing your major is quite common, take it easy, there is no rush