Thousands of young people study psychology every year. Some of them become disenchanted with the subject and move on to other fields of education, but many find it fascinating and choose to take their exploration of psychology further and apply for a degree course in psychology. So why study psychology and what are the pros and cons of a qualification in psychology?
Psychology covers a lot of ground, but in the early stages it is broadly focused on the study of the human behaviour and the human brain. However, contrary to what many students believe, psychology is actually a science based subject rather than an in-depth exploration of what makes people “tick”. It has many close links with biology, forensics and computer sciences, plus it is also compatible with the humanities subjects.
Why study psychology – what are the pros of psychology?
Psychology is a very highly respected profession, all over the world.
A qualification in psychology will open the doors to a wide range of different careers: you might choose to become a psychologist in a specialist field, but you can just as easily specialise in social work, mental health, counselling, and any number of health related fields.
Knowledge of psychology will be a huge advantage in other careers, for example law and education, so a qualification in psychology will look great on your CV when you are ready to apply for jobs at a later date.
The skills you learn whilst studying psychology are very transferable to other careers: while studying psychology you will develop excellent analytical and communication skills, plus you will be required to undertake research and write reports, all of which will stand you in good stead for any future career.
Once you have completed your training in the field of psychology, you can expect to earn a lot more than the average salary. Dependent on how well qualified you are, you may earn more than $100k per annum as a practicing clinical psychologist, which makes your years spent in education an excellent investment.
Many of the top universities in the US and beyond offer degree programs in psychology, which gives students a good choice of where to continue their education.
What are the cons of studying psychology?
Because psychology is very much a science based subject, many students become disillusioned with the level of research and statistical analysis they are required to do as part of their course work, so the subject is not for everyone and unless you have a leaning towards the sciences, you will probably not enjoy studying psychology.
In order to work as a practicing psychologist in any field, you will have to complete many years of education and job training. This is likely to be expensive, and without financial assistance, impossible for some.
Thanks to the glamorisation of forensics by TV shows such as Cold Case, careers in forensic psychology and the like are now massively over-subscribed, so if even if you gain a qualification in the field, jobs are few and far between.
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