Career and Postgraduate Resources

A bachelor’s degree in psychology provides you with a strong foundation for further training in the fields of medicine, law, social work, and business. Additional training beyond the baccalaureate level opens up more career opportunities beyond the supervised research or human services assistant levels.

As a psychologist, you can find work in a variety of settings, ranging from healthcare to business and industry to education and research. Many careers in psychology involve working directly with people, while others are more task- or research-oriented. For example, licensed psychologists, counselors, teachers, and human service providers work more directly with clients, whereas consultants, administrators, and researchers do not.

Credentials

General eligibility requirements for an entry-level career in psychology may include:

• Associate or bachelor’s degree
• Minimum GPA between 2.5 and 3.0
• Evening and weekend work for clinical roles
• Security and safety checks
• Health screenings
• Current license to practice as a clinical psychologist
• Valid driver’s license for home visits

Career opportunities at the bachelor’s degree level

The importance of letters of recommendation

Some graduate school programs (and employers) place as much emphasis on letters of recommendation as on any other part of an application. It’s important to (1) choose your recommenders carefully and (2) encourage your recommenders to write the best possible letters in support of your application.

Potential recommenders include psychology professors, professors in a related field, job supervisors, and other professionals you’ve worked with. Be sure to ask whether they feel they can write a strong letter of support on your behalf. Then provide the person(s) with as much information as possible about your personal and academic background to make it easier for your recommender to write an accurate letter. You may also provide your recommender with a packet of information that includes the following:

• A copy of your most recent transcript.
• A description of the graduate program or type of position you’re applying for; or you can indicate that the letter is to go to a general file. With this information, the recommender is better able to highlight or emphasize particular strengths of yours that might be especially relevant.
• Completion of your part of the evaluation. For example, your full name, the program or job for which you’re applying, the degree, whether you are also applying for financial assistance, your signature, etc.
• The deadline for each letter of recommendation. Please recognize that recommendations are very time-consuming to write. Give the person writing your letter at least two to three weeks.
• The basis of professor/student contact: Describe formal courses (title, grade, and other aspects of your special performance), honors research, independent study, informal contacts, work-study program participation, departmental assistant work, etc.
• Academic achievements: Tell about your overall GPA, your cumulative grade point average in psychology, your major, your strengths and weaknesses, and how your academic background has prepared you for the position or course of study for which you’re being recommended. Include anything “extra” or unique about your academic background, such as whether you have any Board scores, or participation in psychology programs, conferences, Psi Chi, etc.
• Non-academic background: Briefly describe extracurricular activities, jobs, hobbies, sports, community work, political or social involvements, overseas education, travel, etc.
• Pre-college background: Include anything of note in your family or earlier life history.
• General goals for the future: Describe what you’d like to be doing with your life 10 years from now.
• Anything else that you believe would strengthen your recommendation or would be of value to you.

Please note that you must decide whether to waive or not to waive the right to see your letters of recommendation, according to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act of 1974. The advantage of letters written under non-waiver is that you know exactly what has been written about you and can seek references from others if you don’t like your current ones. However, it’s generally felt that confidential recommendation letters have more credibility with prospective employers and graduate schools. The choice is yours!

Resources

• Career Exploration Resources
• Guide to Counseling Psychology Careers
• Guide to Graduate Schools
• Psychology Careers