Health psychologists can engage in new careers with higher education training.
Health psychology studies how social, psychological and genetic factors influence the well-being of individuals. This discipline helps resolve illnesses caused partially or fully by mental conditions and promotes healthy behaviors. Health psychologists may serve specific areas of health such as addiction cessation programs, oncology or pain management. Some health psychologists work on public policies with government or private agencies. In the profession of health psychology, graduate-level training becomes essential to opening new doors after about ten years spent in the profession.
Significance
Health psychologists with a bachelor's degree in psychology reach a glass ceiling mid-career and become limited to assisting other professionals in community mental health centers or rehabilitation programs. With higher education or specialization, the health psychologist becomes eligible for broader and possibly more interesting jobs.
Doctorate Level Training
Individuals studying for a Ph.D. or Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) add to their career options positions in medical research, psychology education and health care services in hospitals and medical organizations. A doctoral degree is issued after about five years of full-time graduate study combined with a dissertation, according to the Department of Psychology at Stanford University. The Psy.D. degree program teaches through the use of direct intervention with patients. One additional year of post-doctoral supervised experience is mandatory for anyone continuing with clinical psychology or counseling.
Master's Degree Level Training
The receipt of a master’s degree in health psychology also opens career doors. A master's degree in psychology takes about two years to complete, reports the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and combines practical experience and formal teaching. The writing of a thesis concludes the training.
Specialization
To become more marketable, or to explore a favored field, many psychologists choose to specialize in a field of psychology. This specialization may require additional degrees, licensure or accreditation.
For example, in school settings, psychologists deal with students with special needs, behavior problems and drug abuse. To serve in this capacity, most states require a specialist or master's degree, states BLS. A specialist (Ed.S.) degree involves a minimum of two full-time years of graduate study followed by one year of full-time internship. In at least 31 of the United States states, certification from the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) is mandatory. The demand for school psychologists is expected to grow as more educators become aware of the relationships between the ability to learn in school, mental illness and behavioral problems.
License
All states ask psychologists to maintain their license to practice through continuing education. For professionals re-entering the profession after an absence, the license requirements vary by state but all involve passing an exam, and most of them ask the applicants to complete 1200 to 1500 hours of clinical training after graduation. Applicants can find the specific licensing requirements from the states board of psychology.
Employment
According to BLS, 170,000 psychologists worked in the United States in 2008. Healthcare organizations employed 21 percent of those psychologists, with counseling and research organizations welcoming 29 percent. The remaining 34 percent, mostly composed of professionals with graduate degrees, maintained private practices or ran their own consulting firms. Although companies may hire psychologists to address mental health-related matters with their employees, some organizations modify the job description to focus on eliminating mental roadblocks that may prevent employees from working at their highest productivity level.
Earnings
When comparing 2008 median and top salaries in 2008, it is seen that clinical, counseling and professionals in schools earn a median salary of $64,140 with peak incomes above $106,840. Psychologists working in companies earn higher incomes with a median wage of $77,010; the top 10 percent earn more than $149,120, according to BLS.
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