Is a degree in Psychology useless? How to leverage your Psychology education while you are still in college

Let’s cut to the chase.

No degree is useless if you know how to leverage it. Here are 6 ways to leverage your undergraduate education in Psychology while you are pursuing your degree.

1. Do Internships — An internship is the position that a student or trainee takes in order to gain work experience. Sometimes this position is paid, sometimes it’s not. If you can afford to take unpaid work, then by all means…. and it must be nice. If, however, you’re poor and need money, look for paid positions. Doing internships while you’re pursuing your degree is a great way to gain some much needed work experience, and to network and build connections. Sometimes doing an internship can even lead to guaranteed employment upon graduation. Take note that you don’t have to limit yourself to Psychology internships just because you’re studying it. The discipline overlaps with a wide range of industries, so if you’re studying Psychology, but interested in Marketing, you could also do some Marketing internships. Now, most times internships require you be a student in the discipline of the work, but don’t fret! With some creative thinking and strong diligence, you could find internships that are cross educational.
2. Work Part-Time in a Psychiatric Care Facility — Psychiatric care facilities usually hire Psychology majors for positions like receptionist, intake specialist, behavior technician, and patient technician. Some of these positions require only a high school diploma, while others require you have a bachelors degree in Psychology or other behavioral science discipline. Working in a care facility while you’re pursuing your degree gives you the opportunity to gain skills in healthcare that could potentially translate into a non-clinical position in a hospital. Even better if the hospital has a psych ward!
3. Become a Research Assistant — If you plan on being an academic researcher, this of course this is a great start for you! But even if you don’t plan on staying in academics, gaining work experience as a researcher is still a great way to go. Researchers gather, analyze, and interpret, data, and explain their findings. As Psychology majors, don’t you just love this entire process? Gaining work experience as research assistant strengthens your critical thinking, time management, communication, data collection, analysis, and problem-solving abilities, all of which are highly valued soft skills in the labor market! As a researcher, you can also work in fields like technology, business, medicine, health care, economics, etc. Just be sure to look for opportunities in the fields you want to work in!
4. Take Non- Psychology courses or minor in fields with promising job outlook — A psychology degree can fall in one of two disciplines: Art or Science. If it’s a science, your curriculum will be centered in technical courses, also known as hard or applied sciences. This includes Biology, Chemistry, Technology, etc. In other words, it will be more STEM focused. If it’s an art, your curriculum will be centered in liberal arts. As a student, you have no control over how your bachelors degree is structured, but you do have control over how well you take advantage of your undergraduate career. If you want to study Psychology, but not be limited to employment in Psychology, then take courses in fields that you may want to work in as electives, or choose that field as your minor. This will not only expand your knowledge, but having a dual discipline may also give you the advantage in the labor market, especially if those disciplines complement each other. What’s even more is that if you are considering going into Law, or Medicine, your university offers pre-law, and pre-med courses along with your major courses. What this means is that, depending on the track you choose, those courses will be added to your curriculum, and when you graduate, not only will you have a bachelor in Psychology, but you’ll also have the foundation to begin on the path to your legal or medical career.
5. Gain experience in other fields you may want to pursue for work — Similar to doing internships to gain experience, working in a field you are interested in as a career outside of Psychology, while pursuing Psychology as an educational path, is great for gaining that much needed experience, and building those connections!
6. Save and Study early for the GRE exam— The Graduate Entrance Exam, or the GRE, is the exam that all students who wish to continue their path in Psychology after undergrad must take. If you plan to be a clinician of any sort, this includes a being a Clinical Psychologist, a Clinical Social Worker, a Therapist, a Psychotherapist, or a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA), then you must be licensed. In order to be licensed, you must obtain a masters degree. The GRE is a 2 hour exam that tests your verbal, quantitative, and qualitative reasoning skills. It’s a standardized test, not an IQ test, so you can study for it. Studying for standardized tests mean learning how the works so you can do well. Because this test is rigorous, it would be a wise investment of your time, and money, as this test costs about $200, to begin studying and saving the moment you decide you want to be a clinician.

The labor market is changing, with employers placing less focus on having a degree, and more focus on having work experience. This doesn’t mean that your degree is useless, but that you will have to be realistic and more strategic about your work/career options once you graduate. As you pursue your education, it’s important to really think about what you want to do, to gain relevant work experience, and to network and make those connections. While this won’t guarantee you success, it will increase your chances of finding it after college!

What do you all think about this list? Let me know in the comments!