Path to counseling work

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Maestrav

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I am in my early 40's. I minored in psychology. I have a masters in education. I currently teach ESL in a bilingual program at an elementary school. I am interested in returning to school. Initially, I am interested in counseling, possibly in sex addiction and other sexual issues and depression. This is all preliminary as I'm just exploring all this. Ultimately, I may want to get my PsyD or PhD. I'd like to have the option to test and teach. As a single person, I am particularly concerned about cost and financing. I am also wondering about how to gain acceptance into a program, as I've been out of school for a while. Any advice on programs (MSW, masters in counseling, PsyD, PhD) as well as financing would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

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Hi WisNeuro -

I mean that down the road I'd like to have the ability to do psych testing - I'm not sure on the setting yet - and teaching at a community college or 4 year college. So what I'm saying is that I'd like to set myself up for more options down the road.
I've read on some sites that I may be better situated to get into a program if I initially return for a masters in counseling or MSW. Make sense?
 
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If you want to teach, you can do so with an MSW as an adjunct professor, but for full-time, that would be the PhD/PsyD route (although I've heard this too is possible with just an MSW, although, not very common I would guess). If you want to do psych testing - PhD/PsyD. Overall, from what I gather, the PhD/PsyD route will serve you much better options wise, and will be absolutely mandatory to do testing (legally/ethically at least).
 
If you are going to be pursuing a doctorate in psychology, the best option would be to attend a fully-funded PhD program. Many of the other posters here would be able to advise you on how to get into one. It is my understanding that becoming involved in research would be crucial.
 
Thank you. Yes, I was initially exploring the PsyD route, but I understand from reading some of the other threads that financing a PsyD is difficult. I'd love to hear about how I can prepare myself to apply for a PhD program. I'm wondering if I'd need to pursue a masters degree first, since I've been out of school for so long.
 
Ultimately, it really depends on what you want to do. Health care is so fragmented these days that there are many paths to many mountains. I personally would advise anyone to think twice about a M.A. in Counseling as a terminal degree due to low wages and lack of employment opportunities. You will not make much money than you are making now and the post-master's road to licensure is burn out city for many. You also will not make much more than you make now (you might even make less). However, a clinically focused MSW program buys you the most flexibility and career options for your buck and time. I've known people with LPCs and LCSWs who specialize in your interests and do fine for themselves.

If you determined towards a doctorate, a master's degree in most cases will not save you any time nor will it do much to make your application more competitive. If you had good grades during school and score well on the GRE, then you will simply need to show that you are interested in and committed to the field and find a way to gain some research experience. Your profile seem to match Counseling Psychology which is a different discipline than Counseling (weird, I know). A good deal of these programs are housed in departments of education and will look favorably on your experience as an educator and bilingual skills. I would spend some time on the division 17 website to gain further information about this. A doctoral program is a long, arduous path which requires a significant investment of both time and money, it is definitely something to be sure about before you commit to anything.
 
I agree with R. Matey in that if your grades back when you were in school were solid, then you might be best served by just trying to beef up your research experiences such as via serving as a volunteer or paid RA in a lab for a year or two. The masters route, at least IMO, is best suited for folks who both need a structured research program and may have had a low undergrad GPA. It can certainly be helpful for other situations as well, but given that they can be expensive (versus an RA spot, which would either be free or would actually pay you), I generally only recommend when something other than just research experience is needed.

Then again, being a ways out from school can make it difficult to find RA positions. Many will be listed in just about any way that jobs are typically posted, and you can always cold call/cold email psychologists and/or psychology professors in the area to inquire, but an experimental masters would offer a structured method of gaining this type of experience, which can be nice. The downside is that there really wouldn't be much you could do with said masters other than serve as perhaps a lab manager, as they typically are license-eligible.
 
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