Changing major to sociology/psychology, could use some insight.

[blackpeony]

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I hope it's okay to post this in here..


As of right now, I'm an engineering undergrad major, but I've realized that what I really want to do is help people, which is where sociology or psychology come into play.



I'm trying to figure out how to tie a couple of my interests together. Community, family and marriage counseling with policy/research roles (helping out developing and implementing social programs).


So, I'm considering pursuing a masters for a licensed professional counselor and/or a marriage and family therapist.


Could I later go into hospital administration with the above background?


Honestly, I'm at an utter loss here, I could use all the advice I can get.
Thanks!

 

[Ollie123]

Can you elaborate at all on what you want your day-to-day to look like?

I'm far from an expert, but marriage & family therapy seems far removed from "hospital administration" which seems far removed from policy work. All of these things can certainly be done, but its not like the transition between them would be easy - you would likely need to plan far in advance to "set yourself up" for such a position. Strict marriage and family issues are probably not going to be handled in a hospital setting very frequently (although there are certainly exceptions depending on your specific interests). I'm particularly unclear what your exact goal is in terms of the overlap with hospital administration. Certainly, policy work can be done in this area as well but it also seems somewhat removed from your initial goal of marriage and family therapy. You are kind of all-over-the place (though I think you realize that).

Have you considered social work? Its a bit more diverse and may have more opportunities to do all 3 (although I think some focus will still be necessary). Many social workers do family-based therapy, medical social work is fused well into hospital settings with opportunities to progress, and social work is obviously much more policy-focused than a typical MFT program is likely to be.

 

[blackpeony]

I'm not completely sure what a day in a life of any of these professions is like. As lame as this sounds, I want to be in a position to help people. An issue close to my heart is in regards to helping immigrants and first generation americans from India and Pakistan. Between the parents and kids develops a culture gap that results in a unique set of problems (such as "over americanization" etc). That's what I'm most passionate about.

Policy and research comes into play because I'd like to be able to maybe write a book, or help develop social program aimed at the above mentioned group. I love research, and would prefer to somehow integrate that into counseling. If possible, lol.

I think it'd be easier to tie in hospital admin with research, but I threw that in to the mix hoping it'd all work out together.

I'm totally new to this, as you can probably tell. What's the difference between a licensed counselor and a social worker?

And the obvious question.. what are the salaries like for any of the jobs we've mentioned? I've looked about online, and it seems to be all over the place.

 

[spctle342]

I'm not completely sure what a day in a life of any of these professions is like. As lame as this sounds, I want to be in a position to help people. An issue close to my heart is in regards to helping immigrants and first generation americans from India and Pakistan. Between the parents and kids develops a culture gap that results in a unique set of problems (such as "over americanization" etc). That's what I'm most passionate about.

Policy and research comes into play because I'd like to be able to maybe write a book, or help develop social program aimed at the above mentioned group. I love research, and would prefer to somehow integrate that into counseling. If possible, lol.

I think it'd be easier to tie in hospital admin with research, but I threw that in to the mix hoping it'd all work out together.

I'm totally new to this, as you can probably tell. What's the difference between a licensed counselor and a social worker?

And the obvious question.. what are the salaries like for any of the jobs we've mentioned? I've looked about online, and it seems to be all over the place.

Based on your interests and goals, I would suggest that a social work major or graduate degree may be the best route for you. I can't speak to the other areas of study, but I know that a social work degree offers a great deal of flexiblity, allowing you to pursue both clinical work as a mental health professional as well as policy and administrative work. Other graduate degrees you might consider inclue MPA, MPP, or MPH--if several options appeal to you, many schools offer joint degrees in pretty much any combination of MSW/MPA/MPP/MPH. Google should probably be a good place to start researching what each area of study could offer.

 

[blackpeony]

Based on your interests and goals, I would suggest that a social work major or graduate degree may be the best route for you. I can't speak to the other areas of study, but I know that a social work degree offers a great deal of flexiblity, allowing you to pursue both clinical work as a mental health professional as well as policy and administrative work. Other graduate degrees you might consider inclue MPA, MPP, or MPH--if several options appeal to you, many schools offer joint degrees in pretty much any combination of MSW/MPA/MPP/MPH. Google should probably be a good place to start researching what each area of study could offer.

Yup, the plan is to go to graduate school, but I'm trying to figure out what degree would fit me best. I'll definitely look into the degrees you've listed!

 

[ClinicalPHD5]

Yup, the plan is to go to graduate school, but I'm trying to figure out what degree would fit me best. I'll definitely look into the degrees you've listed!

Master's in public administration would probably be a good fit because the programs have concentrations in hospital management. A social work degree is much broader and has lower salaries.

 

[ClinicalPHD5]

Also, hospital administration is not a "helping profession" in the sense that you will probably be mostly doing budgeting and administrative work. The salary though is better than you get as a family therapist or therapist in general.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

Also, hospital administration is not a "helping profession" in the sense that you will probably be mostly doing budgeting and administrative work. The salary though is better than you get as a family therapist or therapist in general.

Some would argue that it is the anti-helping profession because of the downward pressure to meet goals, budgets, etc.