For the past few months I've been panicking and stressing out over career choices. I'm 27 years old and hold a BA in psychology and art. I went to college completely uninformed about a lot of things. I wanted to do animation at first, but that quickly went away. At some point during college I found out about about clinical psychology and became interested in that. During my senior year I took a neuroscience class and enjoyed learning about the nervous system. I was dead set on doing clinical neuropsychology. Also, I considered doing pre-med courses during college. I managed to do well in college (3.65 GPA).
I've worked as a behavior therapist with my BA in psychology because it was the only type of job that I would get interviews from. It was difficult and challenging. I dealt with a lot of aggressive clients, but due to my bipolar disorder worsening I had to quit the job. I am now jobless and feel like a failure. My family, however, is supportive and do whatever they can to help me in my current situation.
I'm not sure what I want to do. The field of mental health is interesting, but I'm scared about not being paid enough and not finding a job. I'm interested in making diagnosis and running test, but I'm not sure whether I'll do well when doing psychotherapy. I've read a couple of books about medical school and found it intriguing, but I don't know whether I have an interest in science or not. I went to a career counselor and asked about medical school. She said I would need to go into a post bacc for career changers if I wanted to apply to medical school. I was a clinical care extender and enjoyed my hospital shifts very much, but had to exit the program due to my bipolar symptoms affecting me. I recently found out about public health and I am interested in that as well.
I don't know whether I want a PhD, a MD or a master's degree. I'm confused and lost. I don't where to start. There are the careers I'm interested in: clinical psychology/neuropsychology, medical doctor, a career in public health, speech pathologist, genetic counselor.
Can anyone help me?
I've worked as a behavior therapist with my BA in psychology because it was the only type of job that I would get interviews from. It was difficult and challenging. I dealt with a lot of aggressive clients, but due to my bipolar disorder worsening I had to quit the job. I am now jobless and feel like a failure. My family, however, is supportive and do whatever they can to help me in my current situation.
I'm not sure what I want to do. The field of mental health is interesting, but I'm scared about not being paid enough and not finding a job. I'm interested in making diagnosis and running test, but I'm not sure whether I'll do well when doing psychotherapy. I've read a couple of books about medical school and found it intriguing, but I don't know whether I have an interest in science or not. I went to a career counselor and asked about medical school. She said I would need to go into a post bacc for career changers if I wanted to apply to medical school. I was a clinical care extender and enjoyed my hospital shifts very much, but had to exit the program due to my bipolar symptoms affecting me. I recently found out about public health and I am interested in that as well.
I don't know whether I want a PhD, a MD or a master's degree. I'm confused and lost. I don't where to start. There are the careers I'm interested in: clinical psychology/neuropsychology, medical doctor, a career in public health, speech pathologist, genetic counselor.
Can anyone help me?
Thank you!
