Do school psychologists get burned out quickly?

[Cooper07]

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Hello,

I am currently looking into the field of school psychology and I came across a few articles talking about high burnout rates in school psychs. Is this true? Many of them stated that there are too many things to do and very little time to complete them. It was also stated that they end up taking their work home. Its just too stressful if I feel like I would be working both at work and at home. Currently, I am a therapist and I cant seem to turn my work clock off (also bringing work home). In other words, I always seem to be working. Would this field allow me the opportunity to leave work at work? Please advise.

Here is a article of a compilation of the best/worst thing about the field from actual school psychologists for those who are like myself and exploring the field.
http://gse.berkeley.edu/program/sp/html/spbestworst.html

Also, considering the current economic situation,what do you think the outlook will be for school psychologists in the next 3 years in the Los Angeles area? Will there be jobs?

Thank you for your comments and help! Its much appreciated

 

[coldsweat]

From what I've heard, there is a way to avoid taking work home. However, it setting up a strict schedule. For example, you need to say to yourself, "From 9 to 12 today, I am going to work on reports." Unfortunately, that entails refusing the several requests for consultation that you will inevitably receive that morning.

I remember reading that the primary problem for young school psychologists is that they want to do too much. For example, they will drop what they are doing to assist that teacher who walks in their office. Then you end up doing your paperwork at home. You have to set up limits, but unfortunately it means serving less people.

If possible, can you post links or the names of the articles speaking of burnout among school psychologists? I'm interested in reading them.

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

I think it varies greatly by district/school. Some schools have very narrowly defined roles (you provide assessments and reports) which may or may not fit what someone wants. Other schools have much more flexibility and encourage more collaboration and consultation. A few of my friends are school psychologists and they all seem generally happy, for whatever that's worth.

 

[Cooper07]

Hi Coldsweat

Ive attached a article regarding burnout. Its more than 10 pages so its alot of information 🙂 As for the other articles I never saved them but read them offline. If you do a web search using the terms "burnout" "school Psychology" it would bring up some interesting resources.

Hope this helps!

Are you interested in becoming a school psychologist as well?

 

[ejc314]

As someone said earlier, I think it really depends on the type of school environment you are working in and the freedom you are allowed in your activities... I've worked in schools with school psychologists who seem to be doing just fine in terms of burnout..

 

[coldsweat]

Hi Coldsweat

Ive attached a article regarding burnout. Its more than 10 pages so its alot of information 🙂 As for the other articles I never saved them but read them offline. If you do a web search using the terms "burnout" "school Psychology" it would bring up some interesting resources.

Hope this helps!

Are you interested in becoming a school psychologist as well?

thanks for the link to the article. i am interested in becoming a school psychologist, and in fact have been applying, but i still have my reservations due to the negative aspects of the field (assessment-heavy, tedious regulations, overload, etc).

 

[bittersweetkiss]

thanks for the link to the article. i am interested in becoming a school psychologist, and in fact have been applying, but i still have my reservations due to the negative aspects of the field (assessment-heavy, tedious regulations, overload, etc).

hello,
my friend is also interested in becoming a school psychologist. are there any schools that have master degrees and then allow students to transfer to their psyd or phd program? my friend is still iffy about whether to obtain a master degree or psy because of the level of competitiveness. thank you so much for ur time 🙂

 

[schoolpsych1]

I know UConn does.

 

[coldsweat]

hello,
my friend is also interested in becoming a school psychologist. are there any schools that have master degrees and then allow students to transfer to their psyd or phd program? my friend is still iffy about whether to obtain a master degree or psy because of the level of competitiveness. thank you so much for ur time 🙂

The only schools that I found that explicitly say that on their website that EdS students can transfer into their PhD program are University of Kansas, Florida State University and University of Florida. However, I think I've heard of this happening at other schools without it being advertised (maybe some of the doctoral school psychology students on this forum can verify this?). Honestly, the best way to approach this would be to make a list of schools that offer both degrees and then contact professors to ask them about it.

 

[bittersweetkiss]

The only schools that I found that explicitly say that on their website that EdS students can transfer into their PhD program are Kansas State University, Florida State University and University of Florida. However, I think I've heard of this happening at other schools without it being advertised (maybe some of the doctoral school psychology students on this forum can verify this?). Honestly, the best way to approach this would be to make a list of schools that offer both degrees and then contact professors to ask them about it.

thank you so much for your replies 🙂 i have found lots of schools that have both degrees on nasponline.org. I will make a list then 🙂 btw does that mean when phd program will be shorter for those with edS degree?