I have a BA in Mathematics. Can I still pursue a degree in Psychology?

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Sensiti

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I graduated 5 years ago from a decent school (top 30 according to USNews) with a BA in mathematics. Decent GPA. Cum Laude. So far so good but as soon as I obtained my BA I confirmed that I was no longer interested in continuing my studies and decided to enter the labor force. I ended up with a programming job which I hated.

During the past 5 years or so, undoubtedly because I wanted to understand my own mental health issues, I developed an interest in psychology, and though I never completed as much as a psychology 101 course while I was in college, I have often found myself reading about psychology and absorbing as much information as I can on a variety of psychology-related subjects. It is fair to say that at this point in my life my interest in psychology has completely eclipsed my former interest in mathematics and computers.

I can't rewind time and I can no longer attend undergraduate school, and I'd like to know if there is anything I can do at this point to put myself in a position where enrolling in a graduate level psychology program is a real possibility provided that I meet the non-academic requirements and score well on entrance exams. Is it mainly a matter of signing up for and successfully completing undergraduate level psychology classes at local community colleges and state universities and hoping that they look good on my grad school applications?

There is another issue which I'd like to discuss, and rather than starting a separate thread I might as well discuss it here. (Just be sure to address both the previous question and the next question!)

Unlike many people who study psychology, I am not the type of person whose desire is to counsel people. With that in mind, would it make sense for me to study psychology? I clearly don't see myself working as a therapist and I am doubtful as to whether I have the interest, the talent and the aptitude to pursue and obtain a research or a teaching position.

In other words, I want to study psychology because I like psychology and because I'd like to obtain a job related to that subject, but I have no idea if such job exists. Should I continue exploring the possibility of studying psychology or am I better off getting this idea out of my mind?
 
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I graduated 5 years ago from a decent school (top 30 according to USNews) with a BA in mathematics. Decent GPA. Cum Laude. So far so good but as soon as I obtained my BA I confirmed that I was no longer interested in continuing my studies and decided to enter the labor force. I ended up with a programming job which I hated.

During the past 5 years or so, undoubtedly because I wanted to understand my own mental health issues, I developed an interest in psychology, and though I never completed as much as a psychology 101 course while I was in college, I have often found myself reading about psychology and absorbing as much information as I can on a variety of psychology-related subjects. It is fair to say that at this point in my life my interest in psychology has completely eclipsed my former interest in mathematics and computers.

I can't rewind time and I can no longer attend undergraduate school, and I'd like to know if there is anything I can do at this point to put myself in a position where enrolling in a graduate level psychology program is a real possibility provided that I meet the non-academic requirements and score well on entrance exams. Is it mainly a matter of signing up for and successfully completing undergraduate level psychology classes at local community colleges and state universities and hoping that they look good on my grad school applications?

There is another issue which I'd like to discuss, and rather than starting a separate thread I might as well discuss it here. (Just be sure to address both the previous question and the next question!)

Unlike many people who study psychology, I am not the type of person whose desire is to counsel people. With that in mind, would it make sense for me to study psychology? I clearly don't see myself working as a therapist and I am doubtful as to whether I have the interest, the talent and the aptitude to pursue and obtain a research or a teaching position.

In other words, I want to study psychology because I like psychology and because I'd like to obtain a job related to that subject, but I have no idea if such job exists. Should I continue exploring the possibility of studying psychology or am I better off getting this idea out of my mind?

If I were you I would look into I/O Psychology or Quantitative Psychology both of these programs are very Quant. based and involve applying math and statistics to study psychological principles.
 
If I were you I would look into I/O Psychology or Quantitative Psychology both of these programs are very Quant. based and involve applying math and statistics to study psychological principles.

+1

A math BA would be great training if you pursue a career in quantitative psychology. You would need to take some classes in psych or the psych GRE though.
 
Yes, I agree with everything Psychology 76 and I/O Psych said. Psychology and math (e.g., statistics) go hand in hand. You may also consider cognitive psychology or educational psychology. Cognitive psychology uses some math and information on computer programing. As far as educational psychology is concerned, some programs require students to take several stats courses along with program evaluation classes and your traditional qualitative methods classes. Gradschool.com, the American Psychological Association, the American Evaluation Association, and the American Educational Research Association are a few good places to start looking. Best of luck to you.
 
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