Jobs with a BA in Psychology?

[lbwhite89]

I know this is a really popular question and I've done quite a bit of internet research on it. No, I'm NOT asking what jobs I can get in the Psychology field with just a BA. I plan on attending a graduate program (leaning toward business, MBA, at the moment), but I'm thinking about what job I can do while I work on that. Something that will give me some work experience as well as the degree.

In high school, I was a host/server at a restaurant for a year. Once I graduated, I worked for over a year as a receptionist at an eye doctor. Then I left to be a full time student for a year. Now I'm a bank teller and will be until I start at my 4 year university. At that time, I'll probably go back to serving while I go to school full time during the day, until I graduate with my BA.

I found this website: http://www.wagner.edu/departments/psychology/what

A lot of those jobs sound really interesting to me. I'm getting a minor in business, so will that help me land these jobs? Is it actually realistic that these people would hire someone with a BA in Psychology for human resources, PR, advertising, etc? I don't want to work in a restaurant with a bachelors degree. I know I won't be bringing in a whole lot of money, but I'd like to have an entry level job with a company where I can work my way up the corporate ladder while I get my MBA.

I know this isn't a business forum, but I'm hoping someone might know something about the chances of getting a job in one of these fields with a BA in psych.

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[lizzo76]

The link is not working for me right now, so I can't comment on any specific fields you're asking about.

I'm a little confused about your plan... you apparently have work experience but are not yet in college - are you in high school, or an adult going back to school? Oh, I see you have graduated from high school, but how old are - early 20s? Where will you be attending college? Are you doing a traditional program? You're already looking ahead to what you would do once you graduate with your BA and are pursuing an MBA, when you haven't entered a 4-year college yet? And you want to continue at the same company once you get your MBA? Is there any reason you plan on majoring in psychology if you don't want to work in the psychology field? (I mean, most people with undergraduate degrees in psychology probably don't end up in the psychology field, but I am just wondering if there might be a more relevant major since you know you want to be in business... not that psych isn't relevant, but there are other more relevant majors... economics, for instance.)

You can get any kind of job with a bachelors degree in psychology. To be honest, unless you go to some sort of vocational college, undergraduate major often doesn't really have much to do with the job you do after college. Also, your choice of undergraduate school makes a difference. I attended a top liberal arts college which had extensive on-campus recruiting, which, unfortunately, I stupidly did not take advantage of. Psych grads worked in management consulting and i-banking after college. There are also a lot of research jobs available at universities (for students and non-students alike.) After college, I was offered a job as a residential counselor, but choice not to take it because I didn't like the location. I worked in Academia (various support staff/research) jobs for years before going back for a masters degree. (I'm now pursuing another masters degree.) A psych BA doesn't specifically qualify you for any one job, but generally, you will be well-equipped to work in a lot of different fields. As far as HR goes, though, there are specific HR degrees offered at lesser schools and HR jobs tend to go to people with those types of degrees.

Are you in college now, just not a 4-year school? Or do you still have 4 years of college ahead of you? If you have 4 years ahead of you, I would think you're sort of getting ahead of yourself.

In any case, a BA in psychology (particularly if you study in a good program with a lot of focus on primary sources, analysis, and writing, versus reading textbooks and taking multiple choice exams) will provide you with critical and analytical thinking skills, and some understanding of human behavior - good for consulting, good for training, etc.. Have you thought about getting a student job while in college? That could be a good stepping stone into a "real" job upon graduation. Contrary to popular belief, student jobs are not all stupid mindless extremely low-paid ways to get beer and pizza money. Some give great experience, and provide you with a source for references.