M.A in Counseling or M.A in Psychology?

[MCMike]

Hello All!

As a prospective student looking to head to graduate school in the fall! I am looking to become a counselor/ psychologist in my career. However, I'm at the crossroads of which master's degree to choose from! What exactly would the difference be to achieve a master's degree in Psychology or Counseling? Can I still be LPC if I get my master's in psychology instead of Counseling. The point being is that in 4 years time from this message. I would like to be counseling clients! Which degree would help me fast track that!
Furthermore, I hope to eventually get my doctorate. But is it possible to get my psyd in Psychology if I get my master's in counseling or psychology?

Below is the school that i'm applying to. I would really like to become a multicultural counseling psychologist. But I also want to see clients with serious and normal problems. So what's better? M.A Psychology or M.A Counseling.

Please check this site out and if you can please give me some advice!
It just looks confusing to me. The school's site doesnt say anything about a M.A in Clinical Psychology. It just says M.A Psychology?!!?!? Whats the difference?




Counseling website
http://www.montclair.edu/graduate/programs/masters/cnsc.php

psychology website
http://www.montclair.edu/graduate/programs/masters/psyc.php

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[pingouin]

We get questions on here a lot about "can I get licensed if I get [insert degree/program here]. Generally speaking, since each state creates its own licensing laws, those can be difficult for us to answer. It's best to look at your state's licensing website to see what their requirements are.

For example, the link you posted to Montclair's MA in Psychology suggests it's a 35 credit hour program from start to finish. However, New Jersey's Professional Counselor Licensing Act (http://www.state.nj.us/oag/ca/laws/profcounlaws.pdf) requires a 60 hour degree with certain curriculum requirements to be eligible for licensure. So it looks unlikely that the MA/Psych would help you reach your career goal.

When you look at that counseling degree (click on community counseling, because the link is for school counseling), it's still only 48 hours but they specifically say they prepare you for licensure. This is something you'd want to ask the school about.

Also, I'd suggest putting the 2 curricula side by side and see what the counseling program offers that the MAPsych does not. Emphasis on the word COUNSELING.

 

[MCMike]

ughhh. Because I'm having a hard time deciding which program to chose from. In the end, I want psyd symbol next to my name. I just would like to get a degree where I'd have a job counseling someone 4 years from now. It seems like picking your masters in psychology means little unless you want to recieve your doctorate in psychology? Which would take another 5 years. A Masters degree in counseling seems better end of the stick in the near future. Right or wrong?
Is the pay scale alot different from psychologist to a counselor?

 

[MCMike]

Could I get my M.A in Counseling and then get my Psyd in Psychology?

 

[Therapist4Chnge]

ughhh. Because I'm having a hard time deciding which program to chose from. In the end, I want psyd symbol next to my name. I just would like to get a degree where I'd have a job counseling someone 4 years from now. It seems like picking your masters in psychology means little unless you want to recieve your doctorate in psychology? Which would take another 5 years. A Masters degree in counseling seems better end of the stick in the near future. Right or wrong?
Is the pay scale alot different from psychologist to a counselor?

Doctoral training is very different than Masters level training, You need to figure out what you want to do, and then choose your path from that. If you primarily want to do therapy, a Masters is probably the best compromise in regard to your time line. A Doctorate requires a great deal more training in other areas (statistics, research design, assessment, etc) and will take a minimum of 6 years (4+1+1), and usually takes longer. As for the payscale, someone with doctoral level training will make more, and be much more likely to be in supervisory positions. Private practice (cash pay) can be equivalent in pay, but that doesn't happen often.

 

[ClinicalNYC]

If your sole reason for getting a psyd or phd is to have a Dr. title in front of your name, you will discover that it is a very expensive and time-consuming vanity project with very little upside.

 

[psich]

MCMike: Could I get my M.A in Counseling and then get my Psyd in Psychology?

You can. But what does the PsyD offer that the MA doesn't? Do you want to conduct assessments? Because that's the main element differentiating the PsyD from the MA (apart from the educational training). You mentioned that you want to counsel, which you can easily do with an MA in Counseling.

If you want to get a PsyD from a professional school, realize that it will cost you a lot of money. Medical school tuition can be paid off because the salaries for physicians are reasonable in the field. However, the average salary for psychologists is disproportionate IMO to the time and work put into training.

The salaries for psychologists and counselors are not the same. Private practice salaries vary and are based on several different variables. Think carefully about what you want to do and what your reasons are for getting the doctorate.

 

[whypsy]

FYI: There are MA programs in counseling, clinical, and research. There are M.Ed. programs in counseling and research, all falling under psychology.

The master's level degree is a relatively quick and dirty degree that you can do alot with. It only takes 2 years + 1.5 years to get enough therapy hours to get your LPC. My impression is that most states simply require you to have your LPC and a PhD level supervisor who is also licensed. As a result you can actually do therapy and even assessment with the proper training and supervision after you get your license.

The main reason someone would go for a PsyD from what I've seen is to not do research and focus on clinical applications, thus getting more experience and supervision. Also, to do therapy outside of school both PhD and PsyD programs take at least 6 years. (usualy 5 years school + 1 internship). There is a significant difference in pay grade between master level and doctoral level.

There are some differences between counseling and clinical fields. I'd go into it but there are much better resources both online and even on these boards explaining the differences.

Finally looking at your program, the counseling program looks relatively straightforward. The one with MA in psychology appears to have a little more clinical leaning. However the counseling program has a practicum which is usually a real world application of your skills. I would follow up on that and see what the practicum means in that program.

Short answer: There's no way you'll graduate a PsyD in 4 years unless you can magically graduate 2 years early. Reevaluate what you want, why, and research some more.