MSW and M.A. in Psychology

[Aspiring_Psychologist]

First, let me introduce myself and say that I am an active duty servicemen (womean) in the U.S. Air Force and I love school! I am now preparing to separate Jan 2017 and I am eager to start a new fulfilling career. I am skeptic, but this is my choice and it is necessary. I aspire to be a Clinical Psychologist one day but the avenues to this by far are many and confusing (I do know that there are various posts in this forum about this topic).

Here's where my anxiety and frustration lies:

I have a three degrees and some supporting credentials (A.S. in General Studies, A.S. in Information Systems Technology , two IT certifications, a Pharmacy Tech diploma, and a B.A. in Psychology...ask me why and I'll tell you I absolutely love school; however, I am NOW ready to get it over and done with because my time away from my son bothers me and I am TIRED most of all. Despite my burnout, I do know that more schooling will be needed for my Psyd; however, I will not be pursuing this right now--I need a break).

Ironically, I have enrolled into a Clinical Social Work program and invested 1 year into it...I LOVE IT!!! The school, more specifically, Catholic University, is accredited by CSWE and completely online with the exception of internships that I cannot complete due to my military obligations (another reason why I am separating so that I can finish my two remaining years left of this program).

Here's my dilemma:

I really want to pursue something that will land me a job in the psychology/social work realm of work and will be in high demand while also allowing me a great variety of specializations, hence why I chose Clinical Social Work. I made sure to chose Clinical Social Work so that I can counsel and diagnose because this is my passion and "my calling" I believe. It is where I feel the most satisfaction lies...this is also why I want my Psyd and not the Phd.

Anyhow, I have read that a Masters in Psychology can be seen as a waste of time. I also read that an online Masters in Psychology is bad especially for students aspiring to be admitted into doctorate programs. However, I am a single mother, active duty serviceman, and cannot attend on-campus classes right now. Though I have a B.A. in Psychology from an online university, Ashford University to be exact, I don't feel it will land me a job in the psychology field of work. So, I decided to pursued a Clinical MSW program but now I have internships to complete that I cannot pursue so I had to pause my MSW until 2017. Because I am so eager to be in the field of psychology/social work upon my separation, I have enrolled into a online M.A. in Psychology program at American Military University (AMU). Their M.A. program will take me exactly one year to complete (excited about that). I also called the Psychology Licensure board of Maryland regarding the registered Psychology Associate licensure to be sure that I can apply for registration with this degree from AMU. They assured me that it was applicable, but I am still worried. I am at burnout stage but I am willing to do whatever it takes for ultimate happiness. I am an IT specialist for the U.S. Air Force and I hate it! Though this is where the money lies, money is not the key to happiness (I'm sure you all know that). I am working hard to build a foundation that will NOT require me to fall back on my IT background upon my separation to make ends meet, but maybe this is inevitable.

Questions:
Am I doing to much???
Does it make sense to be a Psychology Associate and finish my Clinical MSW?
Will this hinder my acceptance into a Psyd program in the future?
Is this overkill?

Thanks in advance for the advice!!!

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