Stuck with a BA in psych?

[tears for susan]

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I am a very competitive student (would get into any grad program i apply to, according to my prof), however, I have decided not to apply to graduate school because I have no clue what I want to do as a career.
I guess the next step for me is to go into the real world and "try" some different things to see what I like. It seems that I have a general interest in the field of psychology, did well in all areas of coursework, but lack passion for any one direction.

Am I screwed as far as having a good career with just a BA in psych? I know you cant work professionally in the field of psychology without a graduate degree, but I dont necessarily need to work in the field; the way i see it, psychology is used in almost any career. I just dont want to be stuck working at mcdonalds because my BA isnt useful.

If the day comes when I become passionate about getting a graduate degree and career then I will run right back to school, but right now I am preparing for the possibility that this may not happen for me. Please tell me im not screwed out of having a decent career?

 

[jiji7]

you aren't screwed. you can do sooooo many things. use this time to soul search and try different paths.

have you looked into ABA instructing?

 

[tears for susan]

you aren't screwed. you can do sooooo many things. use this time to soul search and try different paths.

have you looked into ABA instructing?

ABA = applied behavior analysis, right?

I actually worked in the field for a summer (prior to earning a BA) and although the concept and classroom instruction was something i was very on fire for, I discovered I was miserable working with autistic children- it seems that in the field of ABA, most of the job market is centered around that sort of work.


I am taking a class on social influence right now, which I am finding passion for. We are learning about all sorts of techniques such as reciprocity power and the foot in the door technique. Perhaps a career in sales is right for me...

I just dont want to have a routine and monotonous $12 an hour career with no room for advancement.

 

[SanjuPsych]

tears for susan,
I was actually in a similar situation last year, when I completed by BA in psych and all my advisors/profs urged me to apply to PHD programs, because I did about everything possible in my undergrad in terms of research, clinical experiences. They said that I was a shoe-in, but now I am really glad that I didn't follow their advice, the reason being that after a year of working as a RA in a lab, I realized this isn't the field for me.

I also think that other than academia or being a therapist, psychology has little career prospects, precisely because of the bureaucratics of the professors sitting in their university offices caring little about their students careers and more about their prestige in their field/area. I haven't ruled out being a therapist, but definitely not academia for me! I've also read numerous articles about PHD grads from psych going away from academia and rather going into industry or government jobs, ie environments where they can maintain their sanity and actually make a decent enough living (after all if you've got a PHD why be limited to a salary lower than most BA engineering and computer science grads!)

Sorry for the rant! Despite the crap I've had to deal with in working in the field, I've gotten some good experience that is transferable to other fields, however I still am not definite of what I want to do, most likely Information Technology or Computer Science ie a job where I can actually work with normal people rather than self-absorbed people, and do something that I enjoy doing and also I think I'm naturally inclined to do. I worked with different types of database applications while RAing, and this helped me to build some experience in what I really want to do. I constantly have taken initiative at work and have even built my own queries in these databases despite my supervisor's opinion that I know nothing about computers and that I shouldn't be messing with things and that we should call in the database expert...and then the database expert comes in and does the same thing I already did???

I'm actually on the job hunt again, applying for a mix of things, hoping that with my work experience I can get paid a little more and be able to support myself while going back to school to get my BS in computer science. The psych RA positions are out there, but just difficult to find and VERY competitive as all the psych people who get rejected from phd programs usually apply to these as their backup. I got mine through a connection, so remember to work your connections! I went to tons of interviews last spring, however only got one offer from a place I didn't even need to interview for because I had already worked with the PI of the lab. I realized that most of these places were hiring MSWs and other pscyhology MA graduates, because there's so many of them out there that can't find a decent job and have to resort to being a research tech!

Also, just get out in the working world and get some experience, even if its something completely different from what you've studied in school, you will have a competitive edge against the people who go to phd or masters programs right away! a lot of my friends went straight to masters in education or MSW or other programs and now are regretting it because they dont even like it anymore and wasted a lot of time and money in the process of figuring that out...whereas I figured that out while making a decent income and getting one year of solid work experience...hehe.

 

[xenobart]

One of my friends who majored in psychology and had no interest in working in traditional psych careers has carved out an interesting career in the advertising sector. She works as an analyst at her firm and basically analyzes survey results (the data is collected by someone else) and makes advertising / marketing recommendations based on the results. If you liked doing the results and discussion sections in your research methods in psychology class you might enjoy that kind of work.

I've known other psych grads who've gone into human resources, publishing (although that's the family business), and elementary school teaching (which required going back to school for a credential).

 

[devilpup]

to the OP,

i'm curious why did you decide to major in psych?

 

[tears for susan]

to the OP,

i'm curious why did you decide to major in psych?

the main reason was because I found psychology to be "the ultimate life skill" (as I phrased it at the time). Its one field that can be applied everyday whenever human interactions are taking place. I am still very interested in the field, but it seems I have a passion for learning the stuff, not doing the actual legwork of research or therapy. Actually I cant imagine studying much else, everything seems to boring to me except for psychology. I had interests in being a doctor of psych 4 years ago but am now much more competent on how much commitment that entails. I dont think I am "passionate" enough about it (strange how my only passions are things that cant really be made into careers, such as bicycling).

and yeah- my professors pretty much dropped their jaws when I told them I wasnt going to apply to grad. school. the entire faculty in the department assumed thats where I was heading. I do have a few ideas of things I might want to try, such as event planning, the sales industry (perhaps for pharmeuctical companies), and bartending. Heck, even bartending would make use of my education in psychology. But I know little about any of these fields and I would need to try them before committing long term.

 

[tears for susan]

tears for susan,
I was actually in a similar situation last year, when I completed by BA in psych and all my advisors/profs urged me to apply to PHD programs, because I did about everything possible in my undergrad in terms of research, clinical experiences. They said that I was a shoe-in, but now I am really glad that I didn't follow their advice, the reason being that after a year of working as a RA in a lab, I realized this isn't the field for me.

I also think that other than academia or being a therapist, psychology has little career prospects, precisely because of the bureaucratics of the professors sitting in their university offices caring little about their students careers and more about their prestige in their field/area. I haven't ruled out being a therapist, but definitely not academia for me! I've also read numerous articles about PHD grads from psych going away from academia and rather going into industry or government jobs, ie environments where they can maintain their sanity and actually make a decent enough living (after all if you've got a PHD why be limited to a salary lower than most BA engineering and computer science grads!)

Sorry for the rant! Despite the crap I've had to deal with in working in the field, I've gotten some good experience that is transferable to other fields, however I still am not definite of what I want to do, most likely Information Technology or Computer Science ie a job where I can actually work with normal people rather than self-absorbed people, and do something that I enjoy doing and also I think I'm naturally inclined to do. I worked with different types of database applications while RAing, and this helped me to build some experience in what I really want to do. I constantly have taken initiative at work and have even built my own queries in these databases despite my supervisor's opinion that I know nothing about computers and that I shouldn't be messing with things and that we should call in the database expert...and then the database expert comes in and does the same thing I already did???

I'm actually on the job hunt again, applying for a mix of things, hoping that with my work experience I can get paid a little more and be able to support myself while going back to school to get my BS in computer science. The psych RA positions are out there, but just difficult to find and VERY competitive as all the psych people who get rejected from phd programs usually apply to these as their backup. I got mine through a connection, so remember to work your connections! I went to tons of interviews last spring, however only got one offer from a place I didn't even need to interview for because I had already worked with the PI of the lab. I realized that most of these places were hiring MSWs and other pscyhology MA graduates, because there's so many of them out there that can't find a decent job and have to resort to being a research tech!

Also, just get out in the working world and get some experience, even if its something completely different from what you've studied in school, you will have a competitive edge against the people who go to phd or masters programs right away! a lot of my friends went straight to masters in education or MSW or other programs and now are regretting it because they dont even like it anymore and wasted a lot of time and money in the process of figuring that out...whereas I figured that out while making a decent income and getting one year of solid work experience...hehe.

Well im certainly glad im not the only one going through this! My frustration is that even though I am super interested in psychology, doing the research work to obtain one effect just doesnt stimulate me. I coordinated a study for the psych department at my uni last year, all about the implicit bystander effect. The results were alot of fun to interpret, but that period of joy was tiny compared to the 8 months of data collection, SPSS analyses, and editing the manuscript; I am not interested doing any of those things. In a nutshell, I guess I prefer reading the research rather than conducting it myself.

 

[devilpup]

the main reason was because I found psychology to be "the ultimate life skill" (as I phrased it at the time). Its one field that can be applied everyday whenever human interactions are taking place. I am still very interested in the field, but it seems I have a passion for learning the stuff, not doing the actual legwork of research or therapy. Actually I cant imagine studying much else, everything seems to boring to me except for psychology. I had interests in being a doctor of psych 4 years ago but am now much more competent on how much commitment that entails. I dont think I am "passionate" enough about it (strange how my only passions are things that cant really be made into careers, such as bicycling).

and yeah- my professors pretty much dropped their jaws when I told them I wasnt going to apply to grad. school. the entire faculty in the department assumed thats where I was heading. I do have a few ideas of things I might want to try, such as event planning, the sales industry (perhaps for pharmeuctical companies), and bartending. Heck, even bartending would make use of my education in psychology. But I know little about any of these fields and I would need to try them before committing long term.

In regards to pharmaceutical reps, i've meet a few while talking to attendings, and the line of work seems fun and dynamic. They are generally great conversationalists and that requires a solid foundation in psych, I suppose. Good pay too.

If you go for the bartending gig, i'd give you a generous tip after downing my Long Island, you seem like a nice gall/dude.

 

[tears for susan]

In regards to pharmaceutical reps, i've meet a few while talking to attendings, and the line of work seems fun and dynamic. They are generally great conversationalists and that requires a solid foundation in psych, I suppose. Good pay too.

If you go for the bartending gig, i'd give you a generous tip after downing my Long Island, you seem like a nice gall/dude.

Thanks for the tips!
If you happen to acquire any information from your friends about the pharm. sales industry, please let me know. Such information would be extremely interesting to me at this point. Ie. Whats a typical day like for a sales rep? How does one break into the field? Would i make the cut with a BA in psych? Im actually quite impressive for someone who is just a BA. Ive got advanced stats, psychmetrics, and a heavy research background under my belt.