Just finished with your 12th Class? Are you still trying to look for the perfect path for your life? Being bombarded with questions like “What’s next?” and struggling to answer? Maybe considering the field of psychology? But, what is psychology? What can you do with that degree? How long do you need to study till you can start working? And, do they really teach you to read minds?
To answer a few of those questions, let’s start with what psychology actually is. Simply put, Psychology is the study of behaviour and mind. In general, you can bifurcate the field of psychology into two basic divisions – Application and Research. The application field focuses on aspects like therapy, counselling and human resource management. The research field involves improving the wellbeing of society by trying to understand and explain concepts concerning behaviour and the mind.
To form a career in psychology, the most basic pre-requisite is a 12th grade qualification. Don’t worry about having psychology as one of your subjects (although it is helpful) as most psychology courses in college start from scratch and extensively explain all the basic fundamentals. After your 12 class, you can pursue either a B.A course or a B.Sc specialising in Psychology. This three-year course would cover topics like social psychology, research techniques, biopsychology, industrial psychology, etc.
After your Bachelors, if you wish to continue in the field of psychology, you would pursue a Masters in psychology. This could be in the form of a two-year M.A. or M.Sc. in Psychology. In fact, universities like Delhi University, Ambedkar University, and Jamia Millia Islamia University, allow admission to students without even a bachelors in psychology.
After this, if you are interested in clinical psychology, i.e. assessing and treating people with psychological problems, you would have to pursue an M.Phil in the same (M.Phil Clinical Psychology). However, those who are not interested in the clinical field can skip to the next step – a PhD or a Doctor of Philosophy degree. A Doctorate is an intensive course that is two years in duration but usually extends to four to seven years. Instead of this, a PsyD or a Doctor of Psychology or a can also be pursued. As opposed to the wide number of career outcomes of a PhD, a PsyD focuses of psychotherapy, clinical psychology, and school psychology. All these qualifications allow you to get a licence from Rehabilitation Council of India (RCI) which certifies that you are allowed to practice as a psychologist.
There are a number of job options on different fields of psychology. The main ones that are well established in India are Clinical Psychology, Counselling Psychology and Industrial Psychology.
- Clinical Psychology: This field of psychology is concerned with the assessment and treatment of a patient who suffers from psychological problems. They could deal with people suffering from chronic disorders or could act as therapists for ordinary psychological crises.
- Counselling Psychology: Counselling psychology is very similar to clinical psychology, but they work in a smaller scope. They also work with less serious psychological problems like adjustment, relationship problems, juvenile behaviour, etc.
- Industrial Psychology: This division studies the relationships between people and their work environments. They may develop new ways to increase workplace productivity or be involved in personnel selection. They are employed in business, government agencies, factories, academic establishments, etc.
- Others: The above are very few of the overall plethora of options provided to a student of psychology. Another option is to become part of faculty at a university, college or school to teach others. You can also pursue research in fields like biopsychology, developmental psychology, etc. Professional fields like Sports Psychology, Criminal Psychology, Occupational Counselling, Human Resources Management, and Social Work are also growing in popularity in India.
The above are very few of the overall plethora of options provided to a student of psychology. Another option is to become part of faculty at a university, college or school to teach others. You can also pursue research in fields like biopsychology, developmental psychology, etc. Professional fields like Sports Psychology, Criminal Psychology, Occupational Counselling, Human Resources Management, and Social Work are also growing in popularity in India.
The above are very few of the overall plethora of options provided to a student of psychology. Another option is to become part of faculty at a university, college or school to teach others. You can also pursue research in fields like biopsychology, developmental psychology, etc. Professional fields like Sports Psychology, Criminal Psychology, Occupational Counselling, Human Resources Management, and Social Work are also growing in popularity in India.
The above are very few of the overall plethora of options provided to a student of psychology. Another option is to become part of faculty at a university, college or school to teach others. You can also pursue research in fields like biopsychology, developmental psychology, etc. Professional fields like Sports Psychology, Criminal Psychology, Occupational Counselling, Human Resources Management, and Social Work are also growing in popularity in India.
For more details about Psychology Courses Contact:
UPS Education
Ph: 9990717772
www.upseducation.in
