Activities	Assess and evaluate individuals' problems through the use of case history, interview, and observation and provide individual or group counseling services to assist individuals in achieving more effective personal, social, educational, and vocational development and adjustment.
Outlook	Faster-than-average-job growth
Median Income	$68,640 per year in 2010
Work Context & Conditions	A psychologist's specialty and place of employment determine working conditions, although all psychologists must be thorough in their work of providing services to others. Clinical, school, and counseling psychologists in private practice have their own offices and set their own hours.
Minimum Education Requirements	Psy.D.
Skills	Social Perceptiveness, Learning Strategies, Critical Thinking, Active Listening, Writing, Active Learning, Complex Problem Solving, Reading Comprehension, Speaking
Abilities	Oral Expression, Speech Recognition, Deductive Reasoning, Problem Sensitivity, Originality, Written Comprehension, Speech Clarity, Inductive Reasoning, Written Expression, Oral Comprehension
Interviews	Craig Kalman

Job Category		Life, Physical, & Social Science
Job Description		Counseling psychologists assess and evaluate individuals' problems through the use of case history, interview, and observation and provide individual or group counseling services to assist individuals in achieving more effective personal, social, educational, and vocational development and adjustment. They use various techniques, including interviewing and testing, to advise people on how to deal with problems of everyday living. Some of the more specific task they perform are: counseling clients to help them understand personal or interactive problems, define goals, and develop realistic action plans; collect information about individuals or clients, using interviews, case histories, observational techniques, and other assessment methods; develop therapeutic and treatment plans based on individual interests, abilities, or needs of clients; and select, administer, or interpret psychological tests to assess intelligence, aptitude, ability, or interests. They may advise clients on the potential benefits of counseling or make referrals to specialists or other institutions for noncounseling problems. They analyze data, such as interview notes, test results, and reference manuals and texts to identify symptoms and diagnose the nature of clients' problems.
Working Conditions		A psychologist's specialty and place of employment determine working conditions. Clinical, school, and counseling psychologists in private practice have their own offices and set their own hours. However, they often offer evening and weekend hours to accommodate their clients. Those employed in hospitals, nursing homes, and other health facilities may work shifts including evenings and weekends, while those who work in schools and clinics generally work regular hours. Psychologists employed as faculty by colleges and universities divide their time between teaching and research and also may have administrative responsibilities. Many have part-time consulting practices. Most psychologists in government and industry have structured schedules. Increasingly, many work as part of a team and consult with other psychologists and professionals. Many psychologists experience pressures due to deadlines, tight schedules, and overtime work. Their routine may be interrupted frequently. Travel usually is required to attend conferences or conduct research. Aspiring psychologists who are interested in direct patient care must be emotionally stable, mature, and able to deal effectively with people. Sensitivity, compassion, and the ability to lead and inspire others are particularly important qualities for clinical work and counseling. Research psychologists should be able to do detailed work independently and as part of a team. Excellent communications skills are necessary to succeed in research. Patience and perseverance are vital qualities because results from psychological treatment of patients or from research usually take a long time.
Salary Range		The median annual wage of psychologists was $68,640 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half of the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $39,200, and the top 10 percent earned more than $111,810.

Education Required		Psychologists need a master’s, specialist, or doctoral degree in psychology. Practicing psychologists also need a license or certification. Most clinical, counseling, and research psychologists need a doctoral degree. Psychologists can complete a Ph.D. in psychology or a Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.) degree. A Ph.D. in psychology is a research degree that culminates in a comprehensive exam and a dissertation based on original research. In clinical, counseling, school, or health service settings, students usually complete a 1-year internship as part of the doctoral program. The Psy.D. is a clinical degree and is often based on practical work and examinations rather than a dissertation. School psychologists need a master’s, specialist (Ed. S. degree, which requires a minimum of 60 graduate semester hours), or doctoral degree in school psychology. Because their work addresses education and mental health components of students’ development, school psychologists’ training includes coursework in both education and psychology. Graduates with a master’s degree in psychology can work as industrial-organizational psychologists. When working under the supervision of a doctoral psychologist, master’s graduates also can work as psychological assistants in clinical, counseling, or research settings. Master’s degree programs typically include courses in industrial-organizational psychology, statistics, and research design. Entry into psychology graduate programs is competitive. Most master’s degree programs do not require an undergraduate major in psychology, but do require coursework in introductory psychology, experimental psychology, and statistics. Some doctoral degree programs require applicants to have a master’s degree in psychology, while others will accept applicants with a bachelor’s degree and a major in psychology.  Most graduates with a bachelor’s degree in psychology find work in other fields such as business administration, sales, or education.
Recommended High School Courses		Social Studies, Biology, Mathematics, English, Chemistry
Postsecondary Instructional Programs		Psychology, Mathematics, Therapy and Counseling, Communications and Media
Certification and Licensing		In most states, practicing psychology or using the title of “psychologist” requires licensure or certification. In all states and the District of Columbia, psychologists who practice independently must be licensed. Licensing laws vary by state and type of position. Most clinical and counseling psychologists need a doctorate in psychology, an internship, at least 1 to 2 years of professional experience, and to pass the Examination for Professional Practice in Psychology. Information on specific requirements by state can be found from the Association of State and Provincial Licensing Boards. In many states, licensed psychologists must complete continuing education courses to keep their licenses. School psychologists must be licensed or certified to practice in schools. This credential varies by state and is usually obtained through the state’s department of education. Information on specific requirements by state can be found from the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP). In addition, NASP awards the Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) designation, which is a nationally recognized certification. Currently, 30 states accept the NCSP as a route to licensing or certification. To become nationally certified, candidates need a minimum of 60 graduate semester hours in a school psychology program, a 1,200-hour supervised internship, and to pass the National School Psychology Examination. The American Board of Professional Psychology awards specialty certification in 13 areas of psychology, such as clinical health, couple and family, psychoanalysis, or rehabilitation. Although board certification is not required for most psychologists, it can demonstrate professional expertise in a specialty area. Some hospitals and clinics do require certification. In those cases, candidates must have a doctoral degree in psychology, state license or certification, and any additional criteria of the specialty field.

Interest Area		Social Involves working and communicating with, helping, and teaching people. Investigative Involves working with ideas and requires an extensive amount of thinking.
Work Values		Social Status Looked up to by others in their company and their community. Achievement Get a feeling of accomplishment. Variety Do something different every day. Social Service Do things for other people. Creativity Try out your own ideas. Security Have steady employment. Ability Utilization Make use of individual abilities. Working Conditions Good working conditions. Autonomy Plan work with little supervision. Recognition Receive recognition for the work you do. Responsibility Make decisions on your own.
Skills		Social Perceptiveness Be aware of others' reactions and understand why they react the way they do. Learning Strategies Use multiple approaches when learning or teaching new things. Critical Thinking Use logic and analysis to identify the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches. Active Listening Listen to what other people are saying and ask questions as appropriate. Writing Communicate effectively with others in writing as indicated by the needs of the audience. Active Learning Work with new material or information to grasp its implications. Complex Problem Solving Solving novel, ill-defined problems in complex, real-world settings. Reading Comprehension Understand written sentences and paragraphs in work-related documents. Speaking Talk to others to effectively convey information.
Abilities		Oral Expression Able to convey information and ideas through speech in ways that others will understand. Speech Recognition Identify and understand the speech of another person Deductive Reasoning Able to apply general rules to specific problems to come up with logical answers, including deciding whether an answer makes sense. Problem Sensitivity Able to tell when something is wrong or likely to go wrong. This doesn't involve solving the problem, just recognizing that there is a problem. Originality Come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem. Written Comprehension Able to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing. Speech Clarity Able to speak clearly so listeners understand. Inductive Reasoning Able to combine separate pieces of information, or specific answers to problems, to form general rules or conclusions. This includes coming up with a logical explanation for why seemingly unrelated events occur together. Written Expression Able to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand. Oral Comprehension Able to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.

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Job Outlook		Overall employment of psychologists is expected to grow 22 percent from 2010 to 2020, faster than the average for all occupations. Employment growth will vary by specialty. Employment of clinical, counseling, and school psychologists is expected to grow 22 percent, faster than the average for all occupations. Greater demand for psychological services in schools, hospitals, mental health centers, and social services agencies should drive employment growth. Demand for clinical and counseling psychologists will increase as people continue to turn to psychologists to help solve or manage their problems. More psychologists will be needed to help people deal with issues such as depression and other mental disorders, marriage and family problems, job stress, and addiction. Psychologists also will be needed to provide services to an aging population, helping people deal with the mental and physical changes that happen as they grow older. Through both research and practice, psychologists are also helping other special groups, such as veterans suffering from war trauma, other trauma survivors, and individuals with autism. Demand for psychologists in the health care industry is also expected to increase, because their work on teams with doctors, social workers, and other healthcare professionals provides patients with comprehensive, interdisciplinary treatments. In addition to treating mental and behavioral health issues, psychologists work on teams to develop or administer prevention or wellness programs. As the overall number of students grows, more school psychologists will be needed to work with students, particularly those with special needs, learning disabilities, and behavioral issues. Schools also rely on school psychologists to assess and counsel students. Additionally, school psychologists will be needed to study how both in-school and out-of-school factors affect learning, which teachers and administrators can use to improve education. Employment of industrial-organizational psychologists is expected to grow 35 percent, much faster than the average for all occupations, as organizations use these psychologists to help select and keep employees, increase productivity, and identify potential workplace improvements. However, because it is a small occupation, the fast employment growth will result in only about 800 new jobs over the 10-year period.
More Information		American Psychological Association
References		Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition, Psychologists, on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/psychologists.htm O*NET OnLine, on the Internet at http://online.onetcenter.org/link/summary/19-3031.03