Considering a Career in Psychology? Hillel Asked Experts for Their Advice to Aspiring Professionals!
This year, the , powered by Hillel, launched its Industry Series 鈥 virtual sessions that bring in speakers from across sectors to help college students and early career professionals learn more about Jewish professionals鈥 experiences in those fields.
The most recent installment, 鈥淧racticing Psychology,鈥 brought together six professionals and graduate students to talk about choosing a path in the field, what a day in the life can look like, and how Jewish values can add another layer of meaning to their work.
As we recognize Mental Health Awareness Month this May, here are three top takeaways for college students and new graduates considering a career in psychology:
1. This field is so much bigger and broader than you might think.
When people think of psychology as a career, they often tend to imagine one of two paths: clinical or counseling work in an office setting, or academic research. But there are so many more ways to use a degree in psychology than just those options.
鈥淎 lot of people know about therapy,鈥 said Dr. Jenna Shapiro, a pediatric psychologist at Lurie Children鈥檚 Hospital of Chicago. 鈥淏ut I also was interested in doing consultation in a hospital setting, which is what I ended up doing. That means more sort of short-term, brief sessions with people that might be in the hospital or in a medical clinic.鈥
鈥淚鈥檝e worked in consulting for the last 10 years, primarily with pharmaceutical companies, but also with patient advocacy groups,鈥 said Dr. Jessica Markowitz, who also works part-time at as a therapist. 鈥淲hen I was getting my degree, I couldn’t have imagined going into that field.鈥
Dr. Cheryl Fulton, who serves as the director of community care and wellbeing at , had a similar experience. 鈥淚 offer a lot of support for students, but I don鈥檛 do clinical work,鈥 she said. 鈥淚 do a lot more programmatically, and that鈥檚 not something I envisioned when I first entered this field, but I really love it. It鈥檚 really fun.鈥
Jewish communal work, including working as a campus Hillel鈥檚 wellness professional, is a great avenue to explore. For example, Dr. Sasha Soykin co-founded the , which supports mental health and resilience through culturally informed support, research, and education amid rising global antisemitism.
鈥淲e just see the importance of building community, helping people feel not alone,鈥 Soykin said.
2. When it comes to grad school, think beyond the degree.
There are a number of different degree paths into the field of psychology. That means when you鈥檙e considering which degree to pursue, it鈥檚 important to think beyond just the type of job you鈥檇 like to have, but what you care about in a program 鈥 in the classroom and out of it.
鈥淚f someone is not interested in research, doing a doctorate program is a very, very long amount of time to do something that you might not want to do,鈥 Shapiro said.
Our panel also recommended taking a program鈥檚 philosophical approach into account. 鈥淚 went to do a counseling PhD because it’s a little bit more holistic, social justice-oriented, strengths-based, community-based鈥 than a clinical psych PhD,鈥 said psychologist Dr. Rebecca Semel.
There are so many ways to care for others, and the variety of training programs in the field reflects that reality.
3. Make sure to find ways to take care of yourself.
, more than half of early-career psychologists report feeling burned out. While grad school can mean long study sessions and heavy workloads, all of our panelists agreed that it鈥檚 important to start building a foundation of self-care before you get into the field, when it will be much harder to start new habits.
Figuring out a work-life balance is easier with your school鈥檚 support. Dr. Shapiro recalled the faculty director of her program modeling work-life balance by attending concerts once a week and regularly taking the cohort on outings. Other programs are set up to make the time constraints of a degree more flexible.
鈥淢y program had a lot of second-career students and a lot of people with children,鈥 said Dr. Soykin. 鈥淪o my program really did try to help people navigate balancing all of it. For some people, that meant they took an extra year to finish, and that鈥檚 absolutely okay.鈥
Looking for more answers or advice? Check out the full webinar recording, and connect with psychology professionals for mentoring and guidance on the !