It's that time of the year...for graduation balls and parties, for togas and diplomas, for vacation planning and unfortunately, job searching (the sad truth). It's the time when you are obliged to look for work because your parents are not going to give you allowances anymore. It's the time when you mom would be budging you to start being independent and do something for yourself. It's the time when you realize that earning money is not that easy.

But before getting there, I'd like to congratulate first, all the Psychology graduates batch 2014!! Woohoo! Ya all made it!

You are all now Psychology degree holders...but...what's next?

Maybe some of you are now wondering which path to take after completing your Psych degrees. Well, that's really a problem, given that you took up Psychology you should have at least a plan of what career you'd like to take even before graduation. But yeah! I know college is tough and you didn't have much time to think ahead or at least reason out why you took Psych in the first place, right?

That is why I thought this post might help you people.

When I graduated I was also in a dilemma, I had choices in front of me but I cannot decide which one would be the best path. So, I thought I should give my self a break first and told my parents that I needed some time off. And they gave me the time, enough time to set my priorities and weigh things over. After that break I finally had my decision...

To help you out, here are the choices that I had when I graduated...Before choosing which path to take consider the pros and cons first. We all have different lives and different priorities so, this will only give you an idea what lies ahead after your bachelor's degree.

Choice A:

After graduation I'd like to take the licensure exam for Psychometricians and be a licensed Psychometrician.

If you wanted to be a licensed professional the first choice would be the board exam for Psychometricians. And I'll tell you, if you wanted to be in the Clinical field of Psych this might be the job that fits you. Psychometricians are responsible for psychometric test administration, scoring and interpretations. They are the ones who evaluate patients and make psychological reports. They also do the intake interviews for psychologists to initially assess patients before doing a psychological testing, evaluation and treatment planning. 

If Choice A is the path you'd like to take, you should start your review soon. You can either enroll yourself on review centers or self-review which is way cheaper. The board exam is scheduled on October. Please see this link for more info.

Choice B:

After graduation, I still want to study and pursue a Master's degree.

Since, the exam is still months away and had been re-scheduled 2 times before everything was set...I enrolled myself on a Masteral program in Psychology last June 2013. Because I saw two advantages with this choice. First, classes in abnormal psych, personality assessment, theories of personality would also serve as my review for the upcoming board exam. Second, if I took the Psychometrician board exam this year then passed and I'll finish my MA by year 2016 I'd immediately qualify for the Psychologists board exam which would save me time. Isn't it a good choice? MA classes would serve as my review so no need to enroll myself on review centers.

Choice C:

I really need to earn money first.

If you want to become a psychologist someday but you have to look for a job asap, then go job hunting first. It is really hard to look for a decent job right now but with the determination and with God's grace I'm sure you'll find the one that's really for you. This choice is actually up to you. I can only suggest that if you want to become a psychologist someday it would be better if you look for psychometrician jobs, guidance counseling, behavioral therapists or SPED teaching jobs. That way you can still be in touch with Psychology from time to time. If you are inclined to industrial setting you can pursue HR jobs which is quite in demand nowadays.

Choice D: 

I learned a lot from Psychology but I think I wanted to pursue other fields.

If you wanted to pursue other career, I have three areas where Psychology is a good preparatory course.

Education

You can take educ units and become a teacher in high school or a Psychology instructor as well.

Medicine 

Psychology as a pre-med course is I think the easiest way to start medicine. Since Psychology is not that brain draining unlike other science courses like Chem, Bio or Nursing, science subjects would also be easier. Psychology has Anatomy-physiology, chemistry, physics, microbiology and parasitology subjects too. Its just that in the medicine proper course you should really double your effort in all subjects.

Law

Psychology is also a good pre-law course. Given that you have experiences in assessing human behavior and personality is an advantage but you really have to prepare yourself for case readings and sleepless nights as well. 

And that's it!

I hope I help you in picturing out what you would like to be in the near future. If you have questions in mind (and I have answers in my mind too), please leave a comment below.