In January 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the COVID-19 outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, and in March 2020, COVID-19 was officially characterized as a pandemic. Visit the WHO COVID-19 timelineopens in new window for more information.
Over this past year, each of us has experienced a variety of stressors, big and small, from the loss of a loved one due to COVID-19 to frantically searching for toilet paper and hand sanitizer at the grocery store. Career planning can be intimidating in the best of times and thinking about your career may feel particularly overwhelming now, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. In this article, I invite you to take a gentle look with me toward the future, thinking about four potential “silver linings” that the COVID-19 pandemic may have for your career path in psychology.
Personal growth
If you encountered a challenge this past year amid the COVID-19 pandemic (and who didn’t!), identify any personal skills that were strengthenedopens in new window as a result of experiencing that challenge. For instance, perhaps you prefer face-to-face classes, but you took most of your courses online in 2020. Did you develop better time-management skills, balancing deadlines from multiple classes with greater independence? Did you become more confident in contributing to class discussions, sharing your perspectives more readily in written discussion forums or online synchronous conversations? Did you grow in perseverance, tackling a particularly difficult psychological statistics course in an online format? As an added bonus, after identifying any skills that you developed, try telling the story of how you acquired or refined these skills to a friend or family member. Sharing your experience orally is an excellent preparation for that oft-dreaded interview prompt to “describe a challenge that you overcame.” After your reflection, you will be well-prepared to ace this classic interview question.
Professional and technical expertise
In addition to personal growth, it is likely that you also developed new professional skills and technical expertise as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Did you become more familiar with multiple video conferencing platforms, such as Zoomopens in new window, Google Meetopens in new window, and Webexopens in new window? Did you gain experience using technologies that facilitate group collaboration, such as Trelloopens in new window, Google Driveopens in new window, and Slackopens in new window? Did you record a podcast via Audacity, develop a blog using WordPressopens in new window, or give a PowerPoint presentation with Screencast-o-maticopens in new window? These professional and technical skills have the potential to make you more competitive on the job market and more productive in graduate school. Many of these technologies have increased in importance and usage during COVID-19, and it is likely that such technical advancements will maintain their importance, even in the post-COVID-19 era.
Networking and professional development opportunities
As face-to-face workshops and conferences move to online platforms, these events are often more accessible to undergraduate students. For instance, the next American Psychological Association (APA) annual meeting is scheduled to occur in San Diego, California, in August 2021 (at press time, the possibility of a face-to-face meeting is still under consideration). Under ordinary circumstances, it can be expensive for undergraduate students to attend this conference due to travel costs. In 2021 (similar to 2020), much of the programming will be offered virtually, making the conference logistically and financially easier for undergraduate students to attend. If you haven’t taken advantage of the opportunity to attend psychology conferences and workshops remotely, consider doing so today. Hundreds of sessions are available to students on demand through the APA 2020 website. In addition to the APA, try exploring the Association for Psychological Science Virtual Conventionopens in new window, national or international conferences focused on a specialized area of interest to you (e.g., infant development, neuroscience), and meetings sponsored by regional or state psychology organizations. These opportunities can expand the breadth and depth of your expertise in psychology, as well as facilitate meeting undergraduate students, graduate students, and faculty with similar interests.
New career inspirations
Many of us have witnessed or even endured firsthand the mental health challenges that have accompanied COVID-19, from grief to isolation to job loss. Although difficult to experience, these events can actually serve as catalysts for making important career-related decisions. For instance, through talking with a friend feeling lonely and anxious, you may have realized a genuine interest in clinical work and therapy. Seeing a family member unexpectedly lose a job may have piqued your interest in the application of psychology to corporate settings. Take some time to reflect on your personal experiences over this past year, as well as those of family and friends. Are there certain experiences that you found particularly frustrating, energizing, and/or intriguing this past year? What clues might these experiences hold for your future career path? Remember that it’s useful to identity both psychology-related career paths that you would like to explore further, as well as those that you can cross off your list. Relatedly, it’s worth noting that the COVID-19 pandemic itself is also actively shaping the future landscape of psychology. Perhaps most significantly, telepsychology is likely to be a burgeoning field in the coming years. You may find your passion in this new area of psychology, endeavoring to make therapy more accessible to a wider population, such as individuals who live in remote geographical locations or those with medical complications that limit travel.
All in all, 2020 was quite the year. Before leaving 2020 behind, though, it’s worth pausing a moment to consider the “silver lining” of the COVID-19 pandemic for career planning in psychology. In the midst of this complicated time, what new personal skills, technical prowess, professional development opportunities, and career inspirations will you be able to carry forward with you into 2021?
About the author
Camilla McMahon, PhD, is an assistant professor of psychological science in the department of social and behavioral sciences at Miami University. She has received Miami University’s Master Academic Advising Certification and maintains a blog of psychology-related internship and job opportunitiesopens in new window for undergraduate students and recent graduates. Her COVID-19 silver lining has been lots of smiles and laughter via video conferences with family, friends, and colleagues.
