Careers with a bachelor’s degree in psychology

Alma mater: University of Virginia

Wondering whether to pursue a bachelor’s degree in psychology? Meet 13 graduates who landed great jobs thanks to their psychology degrees.

Tell me about why you decided to pursue a degree in psychology?

My degree was in cognitive science concentrated in neuroscience, which was a very interdisciplinary major that allowed me to take several psychology courses like Psych 101; Psycholinguistics; Perception; Cognitive Psychology; and many others in the discipline. I enjoyed learning about people, and what makes us tick, how we’re wired, and what makes us all alike.

What was your experience like at UVA?

University of Virginia (UVA) was quite the experience. Lots of growing pains. A culture shock from growing up in the diverse DC metropolitan area. But overall, I enjoyed the topics that I got to study while there, they certainly stretched me. I did have a minor—African and African American studies. Some classes that stood out to me: Human Nature, Psycholinguistics and Communication, Sociology of the Family, Medical Anthropology, Introduction to Perception, African American Theatre, Black Femininities and Masculinities in the Media, Social Neuroscience. And I also did a study abroad semester in St. Kitts and Nevis which was an amazing experience. We studied West Indies Health Care and International Studies. These classes and my experience at UVA developed my critical thinking, problem-solving, interpersonal skills, cultural competency, analytical skills, which all helped me prepare for my career ahead.

Tell me what you did to prepare for your career.

The biggest thing that helped me is in the fall semester of my last year was a brand-new course called Professional and Strategic Career Development, which was something I wish was a required course. It went over so many things that are important when figuring out the rest of your life postcollege: interviewing, what you want in a job, what are your values, how to get the job you want, elevator speeches, what are your strengths, etc.

What are you doing now? What was the process like to get your job?

Well interestingly enough, I was a premed student. I was my premed honor society’s president and on the executive committee for four years straight. However, when I got into my last semester of college, I started to rethink that career path. I wasn’t sure it was really what I wanted to do with my life, just something I’d pursued as long as I could remember. But I accepted an internship immediately after graduating. It was a clinical translational research internship through the Harvard Medical School. I was a graduate researcher at Massachusetts General Hospital. I did some intense work in big data research and machine learning as it applied to diagnosing breast cancer. It turned out that it wasn’t the right fit for me, so I decided I was going to move back home after the program ended and start working a job. In the last week of that internship, I landed a job at APA working in the Education Directorate. Honestly, it was a fast turn around from applying and getting an interview to landing the position. The department, Accreditation, was eager to fill the role because they were about to hit a very busy season. I worked in that office for a little over a year and a half, and then applied internally to a position in the Practice Directorate, working in governance, research, and policy. I am very happy in my (not so new) position—I have been here for about a year.

How do you feel your degree in psychology has helped you with your job?

I think this role doesn’t necessarily allow me to directly apply my psychology background, but I think psychology is generally applied in every job that requires you to work with people, and that’s my job. I interface with governance members and psychologists who participate in the development of APA policies and guidelines.

For psychology students who are still in school and thinking about their career path, what advice would you give them?

Embrace the transferable skills of psychology. You’ll need them to succeed in any career path you choose.