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Career Opportunities with a Psychology Degree

The average person has eight different jobs that span three professions or occupations during their lifetime (Chen, 2004). One major characteristic of a liberal arts education is that it is not focused on a specific career, but aims instead to help students learn how to think critically, how to be creative, how to be flexible, how to get along with others, and how to go on learning for the rest of their lives (Chen, 2004). The Psychology major prepares students for a wide range of careers, which means that students have many choices to make about potential career paths and graduate school options. As a result, our department emphasizes career advising and professional development in our student advising meetings, through our Careers in Psychology course, and in our
Career Training Modules that students take throughout their psychology major. (Learn more here)

A Psychology Major = Employable Skills

According to The National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Job Outlook 2014 Survey, here are the Top 10 Skills/Qualities that employers want in job candidates and how psychology helps you build them:

Top 10 Skills/Qualities Employers WantHow Psychology at Monmouth Builds Your Employable Skills
1. Ability To Work in a Team
  • Psychology courses emphasize group projects, interactive classrooms, and networking with fellow majors.
2. Ability To Make Decisions and Solve Problems
  • Many courses incorporate lab experiences where students get hands-on experience problem solving and determining the best approach to think critically in order to identify solutions.
3. Ability To Plan, Organize and Prioritize Work
  • Students’ thesis provides an unparalleled opportunity for students to develop and refine their time and project management abilities.
4. Ability To Communicate Verbally With People Inside & Outside an Organization
  • Students present their internship experiences and research projects at the department’s conference to fellow students, parents, and others.
5. Ability To Obtain and Process Information
  • Students cultivate their information literacy skills throughout the curriculum by thinking critically about claims and finding empirical research to support their ideas.
6. Ability To Analyze Quantitative Data
  • Students all take two courses (Research I: Methods and Basic Data Analysis & Research II: Behavioral Statistics) that focus on statistics, interpretation/creation of graphs/tables, and developing numerical literacy.
7. Technical Knowledge Related To the Job
  • Thirty-nine required credits and 44 elective credits allow students to explore a variety of subject areas such as: Abnormal Psychology, Social Psychology, Child Psychology, Intimate Relationships, Psychology of Women, Neuroscience, and Clinical Psychology. Students also have the opportunity to gain real-world experience through any one (or two) of our over 150 potential sites.
8. Proficiency with Computer Software Programs
  • Throughout the curriculum, students learn complex statistical programs (SPSS), presentation software (PowerPoint, Prezi, Keynote), spreadsheet software (Excel), as well as other specialized programs necessary for research.
9. Ability To Create and/or Edit Written Reports
  • Psychology places a strong emphasis on building students’ writing skills, with extra attention placed on technical writing in courses such as: Research III: Experimental Methods and Research IV: Thesis in Psychology.
10. Ability To Sell and Influence Others
  • Psychology is fundamentally about understanding human thoughts, feelings and behavior, all of which is great preparation for dealing with people. In addition, internships, course projects, thesis, conference presentations, and positions in student organizations enable students take initiative as leaders.

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What You Believe May Not Be True:
Common Misconceptions about Majoring in Psychology

What Can You Do with a Degree in Psychology?

The employment data speak for themselves. Majoring in psychology is a sound economic decision when thinking about careers.

There are numerous career paths you can follow with your degree in psychology.

Let Us Help You Get Your First Job

This degree has dynamic potential in the sense that it can prepare students to be successful in various professional contexts.  Students who go through the curriculum are not pigeonholed into only a few types of career paths.

— Nicole Bayles, Class of 2010