Psychologist Jobs in the United States

Psychologist Jobs Overview

As trained mental health professionals, psychologists help people handle challenges such as depression, anxiety, and stress. You can find psychologist jobs for treating individuals in clinical, educational, sports, legal, and other professional settings. Analysts expect the psychology industry to grow by 6% over the next decade, which matches the average outlook for other professions.

If you choose to work as a psychologist, you'll help clients handle short-term and chronic mental health conditions. Because everyone deals with life challenges differently, your training will cover how to use a range of techniques to provide customizable treatment plans.

Psychologists often work independently but also collaborate with physicians or social workers. You could also work with teachers, students, or parents in a school setting. Most psychologists work full-time on a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. schedule; however, you might work on weekends or during the evening if you work on-call or have your own private practice.

• Psychology professor: mentors and educates students in advanced academic courses, along with conducting research, publishing reports, and contributing to the academic community by presenting at conferences.
• Research psychologist: creates research plans and experiments while also seeking grants, analyzing data, and writing publications and presentations detailing research results.
• Social psychologist: conducts research on social interactions to design social policies and programs and evaluates results for reports and publications.
• Clinical psychologist: works with patients on mental, emotional, and behavioral issues, developing treatment plans and advancing knowledge through research papers and collaborations with other health care professionals.
• Sports psychologist: works with athletes on psychological factors affecting athletic performance using a wide range of therapies and strategies, monitoring progress, and assessing results.
• Counseling psychologist: works with patients to mitigate or resolve psychological difficulties using therapeutic techniques, designing services, and collaborating with multi-professional teams.
• Developmental psychologist: works with people of all ages in a variety of settings to assess, evaluate and treat developmental disabilities, conducting research in the field and writing publications to advance knowledge and theory.
• Educational psychologist: works with students, teachers, and families to diagnose learning disabilities, create and implement education plans, and monitor progress toward desired learning outcomes.
• Engineering psychologist: assists in the development of products, systems, and devices using psychological science to make interactions easier and safer.
• Forensic psychologist: works in the criminal justice system evaluating competency for trial, providing expert testimony in court, assisting trauma survivors, and developing behavioral plans for incarcerated individuals.

Psychologist Jobs Salary

Your qualifications, the company you apply to, and your location can all affect your salary. Overall, most salaries for psychologist jobs range from $45,000 to $107,000. Use Monster's Salary Tool to discover your potential salary based on where you live.

The median annual salary for a psychologist is around $75,000. The top-paying cities for this field include New York City, San Diego, and Los Angeles. Industrial-organizational psychologists have the highest median salary in the industry.

How to Find the Psychologist Job That Fits You

Start by defining your goals and interests. This will involve considering your strengths and weaknesses. Psychologists should have patience, problem-solving, communication, and listening skills. If you displayed these skills in a previous job, even if it wasn't in the mental health field, they will transfer to psychology.

As for hard skills, you'll need some computer skills to keep accurate electronic records. You should also have knowledge of all state and federal regulations regarding the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) and the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act (EMTALA). By regularly seeking opportunities to improve your skill set, you'll increase the likelihood of landing your preferred job.

Once you outline your career goals, focus on what you want from psychologist jobs. For example, do you want a more flexible schedule? If career advancement is a big priority, make sure the position offers opportunities for growth.

Review the Job Description and Assess Your Qualifications

Parsing through psychologist job descriptions is easier when you know what to look for. First, assess whether the main job responsibilities and requirements match your skill level and any experience you have. For instance, some employers require you to have a doctoral degree and a license to act as a psychologist.

Depending on the employer, you might also need experience with different types of patients. Working at a school may require a background in treating children and adolescents. Certain employers prefer applicants who have shown success working with seniors.

If you need additional training to qualify for a job, focus on gaining more experience or obtaining the necessary certifications. For instance, consider taking a psychological first-aid training course to learn how to help people in the event of an accident or natural disaster.

Search for any potential challenges as well. If the job description is overly broad and requires tasks that don't relate to psychologist jobs, reach out to the hiring manager for clarification. For jobs that request working hours that don’t fit with your schedule, see if there’s any flexibility.

Research the Company and Its Culture

Be sure to research the employer and review their work culture before submitting an application. If you're applying for psychologist jobs because you have a passion for helping others, you might want to focus on hospitals and behavioral health centers.

On the other hand, positions for corporations or technological facilities may offer a calmer work environment that you may prefer. Choose an employer that aligns with your desired company size, reputation, and team dynamics.

Look for Opportunities for Growth

Find out if your potential employer provides opportunities for professional development and advancement within the company. Even if there isn't much room for growth, your experience could prepare you for other psychologist jobs that offer better pay in the future.

Consider how the job fits with your long-term professional goals. Since the highest-paying psychologist jobs are often in industrial and organizational psychology, you may want to guide your career in this direction.

How to Apply for Psychologist Jobs

With the right approach and a well-written application, you'll improve your chances of landing a psychologist job that matches your professional goals. The application process begins with some simple preparation.

Prepare for the Application Process

To prepare, you'll need to thoroughly review the job description and identify the key skills and qualifications that you'll focus on in your application. A psychologist job description might state that applicants need to regularly create and implement behavioral health treatment plans. If you have experience that's relevant in this regard, place it in your application.

Be sure to follow any and all specific application instructions provided by the employer. For instance, they might require you to provide specific documents or references.

Create an Effective Resume

An effective mental health counselor resume will highlight your education and experience. While some employers accept a master's degree, others require a doctoral degree, which is why your credentials are important. Place them toward the top of your resume alongside information about your licensing and any certifications you have.

You should also use resume keywords to improve the chances that your resume gets through an applicant tracking system (ATS). These words include any specific skills, credentials, competencies, and experience requirements from the job description.

Include a short list of your soft and hard skills. For psychologist jobs, soft skills such as communication, observational, and analytical abilities are essential. Important hard skills include cognitive behavioral therapy, psychoanalysis, and other techniques that psychologists use to treat patients.

Make sure that your resume is clean and accurate, gives detailed descriptions of your experience, and provides all your contact information. For the best results, use the combination resume format, which takes the best features from the functional and chronological formats. Get help with your resume with Monster's Professional Resume Writing Services.

Write a Compelling Cover Letter

A cover letter is always necessary when applying for psychologist jobs. This letter gives you the opportunity to promote yourself and your unique skills in a more conversational manner.

You can make a great first impression with the right methodology. For instance, always tailor your cover letter to the employer and position you're applying to. If the company has a strong reputation that aligns with your focus as a psychologist, mention this toward the beginning of the cover letter.

You should also include details of your education and experience. Make sure the information in your cover letter matches the qualifications in the job description. Reviewing a template can help you overcome writer's block. Take a look at Monster's psychology cover letter as a good example.

It’s brief while also including highly relevant details about working with students who have special learning needs and communicating test results to students and their parents. Your cover letter should tell employers that you're a good hire before they even flip to your resume.

Submit the Application

Expedite your job search by creating an account on Monster to apply. Once you’re set up, use our portal to search for psychologist jobs. After finding one, click the "Apply" button to submit your application.

Before sending in your application, double-check for errors and missing info. Try rereading everything aloud, as this is a great way to find typos and grammatical mistakes. You should also check to make sure all necessary details are included.

How to Follow Up With an Employer

Properly timing your follow-up with a potential psychologist employer might help you land a job. It shows that you're taking a proactive approach to this situation and eager to work there. You might even receive a quicker response to your application.

Timing Your Follow-up

Wait two weeks after submitting your application to follow up with the employer. While you may be anxious for an update, many companies take longer than a week to process applications.

How to Follow Up

When following up with an employer via email, it's important to be clear and concise. For psychology jobs, avoid taking a casual approach to the letter, but demonstrate your enthusiasm for working for the company. Read Monster's how-to guide to craft a strong follow-up message.

Who to Follow Up With

If you're applying for a psychologist position at a school, contact the principal or their secretary. If you're working in a community health center, hospital, or lab, the best contact person might be the recruiter, HR representative, or hiring manager. When you can't find a specific contact, call the company's HR department or look at their website to obtain more details.

Interviewing Tips for Psychologist Jobs

Preparation is the key to effectively demonstrating your skills and qualifications. The more you prepare, the more confident and comfortable you'll feel when you're asked questions by an interviewer.

Preparing for the Interview

Before taking part in an interview for a psychologist job, perform extensive research about the company and, if possible, your potential manager. Knowing their culture, mission, and values will help you answer their questions more effectively.

A large part of interviews for psychologist jobs is explaining your skills and experience. Practice answering questions about your resume succinctly. If you still feel anxious, try answering questions in front of a mirror.

Emanating confidence during an interview is just as important as your answers. Read Monster's sample psychologist questions and answers that might arise during an interview.

Interview Process

Expect to attend anywhere from one to three rounds of interviews before the process is complete. The initial interview might take place over the phone or via video, while a final interview will likely occur in person. In most cases, a hiring manager or recruiter handles these interviews. Many health care facilities have internal recruiters who manage the interview process.

It's common for psychologist interviews to revolve around behavioral topics as well as questions about your strengths and experience. Behavioral interviews also center around hypothetical situations. You might receive a question about how you'll respond to a patient that is experiencing a difficult episode and struggling to calm down. Use your experience to speak about a similar situation in your past that you've dealt with.

Interview Tips

Acing a psychologist interview requires knowing about the position you're applying for and the type of work you'll do. Use the STAR technique, which focuses on the situation, task, action, and result to frame your answers. Your responses to behavioral questions should demonstrate your skills and experience through examples.

Always give answers that provide value rather than vague stock answers. Being confident and authentic during the interview means opening up about the work you've done as a psychologist. Any company that's hiring a psychologist wants applicants to show professionalism, so be sure to dress accordingly, such as with blazers, sweaters, skirts, or pantsuits.

Follow Up

It’s important to follow up via email within 24 to 48 hours after your interview to thank the hiring managers for their time and consideration. Reiterate that you're excited about the opportunity and say something positive about the company, but keep your message brief and to the point.

If you don't hear back from the employer by the date they said they would make a decision, wait an additional week before reaching out again. Restate your interest and politely ask about the status of your application.

What to Do When You Get an Offer

When you receive an offer for a psychologist job, carefully read the information about your salary, job responsibilities, and benefits before making a decision.

How to Respond to the Offer: Timing and Communication

You may negotiate salary and benefits before accepting the job offer. Be sure to find out the exact tasks you must perform every day. If any information is unclear, speak with the hiring manager or recruiter you're already familiar with.

Always make an informed decision that takes your priorities and needs into account. For instance, if you have children, make sure the job offer includes health insurance that covers your family.

Psychologist Career Paths

You can take a number of career paths as a psychologist. For instance, you may want to promote healthy lifestyle choices and learn more about how the brain works. In this scenario, focus on becoming a counseling psychologist or rehabilitation counselor.

If you'd rather help businesses build better products and implement employee-driven policies, look for jobs in industrial and organizational psychology. As you grow in your career, you may discover interests in related fields like social work or human resources that also utilize your analytical and communication skills.

For professional development, if you have a bachelor's or master's degree in psychology, pursue your education further to open up career choices at the doctoral level. Keep in mind that the psychology field offers networking opportunities through academic and professional conferences where you can develop personal relationships that lead to future opportunities as well.

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