Facts & Myths about Psychology education in Sri Lanka
View(s):1. Psychology Qualifications Can Open the Door to a Variety of Careers.
Many of us think that the only career you can take up following qualifying in psychology is to become a clinical psychologist, who works with mentally ill people. Well, being a clinical psychologist is definitely rewarding and satisfying in terms of reputation, monetary gains, professional respect and contribution to community. But
one of the greatest strengths of a psychology degree is the enormous variety of career paths that are available to graduates.Some of these potential professions include Organizational/Business Psychology, Child Psychology, Educational Psychology, Sports Psychology, Forensic & Criminal Psychology, Social Psychology, Health Psychology and Research.
2. Psychology Qualifications Can serve as a Great Background for other fields.
The curriculum of a psychology degree covers human behaviour and thinking patterns in many aspects of life from how children develop, how we interact with others around us, what satisfies us and motivates us in day to day life, relationships and work, what causes good/bad & normal/abnormal behaviours. As a result, while some psychology graduates continue their studies to become psychologists many take different career paths. Fields that psychology graduates are easily recruited to include Advertising, Marketing, HRM, Teaching, Curriculum Development, Child care, Health Care, Health Promotion, Rehabilitation, Research & Development, Community Development and Social Work. Employers always prefer to recruit individuals who are able to understand people, their behaviours, attitudes and preferences for these jobs, and psychology graduates have knowledge and skills in these areas.
3. Psychology Qualifications can easily find you a job in Sri Lanka.
Psychology is still an emerging field in Sri Lanka. We have very few skilled & qualified psychologists, psychotherapists and counsellors. Seeking psychological methods instead of medicine for mental illness is now becoming popular in Sri Lanka, thus there is a big demand for psychology professionals.
This demand will only increase in years to come and individuals, who qualify in psychology now, will be in a good position to cater to this demand inthe next five to six years time. There are many vacancies for psychology professionals in government and private establishments and NGOs. Since we do not have enough individuals to fill these vacancies, these organizations have no option but to employ expats paying very high salaries. Thus anyone qualifying in psychology will not be without a job, at least for the next twenty years.
4. Psychology qualifications are a definite advantage, if you are to migrate.
Psychology is well established in US, Europe,Australia and many other parts of the world. However there isa big demand for psychology professionals as more and more people seek help from psychologists every year. Thus qualifying in psychology will definitely be an advantage for migration purposes as long as the qualifications you obtain are internationally recognized. Many countries will require you to acquire a license and if your qualifications are from a recognized university, this would not be a problem.
5. Psychology Qualifications
can get You Top Jobs in
Corporate Sectors.
Organizational Psychology, which is also known as Business or Industrial Psychology is one of the well established professions in the Western countries and the trend is now spreading to Asia and other regions of the world as well. Qualifying in organizational psychology opens doors to a variety of highly paid jobs in the corporate sector such as HR & HRD Consultants & Strategists, Business & Market Consultants, Corporate Trainers, Coaches and Advertising & Promotions Consultants. Compared to traditional HR & Business Administration Degrees or MBAs, a Degree or Masters in Psychology gives you that vital knowledge youneed to understand and then predict human behavioral and thinking patterns, which is a basis of all strategizing.
6. Psychology Qualifications take a lot of time & money to complete.
Well if your objective is to become a psychologist, it may require a considerable investment and effort for about 8 to 10 years to complete the Bachelors Degree then the Masters degree and then the PhD. The qualifications to practice as a psychologist vary from one country to another. In US &Europe a PhD is a must to call one’s self a psychologist. But in countries such as Sri Lanka, where the field is still emerging, a Masters Degree in Psychology and Clinical Training is sufficient to register as a Clinical Psychologist. And for other forms of Applied Psychology, no registration process is required and there is no governing body in Sri Lanka. Bachelors’ Degrees and Masters’ Degrees in Psychology cost you almost the same amount as a degree in business or an MBA. Many colleges offer alternative cost effective pathways such as Higher National Diplomas to reduce the money spent on a degree.
7. Psychology Qualifications are useless for people in other fields.
Psychology knowledge and skills are useful for individuals in a range of other fields. The key is to understand which qualification would suit you. For people who already are professionally qualified in other fields it would not be wise to do another degree in psychology to gain required knowledge and skills. But short term specialized programs may come in handy in these occasions. For example a pre-school or a secondary level teacher, a day care provider may benefit from doing a Child Psychology Diploma while a HR Executive may obtain the necessary skills through an Organizational Psychology Diploma. In this manner some academic institutions offer specialized diploma programs specially designed to deliver knowledge and skills required for different professions.
8. Psychology Qualifications can only be obtained abroad.
A few years back there were no locally or internationally recognized academic or professional qualifications in psychology offered in Sri Lanka by private educational institutes. But today there are a few places who offer psychology qualifications. Colombo Institute of Research and Psychology is one of the institutes that offer a range of British Qualifications in Psychology.
These qualifications are offered through University of Hertfordshire and University of Coventry, two well reputed UK universities accepted by the UK government, Commonwealth List of Universities and UGC. Colombo Institute of Research & Psychology is the only private institute in Sri Lanka to offer full range of qualifications from Diploma, Degree, Masters and PhD level. Therefore anyone can obtain recognized and accredited qualifications studying in Sri Lanka. But for the ones who wish to go abroad, they have the option of studying half the programme here and the other half in UK.
9. Psychology Qualifications
at MSc level could be
achieved only if you have a Bachelors’ in Psychology.
There are many successful and popular psychologists who qualified themselves in psychology after starting their education and career in completely different fields. There are certain postgraduate qualifications specially designed for individuals who do not possess a first degree in psychology. One example is the MSc in Psychology program offered by many UK universities. An individual with any Bachelors degree could take this Masters programme and then qualify in a specialty in Psychology preferred by them through a PhD or a PsyD. Certain programs such as MSc in Applied Psychology may require the candidate to have a bachelors in Psychology. Then again if you have a degree in any discipline but if you have done a diploma or any other programme that gives you 120 credits in Psychology, you are still eligible to enroll for a MSc in Applied Psychology with your non-psychology bachelors.
10. Psychology Qualifications do not impress employers.
Many individuals are looking for qualifications to add glamour to their CV by having a qualification outside their main area of expertise. It is a wise thing to do as employers receive hundreds of applications with similar content. Having a psychology qualification on your CV would definitely make you stand above the rest. Firstly that is an extra qualification that many people do not possess. And Secondly Psychology could be applied to any field of work. Thus for anyone in any profession looking to impress employers through their CV, a psychology qualification is a must.
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