5 thoughts on TSL's Psych Fresh Grad jobs article

I love The Smart Local, especially their travel articles. After reading their latest post "10 Surprisingly Well-Paying Jobs Fresh Grads Can Get With A Psychology Degree" on 3rd March 2016, I simply have to write about my thoughts on it (after all, I'm a Psychology undergraduate whom is due to graduate this year).

1. This is a sponsored post by MDIS.

It's always good to take note of the partners involved in the post as it can really affect the credibility of the post. 

2. You can't be called a psychologist with just a degree.

Sports Psychologist? Industrial/Organisational Psychologist? One of the basic requirements for these occupations is to have a Master's in the respective fields. Thus, refer to point 3.

3. Many of the jobs' pay listed are for a master's fresh grad.

To be qualified as an I/O psychologist or sports psychologist, you'll probably need a Master's. Thus, the pay listed on the page is not accurate for a fresh grad with a psychology degree. Instead, this is the pay a Master's grad will get instead.

4. Psychology ≠ Social Work.

As pointed out by one of the comments, to be qualified as a social worker, one has to get a recognised degree in Social Work (see NUS FASS). Yes, I understand there's a lot of misconceptions about this so to clear the air, psychology ≠ social work.

5. Gov jobs are high paying but they tend to only hire local grads.

It's no secret the government tends to prefer local grads over private uni grads. Considering this is an article written by MDIS to promote their psychology course and to inform the public on the job opportunities they can explore with a MDIS psychology degree, I would like to think that placing MINDEF and MFA jobs in the list is a little misleading. 

This article does not really assist students who are exploring options in Psychology as it provides inaccurate information. It's definitely not easy to get a job in Psychology with NTU Psychology having the lowest percentage of grads with a permanent full-time job after graduation. 

Have I heard of psychology friends earning 4k/month in their first job after graduating?

Yes.

Have I heard of psychology friends not being able to find a job upon graduation?

Yes.

The point is that even though there are a few of us who manage to get a high-paying job, majority of us psychology fresh grads tend to find it hard to find a satisfying job with a good pay. The only good paying jobs tend to come from the government sector and that's where many of us land into when we graduate.

& I apologise for the lack of updates as I am currently on my last leg of my uni life, with final-year project pulling me down into darkness. I'll be back as soon as my thesis is finally done! :)

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