Career Opportunities for Majors in Psychology

Introduction

Psychology is the study of human and animal behavior. It seeks to understand and explain normal and abnormal behavior, mental ability, perception, development, and individual differences. Because it considers the mental, attitudinal, motivational, and behavioral characteristics of individuals, psychology has many subdivisions and areas of specialization and is a more complex field than many realize. Among the major sub-branches within psychology are behavioral neuroscience, cognitive, clinical, educational, forensic, school, social, developmental, and organizational psychology, as well as psychometrics and statistics.

While many psychology graduates work in a related occupation and obtain an advanced degree, others choose another direction. Many careers do not require a specific major but rather a wide range of demonstrated skills and accomplishments. Regardless of your career choices, increase your marketability through internships, responsible work experience, good grades, and involvement in college activities.

A Sample of Related Occupations

Admissions Counselor	Guidance Counselor	Psychiatrist
Advertising Manager	Hospital Administrator	Psychologist
Business Manager	Human Resources Admin.	Public Relations Manager
Career Counselor	Labor Relations Specialist	Rehabilitation Counselor
Child Welfare Worker	Market Research Analyst	Sales Representative
Clinical Researcher	Marriage Counselor	Social Worker
Comm. Serv. Agency Dir.	Mental Health Worker	Speech Pathologist
Crisis Counselor	Nursing Home Administrator	Substance Abuse Counselor
Customer Service Director	Personnel Manager	Youth Counselor
Gerontologist	Probation/Parole Officer

Types of Employers

Private & Nonprofit Organizations
Adoption and Child Care Agencies	Labor Unions	Radio and TV Stations
Advertising Agencies	Management Consulting Firms	Real Estate Agencies
Banks	Market Research Firms	Religious Organizations
Correctional Institutions	Mental Health Institutions	Resort Hotels
Educational Institutions	Newspapers, Magazines	Retail Stores
Financial Service Companies	Personnel Agencies	Social Service Agencies
Hospitals	Publishing Companies	Substance Abuse Clinics

Government Agencies
Civil Rights Commission	Middlesex County Division of Addiction Services	NJ Department of Labor and Workforce Development
Consumer Affairs Office	National Council on Disability	NJ Dept of Military and Veterans Affairs
County Probation Department	National Science Foundation	Peace Corps/AmeriCorps
Division of Youth & Family Services	NJ Council on Developmental Disabilities	U.S. Department of Education
Federal Bureau of Prisons	NJ Department of Children and Families	U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Federal Communications Commission	NJ Department of Community Affairs	U.S. Department of Labor
Foreign Service	NJ Department of Human Services	Veterans Administration
Middlesex County Department of Human Services

Jobs Obtained by Rutgers Graduates

First Jobs of Recent Graduates
Assistant Manager, L'Oreal USA	Plan Administrator, Merrill Lynch
Benefits Administrator, IEEE	Probation Officer, Passaic County Probation Department
Caseworker, New York Home Care	Program Supervisor, Association for Retarded Citizens
Child Care Worker, Catholic Charities	Project Manager, Jacobsen & Co.
Claims Representative, Hanover Insurance Company	Recruiter, KPMG LLP
Closing Assistant, Chapel Mortgage Corp.	Research Aide, Rutgers Center of Alcohol Studies
Commodities Floor Clerk, Dow Jones & Co.	Research Analyst, Electronic Data Systems
Coordinator of Speakers Bureau, Princeton University	Resident Counselor, Project Hope, Inc.
Deputy Copy Chief, TIME, Inc.	Respite Worker, Appropriate Living Autism
Editorial Assistant, John Wiley and Sons	Sales - Corporate & Retail, MSN
Elementary Teacher, Howell Township School	Special Events Coordinator, Alzheimer's Association
Employment Manager, Hyatt Hotels	Supervisor-Office Services, Colgate Palmolive
Employment Specialist, Our House, Inc.	Teacher of Handicapped, Woodbridge School
Instructional Aide, Somerville Board of Education	Therapeutic Activity Teacher, Lehigh University
Mental Health Specialist, UMDNJ	Trust Administrator, Merrill Lynch
Operations Consultant, Arthur Andersen	Vocational Rehab. Counselor, NJ Dept of Labor
Overnight Counselor, The Arc	Youth Coordinator, New Horizon Treatment
Personnel Assistant, Liz Claiborne	Youth Counselor, Somerset Child Home
Personnel Manager, Enterprise Rent A Car	Youth Worker, Cumberland Guidance Center

Jobs of Experienced Alumni
Air Traffic Control Specialist, Teterboro Control Tower	Pediatric Psychologist, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (PhD)
Associate Professor of Psychology, Lafayette College (PhD)	Poetry Therapist, Self-employed (PhD)
Attorney, Zalkin, Rodin & Goodman (JD)	Probation Officer, Middlesex County Probation
Autism Specialist, Lawrence Public Schools (MA Behavior Analysis)	Research Coordinator, UMDNJ (MPH)
Clinical Psychologist, Associated Psychological Services (PhD Clin. Psych.)	Securities Salesperson, JP Morgan Securities (MBA)
Director of Career Services, Catholic University (MA Student Personnel)	Senior Neuroscience Specialist, Abbott Laboratories
Director, Community Services, Planned Parenthood	Trauma Social Worker, Capital Health System
Occupational Therapist, Mt. Washington Pediatric Hospital (MS Occup. Ther.)

Graduate Schools Attended

Boston College, MA, Psychology	Ohio State University, PhD, Educational Admin.
Boston University, JD, Law	Philadelphia Divinity School, MA, Theology
Capella University, PhD, Psychology	Philadelphia University, MA, Occupational Therapy
Carnegie Mellon, MA, Human Computer Interaction	Rowan University, MA, School Psychology
Columbia University, MSW, Social Work	Rutgers University, M.Ed, Early Childhood Educ.
CUNY, PhD, Psychology	Rutgers University, MA, Special Education
Drexel University, Medicine, MD	Rutgers University, MBA, Finance
Fairleigh Dickinson Univ., MA, Human Resources	Rutgers University, MSW, Social Work
Fairleigh Dickinson University, MBA, Management	Rutgers University, PhD , Reading Education
Hahnemann University, MA, Clinical Psychology	Rutgers University, PhD, Psychology
Howard University, JD, Law	St. Joseph's University, MA, Health Services Admin.
Hunter College, M.Ed , Counseling/Guidance	Syracuse University, MA, Child Psychology
Kean University, MA, Industrial Psychology	Temple University, JD, Law
Loyola College, MA, Clinical Psychology	The College of New Jersey, MA, Speech Pathology
Michigan State University, MA, Psychology	Tufts University, Dental Medicine, DDS
MIT, Behavioral Neuroscience, PhD	University of London, MA, Social Science
Montclair State University, MA, Human Services	University of Maryland, MA, Psychology
New York University, PhD, Cognitive Psychology	University of Maryland, PhD, Statistics
New York University, MA, Public Health	University of Pennsylvania, MA, Psychology
NY College of Podiatric Medicine, MD, Podiatry	University of Pennsylvania, PhD, Political Science

Additionally, you may:

Explore the career paths of RU Alumni Career Network mentors.
Go to the Rutgers Online Career Planning Site to explore your interests, skills and values. Use the program for either: High School Students | College Students.
Explore Rutgers University academic department information related to this major.
See the Occupational Outlook Handbook for additional career information.
Pick up your "Career Opportunities" handouts at any New Brunswick Career Services office.

Employer questions? Contact recruiting@echo.rutgers.edu