Careers in Psychology
For many years, the number of psychology-related jobs has
increased. Graduates find jobs in a wide range of community,
health, industry, policy, and research areas.
Academic Psychologists
Students with a PhD in Psychology from the University of
Otago have become Research Fellows, Lecturers, and Professors
at universities in New Zealand, Australia, Malaysia, the United
Kingdom, and the United States. Some have gone directly to
these positions, and others have first held post-doctoral
research fellowships at universities throughout the world.
Clinical Psychologists
Clinical Psychologists have specialised post-graduate training
in the assessment and treatment of psychological disorders
and dysfunctions. The Postgraduate Diploma in Clinical Psychology
provides this training, and it is completed concurrently with
a Master's or Doctoral degree in Psychology. Clinical Psychologists
work in health, justice, and educational settings, in industry,
and in private practice.
Click here for more information about Otago's
Diploma in Clinical Psychology.
Registered Psychologists in New Zealand
Psychologists who practice in New Zealand must be registered.
The Health Professional Competence Assurance Act protects
the title Psychologist, and only registered psychologists
can work in hospitals, prisons, other government departments,
and private practices. To be a registered psychologist, you
have to complete a Masters or PhD in Psychology, and have
at least one year of supervised practice. Completion of the
Diploma in Clinical Psychology qualifies for automatic registration.
Click here for information about registration.
Applied Psychologists
Applied Psychologists specialise in areas such as Industrial
and Organisational Psychology, Human Factors, Community Psychology,
and Applied Behaviour Analysis. Some Otago graduates enter
these professions directly, others take further post-graduate
training at other universities.
More generally, the skills acquired in a psychology degree
(e.g., knowledge of psychology and the social sciences, understanding
human interactions, research expertise in the social sciences)
can lead to a variety of careers. Below is a list of some
of the jobs that psychology graduates from the University
of Otago have held. Although some graduates had a PhD qualification,
many had Bachelor's or Master's degrees.
Health
Policy Analyst (Ministry of Health, NZ)
Health Manager (Otago Health)
Director (Dunedin Multidisciplinary Study, NZ)
Research Coordinator (Dunedin Multidisciplinary Study, NZ)
Research Officer (Auckland Hospital, NZ)
Researcher (Injury Prevention Unit, NZ)
Chief Executive of Alcohol Liquor Advisory Council (NZ)
ACC Case officer (NZ)
Community Support Professional (Richmond, NZ).
Chair of Otago District Health Board
Researcher/Consultant on tobacco-related issues (Pinney Associates,
USA)
Clinical Research Officer (Imperial College London, UK Mental
Health Research Network)
Justice/Policing
Policy Analyst (Ministry of Justice, NZ)
Senior Research Officer (NSW Bureau of Crime Statistics and
Research, Aus)
Probation Officer (Department of Corrections, NZ)
Research Officer, Road Policing (NZ Police)
Strategic Analyst, District Intelligence (NZ Police)
Education or Children’s issues
Policy Analyst (Ministry of Education, NZ)
Psychologist (Special Education Services, NZ)
e-Learning Developer (City University of London)
Teacher of autistic children (NZ)
Social Worker (Child, Youth and Family, NZ)
Researcher (disabled children and their families, UK)
Researcher (Children’s Issues Centre, NZ)
Policy and Research Analyst (Families Commission, NZ)
Transport
Behaviour Analyst (NZ Land Transport Safety Authority)
Analyst/Investigator (Australian Transportation Safety Bureau)
Strategy Analyst (NZ Land Transport Safety Authority)
Industry/Business
Human Resources/Personnel (various in public and private sector)
Human Factors Specialist (Airbus Industrie, UK)
Consultant in Human Performance (NZ, formerly psychologist,
Grand Prix motorcycle racing team, France)
Quantitative Analyst (Standards and Poors, UK)
Analyst (Merrill Lynch, UK)
Research Director (BRC, NZ)
Management Trainee (ANZ Bank, NZ)
Tourist venture CEO (Makarora Wilderness Resort, NZ)
Business Analyst (Mental Health Commission)
Business Manager, poverty alleviation NGO (Beadforlife, Uganda)
Other
Analyst (Ministry of Social Development, NZ)
Animal trainer for land mine detection (International Centre
for Humanitarian Demining, Switzerland)
Staff journalist for scientific publication
Medical review writer (ADIS International, NZ)
Television journalist (NZ)
Research Associate (AUT, NZ)
Consultant for domestic animal behaviour problems (NZ)
For a list of employment destinations of NZ university graduates
in psychology, click on the link below.
http://www.otago.ac.nz/careers/html/graddest/psychology.html
More general information about careers in Psychology can be
found on the at http://www.apa.org/
Society for Neuroscience NeuroJobs site
http://www.jobtarget.com/home/index.cfm?site_ID
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