Subspecialties and Proficiencies in Psychology
~QUOTE OF THE DAY~ "Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work."-Aristotle
If you have ever done a search on concentrations in psychology, then you might have come across some unexpected areas of study. The good news for students who are not drawn to Clinical or Counseling psychology is that there are numerous areas to study in the field of psychology. Today, we are going to take a look at some of these areas, such as Industrial/Organizational Psychology, Forensic Psychology, Sports Psychology, and Pediatric Psychology to name a few.
Industrial/Organizational Psychology
Industrial/Organizational Psychology often called I/O or Business psychology is a popular subfield. In fact, I/O psychologists have the potential to earn far more than Clinical or Counseling Psychologists (of course that depends on specialty). Often times, I/O psychologists complete training on the masters or doctoral level (depends on the state, some license on the masters level). The training takes an average of 3-4 years depending on the program and coursework requirements. I/O psychologists usually work with corporations to consult with them on hiring practices, consumer/organization relations, training in the organization, and so forth. A good aspect of I/O psychology is that students can obtain positions that are outside the usual academic and business firm environments, such as in settings like NASA, Nascar, Hospitals, Medical School Faculty, Disney Land (as featured in APA's Monitor publication), etc. Students that enjoy the field of business and working with organizations for consultation purposes would benefit from pursuing such a career.
Forensic Psychology
Forensic Psychology is an excellent field. Forensic psychologists work in the legal arena. Usually they evaluate the mental competency of clients that are standing trial. Also, they give court testimony about their psychological appraisal of the person on trial. In order to become a Forensic psychologist, a student would attend a Clinical Psychology program. Forensic psychology is often offered as a concentration in a Clinical Psychology program. The internship and practicum opportunities would revolve around forensic assessments in a court and/or correctional setting.
Sports Psychology
Sports psychology gained a lot of public attention after the show Necessary Roughness on USA. While the show may not 100% reflect the day to day work of a Sports psychologist, it has generated interest among the general public and students who are intrigued with this area. You may notice that Sports psychology is titled Performance psychology at some universities. In fact, different universities emphasize specific aspects in performance studies. Some universities focus on sports, while others apply the idea of enhancing performance to other sectors like hospitals and the military, where peak performance is needed to accomplish difficult and timing consuming tasks (i.e., surgeon performing lengthy surgeries or soldiers preparing for war). There are not as many universities that offer Sports psychology as those that offer Clinical Psychology. So, a student might have to relocate in order to study in this field.
Pediatric Psychology
Pediatric or Child psychology is often a concentration in a Clinical Psychology program. Pediatric psychology is not only popular but in great demand. In fact, some organizations that hire Child psychologists will provide incentives for clinicians with this expertise similar to Geropsychology (also referred to as Geriatric psychology) because children and geriatric populations have specific mental and health challenges that require knowledgeable clinicians to treat. A child psychologist may deal with development issues, health concerns, personality assessment, counseling children, assessing aberrations in social functioning, and so forth.
While I am unable to cover all of the areas of psychology, I will list a number of them here so that students can research them on their own. Some students may love psychology but feel as though the traditional subfields do not spark their interest. Thus, I am citing this information to give students a plethora of options. Perhaps, your previous training in business, sports, or child care/mentoring can come in handy.
Other Psychology Subfields and Proficiencies:
Military psychology, Health psychology, Police psychology, Psychoanalysis, School psychology, Experimental psychology, Fashion psychology, Developmental psychology, Social psychology, Educational psychology, Media psychology, Cognitive psychology, Neuropsychology, Counseling psychology, Engineering psychology, Community psychology, Psychometrics, Family psychology, Rehabilitation psychology, Human Factors psychology, Sleep psychology, and so forth.
Overview of Psychology Specialties:
http://chass.colostate-pueblo.edu/Psychology/Pages/Specialties-in-Psychology.aspx
http://www.apa.org/ed/graduate/specialize/recognized.aspx
Fashion Psychology:
http://www.smh.com.au/lifestyle/fashion/fashion-psychologists-do-style-from-the-inside-out-20140114-30s9k.html
Engineering Psychology:
http://www.psychology.gatech.edu/graduate/graduateprograms/graduateprograms_ep.php
Psychology Program Search:
http://www.gradschools.com/search-programs/campus-programs/sports-psychology/doctorate
*(This bottom link allows you to search for your program by specialty, state, and degree level (M.A. or PhD). This post is not an endorsement of any specific program type, specialty, or format. The page defaults to the specialty of Sports psychology just to give students an example of the various schools nationwide that offer such programs. Students can change the results by altering the search criteria on the left hand side of the page on gradschools.com.
