Psychological dilemma - (a smart title name.) (1 Viewer)

[Shaeka8]

Hey guys!
I will try to keep this concise and clear.
Basically I am currently doing year 12 for 2014. The subjects I am doing are:
English Advanced, math general, biology, studies of religion 2,legal, business studies.

In the past couple of days I have been really beating myself up about not taking the "what do you want to be when you grow up?" question seriously, because I honestly I want to be many things but I just need a little guidance.

I have always wanted to do something in psychology - mainly because I am known for having an intuitive mind and personally I believe I have a gift in having a really observant mind. I can pick up on little body language, I know whether a person is being genuine or not, I can tell if someone's lying, I know how individuals will react to a situation, I can tell whether a person likes someone or not. Basically I have a really different mind. I tend to think ALOT about anything, I analyse everything and anything... Which is why I'd like to do something in psychology, but not sure what (hence incredibly smart thread title).
I really want a career in which I can integrate my attributes but I cannot think of anything that could provide a nice salary (yes money and knowledge are my main motivators). I may sound like an arrogant person with a narrow mind, but I'm not, I'm caring, kind, ambitious, generous etc.
The reason I'm giving this profile of myself is so someone can really give me some valuable advice

If I was to apply for a Bachelor of Psychology, what opportunities are there for me? What would be the length, difficulty, satisfaction etc etc. I understand universities have an effect on those variables, so what would be the best university to study Psychology? What are some high paying jobs in the psychology field?

For example the atar cut off for B Psychology is 95, and I get 85, what can I do to get into that course?

I will be EXTREMELY happy if you guys can answer these questions. I know what I want in life, but I just need some guidance my careers counsellor keeps referring me to websites and bullshit.

Thanks guys, can't wait to receive a response <3

EDIT: I know there are threads which regard psychology, but as stupid as this may sound, I need tailored advice. Thanks.

 

[superesse]

Well, answering your questions:

If I were to apply for BPsych, what opportunities are there for me? It depends on whether you choose to do Masters or not, which is an additional two years upon four years (given you do honours). Generally speaking, your occupational possibilities include social work, human resources, criminology, rehabilitation centres, research projects and health services. Apart from that, there is the obvious choice in that you can become a generalist or endorsed psychologist, in which doing a postgraduate diploma or Masters respectively helps you.

What university would be the best to study psychology? There is no real way of telling. It is more dependent on how devoted you are as an individual to the course, since universities offer the same pathways to become a generalist or endorsed psychologist. Personally, you should choose your university based on how comfortable you feel, rather than a reputation.

What are some high paying jobs in the psychology field? I do not know that much in regards to this question, but I would imagine becoming an endorsed psychologist would give you the best chances of a high salary.

What are some other ways I can get into BPsych? Well, I will use an example from a specific university in order to give you a clearer idea of what you can do to get into BPsych. For instance, in Macquarie University, the cut-off for BPsych (Hons.) is ~94 ATAR. If you receive something lower, you can opt for BA (Psychology), which is ~83 ATAR. From this point onwards, you can transfer to BPsych (Hons.) at the end of your third year, granted you meet the criteria. Even students enrolled in BPsych (Hons.) still have to take the same process of meeting the admission requirements for the fourth year! Transfer opportunities should be similar in other universities such as UNSW and USyd.

Given you are still considering the areas in which you can study in BPsych, perhaps it would be useful to look through the units available in different universities to give you some idea of what you want to specialise in. For example, as a starting student of Macquarie University myself, I have found there are three branches when it comes to Masters: clinical neuropsychology, clinical psychology and organisational psychology. I have envisioned that I might want to specialise in clinical psychology, which may lead to me choosing units which focus on personality, behaviour, development, etcetera.

I do not know if any of this makes sense, but I hope it somewhat helps.

 

[hawkrider]

This will definitely help me as an aspiring psychologist.