Advice on Starting a Graddip Psychology Degree

Lcrong on 30/11/2019 - 22:39

Hi friends!

I wanted to dig your brains on the path to becoming a Registered Psychologist.
I completed a Medical Science degree with First class Honours in 2018 - spent a year wondering what the heck to do, and ended up feeling like psychology might be a good fit for me. It is a big decision since it is a 4-5 year time sink.

I understand the pathway for this is GradDip Psyc (1-2 years) + Psyc Honours (1 year) + Masters (2 years).
Ideally, I want to study the GradDip online so I can initially work part time alongside my studies.

The best option (in terms of length of degree and cost) I have come across so far is the 1 year Online Grad Dip offered by CSU, at $21.6k.
Personally I would've loved to study at UNSW where I did my undergrad, but the fee of almost $40k is rather scary!

Would love to hear thoughts on options for the GradDip and your thoughts on whether you found studying Psychology a worthwhile investment. Thanks for your time!

Education & Work

Comments

  • salmon123 on 30/11/2019 - 23:01
    +1

    GradDip Psyc (1-2 years) + Psyc Honours (1 year) + Masters (2 years).

    Is there a quicker entry pathway to the masters? 3 years of studying to get into a masters program seems ridiculous. You might as well do another undergrad degree.

    • crong on 30/11/2019 - 23:11

      As far as I can see.. nope! Its a long process - APS Pathway. It is frustrating, as I will have to do honours again as well!

      • salmon123 on 01/12/2019 - 00:02
        +1

        As far as I can see.. nope!

        Ouch. Might be worth seeing if you can get RPL for some of your Med Sci degree to reduce the overall time.

        • crong on 01/12/2019 - 14:19

          I’ve done 3 psyc subjects - I think 2 of them will transfer over. Im pretty sure nothing else can carry over! :’( Better than nothing, I guess!

  • Trying2SaveABuck on 01/12/2019 - 00:46
    +1

    Sounds like a fair plan to me

    You got to do some sort of post-grad because medical science leads no where

    • crong on 01/12/2019 - 00:48

      Tell me about it!

  • bdl on 01/12/2019 - 01:03

    CSU is great online

    • crong on 01/12/2019 - 13:58

      Good to know! Thanks :)

  • Worf on 01/12/2019 - 06:54
    +2

    Add a couple of years for the registrar program for endorsement in an area of specialty.

    Apply for medicine if you’re clever enough to do well in the GAMSAT (you can always specialise in psychiatry). Otherwise, you’ll want your GPA to be high enough to be offered entry into hons, followed by achieving first class or second class div 1 Hons to get into a psychology masters program.

    You can also consider other allied health masters programs which will get you qualified and job ready in two years (occupational therapy, physiotherapy, etc.).

    • Vampyr on 01/12/2019 - 10:54

      As above, the main problem I see is that there's no guarantees you'll make it to the next step. So will you be okay if you don't make it all the way?

      • crong on 01/12/2019 - 13:08
        +1

        Not being able to get all the way will not doubt be frustrating. Just having the Graddip and honours in Psyc isn’t going to help me much! I do feel with my Med sci background I’d be well equipped to score well, but you’re right - there’s no guarantee!

    • crong on 01/12/2019 - 13:04

      My GPA is scraping the minimum scores to apply - I’d need to get a very high GAMSAT score! - I guess mainly I don’t think I have the drive to keep trying year after year. Seeing my cohort fail again and again to get in hasn’t been particularly motivating!

      I’m confident I can get div1 honours as I do have the research and thesis experience.

      Allied health is something I’ve considered! I guess on my part I haven’t had enough experience in these areas to know what they’re like. I’ve seen a psychologist and have some contact with people who are psychologists so I’ve been able to understand what they do :)

      • Worf on 01/12/2019 - 13:31
        +1

        By the way, the grad dip is expensive because it’s considered post-grad. The honours year will be classified as undergrad so it should be cheaper… but if you don’t make the cut for hons, then you’d have to go with a post-grad dip (classed as post-grad, even though it’s the same content)… the crappy thing about PG dip (in addition to fee structure) is that the research component is group based and it’s not hons. If you’re keen on unsw you can always switch at some stage (e.g., grad dip at one uni, hons at another, and even another uni for masters/dpsych/masters+PhD)

        If you don’t get into masters there’s also a bunch of other pathways, 4+2, 5+1… but i’d strongly recommend going into a program that is eligible for entry into a registrar program.

        Just curious, what would you like to do (private prac / public)?

        Oh by the way, psychology falls under the umbrella of allied health.

        • crong on 01/12/2019 - 14:34
          +1

          Thanks that’s helpful! The PG dip replacement for honours seems like they just want to charge more as a postgrad course… Group work and research sounds like a bad mix.

          Would ideally love to skip the pain of hons but I get that psyc hons will be different to med sci hons - Glad to know that there’s backup pathways around it.

          I’ve heard much about the lifeline course and how it’s looked upon quite favourably in getting into masters.

          From my initial thoughts I think id like start out in public, expose myself to different types of people/patients and eventually move into private to have more flexibility in hours etc.

          Oh yep! Makes sense with allied health :) Still getting used to looking under the social science faculty.

  • TheMindsetTraveller on 01/12/2019 - 06:57
    +4

    Let me ask you a question, think about it and honestly answer it for yourself, you do not need to reply/share if you do not want to, so:-

    If the world gave you $10,000,000 right now, would you spend the next 4-5 years to become qualified as a registered psychologist?

    If you can say yes, then you have found your purpose and enrol into the UNSW course even though it is $40k because you know in your heart and mind that this is what you truly want to do. If its no, then consider something else and finding that something else can take time and there is no right or wrong here because we are all different.

    Do some reading on Maslow's Theory, Ikigai, brainstorm your own personal mission statement (who you are, what you are good at, how can you help the world) because if you do not know who you really are, then you really dont know which direction to aim for.

    Since you might end up being a registered psychologist in any case, let me throw three catchy thoughts for your learning:-

    The two most important dates in your life is 1. When you were born and 2. When you find/work out Why

    There are people who say they can, and there are people who say they can't - and they are both right. You can choose which person you want to be.

    Most people do not live life, they exist and those who exist will regret.

    Hope that helps, I am grateful that I got to share it. Go out there and live your best life, and never ever live your life to someone's elses version.

    TMT

    • crong on 01/12/2019 - 14:17

      Thanks for sharing :)

      I’ve not particularly ambitious and goal orientated person, so I’ve often struggled with setting goals and knowing what I want to achieve in life - even if money was no barrier. In my head, my thoughts are like - how do you know for sure until you’re actually doing it?

      I’ve spent a good portion of this year thinking about who I am - what my strengths and weaknesses are - and I feel like psyc lines up the best at the moment. I’m not $100,000,000 sure, but I hope I can get to that stage where I know it’s for me!

  • Sunshines bright on 01/12/2019 - 14:58

    As a consumer of the Psych world, there is a huge shortage of Psychiatrists, any reason you do not go that direction? It's been a nightmare finding one is near impossible, notwithstanding one I am happy and comfortable with.

    But the Psychologist field is also very important and I bet there is a shortage there too. But make sure you have the necessary compassion for it.

    • crong on 03/12/2019 - 22:14

      Psychiatry will mean I have to go down the Medicine route! Unfortunately I dont have the marks to get into it. I mean, its no wonder there are so few psychiatrists, considering the difficulty of getting into the course and then doing several years of study + specialisation! All the best in finding someone that works well with you.

      I do feel like I have the compassion for it! I can imagine getting very emotionally drained from practising, and learning to avoid 'compassion fatigue'is something I will need to learn!

  • original15 on 01/12/2019 - 20:49

    IF you’ve got time on your side, given an undergrad is 3 years (1 more than your grad dip) would it be a pathway you’d consider? RPL might knock some time off. Might end up being $cheaper. No idea though.. just an alternative

    For such a shift I’d want to be clear on what pathway I wanted in the psych world. Is clinical your thing?

    • crong on 03/12/2019 - 22:26

      Interesting idea! Undergrad costs $29k, which is cheaper than the $40k - but I guess there's the opportunity cost of that too!

      I've had a closer look at the different options - I'm thinking I'd enjoy private practice/clinic for a few days a week, counselling psyc is what i think i would enjoy! Running workshops on productivity/self-care sounds interesting too! Ultimately I'd like to give back with some volunteer work as well - we'll see what opportunities arise.

  • fossilfuel on 02/12/2019 - 18:58

    I did a Bpsych (Hons) at UNSW and I'm just starting rego. I enjoy the work, but the pathway to get there is tedious and often doesn't seem worthwhile.

    Hated 1st and 2nd year of uni. Too many general education subjects, too few psychology subjects. TBH if they cut all the general education subjects, the undergrad component could be completed in 2 years. You also need to have good grounding in statistics and research methodology otherwise you'll find psych a struggle.

    They're phasing out the 4+2 pathway in 2022 so the only way to get full registration would be either:
    * Complete a specialist masters degree (2 years) + registrar program (2 years)
    * Complete a masters of professional psychologist (1 year) + 1 year internship i.e 5+1 pathway

    Specialist masters degrees are very competitive. Most of the people in my cohort got into clin psych with a minimum of 90+ for their honours. A high class 2 might barely scrape you into clin psych degree, but you'd need research assistant and relevant work experience. Most of the people I knew worked for at least 2 years before they made it into a specialist degree. If you're thinking of other specialities, there's org and clin neuropsych masters at Macq Uni - both competitive, have very limited supervisors for the registrar program and limited job opportunities.

    With the 5+1 pathway, the hardest thing to find is supervision to fulfil registration requirements. If you're lucky, you can secure a paid internship whilst working towards general registration. Otherwise, a lot of places charge exorbitant amounts to complete the 1 year internship e.g $20k p.a

    Once you're done with rego, the field is very broad. You can work in private practice, schools, hospitals, organisations etc. You can choose to narrow your intervention focus to certain groups e.g EMDR to treat PTSD, CBT for depression, ACT for anxiety, Narrative for trauma, DBT for BPD and so on. Intervention as well e.g cognitive testing for intellectual disability, administering the ADOS-2 or ADI-R to support an ASD diagnosis, PAI to assess personality disorders and so on. You can run workshops on productivity/self-care/motivation/positive psychology etc in government and private organisations. The list is endless.

    • crong on 03/12/2019 - 22:38

      Thanks for your detailed response fossilfuel!

      Thankfully for the GradDip - all the fluff subjects have been taken out and its 10 psych subjects to finish the degree.

      Wow, 90+ for Honours is pretty crazy. I managed 83 in med sci which was a Class I - but 90+ is tough. Do you reckon my med sci background would help with getting into specialist masters? Any advice with getting on relevant experience in the meantime? I've heard about the lifeline course, but surely there are other things around :)

      If taking the 5+1 pathway am i correct in that you can train for an area of practice endorsement later on? Though I guess it doesn't seem particularly essential

      Thanks for sharing the varying options I could take after rego! It sounds promising and I'm sure there'll be something in that list which I'll enjoy. Particularly interested in looking at CBT/ACT and running workshops for the community! Appreciate it! I may send you a PM if I get to Honours supervisor selection ;)

      • fossilfuel on 03/12/2019 - 23:07

        Do you reckon my med sci background would help with getting into specialist masters? Any advice with getting on relevant experience in the meantime? I've heard about the lifeline course, but surely there are other things around :)

        From what I heard from selections, med sci honours won't give you that big of an advantage when applying for specialist masters. It might for a PhD if you miss out on a class 1. At UNSW psych honours, class 1 is 85-100 and class 2:1 is 75-84. Should be the same across most unis. Lifeline is a good starting point. Getting a research assistant position is also favourable and will boost your portfolio when applying for a specialist masters degree.

        If taking the 5+1 pathway am i correct in that you can train for an area of practice endorsement later on? Though I guess it doesn't seem particularly essential

        5+1 is only for general registration. You'll need to do specific masters degrees in clin, org, ed dev, counselling, sports etc for 2 years first then complete a 2 year registrar program before you can be endorsed in the area of practice. The benefit of completing a specialist masters degree is that you'll have general registration once you complete the degree, won't need to do the national psych exam and can practice freely. Whereas you'll need to complete approx 1500 hours during the internship and the national psych exam if you choose to do the 5+1 pathway.

  • Icecold5000 on 04/12/2019 - 10:56

    Honestly don’t bother with psych. Too long and too hard. I would do a masters of social work and then get get on the pathway to become an accredited mental health social worker

    https://www.aasw.asn.au/information-for-the-community/mental…

    If you really have to do psych UNE have an accelerated degree.

    • crong on 04/12/2019 - 21:36

      You're right - I should give social work a serious think through.

      The UNE undergrad degree seems like a great idea if I were to go down this route.
      An extra 2 subjects of content in comparison in exchange for a CSP! Thanks.

      • Icecold5000 on 05/12/2019 - 00:12

        With social work you get registration after graduation which enable you to work as a social worker because the practicals are part of the degree. Entry isn’t that competitive to reach this stage. After this I believe you need to have three years supervised experienced within a mental health setting to specialise in the area. Have a look on seek and many of the roles are available to both SW and psych. I would say this his the easiest route in. UNE is CSP while Deakin is full fee and online but is short due to the trimester model.

        With psych my understanding is you need high grade (80% minimum) to get into postgrad as well as having practical experience. I did some units at UNE and got over 80% but I wasn’t convinced I could make it through because I felt the number of people gunning for high grades would lead to aggressive grading. Unless you are really confident about your academics it’s very competitive.

        If you can crush the GAMSAT then maybe med school is an option. It’ll be 4 years plus one internship year and then start to specialise in psych which takes 5 years. This is a best case scenario so it may take longer. Every med school has different entrance requirements. USyd uses a threshold GPA and then a combination of interview and GAMSAT while NDMS uses a combination of all three as well as volunteer portfolio. Rural has much lower requirements as well. It’s worth looking into to see if you have any advantage.

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