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What career am I considering and how it will shape my future career path ?
I am currently a college junior majoring in psychology with a minor in biology. I’m still exploring my career options. I’m looking into forensics to see if being a forensic psychologist is a career option for me. But I’m not one hundred percent sure of what I want to do with these degrees.
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Hemant’s Answer
It’s great that you’re exploring your career options! Since you’re majoring in Psychology with a minor in Biology, and you’re considering Forensic Psychology, let’s break down how this career path could shape your future and how Pluralsight can help along the way.
Forensic Psychology: A Career Overview
Forensic psychologists work at the intersection of psychology and law, helping with criminal investigations, legal cases, and mental health evaluations. This field requires:
1. Strong analytical and critical thinking skills
2. Understanding of criminal behavior and mental health
3. Knowledge of legal systems and forensic assessments
How Forensic Psychology Shapes Your Career Path
1. Short-Term (Next Few Years)
- Gain research experience in criminal behavior, forensic assessments, or neuroscience.
- Look for internships in legal settings, correctional facilities, or mental health clinics.
- Consider graduate school (Master’s or Ph.D./Psy.D.), as forensic psychology roles often require advanced degrees.
2. Long-Term (Future Career Pathways)
- Work in law enforcement agencies, government institutions (FBI, DOJ), or private forensic consulting.
- Specialize in areas like criminal profiling, competency evaluations, or victim advocacy.
- Some forensic psychologists work as expert witnesses in court or consult on jury selection.
How Pluralsight Can Help You in Forensic Psychology?
Even though Pluralsight is tech-focused, it offers valuable skills that can benefit forensic psychology:
1. Data Analysis & Research
- Take courses on Python for Data Science or R for Statistical Analysis to improve your research skills in criminal psychology studies.
2. Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics
- If you’re interested in cybercrime, online investigations, or digital evidence analysis, courses like "Cybersecurity Foundations" and "Digital Forensics Fundamentals" can be useful.
3. Soft Skills for Psychology Professionals
- Courses like "Critical Thinking for Better Judgment and Decision-Making" and "Ethical Hacking for Law Enforcement" can provide insights into crime-solving techniques.
Next Steps for You
Keep exploring forensic psychology while building skills in research, critical thinking, and technology. You can leverage Pluralsight for data analysis and forensic tech skills, giving you a unique edge in the field. If you’re still unsure, consider shadowing professionals or taking psychology + law elective courses to refine your interests.
Forensic Psychology: A Career Overview
Forensic psychologists work at the intersection of psychology and law, helping with criminal investigations, legal cases, and mental health evaluations. This field requires:
1. Strong analytical and critical thinking skills
2. Understanding of criminal behavior and mental health
3. Knowledge of legal systems and forensic assessments
How Forensic Psychology Shapes Your Career Path
1. Short-Term (Next Few Years)
- Gain research experience in criminal behavior, forensic assessments, or neuroscience.
- Look for internships in legal settings, correctional facilities, or mental health clinics.
- Consider graduate school (Master’s or Ph.D./Psy.D.), as forensic psychology roles often require advanced degrees.
2. Long-Term (Future Career Pathways)
- Work in law enforcement agencies, government institutions (FBI, DOJ), or private forensic consulting.
- Specialize in areas like criminal profiling, competency evaluations, or victim advocacy.
- Some forensic psychologists work as expert witnesses in court or consult on jury selection.
How Pluralsight Can Help You in Forensic Psychology?
Even though Pluralsight is tech-focused, it offers valuable skills that can benefit forensic psychology:
1. Data Analysis & Research
- Take courses on Python for Data Science or R for Statistical Analysis to improve your research skills in criminal psychology studies.
2. Cybersecurity & Digital Forensics
- If you’re interested in cybercrime, online investigations, or digital evidence analysis, courses like "Cybersecurity Foundations" and "Digital Forensics Fundamentals" can be useful.
3. Soft Skills for Psychology Professionals
- Courses like "Critical Thinking for Better Judgment and Decision-Making" and "Ethical Hacking for Law Enforcement" can provide insights into crime-solving techniques.
Next Steps for You
Keep exploring forensic psychology while building skills in research, critical thinking, and technology. You can leverage Pluralsight for data analysis and forensic tech skills, giving you a unique edge in the field. If you’re still unsure, consider shadowing professionals or taking psychology + law elective courses to refine your interests.
Updated
Allison’s Answer
Hi Melina, as someone who graduated with a similar background (undergraduate major in psychology and a minor in chemistry), there are so many paths that you can take with this combination of degrees in both a social science and a hard STEM field because the two combined together set you up to be an excellent scientist-practitioner for several career options.
When considering your potential career path, as stated above, the likely route would involve a Master's or PhD, and my advice here is to make sure you are pursuing something you are truly passionate about if you are going the route of PhD. Having been through a PhD program for industrial organizational (I/O) psychology, the amount of work and dedication to learning everything about the field really required me to be interested in all things I/O psychology. I have heard similar sentiments about any field of psychology, that even if your specific focus is one subset of your chosen interest, you still have to learn about the field as a whole and be an expert in all topics of your field, so before you consider pursuing a PhD make sure it is something you love almost all the topics for! It also doesn't hurt to explore more fields of psychology, my undergraduate program had not introduced me to the field I'm currently in, but I learned about it through another student and it aligned with a lot of my interests and ended up pursuing this area.
Next steps?
-Dig into more career paths just to make sure you're pursing the one you love and dig into what it takes to achieve the career goals you have (e.g., What is the highest level of education you need to achieve your goals?).
-Try to join a lab or internship relevant to your area of interest - if you cannot find one that aligns with the specific area you're interested in, I highly encourage you to join any psychology research lab, as the experience you gain here will be applicable across all areas of psychology (I volunteered with a child development research lab as an undergraduate, and what I learned about conducting research, working with graduate students, writing abstracts or literature reviews, etc. was all transferable skills that helped when I applied for graduate school and interviewed)
-Talk to your professors, see if they can connect you to anyone that is in their network that is a forensic psychologist, or if you want to explore other career paths, other types of psychologists
-Make yourself known to your professors, something many students don't start early enough is building rapport with their professors and it can be daunting, but building good relationships with your professors can help you in the application process for strong references
When considering your potential career path, as stated above, the likely route would involve a Master's or PhD, and my advice here is to make sure you are pursuing something you are truly passionate about if you are going the route of PhD. Having been through a PhD program for industrial organizational (I/O) psychology, the amount of work and dedication to learning everything about the field really required me to be interested in all things I/O psychology. I have heard similar sentiments about any field of psychology, that even if your specific focus is one subset of your chosen interest, you still have to learn about the field as a whole and be an expert in all topics of your field, so before you consider pursuing a PhD make sure it is something you love almost all the topics for! It also doesn't hurt to explore more fields of psychology, my undergraduate program had not introduced me to the field I'm currently in, but I learned about it through another student and it aligned with a lot of my interests and ended up pursuing this area.
Next steps?
-Dig into more career paths just to make sure you're pursing the one you love and dig into what it takes to achieve the career goals you have (e.g., What is the highest level of education you need to achieve your goals?).
-Try to join a lab or internship relevant to your area of interest - if you cannot find one that aligns with the specific area you're interested in, I highly encourage you to join any psychology research lab, as the experience you gain here will be applicable across all areas of psychology (I volunteered with a child development research lab as an undergraduate, and what I learned about conducting research, working with graduate students, writing abstracts or literature reviews, etc. was all transferable skills that helped when I applied for graduate school and interviewed)
-Talk to your professors, see if they can connect you to anyone that is in their network that is a forensic psychologist, or if you want to explore other career paths, other types of psychologists
-Make yourself known to your professors, something many students don't start early enough is building rapport with their professors and it can be daunting, but building good relationships with your professors can help you in the application process for strong references