making a decision about college?

eschmidt

Hi guys, Im in 6th year and i need to make a decision about what i wanna do in college. I always wanted to do psychology but I wont get more thank 400 points in my leaving cert. I was thinking about going dbs or ncirl because you dont need that much points to do psychology, but the costs are very high e5,500+ what do you guys think? would it be worth it? im thinking about doing 3 years and then doing a master. does anyone know if studying psychology is hard? and what can i do after i get my masters ? can i become a psychologist after that? do you know any other colleges that do psychology courses with no more than 400 points, i wont hide that dbs or nci are my dream colleges because they are not, i always wanted to go to ucd tbh but you need 500 or more points, if i did a plc course would i be then be able to get into ucd does anyone know?

JustAThought

I just happened to be looking at UCD TWO SUBJECT ARTS degrees for someone today & I think psychology is there as one of the double ( or try 3 subject) arts choices that you can do & end up with an arts degree in psychology & simething else.

Tbh I'm not certain but I dont think you will be a medical psychologist unless you go to med school - but if the use of psychology & motivation was your thing might a degree or vocation in social work or counselling be of interest - much more steady careers ( endless opportunity in misery) & you would exit with a profession & still add on a masters if you wanted.
Sports science & motivation was a buzz thing a fee years ago but there is no money in it & all the coaching jobs typically go to ex-pro's or are usually done pro-bono - ironically.

( Where apart from Trinity does non medical masters in psychology?).

Or you could do a masters in music therapy or art therapy or youth work or development work or even international conflict resolution ( fix the planet!) if that caught your fancy - negotiotion & psychology but with a more applicable dimension to contemporary society & the working world. Might be of interest ?

First I'd be looking at the modules for the psychology courses - you may be shocked when you assess them on the range of other subjects they include & how diverse & broad they are under that title. Well worth a look.

GalwayGrrrrrl

If you look up Psychological Society of Ireland and see the section on clinical psychology you will see which courses are necessary to work with patients in the health service. You don't need to study medicine unless you want to be a psychiatrist but you will need a postgraduate degree.

GalwayGrrrrrl

eschmidt wrote:

does anyone know if studying psychology is hard?

Any degree worth its salt will involve a lot of hard work.
One route some students seem to take ( not just for psychology) is to do a general science degree then apply to do a second degree as a mature student. This means it takes an extra three or four years to get where you want but it bypasses your low points issue

GalwayGrrrrrl

Taken from Irish psychologist website "In order to become a clinical psychologist, an accredited honours undergraduate degree where psychology is the major subject is required. Completion of a recognised postgraduate training programme in clinical psychology is then necessary. You can enhance your chances of achieving a place on such a programme by achieving a high grade at undergraduate level (minimum 2.1 grade) and obtaining further research or academic experience relevant to the field of clinical psychology. This can be by way of voluntary or paid work.

Courses are currently offered by
National University of Ireland, Galway
University College Dublin
University of Dublin, Trinity College
University of Limerick
Queen’s University Belfast

bisset

In practice it is very hard to get on to a clinical psychology course. You need a first or very high 2.1. in your first degree. A lot of people have already got a research masters when they enter the clinical course. If you don't feel you will get enough points to get on to the undergraduate course in the likes of UCD how will you compete against graduates from there for a place on a post graduate course. It might be a good idea to ring your local HSE office and ask to speak to a clinical psychologist for advice. Good luck.