Pros and cons of working as a psychologist

The work of a psychologist-practitioner (consultant, diagnostician or staff psychologist at a company) involves daily interaction with people and often causes a great deal of emotional stress, since each person comes to the specialist with his or her own sometimes very difficult life situations. Before applying to the department of psychology, it is necessary to understand what awaits the graduate after graduation, how this work corresponds to his personal features and attitudes.

Benefits of working as a psychologist

• Personal growth, which is facilitated by the acquisition of specialized knowledge that helps to understand the nature of psychological phenomena. The acquired knowledge can be used not only in professional, but also in private life.
• The opportunity to help people who find themselves in problematic situations (depression due to divorce or loss of loved ones, stress as a result of violence, psychological problems of a child at school).
• Interesting and creative activities. The peculiarities of human psychology are an inexhaustible object of study. Even the most experienced specialists do not have ready-made solutions for all human problems. Accordingly, the work of a psychologist is a continuous creative search.
• Opportunity to open a private practice. Owning your own psychological consulting room is a prestige and an opportunity not to depend on your employer.

Disadvantages of working as a psychologist

• The high responsibility that a psychologist bears for the lives and emotional state of the people who turn to him or her. The fear of giving wrong advice and aggravating a client’s problem leads to a feeling of uncertainty in one’s own abilities and professional qualities.
• Emotional burnout. A specialist has to constantly find out the reason for the client’s hard feelings, but he or she has to control his or her emotions and not take other people’s negative feelings to heart. Stress caused by emotional involvement in other people’s problems leads to a burnout syndrome.
• Intense communication with strangers can also be called a disadvantage of the profession of practicing psychologist; therefore, if this circumstance causes negative emotions, it is better to refuse the idea of becoming a psychologist or to choose a field that does not imply constant communication (for example, research work).
• Inability to separate professional and personal life. One of the basic ethical rules for psychologists is not to “carry” work into one’s private life, to clearly distinguish between these two spheres. In practice, this is very difficult to do. “You’re a psychologist, you’re supposed to know what to do/how to help/how not to react/you can’t have problems, etc.” – phrases that professionals constantly hear from family, friends, acquaintances.