Annual Salary
£46,000 to £61,000
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
Swap to Social care or Therapy or go back to all job sectors
Swap to Social care or Therapy or go back to all job sectors
Psychologists apply the scientific study of the mind and how it affects behaviour to help people deal with real life issues.
Average UK salary in 2023 was £34,963
(source Office for National Statistics)
You could work: 9am to 5pm; flexibly
There will be
3.8% more Psychologist jobs in 2027.
As a psychologist, your day-to-day tasks will depend on your specialism. For example you could:
You could work at a school, in an NHS or private hospital, in a prison, in a therapy clinic, in the community or at a client's business.
Your working environment may be emotionally demanding.
You can get into this career through a university course.
To become a psychologist, you'll need to:
Psychology conversion course
You may be able to complete an approved psychology conversion course if:
Postgraduate qualification
To practise as a psychologist, you'll need to complete an accredited postgraduate qualification in your chosen specialism.
Specialisms include:
To apply for a postgraduate specialism course, you’ll need:a first or 2:
You should check the postgraduate entry requirements with the admissions department where you want to study.
You can find out more about all of the different specialisms and the postgraduate training from The BPS.
You'll usually need:
It can be helpful to get some voluntary experience in health or social care or in education before you apply for a course.
You can also find volunteering opportunities through The National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) and Do IT.
You'll need to:
You can join The British Psychological Society (BPS) for professional development opportunities.
You'll find more advice on careers and training in psychology from The British Psychological Society (BPS) and Health Careers.
You can also explore other careers in the psychological professions.
With experience, you could.move into supervisory or management positions; work in teaching, academic research, policy or consultancy; become self employed and run your own private practice
The British Psychological Society (BPS) and Health Careers have more information on careers in psychology.
You'll need: