Psychology

• Studying: 16%
• Employed in graduate job: 27%
• Employed in non-graduate job: 38%
• Unemployed: 9%

• Average graduate salary: £18,124
• Average non-graduate salary: £14,088

Psychology graduates develop a range of skills transferable to graduate careers. These include: communication; information technology; handling of data/statistics; problem-solving; and the ability to work in teams. Consider the skills developed on your course as well as through your other activities, such as paid work, volunteering, family responsibilities, sport, membership of societies, leadership roles, etc. Think about how these can be used as evidence of your skills and personal attributes. Then you can start to market and sell who you really are, identify what you may be lacking and consider how to improve your profile. 

View the best universities for psychology degrees.

Prospects

Psychology is one of the most popular degree subjects at university, yet only a small percentage of psychology graduates pursue options in professional psychology.

A 2010 HESA survey of 2009 graduates indicates that six months after graduation, just over 55% were in employment in the UK or overseas and another 10% were combining work and study. Psychology graduates entered into a wide range of jobs in a variety of sectors. Initially, around 30% of those employed went into non-graduate roles, such as clerical/secretarial positions, retail, catering or bar work.

Where are the jobs?

The National Health Service (NHS Careers), local councils, and multinational organisations are all major employers of psychology graduates. Recruitment agencies, such as Psychologist Appointments, can also be a good source of jobs. Most health-related professionals work in multidisciplinary teams throughout the country. Non health-related jobs can be found throughout the UK.

Psychology graduates enter a diverse range of careers in almost all sectors but major employment areas include:

• health 
• social care 

Jobs directly related to your degree

After completing your psychology degree you could find work as a:

• Clinical psychologist
• Educational psychologist
• Further education lecturer or higher education lecturer
• Occupational psychologist
• Sport and exercise psychologist

Jobs where your degree would be useful

A psychology degree would also be relevant in positions such as:

• Psychotherapist
• Counsellor
• Careers adviser/personal adviser
• Human resources officer
• Retail manager

Although some of the jobs listed here might not be first jobs for many graduates, they are among the many realistic possibilities with your degree, provided you can demonstrate you have the attributes employers are looking for. Bear in mind that it's not just your degree discipline that determines your options. Remember that many graduate vacancies don't specify particular degree disciplines, so don't restrict your thinking to the jobs listed here.

Included with the permission of AGCAS and Graduate Prospects. For the latest version of this publication, see www.prospects.ac.uk. For permission to reproduce, contact copyright@agcas.org.uk. We would welcome your comments on this section of The Complete University Guide. Please email us at admin@thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk.