Are you interested in a psychology career in Canada? If yes, you may wonder what the subfields under psychology are, how much you can earn in Canada as a psychologist, and what the job description might look like.
Psychology is a fascinating field of study. Canada has a high demand for health professionals, including psychologists, because they play an essential role in maintaining the citizens' sanity, peace, and mental health.
The first thing you should consider when pursuing a career in psychology is your education level and experience. So in this guide, you will also learn about the salary expectations of psychologists in Canada based on experience and education level.
What is Psychology?
Psychology is the scientific study of the human mind and behavior. It is a multifaceted discipline encompassing many subfields, such as human development, clinical, sport health, social behavior, and cognitive processes.
The field of psychology has experienced some rapid advancement within the last century. Today, it is a great tool used in modern medicine to understand people better and help them through various mental disorders.
A psychologist actively studies mental processes and conscious and unconscious phenomena, including thoughts, feelings, and general brain functions. In addition, they find interest in family resilience, Interpersonal relationships, personal relationships, cognition, perception, intelligence, emotions, etc.
This field of study serves as a strong connection between social science, medical science, and education.
Psychology has four main goals which are:
- To describe a cognition or behavior to enable researchers to develop general laws of human behavior.
- Explain how and why people behave the way they do by proposing theories that can explain the behaviors.
- Predict the future behavior of the said people from their empirical findings.
- Attempt to change or control negative behaviors.
See how to become a social worker in Canada.
What Are the Various Career Paths in Psychology?
Psychology is a multifaceted field, so there are many career opportunities to choose from. Hence if you are considering a career as a psychologist, you should learn about the various psychology subfields and what their jobs entail.
Behavioral Psychology
Behavioral psychology aims to understand the most basic form of human behavior, so psychologists in thIS field conduct various research and try to understand why humans behave the way they do and how their mind is connected to their behavior. Behavioral psychology is primarily helpful in correcting negative behaviors.
Developmental Psychology
This branch of psychology seeks to understand how people grow and change throughout life and it studies and tries to understand the reason for the various changes people go through at different stages of their lives.
Developmental psychologists study and understand the human physical, social, intellectual, and emotional growth and the perceptual changes that occur throughout their lifespan.
Cognitive Psychology
Cognitive psychology has to do with understanding how people think. Psychologists in this field may study how people make decisions, solve problems, and try to understand memory and perception, language development, and learning disabilities that people suffer at different stages of their lives for various reasons.
Educational Psychology
This is how psychologists understand people's learning processes and learning disabilities. These studies are done to develop effective teaching techniques for specific groups of learners. For example, those with some learning disabilities may need more effective and specific teaching techniques to help them usually learn like their peers.
Forensic Psychology
The aspect of psychology that relates to the law is forensic psychology; people who specialize here apply psychological principles and knowledge to solve legal issues which may involve criminal behavior and treatment.
Some forensic psychologists also work with law enforcement agencies, where they perform a wide range of duties, including evaluating the competence of criminal suspects, providing testimonies in court, preparing children to give testimonies, and assessing children in suspected child abuse cases. Learn more!
Environmental Psychology
The study of the relationship between people and their environment is known as environmental psychology. These psychologists study the effect of human behavior on the environment they live in. The environment can be staged or natural; however, human behavior still impacts it, so the findings can help government agencies develop policies that can help better the environment.
Neuropsychology
Neuropsychology involves the study of the human brain and how it carries out psychological thoughts and influences behaviors. A neuropsychologist takes care of patients who suffer head injuries; illnesses like dementia, stroke, and so on. They may also work hand in hand with healthcare professionals to develop treatments for these illnesses.
Social Psychology
Social psychology is another essential aspect that seeks to explain social behavior. It studies diverse topics, including social influences on decision-making, social interaction, perception, group behavior, etc. This branch of psychology also includes issues like aggression, conformity, and prejudice.
Abnormal Psychology
The psychologists in this field focus on the origins and construct of mental illnesses; it studies and understands the unusual patterns of behaviors, thoughts, and emotions and strives to assess, diagnose and work with other health professionals to develop clinical treatments for mental disorders.
Consumer Psychology
If you are wondering if there is a branch of psychology that can be used in businesses, here is one. Consumer psychology studies consumer behavior; it helps identify the target audience, their purchasing decisions, their attitude towards specific products and services, and what influences their purchasing habits.
Consumer psychologists also conduct market research and observe consumers or focus groups to understand them better and determine what they want and expect from your brand.
Job Description of a Psychologist
Psychologists are responsible for providing therapy to individuals, conducting research, providing professional guidance to companies or groups, and performing studies into specific behaviors. Although psychologists may not be able to prescribe medications, they can also refer their patients to psychiatrists if they feel the patients would benefit from particular prescriptions. See how to find work as a psychologist.
These professionals apply various procedures and techniques to ensure a patient regains balance between their emotional state of mind and how they relate with others and society at large. They may also conduct psychological tests to ascertain the patient's mental state and emotional stability before offering help.
The Salary Expectation of a Psychologist in Canada
In Canada, the average salary expectation of a psychologist is about 200,000 CAD per year, ranging from 104,000 CAD to 305,000 CAD per year. This salary range includes transport, housing, and many other benefits; it is also important to note that psychologists' salaries depend on experience, education level, skills, location, and gender.
Salary Expectations Based on Experience Level
A psychologist with an experience level of fewer than two years may earn approximately 118,000 CAD per year. On the other hand, a psychologist with an experience level of two to five years may make 158,000 CAD per year; this is 34% more than the salary of those with an expertise span of fewer than two years.
Research has revealed that a professional psychologist with an experience level of five to ten years as a psychologist may expect to earn 206,000 CAD per year, which is 30% more than the salary of those with two to five years of experience.
In addition, a psychologist with an expertise span of ten to fifteen years in Canada may land a salary of 249,000 CAD per year, 21% more than those with an expertise span of five to ten years. However, those with an expertise span of fifteen to twenty years will make a salary equivalent to 272,000 CAD per year, which is 9% more than psychologists with ten to fifteen years of experience.
Lastly, a psychologist with a professional expertise span of more than twenty years will expect a salary of 286,000 CAD per year; this is about 5% more than those with fifteen to twenty years of experience.
Salary Expectations Based on Gender
Perhaps most people do not consider the gender factor a stringent criterion for salary differences. Still, in Canada, most organizations consider it for several reasons, including productivity and efficiency.
So who gets paid more? Men or women. In Canada, male psychologists earn about 5% more than females on average.
Jobs for a Psych Degree in Canada
If you pursue a degree in psychology, you may enjoy many career opportunities in the future. And there are many available jobs to choose from because psychologists are in high demand in the country. So let's look at the possible jobs you may get with a psychology degree in Canada.
- Industrial-organizational psychologist
- Addiction counselor
- Academic counselor
- Art psychologist
- Employment interviewer
- Massage therapist
- Marriage and family therapist
- Women's counselor
- Social worker
- Child life specialist
- Educational administrator
- Market research analyst
- Credit counselor
- Credit counselor
- School counselor
- Public relations specialist
Amongst many others, these are just a few of the numerous psychologist jobs in Canada; the jobs can range from academic to business, social and human services, residential care, human resources, counselor, therapist, or psychologist.
Practical Psychology Learning in Canada
If you have decided to dive into psychology, consider getting educated because education greatly matters in this field. However, it may be overwhelming to think about what to learn first, what degree to go for, and many other questions. Still, getting professional help while understanding psychology could be more accessible.
In Canada, Superprof is the best place to find such help; the platform has thousands of psychology tutors and specialists who can help you build your dream career in psychology with no stress or delay.
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