Is it possible to practice Psychology without having a Master's degree, in Spain?
Since its inception, Psychology has been awakening more and more interest in the population, and more and more students have decided to devote their lives to the profession of psychologist.
But, in spite of the fact that in many other professions only with a university education is enough to get to work, it has been observed that in Psychology it is increasingly necessary to continue with postgraduate or even master's studies. Now, is it essential? Is it possible to practice Psychology without a Master's Degree in Spain?
Let's see it throughout this article going case by case, depending on the different professional exits that there are.
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Being a psychologist without having a Master ... is it possible?
To answer the question of whether it is possible to practice Psychology without a Master's Degree in Spain, it is necessary in the first place See what is established by current legislation and existing training plans .
In this sense and as indicated by the Official College of Psychologists, it is established that obtaining a Bachelor's Degree or Psychology Degree enables those who obtain it to carry out their professional practice as a psychologist, something that legally allows the graduate or graduate to practice all the competences and functions of the profession with the only exception of those related to the health sector . Thus, the answer to the question that gives name to this article is a great one depends on what.
There are many sectors and branches of psychology in which a new graduate can technically practice. One of them is the educational and psychoeducational field : with the graduate or bachelor's degree you can work in different types of centers and give orientation and diverse training.
In addition to this other of the areas that can be exercised only with the degree is the Human Resources sector and the psychology of organizations , which allows to enter the element as performance evaluation, advice and orientation or selection of personnel.
Research is also a sector to be taken into account, as well as legal, social and psychosocial psychology or areas such as sports psychology. In short, practically anyone.
But the same is not true with what is probably the most popular field of psychology: Clinical and Health Psychology. After all, many of the people who wonder if it is possible to practice in Psychology without having a Master do so based on the idea that this discipline is mainly oriented to mental health.
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Work in Clinical and Health Psychology
In this case, the degree or degree is not enough to be able to practice (except for those people who have received the health rating before 2014, despite the fact that obtaining it required meeting certain requirements). To work in the health field it is necessary have passed the Master of General Health Psychology or have obtained the title of Specialist in Clinical Psychology after having passed the exams and the PIR training.
Beyond that, other professionals could come to work as psychotherapists provided they do not carry out clinical activities (neither the assessment / diagnosis nor the intervention / treatment of clinical or health psychology) and carry out their work based on a theoretical model and validated methodology.
Yes, but with difficulties
Can someone who has a university degree or a degree in Psychology be called a psychologist? As we saw previously, technically the graduate or graduate in Psychology is qualified to perform the tasks of a psychologist in most areas.
However, the fact that legally can not mean a graduate or graduate has it so easy to do it . At the end of the day, almost all companies will value the candidacy or the services of someone who certifies that they have trained in a more specific and specialized way in the sector for which they demand that someone with a general knowledge of the discipline.
And it is necessary to bear in mind that Psychology is a discipline that arouses great interest in a large number of people, something that makes every year there are a large number of students enrolled in the university degree in Psychology. This implies that once the studies are finished, there will be a large number of psychologists willing to seek employment . Although they are increasingly needed in more and more areas, in general the demand for employment exceeds the supply: there are many possible candidates for each position, ie there is much competition with a similar level of training.
This does not mean that it is impossible, since at the end of the day not only the training is important, but also the work and life experiences, the personality and the adequacy of the profile with the contractor's needs. But in most cases there is a strong screening in job offers that makes many candidates who do not have post-graduate or undergraduate training not to be as valued as those who do.
In short, it is likely that sooner or later the graduates or graduates may find some employment, but it is true that usually those that have more training as postgraduate and master students are going to have a great advantage at the time of being hired.
One more requirement
In addition to all the above and regardless of whether we have a Master's degree or just a Bachelor's or Bachelor's degree, we must bear in mind that professional practice as a psychologist requires a minimum requirement in addition to university education.
And it is established that the exercise of psychology requires the professional's membership in the Official College of Psychologists , as long as their services are dedicated directly to the citizen (other actions may not require such a membership). And depending on the case, it could also require civil liability insurance (provided that we are working with patients) and / or be registered as self-employed (if we work on our own).
Bibliographic references:
- General Council of Psychology of Spain. (2014) .Questions and answers about the professional practice of Psychology in Spain, after the approval of the Consumer Law. InfocopOnline [Online]. Available at: //www.infocop.es/view_article.asp?id=5074.
