Making a choice in favor of a certain type of activity, it already becomes clear what job a novice psychologist would like to work in, what consultations he is most attracted to, and in what area of ​​activity he would like to try to gain a foothold. Moreover, it partially becomes clear where to look for such a job.

How to get started as a psychologist - job search by profession

It is recommended that a novice psychologist search for a job by profession according to the following algorithm:

1. Determine the range of places where your professional skills, not yet backed by work experience, will be in demand.
2. Send your resume to such places, as well as sign up for job interviews.
3. Talk to your friends and acquaintances about places of possible employment.
4. Look for vacancies on the stock exchanges on the Internet, in employment centers and similar places.

This is a common search algorithm and many young people follow it. But in order to solve the problem of how to start working as a psychologist, bring the fastest and, most importantly, good results, you need to apply the following tips to your life:

1. An aspiring psychologist looking for a place to start shouldn't set too high a bar for the job. And should not, accordingly, be focused on too high a salary.

In general, experience shows that the best option will work for one year at some low-paid job, for example, at a school or a medical institution, gain experience, and then, having good starting positions in terms of education and experience, apply for more prestigious places.

1. If circumstances so require, then to your diploma of higher education, you can take advanced training courses that will give additional advantages in the labor market. But it is better to choose courses not academic, but practical, and even better - with subsequent employment. By the way, such courses for those who want to make a good career will need to be taken regularly.
2. Be organized. Make a plan for how to get started as a psychologist, which places to visit, who to talk to. The more active you are in the search process, the greater the chance that you will be noticed and hired somewhere.
3. Be flexible about work. Settle for suitable options, even if at first you didn’t think about them at all. You need to gain experience, and a novice psychologist, to whom queues for consultations will then line up, cannot do without it.
4. Build a resume that will make you stand out from the crowd and prepare well for interviews. Use our advice, arm yourself with optimism, and everything will work out for you!

Yes, the main problem - in relation to you. Many perceive psychologists as either sages who, for a fee, will resolve all your personal crises, return your husband to the family, cure alcoholism, and you will leave the office in an hour as a completely different person. Or as charlatans who cannot do all of the above, but take money for a session. All why? Because the level of psychological literacy in our country is extremely low. The mass of people does not distinguish a psychologist from a psychiatrist, and when they offer to visit a specialist, what phrase do we hear most often? I AM NOT PSYCHO!

But we have a lot of "experts" in psychology. Here we have couch psychologists without the appropriate education, and kitchen psychologists who, over a glass of intoxicating drink, will tell you what strength is, brother. And all this can lead to consequences that are not the most pleasant.

As for clinical psychology, yes, the industry is predominantly new. There are not many universities that offer this specialization. And those who produce clinics themselves do not really know what should be included in the educational program.

The field of clinical psychology includes the diagnosis of mental health, the organization and conduct of scientific research to understand psychophysiological problems, and the development, implementation and evaluation psychological correction. Naturally, there are many more scientific and medical disciplines than ordinary psychologists. We need to know the basics of the functioning of the GM, all departments that are responsible for various functions. Vpf recovery methods and much more. The work of a clinical psychologist is aimed at increasing the psychological resources and adaptive capabilities of a person, harmonizing mental development, health protection, prevention and overcoming of illnesses, psychological rehabilitation.

At the same time, clients often do not see ANY difference between an ordinary psychologist and a medical psychologist, they demand the resolution of their personal problems, and that's all. A clinical psychologist does not do this!

And now try to explain this to everyone - both clients and those who hire you. Manage to hide from the contemptuous glances of medical workers, decline offers to participate in business or any other training, explain that specialization is needed to work with children or psychotherapy ...

But no, you are a psychologist of all trades, a cognitive scientist, a behaviorist, a psychoanalyst, a psychiatrist, an educator, a teacher, a trainer, a diagnostician, a magician and a magician for 13 thousand a month. The organization does not want to spend money on training - it is more profitable for them to take a graduate who will work on enthusiasm than to pay for the advanced training of a young specialist. Well, and other bureaucratic subtleties.

Personally, I never wanted to work with healthy people. I work with patients, I am engaged in psychological rehabilitation. The work is really interesting - so many life stories. And most importantly, you know that people NEED your help.

Of course, after all this, the psychologist himself needs the help of a supervisor, but, heh, obviously not in our department. With burnout and other mental anguish, you sort of figure it out yourself.

It is worth remembering that you can not help everyone.

Things like that guys.

I do not claim that all psychologists / clinics have this situation. Just describing a special case.

Do you know the excitement of waiting for a new client? Do you calmly talk about your activities and name the cost of your services? Not? Then this article is for you.

Myth #1. No diploma - too early to start consulting.

“How can I start counseling if I don’t have a degree yet?” - such a question arose in my head when I received my first psychological education. I specifically chose an educational institution where you can get more experience, however, when it came time to start practicing, there was a stupor.

My first real client found me online. On one of the thematic forums, I left a comment, indicating that I am a psychologist, and soon the first consultation was scheduled. By the appointed time, I experienced the whole gamut of feelings and emotions: irresistible excitement, terrible resistance, panic, doubt, fear. It seemed to me that it was easier to jump with a parachute than to have an hour-long consultation. To be honest, I even hoped that the client would change his mind and not come. But everything turned out differently.

The client came, and my panic was replaced by a slight uncertainty. At the same time, it was only noticeable to me. I will not dissemble and say that at my first consultation I was able to turn the client's world upside down and immediately help solve all his problems. I didn’t do anything special, I just let the person talk, listened carefully and sometimes asked leading questions.
As a result of the consultation, the client admitted that he received relief, and his problem no longer seems so significant.

Many people fall into the trap of two conflicting beliefs. You can not work for money with clients until there is education. Also, you can't get real experience without practice. The solution can be simple: first practice the techniques and practices with fellow students and friends. They will know that you do not have a diploma, but you are also unlikely to be able to harm, because you will act carefully and you can always ask for help from teachers. At worst, you will not help, but at best, you will gain experience and consolidate knowledge.

And it is better to look for your first real clients already in the process of learning, while you are still in a team of like-minded people and under the strict supervision of experienced colleagues.

Conclusion: we start safe practice while still studying.

Myth #2. Until you can call yourself beautifully, it is too early to start consulting.

After graduating, I received a diploma in the specialty "Psychological Counseling". There is a diploma, you can start actively promoting yourself, right?

“Somehow it is too extensive! There are many psychologists, how can you promote yourself? Another clever thought came to me. Then I thought that it is much more effective to be a psychologist in a certain niche. Then my potential client will know exactly what questions to contact me.

Agree, it sounds much more expert if you are a “perinatal psychologist”, “ child psychologist”, “regression psychologist”, “speech therapist psychologist”, “family psychologist”, “sex psychologist”, “business psychologist”, etc.

So, I again put the practice on hold. AND, before starting to actively promote herself, she started looking for a niche.

My daughter was 2 years old and my son had just been born when I decided that I wanted to do perinatal psychology. I again took up my studies closely, studied the theory, even had an internship in a St. Petersburg maternity hospital and received two certificates. But when it came time to start working, I realized that this is not at all what I would like to do all my life. Then I continued to search for a niche, once again pushing back the start of active practice.

In the process of training, we observe the work of professionals who have many years of experience. Looking at how easy and interesting it turns out for them, you want the same, and right away. In fact, it turns out differently, and it begins to seem that somewhere in another niche everything will be different, you just need to find it.

May be. But what if this very niche cannot be found and chosen right away?

It is impossible to understand what exactly you want to do until you try different directions. In addition, tastes, preferences and interests change over time. Therefore, it is important to start practicing even if you have not yet chosen a main niche. Trying yourself in different ways, you will have the opportunity to feel exactly on your own experience how close this or that direction is to you. And, perhaps, this will save you from attending unnecessary expensive courses and seminars.

Conclusion: Let's get started general practice even before choosing your favorite destination. This choice occurs most often in the process of practical work.

Myth #3. You're not the smartest - it's too early to start consulting.

When I first started studying psychology, everything seemed simple. There is a counseling algorithm, mine personal experience and the desire to help people - it seemed that this was enough. There was even a certainty that it was all easy, and I could easily become the best psychologist. But the more I studied, the more I remembered Socrates. If he knows he doesn't know anything, what to say about me. I took courses after courses, but the more I studied, the more it seemed that I still knew little.

Each time the algorithm was repeated. “Now I will take a course in perinatal psychology (transactional analysis, CBT, coaching, clinical psychology, family counseling, Ericksonian hypnosis, NLP, correction of eating behavior ...), and immediately after that I will begin to work actively, promote myself and consult. But every time during my studies, I realized that I still lacked the experience, knowledge, regalia and qualifications to be a real psychologist.

And here are my 3 diplomas, a stack of certificates and certificates gathering dust on the shelf, and my “colleagues” who have a certificate of completion of two-month courses “ practical psychology"quietly work and advise the same as me, the keepers of the inner saboteur.

Of course, I do not urge to be equal to the above, but it’s worth learning from them the courage. After all, knowledge that does not find practical application are lost. You can read as much as you like about how to sew, but you can only learn how to do it with a needle in your hands.

The only place where you can really learn how to counsel is the counseling itself. Not a single seminar, not a single training will teach you to hear the client and feel what exactly he needs. this moment will help. Knowledge, skills and training are important, of course. When a person starts going to the gym, it is extremely important to know how to use the simulators, how to lift the barbell and squat correctly, without this knowledge you can harm your health. But you will never make your figure more fit, having only this knowledge and not exercising regularly. Both knowledge and regular practice are important. And for the best and faster results, you can use the services of a coach. In advisory practice, these are experienced colleagues, supervisors, mentors.

Conclusion: we accept our imperfection and start working. And if you feel insecure, fearful or doubtful, ask for help!

Myth number 4. If you're scared, it's too early to start counseling.

And so I finally realized that it was pointless to pull further and it was time to start working. I put social networks in order, registered on psychological sites, posted ads no worse than others, indicated an adequate price, but for some reason there was no queue of customers. They don't go, they don't call, they don't write. For a long time I could not understand why. It turned out that I myself do everything so that they don’t come to me. I accidentally forgot to send an answer to a potential client, I answered questions in such a way that in the process of communication something would scare me away, there was uncertainty in my voice and as if a call: “It’s better to find a more experienced psychologist, I’m an amateur, I’m unlikely to be able to help you!”

If you know this feeling, you are far from alone! Most likely, you, like many, are hindered by fear.

Think about what exactly you are afraid of?

The most common fears:

• I will not be able to help the client or even harm;
• no proper education;
• inconvenient to take money;
• the client will be dissatisfied and will not come again;
• I’m already 30 (40, 50…), it’s too late to start;
• there are many more experienced specialists around;
• difficult to find clients
• I don't know everything so I can't answer any question.

Whatever you are afraid of, it is important to realize that fear is completely normal. Even good. For specialists of various professions, fear is a wonderful feeling that allows you to develop, strive to be better, work on yourself. Many people are afraid to speak in public, to communicate with significant people to do something new.

And even great people experience a sense of fear. Do you know that Napoleon Bonaparte once, when he went out to his army and wanted to make a speech to the soldiers, fainted?

If you are familiar with the feeling of fear, then I suggest, firstly, to rejoice. This means that you are an adequate person. And, secondly, if you are really sure that this is the activity that you want to do, then try to switch the focus from yourself to clients. After all, you want to help people, and not treat yourself for their money, right?

If so, then it's time to gain experience and become the best specialist for your clients.

Conclusion: remember that it is normal to be afraid, and switch the focus to customers.

No person is born a qualified specialist, with experience, regalia and a line of clients. Everyone is forced to take their first steps, try new activities, learn, overcome their fears and move forward. There are many people around who need qualified help and support. And, perhaps, right now, while you are sitting and being afraid, they are looking for their specialist, very similar to you.

Just start, do, work!

Editorial opinion may not reflect the views of the author.
In case of health problems, do not self-medicate, consult a doctor.

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Many yesterday's graduates of psychological universities ask this question: how to start a practice as a psychologist? where is this found? Yes, of course, there are opportunities for volunteer work, there are social services, all this gives experience.

But the minus of such an experience is that rarely does anyone help to understand and digest this experience sufficiently. After all, it’s not enough to try to advise a person, you also need to realize what you couldn’t see in the client’s situation, where you could quickly help the client realize something important, were there any mistakes, etc.?

And volunteer organizations most often cannot provide clear supervisory support, and practice for beginner psychologists looks in this perspective in a Spartan way: he swam out - well done, he did not swim out - there is nothing to help him with.

Passage of the practice of a psychologist even during the period of writing a diploma, he can have supervisory support (if the university is able to provide this), but everywhere this number of hours for practicing a psychologist at a university under supervision is very limited. After all, there are many students, and it is difficult to devote a lot of time to everyone.

And then, like this practice for beginner psychologists limited by the study schedule, work cannot be carried out until the moment when the student feels more or less confident in order to declare himself as an independent specialist.

Many psychologists themselves look for supervisors, which is right, but supervisors, in turn, are not eager to provide novice psychologists with clients: most private practitioners and centers have some kind of client flow, which still needs to be invested in maintaining.

And therefore, practice for novice psychologists often comes down to administrative, marketing, and other work not related to actual counseling. What disappoints many yesterday's students: there is a lot of work, but it is not possible to get closer to counseling.

For a real and paid job, you need experience, and even if you have it, you still have to invest a lot in yourself - in personal therapy, and in supervision, and in additional seminars, and so on. And to be able to invest, you need to earn something. And without experience, no one takes. And the question how to start a practice as a psychologist? spinning around in circles...

Knowing this whole situation firsthand, from the inside, I suggest that novice psychologists combine the possibility of postgraduate education with the opportunity to find a real practice for themselves, gain experience and be able to comprehend it.

We have free preliminary consultations in the project - for example, a forum, promotions with consultations by e-mail, free of charge, with discounts, and much more that could become a practice for novice psychologists, provide material for supervision, first of all.

As your level increases, you will have the opportunity to join our team and receive already paying clients, i.e. start working for money. At first, you will still have to continue to work under supervision, but over time, your expenses will decrease and your income will increase.

By and large, the practice for beginner psychologists consists of working under supervision, but here you have a real opportunity not only to learn how to work, but also to immediately find a professional niche in which you can continue your work, and not look for clients from scratch , again investing, for example, in your own website or in responses to forums where competition is very high.

You will also have the opportunity to undergo personal therapy, which, in my opinion, is necessary in order not only to start the practice of a psychologist, but also to work effectively in the future, increasing your level.

Each of the potential applicants for internships and training with a subsequent job opportunity will be able to choose an individual program of action - when, what, how much and at what pace.

This opportunity also does not imply a hard work schedule, and therefore it can be perfectly combined with some other job that can support you financially for now and give you the opportunity to start the practice of a psychologist, investing at first in continuing your education.

Online psychologist: distance learning and work

As you have already noticed, our project specializes in remote consultations. And such distance learning for psychologists will be interesting, first of all, to those who

• In the future, he plans to work remotely, not wanting to be tied to the same place;
• Wants to learn from specialists in different fields from different places, not limiting himself only to his city, to have more wide selection both training and clients;
• Who is inclined to write, and who is interested in promoting themselves in the future with the help of texts (special master classes can be organized on this topic);
• Who wants and is ready to master all the diversity modern technologies and "on you" with computer.

Distance learning psychologist in the format of our project will include the possibility of consultations with real clients, supervision, general intervisor and supervisory groups, personal therapy, writing workshops, the basics of Internet marketing and self-presentation of a psychologist.

The program for each will be compiled individually, depending on the personal data, requests and capabilities of each.

What are the minimum requirements for such distance learning for a novice psychologist:

• Completed psychological high school
• Willingness to perform a test task (answers to clients' questions in writing)
• At the initial stage - readiness for paid supervision and personal therapy
• Interest in writing texts, stable literacy, good Russian