Lately I’ve been thinking about getting a bachelor’s degree in psychology. I’ve always had an interest in it, and thought about majoring in it once upon a time, but decided that I couldn’t hack the math and science. The job I work at offers an educational discount which means that I can get a second B.A. for almost nothing (think, $20 a credit).
However, I already have a B.A. in English and an M.A. in creative writing. Will getting another B.A. help me out job-wise? I’ve considered getting a Ph.D. in English but after looking at the course catalog, I don’t really want to. (Plus, the educational discount is not as high for graduate courses. And it would take me five years and I don’t know if I’ll even be here that long.)
Mostly I would be getting this for my own enrichment, but it would be nice if having two B.A.s (from different institutions) would help me out on the job circuit too. Also, people with two B.A.s, how long did it take you to finish your second? I already have all my core classes from my first time around as well as a few psych classes so by my calculations I could be out in two years (if all the classes I want/need are available at times I can take them… I do have a full time dayjob). That seems like a pretty small investment of time and money for a pretty enriching payout.
So yeah, thoughts from people who’ve been here?
I’m not under the impression that a bachelor’s in psychology is going to get you much on the job market, but if you enjoy it and/or want to build toward an advanced degree and it won’t cost you much, go for it!
I’m tempted myself to get another bachelor’s because I too can take classes for free/cheap and I’m not terribly interested in any advanced degrees based on the bachelor’s I’ve got now, but anything I’d choose would radically different and therefore a whole lotta work, so … uhm.
Don’t expect to get much benefit from the BA in Psych, other than the personal enrichment. If you are looking for any mileage out of it, you might look into what prerequisites you’d need to get an MA/MS in Psych. That might put you in a better position to market yourself.
If you’re doing it for the pleasure of learning, or for acquiring something you might just get personal benefit from, by all means go full speed ahead.
You did mentioned the career aspect, though. I have a friend who has an MA in psych, and I was a psych major initially, before segueing into computer science. My advisor, fellow students, and my friend all said that the absolute minimum to really do anything in the field is a master’s degree, with the PhD preferred in most cases. Also, at the lower levels, pay ain’t that great usually. So from a career standpoint, I dunno if that would be a good use of your time.
It just depends on what y ou’re looking to get out of it.
(Aside: I didn’t see the math as all that bad, at least in the undergrad cirriculum. Statistics was about it, assuming you had college albegra already. I couldn’t say about at the grad level, but I don’t think it’s all that bad, either…but that’s just a WAG on my part, you’ll have to research it, sorry)
I’m nearing the end of a second Bachelor’s degree, in law (LLB). My first was in Economics (BEc). I’m doing it for a combination of general interest and career enhancement, since I can turn the LLB into admission as a solicitor if I do some extra study and work experience. I’ve found doing this current degree very rewarding.