Psychologist jobs in the US?

[S-Kyo]

Hi guys, 

I know that this page is not for general information about Clinical Psych, but I think you still can help me. 

I have applied for political science PhD programs in the US. I am planning to marry with a clinical Psychologist and come to the US together. She is currently a master student in Clinical Psyc program in my country while working as a psychologist in an institution. 

So, I am struggling to convince her for coming with me in case of acceptance from a US university. She -at least for now- is not interested in Ph.D. program, instead, she wants to work in the field. And because of visa F1-F2, she cannot work in the US. I tell her even if you do not want to do Ph.D., you still have chances to work with professors in their laboratory, or you still can find certificate programs, which are vital in Psych. 

Am I wrong or too optimist? I have known other fields that if a student wants to work or attend a professor's courses, the professor would not refuse if she is qualified and eager to learn. 

She does not want to lose her job in our country, but I do not want to come to the US without her. 

I know it would be great if she has some experience in the US as a Psychologist, and when we return she will find a much better job in our country. However, she is not sure about it. 

The question is what can a clinical psychologist do in the US without doing PhD? She took several certificates in my country and she is planning to take more certificates in the future. Are they expensive in the US? If so, how much, for example? As a PhD student in a US university, can I introduce my wife to the Psych department and ask if they can help her, or if she can attend professors' under or grad courses?

I really need to hear your views.

Thank you and good luck with your application. Wish me luck too 

[psych0]

36 minutes ago, CPRel said:

Hi guys, 

I know that this page is not for general information about Clinical Psych, but I think you still can help me. 

I have applied for political science PhD programs in the US. I am planning to marry with a clinical Psychologist and come to the US together. She is currently a master student in Clinical Psyc program in my country while working as a psychologist in an institution. 

So, I am struggling to convince her for coming with me in case of acceptance from a US university. She -at least for now- is not interested in Ph.D. program, instead, she wants to work in the field. And because of visa F1-F2, she cannot work in the US. I tell her even if you do not want to do Ph.D., you still have chances to work with professors in their laboratory, or you still can find certificate programs, which are vital in Psych. 

Am I wrong or too optimist? I have known other fields that if a student wants to work or attend a professor's courses, the professor would not refuse if she is qualified and eager to learn. 

She does not want to lose her job in our country, but I do not want to come to the US without her. 

I know it would be great if she has some experience in the US as a Psychologist, and when we return she will find a much better job in our country. However, she is not sure about it. 

The question is what can a clinical psychologist do in the US without doing PhD? She took several certificates in my country and she is planning to take more certificates in the future. Are they expensive in the US? If so, how much, for example? As a PhD student in a US university, can I introduce my wife to the Psych department and ask if they can help her, or if she can attend professors' under or grad courses?

I really need to hear your views.

Thank you and good luck with your application. Wish me luck too 

Why are you assuming you know what's best for her career? She is the one who's actually in this field. Clinical psych is incredibly competitive in the US, so related (or 'stepping stone') positions like working in a lab are also not easy to acquire. Even if she could legally work in the US, licensing requirements would likely make it impossible for her to practice as a therapist.

[Clinapp2017]

5 hours ago, CPRel said:

Hi guys, 

I know that this page is not for general information about Clinical Psych, but I think you still can help me. 

I have applied for political science PhD programs in the US. I am planning to marry with a clinical Psychologist and come to the US together. She is currently a master student in Clinical Psyc program in my country while working as a psychologist in an institution. 

So, I am struggling to convince her for coming with me in case of acceptance from a US university. She -at least for now- is not interested in Ph.D. program, instead, she wants to work in the field. And because of visa F1-F2, she cannot work in the US. I tell her even if you do not want to do Ph.D., you still have chances to work with professors in their laboratory, or you still can find certificate programs, which are vital in Psych. 

Okay, so if she wants to work in the field and cannot work in the US, you kind of have a huge problem from the get-go here. Master's-level clinicians exist in the USA (e.g., social workers, licensed professional counselors, etc.), but the laws of licensure are quite rigid and vary by state to state. You should look into licensure laws in the state in which you plan to attend university. Even so, this may not matter at all for her if she cannot work on an F1-F2 visa. Even if she could work, she would not have the tital of "psychologist" in the USA, as that is reserved for the PhD level here. 

Also, I am new to the field (PhD student in clinical psych at a very competitive program), but certificates aren't really all that important in the USA... certainly not a requirement nor better than licensure and following the steps. 

5 hours ago, CPRel said:

Am I wrong or too optimist? I have known other fields that if a student wants to work or attend a professor's courses, the professor would not refuse if she is qualified and eager to learn. 

 

This may or may not be the case. Often, because of seating, this cannot be accomodated. Paying students come first, so if there are only 20 seats in a course and they are all filled, she cannot even audit the course even if the prof liked her. 

 

5 hours ago, CPRel said:

She does not want to lose her job in our country, but I do not want to come to the US without her. 

Well..... that's quite a diometric opposite. I don't personally see a good compromise. 

5 hours ago, CPRel said:

I know it would be great if she has some experience in the US as a Psychologist, and when we return she will find a much better job in our country. However, she is not sure about it. 

The question is what can a clinical psychologist do in the US without doing PhD? She took several certificates in my country and she is planning to take more certificates in the future. Are they expensive in the US? If so, how much, for example? As a PhD student in a US university, can I introduce my wife to the Psych department and ask if they can help her, or if she can attend professors' under or grad courses?

Her experience in the USA would not be as a psychologist (see above comments). She would, at best, be a master's level counselor. Her degree may not even be transferable for licensure here... and like you said, she cannot work anyways. The best thing she could do on the F1-F2 (according to you) is learn. I know nothing about visas, so I am considering you the topic expert. Perhaps you could pursue a different visa for her. 

 

You could attempt to introduce her to the psych dept, but unless your dept already has that relationship that is one you will be forging on your own as a grad student (a.k.a. the absolute bottom of the academic totum pole). They are not obliged to help, and they may not help. It is hard to say, though.

 

Best wishes for you and your future wife... this sounds like quite the conondrum, so hopefully a good solution is reached for both of you. 

[S-Kyo]

12 hours ago, Clinapp2017 said:

Okay, so if she wants to work in the field and cannot work in the US, you kind of have a huge problem from the get-go here. Master's-level clinicians exist in the USA (e.g., social workers, licensed professional counselors, etc.), but the laws of licensure are quite rigid and vary by state to state. You should look into licensure laws in the state in which you plan to attend university. Even so, this may not matter at all for her if she cannot work on an F1-F2 visa. Even if she could work, she would not have the tital of "psychologist" in the USA, as that is reserved for the PhD level here. 

Also, I am new to the field (PhD student in clinical psych at a very competitive program), but certificates aren't really all that important in the USA... certainly not a requirement nor better than licensure and following the steps. 

This may or may not be the case. Often, because of seating, this cannot be accomodated. Paying students come first, so if there are only 20 seats in a course and they are all filled, she cannot even audit the course even if the prof liked her. 

 

Well..... that's quite a diometric opposite. I don't personally see a good compromise. 

Her experience in the USA would not be as a psychologist (see above comments). She would, at best, be a master's level counselor. Her degree may not even be transferable for licensure here... and like you said, she cannot work anyways. The best thing she could do on the F1-F2 (according to you) is learn. I know nothing about visas, so I am considering you the topic expert. Perhaps you could pursue a different visa for her. 

 

You could attempt to introduce her to the psych dept, but unless your dept already has that relationship that is one you will be forging on your own as a grad student (a.k.a. the absolute bottom of the academic totum pole). They are not obliged to help, and they may not help. It is hard to say, though.

 

Best wishes for you and your future wife... this sounds like quite the conondrum, so hopefully a good solution is reached for both of you. 

Thank you very much for your helpful comments.

As you said, she will not practice her job in the US in any case because of the visa. So what I am more concerned about is whether she would be able to develop her skill in the US despite not to go to Ph.D. studies. I feel I am selfish and trying to convince her for my own purpose, which I do not want to be and this makes me sad. I know that even a short experience (Voluntary-Certificate- as a guest in a lab- taking courses- doing research etc) about psych would be a great considering how US experience important in my country(developing country) when we returned to the home (I lived two years in the US previously). Would it be possible is the question. Would she be able to develop her skills and learn things that are important to her career? I know some friends who are currently doing their Ph.D. in US universities, and after one year preparation of GRE/TOEFL, their wives also start their Ph.D. in the same school or nearby. However, in my case, she does not want to do Ph.D. now, but she does have a plan to do Ph.D. in the future. Her professors also encourage her to aim Ph.D. I do not want to be seen as a person "I know best for you," but I really do not know what to do.

 

[deactivated]

2 hours ago, CPRel said:

Would she be able to develop her skills and learn things that are important to her career?

If her goal is to become a practicing clinician instead of a researcher, and she doesn't want to live in the US long-term, then it depends on your country. Some countries are strict about where their clinicians receive their education. You would have to look at your country's rules about licensure and certification and see how many hours of coursework, assessment, treatment, etc. is necessary to receive her desired level of licensure or certification. In which country where these hours are done might also be important.

Also, psychology (especially clinical and counseling psychology) is very culture-specific. Just because I train at the best school in the US (hypothetically), doesn't mean I would be the best clinician in your country. I wouldn't know your country's customs and social norms. I also likely wouldn't know the language, which would be an enormous barrier. It's usually best to study in the country where you want to practice. In your partner's case, it would be your home country. 

Edited February 26, 2018 by corbeau

[rising_star]

Mod note: split these posts into a new thread to prevent distraction from the 2018 applications thread.