Clinical Psychologists: Salary, Job Description, How To Become One, and Quiz

Job description

Clinical Psychologists diagnose or evaluate mental and emotional disorders of individuals through observation, interview, and psychological tests, and formulate and administer programs of treatment.

• Interact with clients to assist them in gaining insight, defining goals, and planning action to achieve effective personal, social, educational, or vocational development and adjustment.
• Identify psychological, emotional, or behavioral issues and diagnose disorders, using information obtained from interviews, tests, records, or reference materials.
• Use a variety of treatment methods, such as psychotherapy, hypnosis, behavior modification, stress reduction therapy, psychodrama, or play therapy.
• Counsel individuals and groups regarding problems, such as stress, substance abuse, or family situations, to modify behavior or to improve personal, social, or vocational adjustment.

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Salary

Clinical Psychologists with little to no experience tend to make between $44040 and $58220 while the more experienced ones can earn over $100760 per year.

One of the easiest ways to increase your salary as a Clinical Psychologist is to move to a higher paying state like CA. Right now, the highest paying states for Clinical Psychologists are CA, OR, NJ, DC and HI.

However, a higher pay at CA doesn’t guarantee that you will make more because the living expenses at CA might be twice as high than where you are currently at now.

Three other factors that can increase your salary as a Clinical Psychologist is the degree you hold, the industry you work in, and lastly the company you work for.

Requirements

We asked other Clinical Psychologists what degree they had when they got the job and most of them said they had a PhD followed by a Post-Doctoral Training.

Other than that, we also asked them what did they major in and here are the most popular majors that came up.

Pros and Cons

Here are some of the pros and cons of being a Clinical Psychologist.

What is the job like

78% of Clinical Psychologists said they were satisfied with their job and 88% said they feel like their job is making other people’s lives better.

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Nicole Prause

I am a licensed psychologist, which means I have a PhD in clinical psychology. I am trained to diagnose adults struggling with any mental health struggles, but I specialize in the treatments I provide. I focus on couples therapy, sex therapy, and behavioral medicine. I love endurance athletics, so I structure my days to accommodate … Read More

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Dr. Bruce L. Thiessen

A San Diego-based community health center

I am a licensed clinical psychologist, presently practicing in a San Diego-based community health center. My typical day involves doing mental health screenings, administering psychological assessments, and providing psychotherapy to a wide diversity of mental health patients (whom I prefer to regard as mental health athletes. My day is never typical because I never know … Read More

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Dr. Supriya Blair, PsyD

Dr. Blair Psychology

My name is Supriya Blair, I’m a licensed clinical psychologist and founder of Dr. Blair Psychology, LLC in upstate New York. I provide mental health therapy, mindfulness training, and spiritual counsel to adults within my holistic telehealth practice. Being a clinical psychologist who is also her own boss is very fulfilling! I consider myself a … Read More

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Nancy B. Irwin, PsyD, C.Ht.

I feel like I have the best job in the world: I get to watch people heal and grow and attain their goals. I have a nice balance between a private practice in West Los Angeles and a luxury rehab facility in Malibu. I treat individuals and couples, mostly to overcome trauma and addictions. But … Read More

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Louis R. Franzini, Ph.D

Independent Practice of Psychology

Dr. Louis Franzini is a licensed clinical psychologist in Florida and California. Positives of being an active clinical psychologist: Opportunities to pursue clinical and research topics of personal interest and of potential benefits to people with problems in living. Opportunity to teach and mentor students who can go on to be productive health care professionals. … Read More

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Is this right for me

You can read more about these career personality types here.

People who are suitable for this job tends to like working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. They like searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally..

They also like working with, communicating with, and teaching people. They like helping or providing service to others.

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