You've always been a cerebral person – considerate, thoughtful, and quick to offer a measured opinion. Chances are, the job you have now does not value your powers of deduction and counseling. Work is about getting paid, but a career should be about more than just making a living. For many psychology and counseling professionals, work means listening to people talk about their problems, and offering intelligent advice on a range of subjects from careers to drug addiction.
In the wealthiest, most advanced nation in the history of the world, over half of Americans are unhappy with the job they have. The Conference Board, a global market research firm, has conducted a widely-cited job satisfaction study for over 20 years. Their first survey, in 1987, found that over 61% of people were satisfied with their career. By last year, that number had dropped to an all-time low of 45.3%. It's not just that people aren't making enough money - many feel frustrated and bored by the repetitiveness of their workday and the meaninglessness of their daily tasks.
Many of us choose to define ourselves by what we do – "I'm a mechanic, I'm a sales manager, I'm a painter." What does it mean when almost 55% percent of us are unsatisfied with the career path we've chosen? Something is terribly wrong.
We at University Bound believe in the American Dream. We believe that every person has the right to do something they love. Beyond that, we believe that with dedication, smart choices, and hard work, every person has the ability to succeed. You may not be the next Carl Jung, you may be too old to go to astronaut school, and unfortunately, "pirate" is not a legitimate profession, but it's not too late to have a well-paid, fascinating, and service-based career in counseling or psychology.
These are interesting, desirable jobs in growing markets: most of our psychology school subcategories (psychology, psychology assisting, counseling, etc) have healthy occupational growth rates, significantly higher than the 8.2% expansion for all civilian jobs forecasted by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) for 2008-2018. The BLS predicts that industrial and organizational psychologist positions will expand by 13%, clinical, counseling, and school psychologists by 11%, and counselors of all kinds by 18%, to name a few. There are a growing number of good jobs available, but openings are expected to be competitive.