Is It Possible To Practice Psychology Without Having A Master’s Degree In Spain?
Since its birth, Psychology has been arousing more and more interest in the population, and more and more students have decided to dedicate their lives to the profession of psychologist.
But, although in many other professions only university training is enough to get to work, it has been observed that in Psychology it is increasingly necessary to continue with postgraduate or even master’s studies. Now, is it essential? Is it possible to practice Psychology without a Master’s degree in Spain?
Let’s look at it throughout this article going case by case, depending on the different professional opportunities there are.
Being a psychologist without having a Master’s degree… is it possible?
To answer the question of whether it is possible to practice Psychology without a Master’s degree in Spain, it is first necessary see what the current legislation establishes and the existing training plans.
In this sense and as indicated by the Official College of Psychologists, it is established that obtaining the Degree or Bachelor’s degree in Psychology enables the person who obtains it to carry out professional practice as a psychologist, something that legally allows the graduate or licensee to practice all the competencies and functions of the profession with the sole exception of those linked to the health sector. Thus, the answer to the question that gives its name to this article depends largely on what.
There are many sectors and branches of psychology in which a recent graduate can technically practice. One of them is the educational and psychoeducational field: With the graduate or bachelor’s degree you can work in different types of centers and provide various guidance and training.
In addition to this other area that can be practiced only with the degree is the Human Resources sector and the psychology of organizations which allows you to enter elements such as performance assessment, advice and guidance or personnel selection.
Research is also a sector to take into account, as well as legal, social and psychosocial psychology or areas such as sports psychology. In short, practically anyone.
But the same is not true of what is probably the most popular field of psychology: Clinical and Health Psychology. Ultimately, many of the people who wonder if it is possible to practice in Psychology without having a Master’s degree do so based on the idea that this discipline is mainly oriented towards mental health.
Work in Clinical and Health Psychology
In this case, the degree or bachelor’s degree is not enough to be able to practice (except for those people who have received the health authorization before 2014, although obtaining it required meeting certain requirements). To work in the healthcare field it is necessary have passed the Master’s Degree in General Health Psychology or have obtained the title of Specialist in Clinical Psychology after having passed the competitive examinations and the PIR training.
Beyond this, other professionals could work as psychotherapists as long as they do not carry out clinical activities (neither the assessment/diagnosis nor the intervention/treatment typical of clinical or health psychology) and carry out their work based on a theoretical model and validated methodology.
Yes, but with difficulties
Can someone who has a university degree or bachelor’s degree in Psychology call themselves a psychologist? As we saw previously, technically the graduate or graduate in Psychology is qualified to carry out the tasks of a psychologist in most areas.
However, The fact that you can legally does not mean that a graduate or graduate will have it so easy to do it. Ultimately, almost all companies will highly value the candidacy or services of someone who can prove that they have been trained in a more specific and specialized way in the sector for which they are in demand than someone who has general knowledge of the discipline.
And it must be taken into account that Psychology is a discipline that arouses great interest in a large number of people, something that means that every year there are a large number of people enrolled in the university degree in Psychology. This implies that Once you finish your studies, there will be a large number of psychologists willing to look for work. Although they are increasingly necessary in more and more areas, in general the demand for employment exceeds the supply: there are many possible candidates for each position, that is, there is a lot of competition with a similar level of training.
This does not mean that it is impossible, since in the end not only training is important but also work and life experiences, personality and the suitability of the profile to the needs of the contractor. But in most cases there is a strong screening in job offers that means that many candidates who do not have post-graduate training are not as valued as those who do.
In short, it is likely that sooner or later graduates will be able to find some employment, but it is true that generally Those who have more training, such as postgraduate and master’s students, will have a great advantage at the time of being hired.
In addition to all of the above and regardless of whether we have a Master’s degree or only Bachelor’s or Bachelor’s training, we must take into account that professional practice as a psychologist requires a minimum requirement in addition to university training.
And it is established that the exercise of psychology requires the professional’s registration in the Official College of Psychologists, as long as their services are dedicated directly to the citizen (other actions may not require such membership). And depending on the case, it may also be necessary to have civil liability insurance (as long as we are working with patients) and/or to be registered as self-employed (if we work on our own).
