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Fellows, please advice on the best/shortest/most affordable way to become a licensed counsellor/psychotherapist in the US (California, Oregon, or Washington). This is my end goal though I have not desided yet on the specialization. Now I think I would be interested in helping teens and adults, so maybe Marriage and Family Therapy would be the best area for me. Also I am interested in computer-human interaction and social psychology areas. As you can see, I am totally lost but very enthusiastic about changing my career and starting to help others.
Educational background: Bachelor's from a top university in Russia, specialized in Regional Studies and Translation of English and Spanish. NO psychology-related courses in the transcript, unfortunately.
Work experience - law administrative personnel, translations, marketing, customer support - 7 years in total.
As I think it doesn't make sense to go back to school for 4 years to get Bachelor's with major in Psychology, I need to find a way to complete prerequisites of Master's programs which as I understand all require several credits of Psychology and Statistics.
After an exhausting research of the plenty of universities and colleges in the US, I am now considering three possible starting points:
1. Post-bacc Certificate (1-2 years) at a University
2. Associate Degree (2 years) in a Community College
3. Pre-Masters program or Custom program at a University
What is the best way from your point of view?
I need to make sure that this career is a good choice for me before enrolling for a Master's or PsyD program. So I hope to get an entry-level job as an Assistant etc. after completing this first educational step. That is why the program should be eligible for OPT (as I am an international student).
Also it should be affordable (I think no more than $12000 per year including all fees).
Could you please advice any specific programs or colleges, preferably in CA or Oregon?
I would appreciate any thoughts on my case and would reply to any additional questions. Thank you!
Educational background: Bachelor's from a top university in Russia, specialized in Regional Studies and Translation of English and Spanish. NO psychology-related courses in the transcript, unfortunately.
Work experience - law administrative personnel, translations, marketing, customer support - 7 years in total.
As I think it doesn't make sense to go back to school for 4 years to get Bachelor's with major in Psychology, I need to find a way to complete prerequisites of Master's programs which as I understand all require several credits of Psychology and Statistics.
After an exhausting research of the plenty of universities and colleges in the US, I am now considering three possible starting points:
1. Post-bacc Certificate (1-2 years) at a University
2. Associate Degree (2 years) in a Community College
3. Pre-Masters program or Custom program at a University
What is the best way from your point of view?
I need to make sure that this career is a good choice for me before enrolling for a Master's or PsyD program. So I hope to get an entry-level job as an Assistant etc. after completing this first educational step. That is why the program should be eligible for OPT (as I am an international student).
Also it should be affordable (I think no more than $12000 per year including all fees).
Could you please advice any specific programs or colleges, preferably in CA or Oregon?
I would appreciate any thoughts on my case and would reply to any additional questions. Thank you!