I feel like I picked the wrong major

juillet
Wed, 10 Feb 2016 04:58:01 +0000

Hi. I’m 29 years old, and sometimes I wish I could go back and change the things I did.

That’s not an uncommon feeling!

There are ways to change your career after college. For example, you like psychology, but also math. There is LOTS of math in psychology, and actually there’s a high need for people who can understand applied math and psychology and blend them together. There’s a whole field called quantitative psychology:

http://www.apa.org/research/tools/quantitative/

Even if you don’t like research, there are still quantitative roles you can play. You could get an MA in applied statistics - there are only a few math classes you would need to make that transition (three semesters of calculus and a semester of linear algebra, although if you had time to take 1-2 semesters of mathematical statistics and probability that could help). With a couple of basic computer science classes added to the mix, you could be a good candidate for a data science master’s. We need more data scientists who know how to draw conclusions and interpretations from the data they analyze.

You could also get a master’s in a quantitative area of psychology. One suggestion is this rather unique program at Columbia called Quantitative Methods in the Social Sciences:

http://qmss.columbia.edu/

Another is something like this MS in applied psychological methods at Fordham:

http://www.fordham.edu/info/21666/ms_in_applied_psychological_methods

I wanted to become a school psychologist but that requires a Master’s or a PhD. I can’t do that.

Why not? You can be a school psychologist with a master’s, and that only takes two years. You don’t need the PhD to do that.