What Can You Do With a Bachelor's in Psychology?

What Careers Could I Pursue With a Bachelor’s in Psychology?

The right psychology-related career depends on your interests, strengths, and long-term goals. The options are broader than many students expect.

Because of that variety, it’s important to choose a path that aligns with both your interests and the level of education you plan to pursue. BLS lists a bachelor’s degree as the typical entry-level education for some occupations that draw on psychology-related skills, and a master’s or doctoral degree for others.

Keep in mind that working as a psychologist is different from working in a psychology-related field. BLS lists a doctoral or professional degree as the typical entry-level education for clinical and counseling psychologists.

Jobs for a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology

The roles in this guide fall into five of the 23 major occupational groups in the federal Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) system, which BLS uses to classify workers. The table below summarizes each role, and descriptions of each group and role follow.

^{Sources: Wages are national median annual wages from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Typical entry-level education and related work experience come from the BLS Education and training assignments by detailed occupation, 2025. Occupational groups follow the 2018 SOC. The education column shows the typical degree level for each occupation, not a list of accepted majors, so a bachelor’s in psychology alone may not meet every employer’s or credential’s requirements.}

Management is a broad occupational category that includes roles focused on setting plans and policies, directing daily operations, and overseeing people, programs, products, or services. For psychology bachelor’s degree holders, some management paths may be especially appealing because they build on strengths in communication, motivation, behavior, leadership, and understanding how people work within organizations. Read more below about specific roles that may be a good fit, such as Social and Community Service Manager and Training and Development Manager.

Community and social service occupations are centered on promoting wellness and helping people cope with or overcome challenges. For psychology bachelor’s degree holders, this category may be especially appealing because it includes roles that draw on communication, empathy, behavior, advocacy, and direct support for individuals and communities. Read more below about specific roles that may be a good fit, such as Health Education Specialist, Probation Officer, or Correctional Treatment Specialist.

Educational instruction and library occupations primarily focus on sharing knowledge through teaching, training, and other instructional methods. For psychology bachelor’s degree holders, this category may be appealing because it includes roles that draw on communication, learning theory, and motivation, and that involve working directly with students or adult learners. Read more below about specific roles that may be a good fit, such as Adult Basic and Secondary Education and ESL Teachers, and Career and Technical Education Teachers.

Healthcare occupations focus on helping people maintain and improve their well-being. For psychology bachelor’s degree holders, this category may be especially appealing because it includes roles that draw on communication, empathy, behavior, documentation, and direct patient or client support. The two healthcare roles in this guide have different typical entry-level education: BLS lists a bachelor’s degree for recreational therapists and an associate’s degree for health information technologists and medical registrars. Read more below about specific roles that may be a good fit, such as a Recreational Therapist and a Health Information Technologist, or Medical Registrar.

Business and finance can offer a surprisingly strong path for psychology bachelor’s degree holders, especially in roles that combine day-to-day operations with an understanding of people and decision-making. Positions in areas like human resources, training and development, market research, fundraising, and event planning can be especially appealing because they draw on skills such as communication, behavioral insight, persuasion, and relationship-building. Read more below about specific roles that may be a good fit, such as Human Resources Specialist and Market Research Analyst.

Social and Community Service Manager

According to O*NET OnLine, social and community service managers plan, direct, or coordinate the activities of a social service program or community outreach organization. Their tasks can include directing staff and volunteers, evaluating whether programs are of appropriate quality, building relationships with other agencies and community organizations, planning budgets, and directing fundraising. It's a role that rewards both people skills and organizational thinking. This role may appeal to psychology bachelor’s degree holders because it combines people skills with leadership, problem-solving, and an understanding of how services can support behavior change and well-being.

Training and Development Manager

According to O*NET OnLine, training and development managers plan, direct, or coordinate an organization’s training and development activities and staff. Their tasks can include analyzing training needs, conferring with management to identify those needs, planning and providing staff development programs, preparing training budgets, and evaluating how well training programs work. This role may appeal to psychology bachelor’s degree holders because it combines communication, motivation, behavior, and leadership with a focus on helping people learn and succeed at work. If you're drawn to helping people grow professionally, this role puts psychology's insights about motivation and behavior to direct use.

Health Education Specialist

According to O*NET OnLine, health education specialists develop and run health education programs for individuals, families, and communities. Their work can include conducting health needs assessments, preparing educational materials, delivering workshops and presentations, and evaluating how well programs perform. This role may be especially appealing to psychology bachelor’s degree holders because it draws on communication, behavior change, empathy, and an interest in prevention and public well-being.

Probation Officer or Correctional Treatment Specialist

According to O*NET OnLine, probation officers and correctional treatment specialists provide social services to help rehabilitate people who are incarcerated, on probation, or on parole. Their tasks can include interviewing probationers and parolees to assess their progress, writing progress reports, conducting pre-sentencing investigations, recommending rehabilitation and treatment plans, and arranging treatment or other services. This role may appeal to psychology bachelor’s degree holders because it combines communication, behavioral insight, documentation, and work with people facing complex life challenges. It can be meaningful work for those drawn to criminal justice and behavioral change.

BLS also lists moderate-term on-the-job training as typical for workers in this occupation to become fully competent.

Adult Basic and Secondary Education and ESL Teacher

According to O*NET OnLine, adult basic education, adult secondary education, and English as a second language instructors teach out-of-school youths and adults in basic education, literacy, English as a second language, or high school equivalency classes. Their tasks can include setting lesson objectives, tracking student progress, adapting teaching methods to students’ needs and abilities, and encouraging students to keep learning. For career changers, it can be especially rewarding to help other adults navigate a major transition.

Career and Technical Education Teacher

According to O*NET OnLine, career and technical education teachers at the secondary school level teach occupational, vocational, career, or technical subjects. Their work can include teaching the knowledge and skills of a specific occupation through lectures, demonstrations, and lab, shop, or field work, planning lessons, and supervising work-experience programs. This role may appeal to psychology bachelor’s degree holders because it combines teaching, motivation, communication, and applied learning. If you are aiming for a public school position, check your state education agency’s requirements before you apply.

Recreational Therapist

According to O*NET OnLine, recreational therapists plan and oversee leisure-based treatment programs, such as sports, outings, drama, social events, and crafts, for patients in settings such as hospitals and nursing homes. Their tasks can include teaching activities such as sports, dance, music, or art, developing treatment plans based on patients’ needs and therapy goals, and recording patients’ progress. This role may appeal to psychology bachelor’s degree holders because it combines empathy, behavioral and communication skills, and direct work with people in supportive care settings.

A psychology degree on its own does not meet the requirements for the Certified Therapeutic Recreation Specialist (CTRS) professional certification. According to the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification (NCTRC), applicants with a bachelor’s degree in another major must also complete required therapeutic recreation coursework, including at least 18 semester credit hours (six courses) in recreation therapy or therapeutic recreation. They must also complete a supervised internship or qualifying paid professional work experience and pass the NCTRC Certification Exam.

Health Information Technologist or Medical Registrar

In the federal SOC, BLS defines health information technologists and medical registrars as workers who apply knowledge of healthcare and information systems to help design, develop, and analyze computerized healthcare systems, and who abstract, collect, and analyze patients’ treatment and follow-up information. Some also design databases that help monitor diseases or educate staff on using healthcare information systems. For psychology graduates who want to work in healthcare but prefer a less clinical path, this can be an option to explore.

Human Resources Specialist

According to O*NET OnLine, human resources specialists recruit, screen, interview, and place workers in an organization. Their tasks can include conducting new-employee orientations, administering benefit plans, handling employee relations issues, and matching applicants to job requirements. This career may be a strong fit for psychology bachelor’s degree holders because it draws on communication, interpersonal insight, conflict management, and understanding workplace behavior.

Market Research Analyst

According to O*NET OnLine, market research analysts and marketing specialists research market conditions to help organizations understand their customers and plan marketing. Their tasks can include designing surveys and questionnaires, analyzing data on customers’ preferences and buying habits, tracking industry trends, and reporting findings to management. This role may appeal to psychology bachelor’s degree holders because it combines research skills, behavioral insight, communication skills, and an interest in decision-making.

What if you continue your education?

A bachelor’s degree in psychology can be a starting point for the careers above. For students who want to expand their options, continuing on to graduate or professional school can lead to additional career paths with more specialized responsibilities.

Depending on your interests, you may choose to pursue a career as a clinical social worker, clinical counselor, marriage and family therapist, school counselor, or psychologist. BLS lists a master’s or doctoral degree as the typical entry-level education for these occupations, along with an internship or residency for several of them.

If you’re exploring what these paths look like, the resources below can help you learn more about common education requirements, licensure steps, and degree options:

• Students interested in school counseling can learn more about how to become a school counselor and explore CACREP-accredited counseling programs.
• Those considering marriage and family therapy can read about how to become a marriage and family therapist and review online MFT master’s programs.
• Readers interested in psychology careers can learn how to become a psychologist and explore reasons to earn a master’s in psychology.
• Students drawn to social work can read about how to become a licensed social worker and explore CSWE-accredited online MSW programs.

Frequently Asked Questions About a Bachelor’s in Psychology

Can you become a therapist or counselor with only a bachelor’s in psychology?

BLS lists a master’s degree as the typical entry-level education for substance abuse, behavioral disorder, and mental health counselors and for marriage and family therapists, along with an internship or residency. If you want to work in these fields, a master’s program in counseling or marriage and family therapy is the typical next step. To see what a specific state asks of counselors, start with our guide to counseling licensure.

Which of the jobs in this guide pays the most?

Among the ten roles in this guide, training and development managers had the highest national median annual wage in May 2025, at $133,000, according to BLS OEWS data. BLS also lists 5 years or more of related work experience as typical for entering that occupation, so it is not usually an entry-level role. Of the roles in this guide for which BLS lists no related work experience, market research analysts and marketing specialists had the highest median annual wage, at $78,760.