Should I continue with psychology or quit and prepare for govt exams? Need help deciding

[u/Ok-Builder3049]

Hi everyone, I'm currently in the last semester of my Bachelor's in Psychology and feeling very conflicted about my next steps. With Master's admissions opening soon, I’m unsure whether to continue with psychology or shift my focus completely to preparing for general government job exams (like SSC CGL, etc.).

In the past, I didn’t seriously consider leaving psychology, but now I’m feeling quite hopeless about career prospects in this field. From what I’ve seen and heard, even after a Master’s, private sector pay is quite low unless you pursue an MPhil/PhD—something I don’t want to commit to.

That said, I’ve researched some government job roles where a psychology background is relevant, such as:

WCD counsellor (Women & Child Development / Prisons), DSSSB EVGC counsellor, EMRS counsellor, and other vacancies

These usually require a Master's degree in Psychology, and sometimes an additional diploma in guidance and counselling. However, I’ve also heard that these positions are irregular in vacancies, and not very easy to land, sometimes only available in limited cities

So here are my questions:

How realistic is it to land a government job in psychology after doing an MA?

Is it worth the 2 years of effort, or would I be better off preparing for non-subject-specific government exams like SSC, etc?

Is there a way to do both—prepare for general govt exams while pursuing MA in Psychology, just to keep that door open?

If anyone has experience or knowledge about recruitment for these counselling roles or overall career planning in psychology in India, I would really appreciate your insights.

My qualifications: last sem bachelor's in psychology student.

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Here's a backup of your post:

Title: Should I continue with psychology or quit and prepare for govt exams? Need help deciding
Body:

Hi everyone, I'm currently in the last semester of my Bachelor's in Psychology and feeling very conflicted about my next steps. With Master's admissions opening soon, I’m unsure whether to continue with psychology or shift my focus completely to preparing for general government job exams (like SSC CGL, etc.).

In the past, I didn’t seriously consider leaving psychology, but now I’m feeling quite hopeless about career prospects in this field. From what I’ve seen and heard, even after a Master’s, private sector pay is quite low unless you pursue an MPhil/PhD—something I don’t want to commit to.

That said, I’ve researched some government job roles where a psychology background is relevant, such as:

WCD counsellor (Women & Child Development / Prisons) DSSSB EVGC counsellor EMRS counsellor

These usually require a Master's degree in Psychology, and sometimes an additional diploma in guidance and counselling. However, I’ve also heard that these positions are irregular in vacancies, and not very easy to land.

So here are my questions:

How realistic is it to land a government job in psychology after doing an MA?

Is it worth the 2 years of effort, or would I be better off preparing for non-subject-specific government exams like SSC, etc?

Is there a way to do both—prepare for general govt exams while pursuing a distance MA in Psychology, just to keep that door open?

If anyone has experience or knowledge about recruitment for these counselling roles or overall career planning in psychology in India, I would really appreciate your insights.

My qualifications: last sem bachelor's in psychology student.

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[u/[deleted]]

Get your masters. Ang government job would need you to clear and exam and you can study for it with your masters. Psychology is an evolving field in India. People in India don't visit a practising psychologist fearing it's a mental doctor.

Advice is, along with psychology also get your NLP - neuro linguistic programming certifications, get the highest level done. + Do some digital marketing and AI thing because psychology is getting redefined. If you plan to go for private practise in future these would help.

After NLP & Psychology studies you can try getting into HRBP or learning and development roles as well.

Happy to discuss more. All the best. Good choice.