m




 

 m m 
  
 

Ú  !"#$$%!&#!'#!'(
`Ú Study hard and get the best grades you can͙ Honors would be great!
`Ú Start getting to make yourself known to your professors because you will
need their recommendation in the future- talk to them, tell them your
aspirations
`Ú §ook around for some activities that you can volunteer with especially in
helping others
`Ú Honors is good because you have already as thesis or a major written paper
`Ú airect PH.a or MA? It would be good if you have an idea
`Ú Set realistic expectations

Ú !)*$+!,-.%"$+*!!/+
`Ú uSA
@Ú Mheck that uSA graduate schools are APA-accredited
`Ú Australia and u (Mommonwealth)
`Ú §ocal (NTu- EP and MP, NuS ʹ Mlinical, Private schools ʹ a lot! Be careful)

ºÚ "% )#-!0$.+$+

`Ú uSA has the leading edge as far as education goes͙ but it͛s a bit expensive
compared to Australia. u is always expensive!
`Ú aifference in method of delivery (i.e. teaching methods)
`Ú uS schools require the GRE. All schools require letters of recommendation.
They also look for any related work experience in the field.

Ú !*/ *!!/+12 #%2
`Ú ÿor local schools, work experience matters 
`Ú NuS- MA in Mlinical Psych
`Ú NTu
NIE ʹ MA in Educational Psychology
`Ú NTu
NIE- MA in Mounseling Psychology
 `Ú NTu
NIE- MA in Mounseling and Guidance
[Ú IMH hires BA Psychology , looks for cream of the crop, honors
[Ú „
s also hire fresh grads, but also cream of the crop
[Ú If you have a degree and hired at IMH ( will provide necessary training ) , able to
ask for sponsorship (bonded) to further studies

rÚ m.)0$+*!!/+/!*// 
`Ú Mheck for accreditation locally and home country
`Ú §ook at the course syllabus, compare with other equivalent programs

‰Ú  3$+!,+3$*)/)$+"+"// ,.!4!0$.+$+"#)0$.+) 

`Ú Mlinical and counseling psychology are close cousins, distinction is that
clinical psychologists do psychometrics, counseling psychologists don͛t
`Ú Mounseling psych also need to know neuropsychology to better assess
clients ʹ shows how advanced school is
`Ú Education psychology ʹ can still have various specialties (e.g. autism,
developmental issues, determining curriculum, etc͙)
@Ú - Just major headers, further specialization in each branch
@Ú Master
Ph.a holder has own specialty
`Ú aevelopmental mostly to do with kids, closely related to Education psych
`Ú I

especially needs a Ph.a, more of a consultant role
`Ú Health psychology ʹ stress management, eat healthy ʹ a seemingly simple
but widely relevant field ( more preventive measures targeted at the
public)
`Ú „ery important field as health is a paramount problem in society
`Ú Stress is a huge causal factor in diseases
`Ú ork mainly with hospitals or ministry or yourself
private
`Ú orks together in a team for a patient
`Ú ÿorensic psych ʹ prison system, hospital, does assessment of inmates
`Ú Neuropsychology ʹ definitely hospital environment, do head testing if you
have a trauma
`Ú Sport psychology- mainly in sports school, not too popular, but still an
avenue of consideration
`Ú Psychometrics - area of testing
 `Ú Experimental ʹ in research field

$#$./

`Ú Singapore is still in infancy stage of psychology. However, our generation has

potential to carry through and develop the field of psychology in practice
`Ú Esp for 3rd
th years: what does future hold for you - you need to (eg.
internships) knock on doors just like everyone else; with a higher degree, it will
be a little easier
`Ú
bvious choices are MMS ( ÿamily Services Menters, „ountary elfare Menters,
call up to volunteer your services)
`Ú A nightmare looking for internship places after graduation, as number of grads
exceed demand
`Ú Most graduate schools will look for internship sites for you, but need to be
proactive if things aren͛t happening for you
`Ú hat you want, school may not provide (as above ʹ be proactive, get to know
people in the field if you get the chance)
`Ú As a beginning psychologist, goal is to learn across and not deep ( specialization)
ʹ not in first 3 years
`Ú Beware that your interests
passion may change (there͛s absolutely nothing
wrong with that)
`Ú orking credentials (as in volunteering) start from now!

),$!,3+ *!/!-)+)#3.)0$3.*)*$!#/ ,!.4 +$/,5!$.+.$6")$%),,$.$#

`Ú ao clinical supervision a lot

`Ú aecides own working time
`Ú aoes a lot of coaching of counseling
`Ú Took 10 years
`Ú Every month 2-3 calls of reference from other sources
`Ú Takes about 5 years to career to specialize
`Ú Income mainly from teaching
`Ú Enjoy counseling

!.&)#-$#0).!#4$#m/*$+).$3+ *!/!-)++

`Ú Government (MMS, M
E, MINaEÿ, Police, etc͙)

 `Ú Hospitals
`Ú ork as a team, not independent practitioner (in hospitals)
`Ú School Mounselors
`Ú „
͛s
`Ú Example of „
͛s are: a)Moral home, b) children͛s society - especially those that
has autistic kids (ed. psych in NIE)
`Ú Private Practice
-Ú ith an assistant and work partner
`Ú ÿresh grads normally in IMH, MMM ( normally an assistant, normally will get you
trained up)
`Ú Masters a lot better chances
`Ú PHa
Psych a comes in as an advantage during mark at saturation

å"$+)!#+

Ú )+.$.3 7!"8
-Ú Most common clients are children ( autistic) and mentally ill adults who need
expressive arts
-Ú §aselle has Masters of Art Therapy
-Ú Art therapy a transitional phase of building rapport
-Ú Mlinical or counseling psychology does not matter (as a ͞major͟)
-Ú Any practicing psychologists can take a course in Art Therapy. Every now and
then, there will be guest trainers coming to Singapore. Nearest country to
seriously learn Art Therapy is Hong ong. It will take a year. Mlasses in different
phases.

Ú !')43!.#)+%!)#-$+)+33$.8
-Ú A thesis is worth the effort
-Ú If it works, it will help a lot in your future career, especially if you want to attend
graduate school
-Ú ÿor commonwealth schools, they will ask for a thesis
-Ú They want to see if you can perform, thesis is a sample of your performance
-Ú References in application papers are actually called during selection procedure
-Ú NIE: goes by GPA, but may also look at your thesis
 -Ú NIE: oversubscribed by 3 times the spaces available, maintain standard well,
rejects current students when students do not meet the mark during study

ºÚ !$+920$ )#*/)#)*/3+ *!/!- 8

No, only 12 spaces in NuS. They may increase class size in the future. uncertain.

/!+)#-+$4$#

Psychology is a field that reaches out to people. ÿor now, you should start planning your
career path so that you can ultimately be where you set out to be. I would like to
encourage people to excel and advocate Ph.a.

a
 
    
      
      
  
 
    

    
     

 

           


 
   

 
    
          
   

%%))!#/!44$#+

͞ hat if my grades aren͛t that great and I am not the ͚cream of the crop͛?͟

Mr Ho͛s response:

aepending on which year you are in; do the best you given what you have left. Try to
get an overall letter grade of a B. If (for example) you have a M graduating grade, then
locally, try to get some working experience first. The first job may not be directly related
to psychology per see, but is somewhat related and that is fine. These jobs are usually
with „
͛s such as Mhildren͛s͛ Society, etc. usually, jobs with children are easier to find.

§ocally, there is also Nanyang Poly which offers a post graduate diploma in counseling
for those of you who are interested in this area. ÿor those who want to strictly be a
psychologist, check out the private schools. Murrently, there is only one school that
offers a MA in Mlinical Psychology, James Mook university. There are a few private local
(off-shore university) schools offering a MA in Mounseling. A list of these accredited
schools can be found on the Singapore Association for counseling website.
If you choose to apply abroad, then you need to select 10 schools to apply and see
which school accepts you. There is a book for Australian universities that ranks
universities. They also will indicate their admission requirements.
r just write to the
university direct. It͛s the same for the uS. State universities have a lower admissions
criterion. It also depends on where you apply in the uS. The coast states and ͞popular͟
universities usually have a higher admissions criterion. In the uS, MA in Psychology is
quite standardized.
nce again, you must do due diligence in checking out prospective
schools that you are interested in.

So all is not lost if your undergraduate grade is not fantastic. hen you get accepted
into the MA program, then you MuST really shine and do well then and you will be fine.

Singapore will always have a competitive job environment. That is why it is important to
have an edge in what you do ʹ be it specialty or otherwise. Regardless whether you are
the ͞cream of the crop͟ or not, if you have passion to help people, it will show and that
also counts.