What Can You Do With a Bachelor's in Psychology? Top Careers & Skills to Build Your Future

Psychology consistently ranks as one of the most sought-after college majors across the nation. Yet a common misconception persists: that a bachelor’s degree in psychology leads only to graduate school or a narrow set of psychology and counseling careers. While some roles do require an advanced psychology degree, there are many meaningful career opportunities you can pursue directly after earning your BA in psychology.

Recent national analyses from the American Psychological Association (APA) Center for Workforce Studies indicates that psychology remains one of the largest undergraduate majors, with more than 140,000 psychology bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2024 alone, and many of these graduates moving directly into the workforce in roles spanning management, social services, counseling support and other people-focused careers. A psychology degree offers a broad, interdisciplinary foundation in research methods, evidence-based practice, and critical thinking that can be applied across many industries.

Psychology is a beautifully complex field of study. At times, it seems like a patchwork collection of other disciplines. Other times it's evident that it is its own wildly unique field of study,

explains Dr. Vanessa Holtgrave, Associate Professor of Psychology at UMass Global.

Continue reading to explore valuable soft skills and top career paths for psychology graduates, including roles in business, social services, mental health counseling, and how graduate programs in psychology can help you advance.

In-Demand Skills You Gain With a Psychology Degree

A bachelor’s degree in psychology helps you build a powerful mix of human-centered and analytical skills that employers value across many industries. Through coursework, research projects, and applied learning experiences, you’ll practice using psychology to understand people and solve real-world problems.

Some of the most in-demand skills students gain include:

• Critical thinking and problem-solving: You learn to analyze complex situations, consider multiple perspectives, and develop creative, evidence-based solutions grounded in research methods and data.
• Research and data analysis: Psychology programs emphasize methods of inquiry, data collection, and statistical analysis, preparing you to interpret findings and inform evidence-based decision-making in many roles.
• Communication and interpersonal skills: Frequent writing, presentations, and group discussions strengthen your ability to explain ideas clearly, listen actively, and build rapport with people from diverse backgrounds.
• Cultural competence and empathy: Exposure to diverse perspectives and human development across the lifespan helps you understand different experiences and respond with cultural agility and compassion.
• Teamwork and collaboration: Group projects, labs, and associated clubs help you practice working on teams, giving and receiving feedback, and managing shared responsibilities.
• Time management and professional habits: Balancing coursework, research, internships, and work helps you build strong organizational skills, accountability, and a growth mindset.

These high-value skills make psychology graduates adaptable and well-prepared for roles that involve building relationships, managing cases, leading teams, or supporting clients — both within mental health professional settings and in fields like business, education, social services, and research.

Top Career Paths With a Bachelor's in Psychology

As a liberal arts and sciences degree, psychology is an interdisciplinary major that opens doors to a wide variety of career opportunities. Most programs emphasize:

• Critical thinking and problem-solving skills grounded in research methods and statistics.
• Understanding of human development, mental processes, and emotions and behaviors across the human lifespan.
• Training in communication, cultural competence, and collaboration through coursework and applied experiences.
• Exposure to evidence-based approaches to understanding mental illness and mental health conditions.

These focuses ensure psychology graduates are prepared for roles that require analyzing information, working closely with people, and supporting individuals and communities in a variety of settings, including private practices, community agencies, schools, and corporate environments.

There is nothing that you will ever do in your life that won't involve psychology. Everything we do in love, work, and within ourselves or others involves psychology,

says Dr. Marnie Elam, Distinguished Professor of Psychology at UMass Global.

Business Careers for Psychology Graduates

A bachelor’s degree in psychology can be a strategic asset in the business world because it helps you understand how people think and behave at work and in the marketplace. This perspective is valuable in roles that involve hiring, training, organizational development, and analyzing consumer behavior.

Psychology graduates often excel in business roles such as:

• Data Analyst – applying research methods and statistics to interpret data and inform evidence-based decisions.
• Human Resources Manager – using insight into emotions and behaviors to recruit, develop and retain employees.
• Training and Development Manager – designing learning experiences that support employee growth and career goals.
• Research Analyst or Management Analyst – studying organizational systems, employee engagement and customer trends to recommend improvements.

In these positions, your background in human development and social psychology can help you navigate team dynamics, support change initiatives, and communicate effectively with diverse stakeholders. This makes a BA in psychology a strong foundation for people-centered roles in corporate, nonprofit, and public sector settings.

Mental Health and Counseling Psychology Support Roles

Many students are drawn to psychology because they want to understand mental illness and mental health conditions to help others improve their well-being. While clinical roles as licensed mental health professionals — such as psychologists, licensed mental health counselors, or marriage and family therapists — require graduate programs in psychology or counseling, there are many essential support roles accessible with a bachelor’s degree.

A BA in psychology can prepare you for entry-level mental health professional roles such as:

• Behavior Analyst – supporting behavior change plans, often in applied behavior analysis settings.
• Case Manager – coordinating services for clients with mental health conditions, substance use or social needs.
• Mental Health Program Specialist – assisting with program design, outreach and case management in behavioral health agencies.
• Autism Consultant – helping implement strategies that support individuals on the autism spectrum and their families.

In many behavioral health or psychiatric settings, additional training and/or certification is required for roles such as psychiatric technician or addiction counselor. These positions often involve working under the supervision of licensed mental health counselors, clinical psychologists, or social workers, providing direct support, basic case management, and monitoring of clients’ progress.

Psychology and counseling careers in these environments allow you to contribute meaningfully to the lives of individuals experiencing mental health challenges while gaining valuable experience that can strengthen applications to counseling psychology graduate programs later on.

Social and Community Service Career Paths

Social and community service is another area where a bachelor’s in psychology offers a strong foundation. Professionals in this field advocate for individuals and families, coordinate services, and manage programs that address complex social, health and mental health conditions.

Some common social services roles for psychology graduates include:

• Social and Community Service Managers – overseeing programs that support children, families and communities, often in nonprofit or public agencies.  
• Case Worker or Case Manager – connecting clients to housing, healthcare, counseling psychology services and other resources.
• Adoption Services and Family Protection Specialist roles – supporting family stability, safety and long-term well-being.

Social and community service managers often work in settings where they collaborate with mental health counselors, school counselors and other mental health professionals to design and deliver services. While some leadership positions in social services may prefer or require an advanced psychology degree or related graduate programs, many entry-level roles are accessible to BA psychology graduates who are interested in case management and program coordination.

Additional Career Paths for Psychology Graduates

Beyond business, social services, and mental health, psychology graduates work in a wide range of other fields where an understanding of human behavior and research methods is valuable. For example:

• Education: Roles such as admissions counselor, secondary school teacher, or educational consultant rely on strong communication skills and the ability to support student development.
• Research: Lab or research assistant positions draw directly on your training in evidence-based practice, data collection and analysis.
• Public policy, sustainability, and emerging industries: Jobs such as Wind Energy Development Manager, Regulatory Affairs Manager, and Brownfield Redevelopment Specialist and Site Manager demonstrate how analytical skills and systems thinking can translate into unexpected paths.
• Sports and coaching: Roles like coaches and scouts make use of motivation, performance psychology and interpersonal skills to support athletes and teams.

These options illustrate how the skills developed in a psychology program — critical thinking, problem-solving, cultural agility, and effective communication — can be applied well beyond traditional psychology and counseling careers.

Job Outlook and Salary Snapshots for Psychology-Related Roles

Psychology graduates pursue many people-focused careers, and recent national data shows solid demand and competitive salaries across several of these paths. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) notes that workers with a psychology degree are often employed in areas such as management, community and social services, education, and healthcare, with a median annual salary around $60,000 as of 2023. BLS also projects strong growth in mental health-related employment between 2022 and 2032, as demand rises for services addressing mental health and substance use. Remember that salaries can vary significantly by state or region, employer, years of experience, and whether you earn an advanced psychology degree.

Here is a brief snapshot of job outlook and national salary ranges for some of the psychology-related roles mentioned in this article:

• Social and community service managers had a median annual wage of about $77,000 in May 2023, with most earnings between roughly $48,800 and $127,500 dollars; employment in this field is projected to grow around 6 percent from 2024 to 2034, faster than average.
• Substance abuse, behavioral disorder and mental health counselors earned a national mean annual wage of about $60,000 dollars as of May 2023, with jobs available in mental health centers, community agencies, hospitals and private practices.
• Across psychology specialties, psychologists earned a mean annual wage of about $101,000 dollars in 2023, with clinical and counseling psychologists averaging roughly $106,500 dollars; overall employment of psychologists is projected to grow about 6 percent from 2024 to 2034, faster than the national average.

These national figures offer helpful benchmarks as you explore psychology and counseling careers, but your individual earnings will depend on your location, specific role, employer type, and whether you continue into graduate programs in psychology or counseling.

How a UMass Global BA in Psychology Prepares You for These Careers

The UMass Global online Bachelor of Arts in Psychology empowers you to understand people and apply that insight across many career paths. You’ll receive comprehensive support while conducting independent research projects and exploring electives that connect directly to real-world work environments.

Students can choose from several degree pathways that align with their interests and long-term career goals:

• BA in Psychology, Child Psychology concentration – focuses on human development from infancy through adolescence, with emphasis on developmental challenges and current treatment options for children with autism and other disabilities.
• BA in Psychology, General Psychology concentration – offers a broad foundation in core psychological science and electives across multiple subfields, preparing you for diverse career opportunities and future graduate study.
• BA in Psychology, Industrial/Organizational Psychology concentration – emphasizes workplace behavior, motivation, and organizational dynamics, ideal for careers in HR, corporate training, recruitment, and organizational development.
• BA in Psychology, Preparation for Advanced Study in Counseling concentration – builds a strong academic base in counseling topics and clinical mental health issues to support your next step into counseling psychology and related graduate programs.
• BA in Psychology, Preparation for Advanced Study in Psychology concentration – designed for students planning to pursue psychology graduate programs or other advanced psychology degrees focused on research, teaching, or specialized practice.

Throughout the program, you’ll learn from highly qualified faculty who are specialists in their respective fields and active in research and practice. A thriving psychology club and opportunities to connect with experts can help you make deeper connections between coursework, career opportunities, and your next steps after graduation.

Take the Next Step Towards a Psychology Career

The UMass Global online Bachelor of Arts in Psychology empowers you to gain a deeper understanding of yourself and others while preparing for a wide range of career opportunities. You’ll receive comprehensive support as you complete independent research projects, explore electives, and connect classroom learning to real-world psychology and counseling careers.

Students in the program have the chance to:

• Learn from highly qualified faculty who are specialists in their respective fields and stay active in research and practice.
• Participate in a thriving psychology club that connects them with experts, peers, and potential mentors.
• Choose specialized degree concentrations, such as child psychology or industrial/organizational psychology, and explore course pathways that lead to advanced studies in psychology.

If you’re ready to turn your interest in mental health, human behavior, and research into a meaningful career, explore more about UMass Global’s online Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. Ready to apply or have more questions? To request information and speak with an enrollment coach today, call (800) 746-0082.

As your goals evolve, you can also advance your education with a psychology or counseling master’s program that prepares you for licensed mental health professional roles and other advanced psychology and counseling careers.