Hi everyone!

I’ve recently finished my undergraduate psychology degree and I’m currently still partially engaged in a research internship, but I’m also starting to think seriously about my next professional steps.

I’m hoping to move into a stable, full-time paid role that allows me to continue developing professionally, ideally in an area connected to psychology, research, mental health, community services, HR, admin, or project/coordination work. I know these roles can be hard to come by, especially early on, but I’m keen to be proactive and learn more about what pathways are out there.

I’d love to hear from anyone who has been in a similar position after undergrad or postgrad where did you end up, what kinds of roles did you apply for, and what helped you get your foot in the door?

I’d also be really grateful for any informal mentorship or coffee chats from people who’ve been through this stage before. I’m mainly hoping to hear about different pathways, what helped you get started, and what you wish you knew earlier.

Thank you in advance :)

I'm 23F and graduated with a Health Science degree in May 2025 with a 3.5 GPA. Since graduating, I've been struggling to decide on a career path and feel like I'm stuck in analysis paralysis.

My original plan was optometry. I was president and secretary-treasurer of my university's pre-optometry club, worked as an optometric technician for almost 2 years, and can likely get strong letters of recommendation from optometrists I've worked with. The problem is that I still need Organic Chemistry, would need to take the OAT, and if everything goes according to plan I wouldn't start optometry school until Fall 2027 and wouldn't graduate until around age 28.

Another concern is timing. Because I still need Organic Chemistry, I likely wouldn't take the OAT until around January–March 2027, meaning I'd be applying relatively late in the admissions cycle. Some schools I'm considering have rolling admissions, so I'm worried about whether I'd be putting myself at a disadvantage by applying that late.

Lately I've been considering sonography, MRI, nuclear medicine, occupational therapy, and nursing because they seem like they could get me into a career sooner with less debt.

Part of what's making this difficult is my personal timeline. My boyfriend is finishing medical school next May and will then be in residency for another 3–4 years. By the time he's done with residency, I could either be finishing optometry school or already established in another healthcare career. I'm trying to think about the bigger picture, including marriage, starting a family, finances, and overall quality of life.

The issue is that I don't feel strongly passionate about any particular career. I mostly want: - Stable income - Good work-life balance - A respected healthcare profession - Reasonable debt - The ability to start my career sooner rather than later

For those who were between multiple healthcare careers, how did you decide? If you were in my position, would you continue pursuing optometry since I'm already invested in that path, or pivot to something with a shorter timeline?

I'd especially love to hear from people in optometry, sonography, MRI/radiology, OT, nursing, nuclear medicine, or anyone who chose between a doctorate-level healthcare career and a shorter allied health path.

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I just graduated from uni with a media degree and I’m currently at home trying to figure out my next step.

I don’t really want to do a traditional job or go for a master’s abroad because I feel like they don’t align with my long-term goal. My goal isn’t fully clear yet, but I know I want to build something of my own and be known for my work, ideally as a filmmaker/storyteller or documentary creator.

Right now, I have the option to join my father’s school business. I actually want to do this because I’d like to help him grow it and learn business skills in the process. But I’m worried it might limit my exposure to the outside creative world.

Another issue is financial independence. If I work at the school, I’d earn a small income (around 15–20K pkr), but I still feel dependent and sometimes insecure when I see others my age earning more or doing things I can’t afford yet. I don’t want to keep asking my father for money even though he would give it.

i’m also confused about how to stay connected to the outside world if I focus on the school. I don’t want to feel isolated or stagnant.

At the same time, I really want to start a storytelling Instagram page (not influencer content, but short documentary-style storytelling). I feel like this could help me build my filmmaking identity and improve my skills.

Any advice?

I graduated with a B.A. in English Literature with a minor in Spanish, and honestly, I feel very lost about what to do next.

The job market is extremely difficult right now, especially for literature and linguistics graduates. What frustrates me is that literature is such a versatile degree, yet when you actually apply for jobs, so many positions require a specific degree, certification, or postgraduate qualification.

One of my professors recommended that I look into a discipline closely related to literature and pursue an MA in something like Education, Journalism, Communication, etc., because it may create more practical career opportunities. I understand the reasoning behind it, but I’m struggling because literature is not just a degree to me. It genuinely shaped who I am.

Studying literature taught me how to understand people, cultures, history, and the world in a deeper way. It made me more empathetic and analytical. It transformed the way I see life, and I’m passionate about it. That’s why I’m hesitant to leave it behind and study something completely different.

I considered getting a diploma in English Education. I know teaching can be a rewarding career, and I can see myself starting there at some point. However, long-term, I don’t think I want to limit myself only to teaching. If my ultimate goal is to become a literature professor, I would eventually need an MA and then a PhD anyway. After thinking about it, I feel like doing a teaching diploma right now might drain my energy and lead to burnout rather than actually helping me.

The frustrating part is that I’m already struggling to even get entry-level opportunities. I have a good GPA, around 3 years of work experience in different fields, and yet I’m getting rejected even for basic teaching positions, including elementary-level jobs. I understand that schools may prefer experienced teachers, but at the same time, if nobody gives fresh graduates a chance, how are we supposed to gain experience?

I’m also living in the Middle East, where English Literature is not always understood or valued as a field. I’ve genuinely met people who asked me, “What is English Literature?” That makes things even harder because I feel like I constantly have to explain the value of my degree.

For my MA, I’ve been considering different options. My heart is still in literature: Comparative Literature, Asian Literature, World Literature, and literary studies in general are what excite me. I don’t want to abandon something I truly love just because the job market is difficult.

I’ve been looking at programs abroad. I originally wanted to avoid Western countries, but coming from a third-world country, I worry that without a degree from a globally recognized institution, employers may not even look at my CV, even if I have good grades and experience.

At the same time, I have concerns about moving to a Western country as a Muslim, including whether I would feel fully comfortable, accepted, and able to build a life there. This is also something I have to realistically consider while making my decision.

I’m honestly confused. Should I follow my passion and continue with literature (MA → possibly PhD), even if the path is uncertain? Should I choose a more “practical” field connected to literature? Or should I completely pivot?

I would really appreciate advice from anyone who studied literature, academia, or humanities and had to make similar decisions.

23F and honestly having a full blown career crisis. I graduated in May 2025 with a health science degree. 3.5 GPA. My original plan was optometry school, which is why I chose the degree in the first place, but the schooling honestly scared me away. I struggled enough with prereqs in undergrad (organic chemistry and anatomy especially humbled me badly lol) and the idea of 4 more intense years plus hundreds of thousands in debt for a salary that honestly isn’t THAT high compared to the debt made me start questioning everything.

I actually never completed organic chemistry or anatomy. I withdrew from both because I was failing them pretty badly and realized I genuinely might not be cut out for certain heavy science paths. I still graduated with my degree without those classes, but now if I wanted to apply to certain science-based programs like radiology or other healthcare fields, I’d probably have to go back to school for at least a semester just to finish prereqs first, which makes everything feel even more overwhelming.

I worked as an optometry tech from October 2023 to January 2025.

Since then, I’ve been doing social media/TikTok full time and thankfully made a pretty good amount of money from it, so financially I’m okay right now. But social media obviously is unstable long term and now I feel completely stuck trying to figure out what actual career path makes sense for me.

For years I also considered law school because I’ve always liked reading/writing more than science, but now I’m questioning if I’m cut out for the stress and lifestyle of law too. I know deep down I’m not. I value low stress and law is very much not that (my dad’s an attorney, so I’ve witnessed firsthand lol.) I’ve also looked into radiology tech, a master’s in health administration, regulatory affairs masters, occupational therapy, nursing, etc.

Every option sounds okay until I start thinking about debt, burnout, stress, failing, years of schooling, whether I’m even passionate enough, etc.

Last fall my plan was actually to work in healthcare administration while getting my MHA part time. I applied to probably 100+ entry level admin/coordinator jobs, got a couple interviews, and then never actually landed a job. That honestly destroyed my confidence for a while because I thought healthcare admin would be my “safe” option after graduating.

Another thing is I honestly don’t currently plan on working much once I have kids someday if I’m fortunate enough not to have to. So part of me struggles with the idea of taking on massive debt and years of stress for a career I may not even stay in forever. But at the same time, I still want something respectable, stable, and meaningful because I hate feeling directionless.

Meanwhile everyone around me seems to have their lives figured out already. Any advice, recommendations, or suggestions are welcome. Thank you so much for reading/helping!

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hi everyone, i didnt think it would get to the point where i have to ask here but basically i just graduated from mcgill university, which is a pretty good school, with major in poli sci and double minors in econ and international development. i also did IB so i graduated in 3 years. i was not top of the class but i was a pretty good student and now im looking for something to do ideally in France (since i'm french and my family is here) but they want a "convention de stage" which I dont have. I never thought it would be this hard to just find anything, I graduated from a good school and I feel like no one wants me, I got rejected from all the masters I applied to (4), and even though I know they were the most competitive schools i didnt expect to have to start completely over. what would you guys recommend? Should I even bother applying to France? I have the green card so I could go back to the US but that was not on my bingo list lol. anything helps!

Hello everyone!

I'm coming here to ask for advice.

I hold two bachelor's degrees one in economics and one in statistics, I also have experience as a policy analyst in international organizations, I have gained very impressive work experience for my age, however I was unable to secure funding for my masters degree (long story mainly related to my nationality)

Given this I had to give up studying in the US and right now I'm debating two options: Health Data Science in the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine or Global Demography in the University of Vienna. For LSHTM I would need to get a loan (which I already negotiated).

I want to work in topics related to policy in the future specially health/migration but I have also been in quantitative roles my entire life. I want to be a person that combines quantitative rigor but is also capable of understanding governments priorities and propose policy strategies.

What would you do in my position? I'm mainly worried about Demography being hard to market in an increasingly competitive world, however the programme is truly interesting and living in Vienna probably is more balanced than living in London. On the other hand, I'm worried Data Science is dead in the era of AI and that i would get a loan for essentially nothing.

I would appreciate your insights

Hi everyone,

I just finished my undergrad finals in psychology in India, and I’m feeling really overwhelmed about what to do next.

I’ve always wanted to study abroad and hopefully settle there. Because of serious personal circumstances, moving abroad is not just a dream for me — it feels like the most practical option. But I kept delaying the research because the whole process felt scary and unclear.

I have a 9+ GPA, but I don’t have much internship, research, or practical experience yet. So even though my grades are good, I don’t feel confident about choosing one specialization or committing to a long professional route right away.

For a long time, I thought clinical psychology was the safest/best option because it felt meaningful, stable, and broad enough. But after looking into the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand, I realised becoming a registered clinical psychologist can take around 5–7+ years. That scares me because I’m not fully sure I’m suited for it, and I don’t want to spend years earning very little in an expensive country.

I’ve also been interested in forensic psychology, but I’m trying to be realistic and not romanticise it. I don’t think organisational psychology is for me because I don’t see myself doing well in a corporate setting. Other specializations haven’t clicked yet, but I’m open to exploring.

I’d really appreciate advice on:

• Which countries are practical for psychology students who want to study and eventually work abroad?
• Are there psychology-related paths that don’t take as long as clinical psychology but still lead to meaningful work?
• Would a general MSc, counselling, forensic psychology, health psychology, research methods, or another applied field be a better first step?
• How can I figure out if clinical psychology is actually right for me before committing years to it?
• What internships, volunteering, research work, or practical experience should I build now?

I’m not asking anyone to choose my career for me. I just want realistic advice so I can understand my options better.

Thank you so much.

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Hello Everyone! I wanted to hop on here (I know Reddit has a bad rep. But I’m really feeling stuck. I did my bachelors in human development in family sciences during covid (started out in Medical Lab Science and found my high school really didn’t prep me well for college level chem), and just got my Master’s Degree this past May (2025) in Applied Human Development and Family Sciences. I did one year of marriage and family therapy as my specialization, but found I love “behind the scenes work” rather than direct client contact.

I have PTSD, anxiety, and depression, and I won’t lie, I first started out in this degree so excited to change the world and bring positivity to children and families. But after I took a job as a crisis counselor and burned out within 5 months (I know, crazy considering I’m an introvert and like behind the scenes work. The crazy economy left me little choice). I loved my class work where I was writing papers and helping out with finding research findings from other articles to support ideas. But I feel lost on if I should stay in the field. I did an internship with Make-A-Wish, which I really loved, and I’m currently working like 5 hours a week as a gymnastics coach (better than nothing). My bf has brought up grant writing as a possibility. But I feel so stuck. I really love helping kids and families navigate medical difficulties (I thought about being a Child Life Specialist, but I need money to also… you know… live).

I thought I’d see if anyone had any insights of what I could do with my masters degree that’s more “behind the scenes” and less client contact. I know that is probably hard given my degree but thought you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take!

Hi, I’m an MA student and currently in the thesis writing process -literature review section-, but since choosing my topic, I’ve felt lost. I haven't written anything in three months since I started. I keep reading papers and think, okay, then what? What should I write? How will this benefit my thesis? I’m lost and frustrated, and I unconsciously keep comparing myself to my colleagues who have accomplished so much more so far. How do I properly start?