OK a post that caused me to come out of lurking.
First, a little background (i.e. "what can he possibly add to this thread"):
I have a BA in psychology. I planned on being a psychologist, and still might if life allows it. I will be getting an MA in counseling and becoming a LCPC if I don't become a Psy.D. psychologist. I currently work as a "mental health worker" at a local psychiatric hospital. I did consider nursing as a possibility for a short time and looked into my options if I became a psychiatric nurse.
First a warning. I've noticed at my hospital that the nursing staff has a tendency to look down on the therapists and non-nursing/medical staff. Many nurses there give the CNAs with a non-credit/non-college level certificate more respect than the MA, MSW, Psy.D. and Ph.D. level therapists (be they social workers, OTs, psychologists, marriage and family therapists or counselors). One nurse's response to my plan (to get an MA in counseling and being a LCPC to start, and getting my Psy.D. and being a psychologist if I can) was that I should get an AA in nursing so that I can "really help people". Other facilities may not be as bad, but generally it does seem that hospitals don't value non-medical based professionals enough, psych hospitals being only a little better in this regard than medical hospitals.
So, what does this warning mean? Well, if you decide to be a therapist and you want to work in a hospital you have to be aware that you
might run into this. On the other hand, if you become a nurse you will see this in your co-workers at times and you have to decide if you can handle that if you have respect for psychologists and other therapists.
As for the MA in psych v. a MSN, I think you need to evaluate what you want to do and what each degree will do for you.
In most states someone with an MA in psych is very limited, with the exception of those with an MA in school psychology (though at the MA level they are usually limited to working in schools). You may be better off with an MA in counseling, or at least tailor your coursework in the psych MA to your state's licensing requirements for counselors or marriage and family therapists.
If you wanted to be a psychologist you shouldn't rule that out even if you are sick of research. After your degree in clinical, school, or counseling psychology you can be a fully licensed psychologist (after a year or two experience) and you need never conduct any more research if you are so inclined. Some Ph.D. programs emphasize research less than others (a good resource for info on programs is: "An Insider's Guide to Graduate Programs in Psychology",
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/157...lance&n=283155 ). Also, you may want to seriously consider a Psy.D. program where they really de-emphasize conducting research as it's emphasis is the professional practice of psychology.
As for the MSN, I looked seriously into that and found some advantages and disadvantages.
The advantages:
-In most states a psychiatric nurse practitioner can conduct therapy
-In most states a psychiatric nurse practitioner can have a private practice
-In most states a psychiatric nurse practitioner can precribe meds (usually
under an MD or osteopathic physician's supervision)
-Nurses, especially with an MSN, can move easily into hospital management
The disadvantages:
-If you want to do psych testing nurses cannot (you need to be a counselor or psychologist)
-If you want to run your own independent program, usually this is done by social workers, psychologists, or psychiatrists, not nurses.
-Admission to nursing school at all levels (even many AA programs) is very competetive due to limited numbers of slots so don't expect that it will be that much easier a route of entry than a mildly competetive Ph.D. or Psy.D. program in psychology.
-This is the big one so it will get its own paragraph:
If you have a degree in psych and work/life experiences geared towards admission to grad school in psych you are part of the way there. To get your MSN you will need to essentially start over.
At minimum you will need your RN before you can start. Whatever way you go (AA, BSN, Certificate/Diploma, or accellerated programs for people with a BA) you first need your pre-req courses. If you didn't take courses like Anatomy and Physiology and other pre-nursing courses you may have a year or two of coursework before you can even start a program. Then you have two years of clinicals (one in an accellerated program), and most people find the workload so high that they can't work, at least not full-time, while in clinicals. Then from there you need a year or two experience before most MSN programs will even consider you (though there are a handfull of accellerated MSN programs for people with BAs in other fields where you'll start out in a dual BSN-MSN program). Then you'll be able to start your 1.5-3 year MSN program.
AA or BSN to get your RN to start? I've noticed a few programs where you can do your MSN with an AA in nursing and your RN if you have a BA in another field. However, for maximum flexibility (most programs don't have that option) you need your BSN so this pre-MSN step will likely take you 2-3 years AFTER you finish your pre-nursing coursework.
So, it is very possible that a Psy.D. in clinical psych will take less time. Figure a year at least for pre-nursing courses if you didn't already take them. Two years of clinicals even if you go the AA route. Possibly another year of coursework if you go for your BSN and not your AA. Now we are at 3-4 years when you get your degree/RN. Now you need a couple years work experience before you can even start your MSN program, then about 2 years later you can finish your degree and finally start to do therapy. In a typical Psy.D. program you are done your coursework (essentially) after 4 years and then you start your one year (often paid) internship. So if you aren't already an RN you are looking at 5-6 years before you can conduct therapy (that's even if you get into an MSN program right out of RN school with no experience as a RN, which is unlikely). An MA in counseling or psych+ counseling or marriage and family therapy licensure will run you 2 years of school and a year of work experience for the license (you can work and do therapy without the license, the license is needed for independent work or private practice). A Psy.D. in clinical, counseling, or school psychology will take about 5 years including the internship.
Anyway, good luck whatever route you choose.
Would you like to comment?
MSN in Psych Nursing or MA in Psych?
