MEDIAN SALARIES WITH A MASTER’S DEGREE IN PSYCHOLOGY
Students who pursue graduate school and earn a Master’s degree in psychology are typically employed in the field of psychology as master’s level counselors and psychologists. The Occupational Outlook Handbook (1998) reports the median salary for full-time educational and vocational counselors at about $35,800.00 annually. However, The American Psychological Association’s Master’s Employment Survey (1996) report the following median starting salaries for full-time employment positions in different areas of psychology with a Master’s degree in psychology.
Please recall from your Quantitative Methods class (if you have completed the class) that the median salary is that salary that marks the point where half the salaries are above that salary and half the salaries are below that salary.
Because of geographical variations and the wide range of starting salaries in the different fields, only the median starting salaries are given here.
|
Employment Area in Psychology |
Median Starting Salary |
|
Research Positions |
$29,000 |
|
Director of Human Services, Clinical Psychology |
$26,000 |
|
Director of Human Services, Counseling Psychology |
$27,000 |
|
Director of Human Services, School Psychology |
$32,000 |
|
Administration of Human Services Delivery |
$33,000 |
|
Educational Administration |
$30,000 |
|
Other Administration |
$35,000 |
|
Applied Psychology |
$35,000 |
|
Other |
$28,000 |
Source: Landrum E. R. & Davis S. F. (2003). The Psychology Major: Career Options and Strategies for Success, 2nd ed., Pearson Education Inc.: Upper Saddle river, NJ.