B.A. in Psychology...can I only get my Master's in same area?

Question

I'm close to getting my B.A in Psych (very close, meaning this is my last semester)....does this mean i can only get my Master's in Psych also?
I maybe--kinda--might be leaning towards sociology now....
I know these two areas of study are closele related, but, i'm still wondering if the area you obtain your BA= area to get Master's??
please help!!!!!!

Answer 1

The degree itself isn't as important as the coursework. If you have an engineering bachelor's degree, you can still go for a Ph.D. in clinical psychology as long as you've got a decent background in that area (usually just from taking some classes). However, you're not going to be able to jump from one discipline to another if you have no relevant background knowledge.

For a switch from psychology to sociology, it will probably make you more competitive if you have some sociology courses under your belt, but some programs might be fine with you just having a strong background in the social sciences, even if you don't have a lot of sociology courses.

To resolve some of the disagreement in earlier answers: if your grad program decides that your background is lacking in certain areas, you will have to take some additional courses (either grad or undergrad) to catch up. However, just because your degree is in a different area doesn't mean the program will automatically make you do this. In the event you DO have to take extra courses, since you will also be taking the regular classes required for the degree, you can either take the catch-up courses simultaneously, or space them out over additional semesters to avoid taking on too much at once. Obviously, the former doesn't require extra time, but the latter does. With a Ph.D program, you have more time to work those classes into your schedule without adding time to your overall stay in the program since you typically don't have a full courseload after the first few years. This is harder to accomplish for a master's program since there are fewer semesters, and you will typically have a full courseload the whole time.

Answer 2

Actually, the people above are wrong. Yes you can get a Master's degree in any other subject area you want (if you get accepted into the program), but NO, it will not take you longer by changing fields of study. I am in a clinical psychology doctoral program (5 years), and I go to school with people who have bachelor's degrees in tons of different areas of study (English, Marketing, Engineering, etc) and we are all in the same exact program and have the same exact requirements. A bachelor's is a bachelor's....

Answer 3

I don't think you would have any problem going from a Psych BA to a Sociology Master's because they are both social sciences. Many undergraduate institutions don't even have a sociology major so they wouldn't expect everyone entering their program to have that degree.

Answer 4

No. But you might have to make up some deficiencies in the area you dont have a degree in. Bottom line is that it will take you longer to get your masters by switching study areas.

Answer 5

No. They require which you have a definite style of credit interior the section which you extremely opt to do your masters in, yet no longer which you have a level in that field. verify with grad faculties to ascertain what proportion credit they want you to have (in all hazard interior the 18-24 semester hour selection) and whether or no longer they require particular instructions. some faculties will admit you provisionally in case you do no longer meet the credit requirement and could substitute your status to common as quickly as you effectively complete some courses - in many circumstances your first semester. Your terrific direction of action, considering the fact which you haven't any longer graduated yet, is to easily remember to've the psych credit which you elect by ability of the time you graduate. the biggest clarification for doing it is that in case you're admitted provisionally you will oftentimes no longer qualify for for investment out of your branch (GA or TA jobs) to your first 365 days. There are not a large style of sources of grad college investment, so which you do no longer opt to shrink your self out of a significant one in case you have a decision. solid success!

Answer 6

this guy above is right... you may be able to skip around the basic courses since you already have them... but you are going to have to take the entire course schedule along with everyone who has just started at nowhere... good luck, ..