Computer Science vs Psychology

[nikolay]

Hello,

TL;DR at the bottom,

I am a 23 year old Computer Science student, currently finishing my third year and I also work part-time as a web developer. I am relatively happy with my job but I can't say the same for my university. Some of the subjects I study are awfully depressing, pointless and hard for me (mainly the math-related ones). Even though overall I feel motivated at my job, I feel I could find something I am more passionate about. I am currently considering becoming a mental therapist, because I like the idea of helping people overcome personal issues and I'd be passionate to work in the field of psychology.

I am facing 2 dilemmas here:

First, I don't know which career path would ultimately make me more fulfilled: software development or being a therapist. One I have 5 years of experience in, the other, I haven't tried besides reading several books. The thing that inspired me to want to pursue this career was the self-help books I used to read in order to overcome some of my personal issues and I don't know whether if it wasn't for these issues I'd still want to work in the field of psychology.

Second, if I choose to pursue psychology, I'd have several options with the universities I choose and when to enroll. The thing is that to become a therapist it would take 7+ years (a bachelor and a masters's degree + extra training) and during this time I must continue working to support myself financially.

Enroll into university A in a psychology major this year. University A is the best in my country (Bulgaria), the prize of the tuition is normal but the exams are hard and one has to devote a lot of time on them. This would definitely be my choice if I didn't have to work.

Enroll into university B in a psychology major this year. University B has higher tuition prices but the exams are a lot easier and working while studying would not be as stressful. The other drawback is that B is not as prestigious as A

First finish my Computer Science bachelor and then enroll a psychology major in either A or B. This would be the most logical choice but this means I'd have to put up with the math subjects I so much hate for another year.

A huge drawback of becomming a psychologist is the low income, while software developers in my country are very well-paid.

I'd like to hear what would you guys do in this situation. Thanks in advance.

TL;DR

Interested in Web development and Psychology. Can't decide between the high income of being a developer vs the potentially more fulfilling work of being a therapist.

[Chumbimba]

Lol I am doing both computer science and psychology from two different Universities. You need to pay the bills (Computer Science) while working on your passion (Psychology) the two will fuse together eventually but pick the cheaper university because it really doesn't matter where you get your degree in the long run. Experience > Book Knowledge

[supremeyingyang]

@nikolay

Thank you a thousand times for making a tldr!

What prevents you from making a degree in psychology and learn some Programming on the side? You can program your own Statistics. If you need more money, you can become a Dev.

I guess we will need spealized Programmers in the future. For example Psychology-Programmers.

Be aware that you need a Master or even Doctor in Psychology to get money for easily.. But you can always hustle.

Edited July 8, 2020 by supremeyingyang

[nikolay]

@modmyth Thank you for your answer! Yes, theoretically we can do double majors but one of the requirements is that you must have high gpa, which I don't. Same reason I don't get a scholraship (which either way is too low to cover a good part of my expences).

I like your idea of job shadowing. I've talked to several people in this fields, but I've never visited a university lecture, because of shyness. I hope, after covid is over I'd be able to visit a lecture

Edited July 8, 2020 by nikolay

[Artsu]

In my opinion you should stick with the computer science. I would say psychology if i thought psychology degrees were good, but i think theyre soso. Too much study to change career paths to a field which i dont think is well developed.

It sounds like youre pretty set if you stick to the path youre on, and any sacrifices made might be for a similar overall satisfaction level. So unless you really dont like computer based work, i see no reason to change. 

[hamedsf]

I love both equally but I'd prefer computer science 

[bejapuskas]

If you think computer science classes are not meaningful to you, perhaps psychology would be even worse. Here is why I think that:

I sat the AP psychology exam this year which is similar to the things you study in your 1st year of uni when you take psychology as one of your subjects. I took psych, because I didn't want to take a natural science by any means, probably because I like the social sciences teacher at my school a lot. However, the module I enjoyed the most was in fact the one about neuroscience. This might be for several reasons, but several of my classmates from the AP psych course reported the same thing.

For me, it was because I only like certain parts of the other modules, like developmental psych and positive/humanistic psych, but the majority of the course was focused on things like sleep, measuring intelligence, perception, senses, history of psychology, which you will not use as a therapist mostly. You might say that being able to recommend a good sleep schedule to a client is necessary, but you can study that on your own without getting a degree in psychology, that would just be a waste of time.

Perhaps a better investment of time would be in med school, so that you can become a psychiatrist afterwards, be more flexible and earn more money, a psychiatrist who has studied at med school doesn't need a psychology degree, at least not in my country. Perhaps in a couple of years, psychiatrist will be able to work with psychedelics too, so if that's something you resonate with, you might go for that. There are some ways to get into med school in a non-traditional way without taking bio chem at high school.

But if that's not what you want to do, I recommend you develop the skill of being present with a person and listening focusingly without judging and thinking about your perspective or ideas. That would immediately make you more capable of helping than 99 % of people. You will need to get some experience to become good at this, but it won't take like a stupid amount of time like a university degree, plus it's enjoyable and more meaningful. This forum is a good way to start developing your skills of being able to provide good quality help, watch how others react to your advice, perhaps it sucks dick.

Also what you can do is to take a course in psychotherapy, hypnosis, humanistic therapy, gestalt therapy or whatever you want to do. Keep practicing meditation/yoga/pranayamas to make sure you stay conscious and happy. Don't try to fix others' lives without fixing your own, just don't do that. You might easily mess up somebody's life. These courses will make you qualified to become a therapist. They cost money but I guess university cost money too in many places and probably more than a course. You could also do like med school + psychotherapy courses. My friend who is a therapist told me, that his psychology degree is basically useless, but the psychotherapy course provided a lot more value to him. 

Don't lose your sensitivity and high moral principles, there are people out there who really need help, you will need to really give up yourself to be good at this.

[heatnikki]

I think, it depends on your purpose and interests. I chose CS and don't have any regrets. I'm a final year student and combine work and study right now. It's not so easy but with some help of writing service here I hope to get good grades and save my time. These guys are real professionals in writing and proofreading.   

Edited August 6, 2020 by heatnikki