Psychology or Human Resources?

[DecemberGirl23]

Hi! Long time lurker here… I’d love to get some input on my slight dilemma. I’m currently on track for a Psychology degree at TESU. My original end goal was to be a counselor. But career/job wise I fell into “business”working my way up from a receptionist role to management/HR, I don’t love it but I’m pretty good at it and I feel like it would provide a little more job security. So now I’m flirting with the idea of majoring in HR Management and maybe going the MBA or Industrial Psychology route. I thought about completing both a Psych and HR degree but not sure if that’s allowed at TESU. Or even getting an undergrad certificate in either field and putting more focus on my masters. What would you guys do if you were me? 

[rachel83az]

It will cost more, but I'm pretty sure that you should be able to complete both a BA Psych and a BSBA HR/Org. Management at TESU. At least, so long as you DO NOT graduate with the BA Psych before finishing the BSBA. As long as there are not more than 9 credits of overlap in the AOS between the Psych degree and the BSBA, you're good. I don't know which Psych courses you've completed already, but I think there should only be ~3 credits of overlap in the AOS. You can see suggested BSBA HR/Org Management courses here: https://degreeforum.miraheze.org/wiki/Sa...egree_Plan

As for what I'd do, it'd depend on how close you are to finishing the Psych degree, what your total budget is, and how much extra time you are/are not willing to spend pursuing a second degree. I would say it's probably worth getting both, just in case, but it really depends on a lot of variables.

[bjcheung77]

At the time being, my advice is to decide how you want to complete your education. Without much details, it's really going to be hard to provide you concrete steps forward. There are so many variables in play and each person will handle scenarios differently.

My recommendation is this: You can go the Pierpont BOG AAS with an emphasis (Business or Psych), UMPI AALS (Business or Psych - the opposite to BOG AAS), UMPI BLS with a minor or two of your liking, then work on a MAOL, MSML, MBA or MS Psych.

This is one of a few reasons I tell people to be more informative in their posts and should really follow the template and last post addendum when looking for advice, by providing more details we can help you get to the final educational goal better. Link: https://www.degreeforum.net/mybb/Thread-...Area-works

[davewill]

Assuming you actually decide to abandon your plan to be a counselor...

If you are close to finishing the Psych degree, I'd advise doing so. After the fact you can bolster your HR/business creds with either certifications, or that MBA you were talking about. Another nice thing about doing that is that you can go ahead and still pursue counseling if you find a good opportunity.

If you are still early in your degree pursuit, then maybe consider switching streams. I echo @bjcheung's suggestion of posting all your info in order to get better advice.

[dfrecore]

I personally think a Business degree is more useful; a Psych degree is only useful if you want to get a master's in Psych, and even then, you don't need a bachelor's in Psych to get into a Psych master's program.

I always think that getting a bachelor's in one field and then a master's in another is something to consider as well, so your thought of getting the BSBA/HR and then a MA in Industrial Psych is a good idea.