Is a PsyD or Masters better for working with child/adolescent clients in the psych field?
For context: I’m graduating from community college soon to transfer to a 4-year and major in psychology. I want to help youth clients who deal with a lot mentally understand themselves better, and I’m open to doing that through just therapy, but being able to conduct diagnosis evaluations is a big dream of mine as someone who was diagnosed with AuDHD as a teenager. I especially want to help girls and people of color who are more likely to face barriers to accurate diagnoses.
I could barely afford living in a college town for undergrad and it’s part of why I moved back home for community college. I have no idea how I would afford a PsyD program after getting my psychology Bsc. All of the PsyD programs that are near me (OR/WA USA) are way too expensive. My parents wouldn’t be able to pay for any of it. And if it costs ~45k a year, I certainly wouldn’t be able to afford it if I barely make that much which just a bachelors, which will probably be the case.
Washington State University does have a PharmD program I’m intrigued by, and that’s where I’m transferring to. I haven’t done much research on masters programs, but I know I have a lot more options locally and affordability wise if I seek out a masters and just take the therapist route. Any advice?