Changing into Counselling Psychology in late 30s. Too late/total reset?
Hi everyone. Long post, sorry.
Late 30s, currently in a mid-senior corporate role having spent well over a decade building a career in communications. I've felt for years that what I'm doing doesn't generate societal value and doesn't help people.
I've been seriously considering retraining as a Counselling Psychologist. It’s a profession I’ve respected for a long time, and I think both my career and life experience have given me the qualities needed for it, particularly resilience and being comfortable working with people going through (very) difficult circumstances.
I know this would be a massive career change and would deprive me of my current comfortable earnings for a few years, but I'm trying to work out whether a viable route exists. I do have a reasonable amount of savings I can dip into in order to fund a few years in full-time retraining. I'm not trying to go back to making "corporate money" - I'm trying to do something I find satisfying and worthwhile, while (after a few years) making enough to support myself.
My tentative plan is to start a BPS-accredited Psychology conversion MSc next year. I have a BA (Hons) in a humanities subject - a strong 2:1. I'd say I'm academically inclined, so this is something I'd look forward to. I also like how the MSc keeps your options (somewhat) open, but I'm also aware it's barely even a gateway.
During my MSc, I'd aim to complete counselling skills training and start gaining regular relevant experience in a mental-health/helping role — potentially something like Samaritans initially, or something else that gives me experience of supporting people going through psychological distress.
On graduating from the MSc, I’d try to move into more directly relevant work (e.g. mental health support work, counselling/therapeutic support, wellbeing roles), build towards around a year of appropriate experience, and apply for a DPsych/DCounsPsych when realistic.
I guess my questions are:
- Am I underestimating the difficulty of picking up relevant experience during/after MSc?
- Am I underplaying the burden of cramming a lot into the MSc period?
- How disadvantaged am I by starting this late in life?
- Should I realistically see this as a complete reset, with little/nothing to carry over from my career so far?
Pre-empting a few questions about other potential options:
- I don't see DClinPsych as feasible for me, due to the additional years of extreme competition for AP roles, and rock-bottom acceptance rates over 40 years old.
- Psychotherapy feels less attractive to me because of the unprotected title, less standardised training landscape and what seems to be a fairly precarious job market.
- I'm aware Occupational Therapy may be a quicker route, but I feel it'd bring me too close to the corporate/professional environment I'm trying to leave behind. I'd like to work more directly with people.
Any candid guidance/experiences would be hugely appreciated.