8 Reasons Why You Should Consider Educational Psychology

When it comes to studying psychology, many people are surprised to find out about just how many different career options there are out there. From working in clinical facilities to schools to even large corporations, the demand for individuals with training in psychology is constantly growing. One of the most popular areas right now is educational psychology. Educational psychology deals with the understanding of how our brains learn and what we can do to increase our ability to comprehend and retain knowledge.

If you’re trying to decide which career path is the right choice for you, here are 8 reasons why you should consider educational psychology.

1. Educational Psychology Is Perfect If You Take Joy From Helping Others

Educational psychology is all about helping other people learn. To truly get the most out of this career option you have to enjoy spending time with other people, oftentimes children or individuals with learning disabilities. If you get a sense of self-worth from bringing joy and confidence to others and helping them improve their minds and their lives, you should consider the educational psychology field as a career option.

2. You Can Easily Adapt To Challenging Cases And Situations

Every single situation is going to be different when working in educational psychology. While there are generalized methods and strategies for working with your clients, every person is going to bring their own unique set of circumstances and roadblocks. In order to be an effective educational psychologist you must be able to look outside of the box and find unique adaptations in order to fit each scenario.

3. You’re Good At Making Observations And Solving Problems

A lot of the work that is done in the educational psychology field is research. This research is then used in developing new methods of learning and conveying knowledge to others who might not benefit very much from traditional teaching strategies. In order to be effective, you must be very observant and pay a good deal of attention to detail. What may seem like an unimportant fact to the untrained eye may be of the upmost significance when it comes to understanding the way someone learns. As an educational psychologist you have to be able to pay attention to everything, note your observations for later review and then use all of these notes to reach your objectives.

4. Educational Psychology Opens A Number Of Career Options

As the internet opens up the world of learning to many people who otherwise would not have access to such a vast array of information, the demand for experts in educational psychology continues to grow. There are a number of different jobs open to anyone with a degree in educational psychology, although a large number of the career options will be with schools and other learning institutions. Still, there are many opportunities open with government and private research organizations, as well as with large companies. Big corporations often hire educational psychologists in order to maximize the effectiveness of their employee training procedures and in turn increase the bottom line.

5. You Look For A Deeper Meaning Or Reasons Behind Things

In educational psychology, you should never take your observations at face value. The human brain is a complex organ, and often times the results and outcomes we see are due to many factors working behind the scenes. Rather than look at someone that has a difficult time learning in a specific area and accepting it as a fact, you need to be able to probe deeper and figure out just why they are facing a challenge and what steps can be done to work around the obstacles that are in their way.

6. You Never Want To Stop Learning

Educational psychology is a field that is always growing. We are very far from knowing everything there is to know about the human brain and how it absorbs and retains information. While there are many career paths that give you the ability to gain all of the knowledge you will ever need on the subject, educational psychology is not one of them. In order to be truly effective in the field, you need to have a drive to always be learning. After all, how can you expect to develop new methods of teaching and helping others grow their knowledge when you yourself have stopped evolving your own brain?

7. Your Dream Job Involves Working With Children

Although there are a number of jobs in the educational psychology field that do not involve working with children, most people who enter into this area of psychology with be spending time with younger subjects. This can come in multiple forms such as working directly in the capacity of a teacher or counselor, or perhaps indirectly through research and case studies. If you take joy in working with children and helping them expand their minds in order to grow into their full potential, then educational psychology might be the perfect career path for you to follow down.

8. Educational Psychology Is A Career Path That Is In Demand

Not only is our access to information and the desire for knowledge growing, but so is the number of people that want to learn. All over the world, the population is growing at a rate that has never been seen before and what that means is that over the next couple of decades, the educational system is going to be under even more stress. One of the best ways to ensure that everyone receives the education that they deserve is by finding more effective ways of teaching. More people learning and a greater desire for knowledge means that the demand for educational psychologists will likely continue to grow well into the future.

Educational psychology boils down to one thing – helping others learn. You must be good at working with people, have an expert eye for detail and be able to think cleverly and outside of the box. If these are qualities that you possess, then perhaps choosing a career in the continuously growing field of educational psychology might just be the best decision that you ever make.