How To Become A Licensed Psychologist: What It Is and Career Path

What is a licensed psychologist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

4 min read

Quoted Expert

Dr. Jim Sliwinski Ph.D.

Psychologists are responsible for evaluating, diagnosing, and treating people for mental, emotional, behavioral, educational, and developmental disorders.

Psychologists in the areas of psychology, therapy, and research typically require a Ph.D. (PhD. or PsyD) from a recognized program in psychology. Additionally, they need a license in their state of practice. While licensure requirements vary by state and system, most require a doctoral degree in psychology, completion of an internship, a minimum number of years of supervised experience, and passing of an exam. The best psychologists have excellent interpersonal skills and are very trustworthy. And in the majority of cases, the best psychologists are licensed.

According to the most current Occupational Outlook Handbook from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the median national annual salary for licensed psychologists is $70,580. Actual salaries may vary greatly based on specialization within the field, location, years of experience, and a variety of other factors.

What general advice would you give to a Licensed Psychologist?

Dr. Jim Sliwinski Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Psychology, Defiance College

I encourage all undergraduate psychology majors to consider graduate school. A bachelor's degree in psychology is becoming much more of a pre-professional program. That's not to say that there are not many jobs out there for individuals who only have a bachelor's, but full-time jobs, with benefits, are becoming harder to come by.

ScoreLicensed PsychologistUS Average

Salary

7.5

Avg. Salary $97,852

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

8.6

Growth Rate 14%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

3.6

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.20%

Asian 3.34%

Black or African American 6.18%

Hispanic or Latino 10.44%

Unknown 3.44%

White 76.39%

Gender

female 63.03%

male 36.97%

Age - 42

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 42

Stress Level

8.6

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

7.3

Complexity Level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

6.9

Work Life balance is good

6.4 - fair

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Key steps to become a licensed psychologist

Explore licensed psychologist education requirements

Most common licensed psychologist degrees

Bachelor's

39.5 %

Doctorate

36.5 %

Master's

21.3 %

Start to develop specific licensed psychologist skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	14.64%
Crisis Intervention	11.78%
Psychological Services	9.11%
Family Therapy	6.95%
Individual Therapy	5.93%

Complete relevant licensed psychologist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New licensed psychologists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a licensed psychologist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real licensed psychologist resumes.

Research licensed psychologist duties and responsibilities

Provide crisis intervention, cognitive-behavioral base individual and group therapy to patients.
Assist staff in restructuring APA accredit internship program.
Practice according to ethical guidelines and codes establish by APA.
Conduct individual, couple, family, and DBT group psychotherapy.

Prepare your licensed psychologist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your licensed psychologist resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a licensed psychologist resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Licensed Psychologist Resume templates

Build a professional Licensed Psychologist resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Licensed Psychologist resume.

Apply for licensed psychologist jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a licensed psychologist job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do licensed psychologists rate their job?