12 Jobs You Can Get in the Military With a Psychology Degree

Mental health care has grown in importance over the last several years, in both the military and civilian worlds. Military personnel go through many experiences that the average civilian doesn't. These traumas and experiences require specialized mental health services.

Military psychology is a mental health specialty that focuses on delivering care designed to help active duty service members and veterans receive treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), general evaluations, and more traditional forms of clinical psychology.

Top Military Careers for Psychology Degree Holders

Whether you completed a psychology degree before joining the armed forces or returned to school while you served, you can pursue multiple career paths. A psychology degree satisfies the requirement for a college degree to become a commissioned officer. Military psychology careers often require more advanced degrees than the bachelor's degrees that most officers earn.

Military or civilian-focused psychology requires a master's degree at minimum, but most careers require a Doctor of Psychology, either a PsyD or PhD. Beyond a doctoral degree that covers psychological principles, military psychologists will complete additional training programs to help them diagnose and treat conditions that graduates of most civilian psychology programs won't encounter.

1. Military Psychologist

Every military branch has a psychology division that focuses on the mental well-being of service members and their families. Military psychologists require specialized training to help people during or after military service, but their college training is often the same as a civilian psychologist. Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Army psychologists must complete a doctoral program accredited by the American Psychology Association (APA).

2. Clinical Psychologist

The stresses of military service can cause many conditions that aren't common in civilian life. However, many service members and their families experience the same mental health issues as their civilian friends and families. Clinical psychologists in the military help diagnose and treat anxiety, depression, and more to promote the overall mental well-being of service members, veterans, and their family members.

3. Behavioral Health Specialist

Behavioral health specialists work within organizations, often businesses and schools, to provide specialized treatment. These mental health providers learn about the daily responsibilities and duties of unique organizations and serve to provide tailored psychology solutions. These positions work to develop branch-specific mental health plans.

4. Military Counselor

Counseling psychology provides an outlet for discussing the stresses and pressures associated with military life in a non-medical role. These positions use what is sometimes called 'talk therapy' to help service members and their families work through problems without using medicinal interventions. Military counselors don't have the same requirements for psychology degrees and many have training in social work or another related field.

5. Combat and Operational Stress Control Specialist

The physical and mental stress that service members experience is unlike anything that most civilians will experience in their lives. The Department of Defense (DoD) requires each branch to employ specialists who provide treatment specifically to reduce stress and promote efficiency. These treatment providers gather data and help create the guidelines and programs to treat active-duty service members, especially those in the most stressful situations.

6. Research Psychologist

Civilian and military psychologists rely on data and research to help develop treatment plans for individual clients. Some psychologists work in non-client-facing roles to support their peers. These psychologists conduct research projects to find new opportunities for treatment based on past efforts. Other military psychologists use the research by these psychologists to understand and treat service members.

7. Personnel Officer

Personnel officers serve a role similar to a human resources professional. This career path isn't a psychology-based role. However, a deeper understanding of the human mind helps personnel officers with conflict resolution and career counseling duties.

8. Military Family Life Counselor

Military service stresses those who serve, but the pressures and conditions of being in the armed forces can lead to problems outside of service. Military Family Life Counselors (MFLC) work to provide mental health support for service members and their families including parenting, marriage, and grief-focused mental care.

9. Crisis Intervention Specialist

Crisis intervention specialists work with people who have succumbed to the pressures they feel. In the military, this often is because of the stresses of active duty roles in combat or other high-stress zones. Crisis intervention specialists deal with individual crises and need to have an understanding of the factors of mental health care for service members.

10. Psychological Operations Specialist

The application of psychological principles doesn't stop with mental health care. The U.S. Army and other military branches use psychological operations (PSYOPS) to support military objectives in non-combat roles. These specialists use their knowledge of the human mind to convince and persuade foreign threats through pamphlets, digital marketing, and other communication-based initiatives.

11. Operational Psychologist

Operational psychologists use their understanding of psychology and human behavior to advise on strategy and national security measures. This commonly means assessments and selection for security clearances and other specialty roles. Operational psychologists are responsible for evaluating and determining that potential recruits have the proper mental health standing to participate in these career paths or missions.

12. Health Promotion Specialist

Health promotion specialists lead initiatives to develop and promote interest in healthcare programs. These specialists often work in larger community efforts, but sometimes their roles are limited to businesses or schools.

Mental health promotion specialists work with service members to encourage them to pursue mental health care, such as counseling or psychological therapy. These specialists need to understand psychology. However, they rarely provide the care that they promote.

FAQs About Military Careers for Psychology Degree Holders

Psychology degrees are specialty degrees that prepare graduates for work in the complex study of the human mind, and many people might not be aware of the available career paths within the military for psychologists.

Can a Psychologist Be a Navy Corpsman?

A psychologist can become a Navy corpsman, but it's not a common career path. A Navy corpsman is an enlisted medical care provider. Psychologists must earn a graduate or doctoral degree to qualify them for commissioned officer status. A psychologist can elect for enlisted ranking, but they can pursue higher ranks and pay grades as a commissioned officer.

Which Military Branch Is Best for Psychology?

Each branch offers many of the same positions for psychologists. Some branches have slightly different job titles for their psychologists, but no individual branch is better than the other.

Will the Military Pay for a Psychology Degree?

The military can pay for a psychology degree through the GI Bill, the Yellow Ribbon Program, and tuition assistance programs. Qualified service members can enroll in these programs to receive stipends or upfront payments to cover tuition and other school costs. These programs have differing eligibility requirements, so speak with a VA representative or a personnel officer to understand your benefits.