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Teamedup
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A friend of ours works with kids, a monitrice. She has exams this week, which are hard or so she has said.

She already has a masters in psychology and dismisses that as it has no value what so ever to anyone. And it was her BAFA (sp) that got her this particular job in the first place.

Can anyone explain to me simply why her masters degree has no value what so ever........

 

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 I am pretty sure that in the UK Psychology degrees on their own do not qualify the recipient for a job in the field of psychology and that they have to do extra credits and join various associations to actually qualify as a psychologist. Could this be the reason that she states it is useless?

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Last summer when she told me that was doing this course she actually said to me that she had no qualifications at all and needed to do these. I had forgotten about her masters and yesterday mentioned it to her and she laughed and said it was of no value at all. So very blase about it really.

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[quote user="Teamedup"]

She already has a masters in psychology and dismisses that as it has no value what so ever to anyone. And it was her BAFA (sp) that got her this particular job in the first place.

Can anyone explain to me simply why her masters degree has no value what so ever........

 

[/quote]

TU's friend seems to be believe that a degree must have direct utility arising from the subject matter studied. If this is the case she is mistaken. The purpose of a degree - any degree - is to "train the mind" and to provide its holder with a general set of tools which will increase his or her effectiveness in any future activity. The subject area is the context within which the tools can be developed. This is as true of "vocational" as of "academic" disciplines.

In addition to learning about the subject matter, with a psychology degree your friend should have acquired the following skills:

  • the ability to analyse a problem and to identify the origins of that problem

  • the ability to evaluate other people's arguments and viewpoints

  • the ability to hypothesise about situations and to develop methods of testing those hypotheses

  • the ability to express herself clearly and concisely both orally and in writing

  • an understanding of quantitative methods and the ability to analyse numerical data

  • an ability to plan and to predict and evaluate the consequences of that plan.

These are the kind of skills that are required of anyone in any position of responsibility in any occupation. If TU's friend cannot see that these skills are transferable and usable in any situation then perhaps she did not have the necessary qualities to embark on her studies in the first place or the insight to profit from them.

 

 

 

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Surely the problem is with French employers rather than the friend?   They don't want to know that you're adaptable and willing to learn and think for yourself.  They want to know that you have the appropriate qualifications and training for the job you're applying for.

So yes, her Masters is quite possibly useless in France.  Mine certainly is!  [:)]

 

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Sounds like a throwaway comment.... having a masters in one subject (and probably in a very specialised, academic sub-topic) doesn't mean you never have to do another exam.   Most degrees are not vocational - to get specific job skills you have to re-train. 

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" I am pretty sure that in the UK Psychology degrees on their own do not qualify the recipient for a job in the field of psychology and that they have to do extra credits and join various associations to actually qualify as a psychologist. Could this be the reason that she states it is useless?"


No 1 daughter is a Clinical Psychologist, I don't think her qualifications would be much use in France unless she was really fluent in French, which she is not! She did a first degree in Psychology then had to work as an assistant for a while on very low pay. This was followed by another 3 year university course to do her Doctorate which involved many placements in different sectors and blocks of lectures / study in between. Finally she is now a Doc. Clin. Psy. ( I think that's the abbreviation) she works hard but does at last earn a reasonable salary.
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I don't know whether TU is talking about France or England. If in

England I agree with Blanche Neige. To be an Educational Psychologist,

after the psychology degree you have to do teacher training,then teach

for a minimum of 2 years ( might have changed now). Then do a further

1-2 years postgraduate training, soon to be increased to a 3yr. Masters course. Pat.

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I would quite agree with Clark and Dick - but only where Britain is concerned. Education in France is totally vocation-based. So qualifications in France, which include degrees, are directly related to what you do for a living. That's why it is so difficult for anybody without the exact French qualifications required to get a job here, and why it is so rare, and difficult, to change career mid-life (at least without extensive re-training).
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And that is the direction we are constantly being pushed in the UK, with employer's 'demands' and the denigration of 'pointless' courses such as media studies. In fact the less-prestigious courses teach all those things Clark described and also serve to be a way in to higher education for the families for whom it was never an option before (the Kinnock Factor) which 'traditional' degree courses aren't.
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