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

What is a chief psychologist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

Quoted expert

Dr. Christopher Robinson

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a chief psychologist. For example, did you know that they make an average of $48.17 an hour? That's $100,193 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 14% and produce 26,100 job opportunities across the U.S.

What general advice would you give to a chief psychologist?

Dr. Christopher Robinson

Assistant Professor of Psychology and Psychology Program Coordinator

Psychology at its best can talk about how people are and about how we are now. We live in an ever more connected and yet fragmented world. Psychological research has been used to help us understand how different cultures approach the world, and also how changes in technology are effecting us. For example, a lot of good research is suggesting that our phones are destroying our ability to concentrate. If I had one piece of advice it would be to turn off as many notifications as you can.

We live in a world where information is ever more accessible, and other cultures are easy to learn about. A degree in psychology will help you organize and evaluate the information you are exposed to.

We also live in a world with an aging population, and there will be a need for psychologists to assess individuals, research new treatments, and work with individuals to help them maintain social and intellectual functioning.

There are good job prospects for people who become competent and eloquent in their psychological training, and this training also helps set up for advanced education.

ScoreChief PsychologistUS Average

Salary

7.6

Avg. Salary $100,193

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 50.47%

male 49.53%

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

Key steps to become a chief psychologist

Explore chief psychologist education requirements

Most common chief psychologist degrees

Bachelor's

43.0 %

Doctorate

30.1 %

Master's

19.4 %

Start to develop specific chief psychologist skills

Skills	Percentages
Mental Health	35.64%
Clinical Psychology	13.66%
Group Therapy	8.04%
Risk Assessments	5.78%
Psychological Services	5.72%

Complete relevant chief psychologist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New chief 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 chief psychologist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real chief psychologist resumes.

Research chief psychologist duties and responsibilities

Provide psychological therapy for children with autism spectrum disorder, deficit/hyperactive disorder, specific learning disorder and others mental diagnosis.
Provide consultation regarding appropriate placement/treatment of juveniles in the DJJ system.

Prepare your chief psychologist resume

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

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