How To Become A Psychologist, Private Practice: What It Is and Career Path

What is a psychologist, private practice and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted experts

Dr. Jim Sliwinski Ph.D.,

Amy Mezulis Ph.D.

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a psychologist, private practice. For example, did you know that they make an average of $39.27 an hour? That's $81,680 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 psychologist, private practice?

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.

ScorePsychologist, Private PracticeUS Average

Salary

6.4

Avg. Salary $81,680

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.3

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 59.25%

male 40.75%

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

8.3

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

7.3

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

7.7

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a psychologist, private practice

Explore psychologist, private practice education requirements

Most common psychologist, private practice degrees

Bachelor's

37.8 %

Master's

30.6 %

Doctorate

22.9 %

Start to develop specific psychologist, private practice skills

Skills	Percentages
Patients	23.39%
Primary Care	14.40%
Private Practice	7.59%
Family Therapy Sessions	7.14%
Adolescents	5.75%

Complete relevant psychologist, private practice training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New psychologists, private practice 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 psychologist, private practice based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real psychologist, private practice resumes.

Research psychologist, private practice duties and responsibilities

Conduct psychological and psychoeducational evaluations including ADHD, learning disabilities, autism, emotional and behavioral issues.
Assist personnel in identifying triggers leading to relapse of PTSD, negative behaviors and thoughts.
Provision of psychological assessment, psycho-diagnostic evaluation and psychotherapy of patients using brief therapy models.
Provision of psychological assessment, psycho-diagnostic evaluation and psychotherapy of patients using mindfulness base psychotherapy techniques.

Prepare your psychologist, private practice resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your psychologist, private practice 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 psychologist, private practice resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable psychologist, private practice resume templates

Build a professional psychologist, private practice 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 psychologist, private practice resume.