so i used to be a college athlete, played overseas, coached at the div 1 and 2 level (for a short amount of time), before i decided to get into IT. Fast forward 10+ years and I realize that my calling is actually mental health therapy. So, I’ve started researching between LMFT and LCSW, knowing that I didn’t major in psychology.. my major was Kinesiology/Exercise Science. I’ve been pondering what my specialty would be in and I started exploring athletics. I would love to do talk therapy and specialize in marriage/relationships, but also the mental health of athletes. Long story short, i ended up on this video about sports psychology. I know that i don’t necessarily want to be a sports psychologist, but I’m curious to know what your thoughts are on therapists who work with athletes. is that in demand? or is what i’m describing essentially sports psychology lol. i don’t want to be pigeonholed into just sports, but i figure i can use my background to find a few niches. thanks!
Great thoughts and I have so many questions but I'll keep it brief! There are a lot of paths to get you to where you want to go. Typically I know a lot of therapists who are either LMFT or LCSW, have a certification in sports consulting (CMPC) and can either treat athletes or regular people. The doctorate might be helpful if you're looking for more flexibility or research/teaching but it's not necessary. If you have any more questions or would like to book a consulting call with me check out my website at philsarpong.com/consulting/
So, I’m going to graduate with my bachelor's in psychology, and I want to go into sports psychology. My professors told me that it would be wiser to get my clinical psych Ph.D. and then get into Sports so that I can get more “access” to other fields. But I’m not ready for a Ph.D., so would getting my masters in basic or clinical psychology be a good fit, or just getting it in sports psychology?
If you’re looking to get a CMPC certification then a sports psych masters might be helpful. There are so many routes it really just depends. Some people also get a masters in counseling and then take additional sports psych courses to meet the CMPC certification and then the clinician can do both therapy and sports psych coaching. With a masters in sports psych and a CMPC, the clinician is unable to do therapy with clients unless they have a license in counseling or social work. So it typically comes down to either wanting to do therapy or wanting to just do sports psych coaching. Hope that’s helpful!
I’m looking to get a MA in Sports Psych to subsidize my coaching career! I’m also glad to know that if I have the masters, there is still a way to get certified without a doctorate. Do you have a video talking more in depth about different careers in sports psych? Great video!
Hey Can you please guide me on how to become a clinical sports psychologist like should I do my masters in clinical psychology and then proceed with my psyd in sports psychology or vice versa Please help!!!
So there are multiple paths to becoming a sport psychologist. One path is getting a doctorate in clinical psychology, phd/psyd then pursuing a sport psychology internship, post doc and fellowship. The other path is to be a master level therapist like LCSW, MFT, LPCC and get a certification like the CMPC where you can work specifically with sports athletes. This is all U.S., specific, I'm not sure about other countries. Hope that helps!
Great questions!!! If a sports psychologist has a therapist or clinical psychology license they can bill to insurance companies because their using their therapy or psychology license to do so if there is a diagnosis for the client. Many licensed clinical social workers venture off into sports psychology but usually require either a certification and additional schooling and training to call themselves a sports psychologist (requires a doctorate and certification) versus a mental health consultant (only needed with certification)
Just been accepted in to my MSW program I start in August. But it’s a 3 year part time program. Dose one need a Doctor? How much does one get paid? My undergrad was in kinesiology
Congrats! A MSW will allow you to do therapy, counseling, and private practice. If you want to do psychological assessments, or teach in doctoral programs, it's recommended to get a doctorate in clinical psychology. I only know about salaries for the US, and I think all of that information is online. Hope that helps, best of luck
I have a degree in Clinical Psychologist (PhD) in practice for over 15 years- wanting to practice in area of sports psychology- what is the easiest transition to this route ?
Possibly continue education in the degree of kinesiology, exercise physiology, etc. with your background you may be able to apply for the position already
Yes, you can also consider certifications like the CMPC. This certification is pretty much or will be the gold standard for anyone in the mental health field who wants to be taken seriously as a sport psychologist. Olympic teams only choose mental health professionals that have this certification if you wanted to work with Olympic athletes. The certification requires one to have taken some courses though in sport psychology or kinesiology. An alternative route may be to get a masters in sports psychology If you have enough experience working with athletes over your career you might be granted a faster application that bypasses some courses and requirements
You mentioned the American Board of Sports Psychology for credentialing. Let me dissent from that recommendation. I believe the only credible U.S. organization that certifies sports psychology professionals is the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP), founded in 1987. It requires certification coursework & supervised training, culminating in an exam, that leads to the Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC®) designation. "CMPC®s are individuals with a master’s or doctoral degree in sport science, psychology or a closely related field who have met specific course requirements and have completed an extensive, mentored applied experience." [Yes, there’s a rival organization called the American Board of Sports Psychology. It was founded in 2000 by a psychologist who touts his Harvard credentials with Harvard’s logo on his website and Harvard sweatshirts in his photos (actually, he got his PhD from Saybrook U. but has a certificate of some sort from Harvard). He’s been the first and only president of his organization for nearly 23 years! It has a barely functional website. Indeed it offers a certification to sports psychologists, but I would not recommend pursuing that one. Check out both organizations to assess which one is more credible.]
Thank you for all of that great information!! That’s really helpful. I’ve actually recently heard similar things. I’m hoping to interview a sport psychologist soon to share more details about certification options, thanks for the feedback!
Hey good question! I think any bachelor program that might have a good psychology/kinesiology program. Some schools have exercise science majors. I think it's more about the major than the school so majors like neuroscience, psychology, exercise science, kinesiology, or some form of pre-health science major that incorporates psychology and physiology/human body mechanics will prepare someone well for a graduate program in sports psych. Hope that helps!
@@philsguidetopsyd hi i'm new to your channel, I'm currently taking my undergraduate degree here in the Philippines taking B of Arts in Psychology. Next yr I will be taking my Psychometrician Board and when I passed what do you think would be the best thing that I should do? What masters should I take and those kind of stuff to be a Sports Psychologist?
Hello! Great question, it depends where you want to work. I'm not sure about internationally, but if you want to be a sports psychologist in the U.S. a masters in sports psychology from a reputable school will suffice, or you can look into the CMPC certification which I believe is internationally known. Hope that helps!
I am a currently pursuing MSc in Sports Psychology and I want to know how can i pursue Phd in sports psychology in America. Can you guide me please, like where can i pursue phd in sports psychology.
You may have to google or reach out to schools that offer sports psychology tracks in their program. There are some counseling/clinical psychology programs; university of north texas is an example. Also many people can go to any program and get their doctorate in clinical psychology and then just apply for a certification like the CMPC which is another way of becoming a sports psychologist.
What’s up man I got a question. Do you need to have a bachelors in psychology to get continue and study sports psychology in grad school ? Or can you have a another degree. Asking because I’m being recruited to play basketball at a school but they don’t have psychology as a major.
Hey great question! You can have another degree but some masters programs will require you to take certain courses. Same with some certifications. Depending on what grad school program you go for or what certification you choose you may be fine with a similar degree like kinesiology, exercise science, or neuroscience or whatever degree might be close to psychology. I would just double check with those grad programs/certifications. I know some people will take the courses they need at other colleges/online programs if their school doesn't have the courses they need too. Hope that helps!
@@philsguidetopsyd thanks I will look into the graduate schools more closely. What do you think of criminal justice ? That’s the closest major to psychology. The undergrad school I go to is Berkeley College in manhttan.
I've known of people choosing majors that they like that they can also see themselves falling back on just in case, whatever you feel drawn to at the end of the day
Personally I haven't but I imagine there might be some good Psych stuff in there that relates to studying people's social behavior and what not. I'm not sure the major matters as much as the eligibility to apply to grad schools who require specific courses to be met regardless of what you major in, so knowing what grad school you want to apply for and what certifications you will need might help with structuring your courses or picking your courses for preparation to that sports psych program. hope that helps!
Sir what I am choose course in college to getting a job like that a sport psychology I'm confused what course ab/B's psychology please help me sir what course I choose and I love to become a sport psychology someday! So pls answer me
A great book you could read is Foundations of sport and exercise psychology by robert s weingberg, and daniel gould. As for majors in college several majors like psychology or neuroscience have been helpful for students. The biggest thing is knowing what masters program you want to go into after college. For example a masters in sports psychology will help you determine the major, what courses to focus on, and how to order your college experiences to be able to be competitive for graduate school. Hope that helps, good luck!
Not sure, I think maybe Ball State? There are a few, but I know most people just get a masters in psychology or kinesiology and then work on sports psych certifications like CMPC and I think there's others. There's a few ways to become a sports psychologist. Hope that helps
Hi thank you so much for the info. Great service you are providing. I'm just looking into how to become a sports psychologist because I'm interested in the profession. I'm curious can you become a sports psychologist and have clients that are not athletes as well. Can you practice as a therapist or counselor to non athletes? I just ask if no jobs are available as a sports psychologist at some point down the road. I will do my own research and I appreciate any info. Keep up great content. Thanks
Yeah great question! Many of the sports psychologists I've talked to have a client base where about 45-50% are athletes and the rest are non athletes. So yeah, you can have clients that are not athletes. The only way that you can practice as a therapist or counselor to a non athletes is if you already have a counseling degree such as a LPC, LCSW, or Psyd/Phd in clinical psychology. (this is what I know in the U.S., not sure about international). Many people will become licensed therapists and then get additional certification to do sports psych with athletes. That way they can do therapy and sports psych at the same time. There are programs that only allow you to be sports psych but do not have a counseling component so the clinicians can't technically do therapy with their clients, they can only do mental health coaching. So I always recommend before going into any program knowing what they offer, the certifications, and what you can do after the program with clients. Hope that helps, good luck!
@@philsguidetopsyd Hi thank you for the information. I appreciate it. I did some research it looks like you are able to practice as a counselor as well even with a master's degree in certain types of counseling. I was looking into that because a Doctorate is a lot of schooling to do.
I’m starting my first year in my PsyD in Clinical Psych program this Fall. I don’t have any background in kinesiology, sports psychology, or physiology. I have a B.S. in Psychology and Computer Science, and I have a certificate as an EMT, along with basic certs in BLS and CPR. That being said, what are some things I can do to become a successful sports psychologist? My program (The Chicago School - Chicago campus) doesn’t offer many classes for sports psychology, but it does offer a health psychology track. Would that track be recommended for someone pursuing a sports psychology internship? Will I have to get a masters in something like kinesiology or sports psychology after my PsyD in order to be competitive for a sports psychology internship? Are there such a thing as APA-accredited internships in sports psychology? I couldn’t find one in their directory. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!
Hi Branden, yes great question! I've talked to several of my supervisors about this and it does seem that health psychology tracks are fairly similar to sports psychology tracks. There have been students who I know completed health psychology externships who were able to be accepted to sports psychology internships. I've heard students will go try and get a CMPC certification while in school by completing some courses on the side while still in grad school (which i think is a lot of work) but also talking to a few sports psychologists they recommended maybe even getting a PsyD first before deciding on whether or not you should take additional courses. It's a little confusing on what schools explicitly offer sport psych internships, i think many of the programs have it interwoven into their program, for example college university counseling centers may have interns see a portion of clients that are athletes and so they may offer that type of training on the side. So instead of calling themselves a sport psych internship, they are named as a college counseling center. The only guess I have is to double check with those internships when you get to that step and see what they specifically offer. Hope that helps
You as well! I hope to have an interview with a sports psychologist in the future to talk more about these questions, so hopefully that will provide more direction. Best of luck!
I am currently trying to find routes to take as to what courses I need to take in order to lead up to my grad program but I’m kinda of confused at where to start or how to get from point A(where I am now) to point B, being a sports psychologist.
Thank you for your channel and for your videos! There may not be a lot of people who view, but for those who do, it is extremely helpful! Thank you!!!
Of course glad it helps!!
so i used to be a college athlete, played overseas, coached at the div 1 and 2 level (for a short amount of time), before i decided to get into IT. Fast forward 10+ years and I realize that my calling is actually mental health therapy. So, I’ve started researching between LMFT and LCSW, knowing that I didn’t major in psychology.. my major was Kinesiology/Exercise Science. I’ve been pondering what my specialty would be in and I started exploring athletics. I would love to do talk therapy and specialize in marriage/relationships, but also the mental health of athletes.
Long story short, i ended up on this video about sports psychology. I know that i don’t necessarily want to be a sports psychologist, but I’m curious to know what your thoughts are on therapists who work with athletes. is that in demand? or is what i’m describing essentially sports psychology lol.
i don’t want to be pigeonholed into just sports, but i figure i can use my background to find a few niches.
thanks!
Great thoughts and I have so many questions but I'll keep it brief! There are a lot of paths to get you to where you want to go. Typically I know a lot of therapists who are either LMFT or LCSW, have a certification in sports consulting (CMPC) and can either treat athletes or regular people. The doctorate might be helpful if you're looking for more flexibility or research/teaching but it's not necessary. If you have any more questions or would like to book a consulting call with me check out my website at philsarpong.com/consulting/
I am interested in Sports Psychology and have been since like 2012 just never knew which route would be best.
I’m interested in sports psychology and I didn’t know it was this much work to become a sports psychologist
Right!? Yeah it's a lot
I’m getting ready to apply to programs now for Sports Psychology.
Awesome, best of luck!
So, I’m going to graduate with my bachelor's in psychology, and I want to go into sports psychology. My professors told me that it would be wiser to get my clinical psych Ph.D. and then get into Sports so that I can get more “access” to other fields. But I’m not ready for a Ph.D., so would getting my masters in basic or clinical psychology be a good fit, or just getting it in sports psychology?
If you’re looking to get a CMPC certification then a sports psych masters might be helpful. There are so many routes it really just depends. Some people also get a masters in counseling and then take additional sports psych courses to meet the CMPC certification and then the clinician can do both therapy and sports psych coaching. With a masters in sports psych and a CMPC, the clinician is unable to do therapy with clients unless they have a license in counseling or social work. So it typically comes down to either wanting to do therapy or wanting to just do sports psych coaching. Hope that’s helpful!
I’m looking to get a MA in Sports Psych to subsidize my coaching career! I’m also glad to know that if I have the masters, there is still a way to get certified without a doctorate. Do you have a video talking more in depth about different careers in sports psych? Great video!
I will have a video coming out soon where I interview a sports psychologist so stay tuned!
Great content !! I’m interested in this as well
Hey
Can you please guide me on how to become a clinical sports psychologist like should I do my masters in clinical psychology and then proceed with my psyd in sports psychology or vice versa
Please help!!!
So there are multiple paths to becoming a sport psychologist. One path is getting a doctorate in clinical psychology, phd/psyd then pursuing a sport psychology internship, post doc and fellowship. The other path is to be a master level therapist like LCSW, MFT, LPCC and get a certification like the CMPC where you can work specifically with sports athletes. This is all U.S., specific, I'm not sure about other countries. Hope that helps!
Can sports psychologists bill insurance? Also, if I’m a licensed social worker, can I venture off into sports psychology?
Great questions!!! If a sports psychologist has a therapist or clinical psychology license they can bill to insurance companies because their using their therapy or psychology license to do so if there is a diagnosis for the client. Many licensed clinical social workers venture off into sports psychology but usually require either a certification and additional schooling and training to call themselves a sports psychologist (requires a doctorate and certification) versus a mental health consultant (only needed with certification)
Just been accepted in to my MSW program I start in August. But it’s a 3 year part time program. Dose one need a Doctor? How much does one get paid? My undergrad was in kinesiology
Congrats! A MSW will allow you to do therapy, counseling, and private practice. If you want to do psychological assessments, or teach in doctoral programs, it's recommended to get a doctorate in clinical psychology. I only know about salaries for the US, and I think all of that information is online. Hope that helps, best of luck
This was so helpful
I'm so glad!
I have a degree in Clinical Psychologist (PhD) in practice for over 15 years- wanting to practice in area of sports psychology- what is the easiest transition to this route ?
Possibly continue education in the degree of kinesiology, exercise physiology, etc. with your background you may be able to apply for the position already
Yes, you can also consider certifications like the CMPC. This certification is pretty much or will be the gold standard for anyone in the mental health field who wants to be taken seriously as a sport psychologist. Olympic teams only choose mental health professionals that have this certification if you wanted to work with Olympic athletes.
The certification requires one to have taken some courses though in sport psychology or kinesiology.
An alternative route may be to get a masters in sports psychology
If you have enough experience working with athletes over your career you might be granted a faster application that bypasses some courses and requirements
@@BabeKay01 Thanks for the feedback 👍
I am I need more info
Check out some other videos on my channel that I've done with sports psychologists!
You mentioned the American Board of Sports Psychology for credentialing. Let me dissent from that recommendation. I believe the only credible U.S. organization that certifies sports psychology professionals is the Association for Applied Sport Psychology (AASP), founded in 1987. It requires certification coursework & supervised training, culminating in an exam, that leads to the Certified Mental Performance Consultant (CMPC®) designation. "CMPC®s are individuals with a master’s or doctoral degree in sport science, psychology or a closely related field who have met specific course requirements and have completed an extensive, mentored applied experience." [Yes, there’s a rival organization called the American Board of Sports Psychology. It was founded in 2000 by a psychologist who touts his Harvard credentials with Harvard’s logo on his website and Harvard sweatshirts in his photos (actually, he got his PhD from Saybrook U. but has a certificate of some sort from Harvard). He’s been the first and only president of his organization for nearly 23 years! It has a barely functional website. Indeed it offers a certification to sports psychologists, but I would not recommend pursuing that one. Check out both organizations to assess which one is more credible.]
Thank you for all of that great information!! That’s really helpful. I’ve actually recently heard similar things. I’m hoping to interview a sport psychologist soon to share more details about certification options, thanks for the feedback!
Recently retired from the military and incredibly interested in sports psychology, but unsure what bachelor program would be best. Any advice?
Hey good question! I think any bachelor program that might have a good psychology/kinesiology program. Some schools have exercise science majors. I think it's more about the major than the school so majors like neuroscience, psychology, exercise science, kinesiology, or some form of pre-health science major that incorporates psychology and physiology/human body mechanics will prepare someone well for a graduate program in sports psych. Hope that helps!
@@philsguidetopsyd Thank you, sir.
@@philsguidetopsyd hi i'm new to your channel, I'm currently taking my undergraduate degree here in the Philippines taking B of Arts in Psychology. Next yr I will be taking my Psychometrician Board and when I passed what do you think would be the best thing that I should do? What masters should I take and those kind of stuff to be a Sports Psychologist?
Hello! Great question, it depends where you want to work. I'm not sure about internationally, but if you want to be a sports psychologist in the U.S. a masters in sports psychology from a reputable school will suffice, or you can look into the CMPC certification which I believe is internationally known. Hope that helps!
I am a currently pursuing MSc in Sports Psychology and I want to know how can i pursue Phd in sports psychology in America. Can you guide me please, like where can i pursue phd in sports psychology.
You may have to google or reach out to schools that offer sports psychology tracks in their program. There are some counseling/clinical psychology programs; university of north texas is an example. Also many people can go to any program and get their doctorate in clinical psychology and then just apply for a certification like the CMPC which is another way of becoming a sports psychologist.
What’s up man I got a question. Do you need to have a bachelors in psychology to get continue and study sports psychology in grad school ? Or can you have a another degree.
Asking because I’m being recruited to play basketball at a school but they don’t have psychology as a major.
Hey great question! You can have another degree but some masters programs will require you to take certain courses. Same with some certifications. Depending on what grad school program you go for or what certification you choose you may be fine with a similar degree like kinesiology, exercise science, or neuroscience or whatever degree might be close to psychology. I would just double check with those grad programs/certifications. I know some people will take the courses they need at other colleges/online programs if their school doesn't have the courses they need too. Hope that helps!
@@philsguidetopsyd thanks I will look into the graduate schools more closely. What do you think of criminal justice ? That’s the closest major to psychology. The undergrad school I go to is Berkeley College in manhttan.
I've known of people choosing majors that they like that they can also see themselves falling back on just in case, whatever you feel drawn to at the end of the day
@@philsguidetopsyd have you ever known someone with an undergrad in Criminal Justice ?
Personally I haven't but I imagine there might be some good Psych stuff in there that relates to studying people's social behavior and what not. I'm not sure the major matters as much as the eligibility to apply to grad schools who require specific courses to be met regardless of what you major in, so knowing what grad school you want to apply for and what certifications you will need might help with structuring your courses or picking your courses for preparation to that sports psych program. hope that helps!
Sir what I am choose course in college to getting a job like that a sport psychology
I'm confused what course ab/B's psychology please help me sir what course I choose and I love to become a sport psychology someday! So pls answer me
A great book you could read is Foundations of sport and exercise psychology by robert s weingberg, and daniel gould. As for majors in college several majors like psychology or neuroscience have been helpful for students. The biggest thing is knowing what masters program you want to go into after college. For example a masters in sports psychology will help you determine the major, what courses to focus on, and how to order your college experiences to be able to be competitive for graduate school. Hope that helps, good luck!
@@philsguidetopsydthank you so much sir
What's Master's Programs have Sports Psychology?
Not sure, I think maybe Ball State? There are a few, but I know most people just get a masters in psychology or kinesiology and then work on sports psych certifications like CMPC and I think there's others. There's a few ways to become a sports psychologist. Hope that helps
Hi thank you so much for the info. Great service you are providing. I'm just looking into how to become a sports psychologist because I'm interested in the profession. I'm curious can you become a sports psychologist and have clients that are not athletes as well. Can you practice as a therapist or counselor to non athletes? I just ask if no jobs are available as a sports psychologist at some point down the road. I will do my own research and I appreciate any info. Keep up great content. Thanks
Yeah great question! Many of the sports psychologists I've talked to have a client base where about 45-50% are athletes and the rest are non athletes. So yeah, you can have clients that are not athletes. The only way that you can practice as a therapist or counselor to a non athletes is if you already have a counseling degree such as a LPC, LCSW, or Psyd/Phd in clinical psychology. (this is what I know in the U.S., not sure about international). Many people will become licensed therapists and then get additional certification to do sports psych with athletes. That way they can do therapy and sports psych at the same time. There are programs that only allow you to be sports psych but do not have a counseling component so the clinicians can't technically do therapy with their clients, they can only do mental health coaching. So I always recommend before going into any program knowing what they offer, the certifications, and what you can do after the program with clients. Hope that helps, good luck!
@@philsguidetopsyd Hi thank you for the information. I appreciate it. I did some research it looks like you are able to practice as a counselor as well even with a master's degree in certain types of counseling. I was looking into that because a Doctorate is a lot of schooling to do.
I’m starting my first year in my PsyD in Clinical Psych program this Fall. I don’t have any background in kinesiology, sports psychology, or physiology. I have a B.S. in Psychology and Computer Science, and I have a certificate as an EMT, along with basic certs in BLS and CPR. That being said, what are some things I can do to become a successful sports psychologist? My program (The Chicago School - Chicago campus) doesn’t offer many classes for sports psychology, but it does offer a health psychology track. Would that track be recommended for someone pursuing a sports psychology internship? Will I have to get a masters in something like kinesiology or sports psychology after my PsyD in order to be competitive for a sports psychology internship? Are there such a thing as APA-accredited internships in sports psychology? I couldn’t find one in their directory. Any advice is appreciated. Thanks!
Hi Branden, yes great question! I've talked to several of my supervisors about this and it does seem that health psychology tracks are fairly similar to sports psychology tracks. There have been students who I know completed health psychology externships who were able to be accepted to sports psychology internships. I've heard students will go try and get a CMPC certification while in school by completing some courses on the side while still in grad school (which i think is a lot of work) but also talking to a few sports psychologists they recommended maybe even getting a PsyD first before deciding on whether or not you should take additional courses. It's a little confusing on what schools explicitly offer sport psych internships, i think many of the programs have it interwoven into their program, for example college university counseling centers may have interns see a portion of clients that are athletes and so they may offer that type of training on the side. So instead of calling themselves a sport psych internship, they are named as a college counseling center. The only guess I have is to double check with those internships when you get to that step and see what they specifically offer. Hope that helps
@@philsguidetopsyd thanks Phil! That’s helpful. Hope all is well with you. Best of luck this upcoming school year!
You as well! I hope to have an interview with a sports psychologist in the future to talk more about these questions, so hopefully that will provide more direction. Best of luck!
Very intelligent.
Bra your golden
Appreciate it!
I am currently trying to find routes to take as to what courses I need to take in order to lead up to my grad program but I’m kinda of confused at where to start or how to get from point A(where I am now) to point B, being a sports psychologist.
Yeah it’s def really confusing and not a ton of info online about how to typically there
What career/jobs can you get with a bachelors degree in sport and performance psychology?