Psychologist Degrees in Rhode Island - RI

By an allied health world contributing writer
Published: February, 19 2010

Those considering a psychology major in Rhode Island should know that the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the average annual salary of Rhode Island clinical, counseling and school psychologists at about $80,000 in 2008 and says all other types of psychologists (except labor-organizational) earned just under $70,000 a year.

Those who hold a psychology degree in Rhode Island are front-line soldiers in a never-ending but always changing battle to keep residents mentally healthy. In addition to the age-old problems that have plagued Rhode Islanders since the state was founded (addiction, marital and family problems, seasonal affective disorder), as time moves on, novel twists on old problems crop up.

For example, in the 2009 H1N1 virus epidemic, while the health department was trying to vaccinate residents as quickly as possible and deal with swine flu cases, the Rhode Island Department of Mental Health, Retardation, and Hospitals was taking a pro-active approach to dealing with the stress caused by the epidemic and helping train people to be emotionally prepared for the anxieties caused by suffering the flu, caring for those stricken by it, or worrying about what might happen. The psychologists on staff helped write guidelines on how people should deal with the potential trauma, and just the fear of potential trauma itself, to try and prevent turning an already lethal epidemic into a statewide panic.

For recipients of a psychology degree in Rhode Island, maintaining the state’s mental health boils down to more than just treating those who seek professional health. Working with government agencies to prepare for crises like major disease outbreaks and other public disasters is a critical role of mental health professionals.

Continuing Education and License Renewal for Psychologists in Rhode Island

To maintain your psychologist license in Rhode Island you must renew it every other year. In the year just preceding the renewal, you must take 12 hours of continuing education courses. These may include lectures, seminars, internet courses, home study or online courses. As long as the topic is relevant to psychology and it has been pre-approved by the state, you can take it. If the course is too new to have been approved, you can still take it, but you or the course sponsor must submit an application to the state to have it credentialized.