Written by Helen Lewis
In California, mental health care is being increasingly prioritized as a critical industry in need of additional resources.
One of the most commonly-referenced issues in California mental health care at present is understaffing. As reallocated state funding is making mental health care more accessible for residents, a greater number of qualified providers are also going to be needed to meet the demand.
Psychology is an incredibly rewarding field for those who are interested in providing meaningful, patient-focused care that has the potential to change people’s lives.
While a common misconception is that anyone looking to become a psychologist needs years of expensive education, it’s important to know that lucrative roles with high-level responsibilities in psychology are also available to individuals with master’s degrees, which take a fraction of the time.
Interested in becoming a psychologist in Fresno, California? Learn about the local mental health care landscape, jobs, the average salary, and more.
Welcome to Fresno, California
Located in California’s Central Valley, Fresno is a compact city known for its ash trees, San Joaquin River, and proximity to breathtaking national parks like Yosemite, Kings Canyon, and Sequoia.
Fresno is a diverse city, with more than 50% of residents identifying as Hispanic. The city is also home to people from more than 70 ethnic backgrounds, including one of the largest urban populations of Hmong people in the United States. Within this city of just over 542,000, residents speak more than 105 languages.
Health care is a significant part of the local economy. One of Fresno’s largest employers is Community Regional Medical Center, a hospital and trauma center run in partnership with University of San Francisco – Fresno (UCSF Fresno), which provides jobs for around 9,000 people living in Fresno. Valley Children’s Hospital and Saint Agnes Medical Center both also employ thousands of Fresno residents.
What is the Mental Health Care Landscape in Fresno Like?
In Fresno, as in many parts of California, residents and mental health care workers alike have complained about a dearth of resources available to locals.
Some have referred to the current state of affairs in Fresno as representing a “missing middle”: that psychiatric services were available to those with largely functional mental health issues, who could be treated through outpatient therapy, and to those experiencing severe mental health crises, such as those who needed to be hospitalized in in-patient settings. According to these critics, people with moderate mental health issues, including those that need to be regularly monitored and treated with medication so as to not slide into severe mental illness, run the risk of being overlooked – and thus, of their conditions deteriorating.
Most recently, in July 2024, the state of California awarded more than $5 million to Fresno State, in order for the university to expand its Master of Social Work program. As a result, a university official announced, the program will now be able to accommodate an additional 75 students.
Still, a recent Central Valley Health Policy Survey found that 56% of people living in the Central Valley felt that there were not enough mental health care providers in their communities.
Identifying a Need, Finding an Opportunity: Becoming a Psychologist in Fresno, CA
The evidence is clear: Fresno residents feel that they are in need of more mental health care professionals.
According to a 2023 survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, clinical and counseling psychologists in California are the second-highest paid in the nation, earning an average of $132,410 annually.
In fact, all surveyed California psychologists earned, on average, six-figure salaries in 2023.
Jobs for Psychologists: What Does a Psychologist Do?
Psychology is a wonderfully versatile field. Like many different professions in health care, the discipline of psychology offers students and future providers the opportunity to lean into their unique strengths and interests through a variety of specializations.
At the educational stage, a specialization for a future psychologist could look like a specific academic track. For example, someone who wants to become a psychologist that works directly with patients, like a school psychologist, counselor, or child and family psychologist, would likely take courses that focus on theoretical topics related to psychology, as well as hands-on application of psychological skills in the real world. The people that choose to pursue a track like this would likely be drawn to working with other people, guided by strong social skills, a highly developed sense of empathy, and an interest in providing direct care.
Alternatively, someone who wants to focus on higher-level research and academic studies – like a future educational psychologist or neuropsychologist – may spend more time in the lab. Those pursuing these specializations are likely to be more interested in quantitative reasoning, mathematics, and the sciences, with less desire to provide in-person therapy or related services.
After graduation, the state of California requires future psychologists to become licensed. At this point, aspiring professional mental health workers will have to complete 1,500 hours of supervised internships or residencies – in addition to 1,500 hours of supervised internships that they will have likely already completed during their graduate education.
At this point, psychologists will be able to build more confidence through applying everything they’ve learned in the sheltered environment of the classroom and put it to use in fast-paced, unpredictable real-world situations. The environments in which psychologists-to-be complete their internships are also relevant to the specialization a person is choosing to pursue: for example, someone aspiring to become a clinical psychologist will likely do their internship in a clinical setting, like a hospital or private practice, while someone aspiring to become a rehabilitation or addiction psychologist would likely complete their internship in an inpatient or outpatient environment for people suffering from substance abuse disorder.
Different Specializations for Future Psychologists: An Overview
The American Psychological Association lists a range of what they call “recognized specialties, subspecialties, and proficiencies in professional psychology” – what can be understood as synonymous with specializations.
Their list of official recognized specialties includes:
- Clinical psychology
- Clinical psychopharmacology
- Geropsychology
- School psychology
- Group psychology and group psychotherapy
- Industrial-organizational psychology
- Serious mental illness psychology
Psychoanalysis is listed as a “subspecialty” in psychology, while proficiencies include sports psychology and addiction psychology.
Spotlight on Specializations: Child Psychologist Fresno
Clinical child and adolescent psychologists are doctorate-level mental health professionals with the ability to help young people dealing with lifelong or situational difficulties.
In some cases, child psychologists help young people of all ages, from toddlers to teenagers, find ways to live alongside their mental health, developmental, or cognitive challenges in social, academic, familial, extracurricular, and other situations. While one may think of mental health conditions as primarily presenting themselves in adults between the ages of 18 and 25, many young people live with conditions like anxiety, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, or autism spectrum disorder – to name a few.
For many young people, a lack of information about their diagnosis might mean that they act out in school, or feel strong feelings of alienation and loneliness. Connection to qualified mental health care providers can also mean opening the door to future connections and community with other young people with the same diagnosis.
For other young people, mental health challenges are not congenital, but rather situational. Unfortunately, terrible things can happen to people at any age. Because these crucial years of development between infancy and adolescence are so formative, these experiences can have powerful effects on a person’s life. Qualified child and adolescent psychologists are trained to help young people dealing with trauma and loss, creating a space in which they are able to process feelings like grief, depression, anxiety, and experiences of trauma.
Spotlight on Specializations: Sports Psychologist Fresno CA
In partnership with athletes ranging from professionals – like players on the celebrated Fresno Grizzlies Minor League Baseball team – to amateurs, sports psychologists are often enlisted to help patients improve their game-time performance with skills like visualization, goal-setting, and relaxation techniques.
Sports psychologists can also be brought in to help athletes dealing with personal and emotional issues, like eating disorders and weight management; burnout; responding to and recovering from injuries; and career transitions.
Some teams or coaches may choose to hire a sports psychologist in order to help with things like team building, as psychologists can use their expertise to help develop the most impactful exercises possible for group cohesion, leadership building, and interpersonal relationships.
Finally, sports psychologists may also be brought in as consultants for athletic organizations. Working from the top down, these mental health professionals can help develop effective organizational strategies; provide helpful education and training materials for coaches; and design sensitive intervention strategies with caregivers and families, particularly in the context of children’s sports.
While some roles in sports psychology require a Phd – any clinical position, for example – others are open to applicants with master’s degrees.
Spotlight on Specializations: School Psychologist Jobs Fresno
In many ways, school psychologists and social workers trained as school guidance counselors can share many responsibilities. Trained to support young people with learning differences and to identify signs of emotional distress in young people, these skilled professionals act as the glue between the school system and the student’s individual learning experience.
School psychologists don’t only work within the school building, however. While some school psychologists may have day-to-day jobs in a school, they can also be called in as consultants to help schools develop curricula to create positive learning environments and effective learning materials.
Others may work closely with families and parents, particularly if a student is experiencing emotional, behavioral, or learning difficulties at school. Some families may reach out to school psychologists to access professional-level assistance. In other cases, school psychologists may be responsible for crisis intervention, which can include if a child is unsafe – either at school or at home.
A doctoral degree is not necessary to become a school psychologist: instead, a master’s in psychology will suffice.
What’s the Value of Getting a Master’s in Psychology?
It’s true that most positions in the field of psychology require applicants to have a doctorate in psychology – either a Psy.D or a Ph.D.
However, some specializations – like school psychology, sports psychology, institutional-organizational psychology, and forensic psychology – may accept candidates with a terminal master’s degree. That means that, for aspiring psychologists who know that they want to work in school psychology, it’s simply not necessary to pursue a doctoral program.
This can be an appealing option for a number of reasons:
- Time: A master’s program in psychology typically takes between two and three years to complete. By contrast, the average doctoral program in psychology takes up to seven years to complete.
- Cost: Because doctoral programs in psychology are more than twice as long as master’s programs, it’s quite likely that the cost of tuition is considerably higher for these longer-term programs.
- The admissions process: In some cases, even those who are aspiring to eventually become clinical psychologists – a field that requires applicants to have a doctorate degree – may find that a master’s program is preferable, or even necessary, in order to get into the doctoral programs they’re interested in. Doctoral programs in psychology are notoriously competitive, and may be particularly difficult to get into for applicants who do not have a bachelor’s degree in psychology or a related field. Master’s programs in psychology are considerably less competitive and, while they may require prospective students without a related undergraduate degree to complete some prerequisite courses before applying, are generally easier to get into. For this reason, a master’s in psychology could be a great pathway to getting in to competitive doctoral programs down the line.
In the field of psychology, there are two available pathways for master’s degrees: a Master of Arts (MA) or a Master of Sciences (MS). An MA degree is useful for any psychologist-to-be hoping to work directly with patients: these studies will involve not only theoretical lessons in psychology, but also offer hands-on applications of this work in interpersonal settings. Those pursuing MS degrees are likely to be more quantitative minds, interested in pursuing psychology from a lab or in the context of a research study.
How Much Do Psychologists in Fresno, CA Earn?
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, psychologists across all specializations surveyed in Fresno, California earned – on average – six figures in 2023.
Across California, school psychologists tend to come in on the low end, though their salaries remain well above the state average: last year, the average working person in Fresno earned $60,430, while the average school psychologist made $114,940.
Next were clinical and counseling psychologists with a mean income of $122,340 citywide.
The highest earners were in a category called “Psychologists, all other”: employees who most often work for the government, within healthcare settings, in colleges and universities, and in outpatient care centers. In 2023, these professionals earned an average income of $128,710.
2023 US Bureau of Labor Statistics salary and employment figures reflect state data, not school-specific information. Conditions in your area may vary. Data accessed October 2024.