I’m a clinical psychologist, and I can try to answer your questions but I should clarify that I’m U.K., but not England, and I understand from colleagues working there that the health service is structured differently and has different challenges. So a clin psych based there may be able to add more insight for you?
I’m NHS-based, in a regional hospital, and work primarily with children and families. It’s mon-fri 9-5, and although i often stay later, it’s because I genuinely enjoy it and not that there is any expectation to.
What I like: the variety of work, the increasing emphasis on staff support and taking care of our wellbeing, being able to share a psychological perspective with other professionals, the lovely feedback we get from hospital staff and families, research.
What I dislike: the expectation to do more work with fewer resources, responding to enquiries about the waiting lists, turning away inappropriate referrals and knowing there is no alternative service to refer on to.
Important characteristics: good interpersonal skills, being able to sit comfortably with big emotions and long silences, self-reflective skills, flexibility, good organisation skills and excellent self motivation (training can be tough and you have a lot of plates spinning at one time). Being able to adapt communication style to suit different audiences, you can be explaining tricky concepts to a young child one day, and presenting to HCPs at a conference the next.
Why I became one: I had one parent who suffers with significant anxiety difficulties, and from a young age I found myself ‘managing’ their worries (without being aware that’s what I was doing), so I’m sure that influenced my desire to a) be
in a ‘helping profession’ and b) be drawn toward mental health work. And if I’m honest, I was always quite competitive academically, so when I was informed that clinical psychology was one of the hardest routes to pursue following a psychology degree, I was determined that I would be one of the ones to do it. This competitiveness does not exist in any other area of my life, btw, it would be great if it did 😀.
Why was I selected: I interview well, which helps, I had good work experience under my belt, including working directly with clinical psychologists which helped me with using “the language”. I was able to reflect on how my experiences could impact both positively and negatively as a therapist. And apart from being working class and female, I was/am privileged in just about every other way, and I acknowledge that’s a big part of why I am where I am today.
I’m happy to answer any more questions you have, and good luck with pursing this career.