What One Needs To Know About A Forensic Psychologist In Houston

By Rhea Solomon


A forensic psychologist in Houston come very much in handy when it comes to assessment of offenders and provision of training and support to staff. This aside, they also work closely with crime victims. Their work has a lot of involvement of research and presenting of evidence in court. Even more importantly, they are charged with the responsibility of offering advice to parole boards and tribunals set to hear mental cases.

They use expertise based on the theory of psychology for working closely with many other professionals in other careers. The purpose of this is to treat people and for development of institutional policies and working practices. Professionals in this career mostly work in the Prison Service but have employment in various other fields. These include probation services, social services and higher learning institutions.

The amount of money that they earn is widely varied depending on the sector where they are employed. For people with doctorate degrees, the starting salary is between $60000 and $70000 annually. Individuals with bachelors or masters degrees are known as psychological associates and have a starting salary of about $40000 annually. The best earners are those that venture into practice or consultancy. They earn $950000 and above annually.

The forensic psychologists need to obtain a degree in psychology, normally in either clinical counseling or psychology. There are many schools that specifically offer degrees that are focused on this field of psychology. They combine courses in psychology and law. Normally, such a degree would go for between 5 and 7 years.

Upon completion of education and attainment of the requisite experience, there is the need to get certified. The body that is charged with the responsibility of issuing certification is the American Board of Forensic Psychology. Once certified, one gets the title of a Diplomat of Forensic Psychology. Specialists in this field are not allowed to practice unless they are certified.

Getting into this profession involves a lot of thought in terms of considering what it involves. Most importantly, working with others is something one has to be used to. This is because the career involves working with professionals drawn from other fields. Besides, they would have to constantly work closely with clients and offenders. Also important are virtues like creativity, patience and commitment. These professionals should be in a position to handle situations that are challenging.

The employment opportunities are available in numbers. There are opportunities as academic researchers, consultancy, evaluation, trial consultancy and others work as expert witnesses. There are also treatment providers. It is the work of evaluators to handle matters pertaining to how competent defendants are to stand trial and their mental state at the time. They also look at any risks of future violent behavior.

There also are treatment providers that serve to offer treatment to not only people with civil but also criminal cases. For the case of criminal proceedings, help is offered to people that look to restore competency. This is especially for those that have been declared incompetent and thus cannot stand trial. Therefore, it is clear that a forensic psychologist in Houston has many opportunities to look forward to.




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