Calling yourself a psychologist is illegal without a licence in many countries
In Belgium the title psychologist has been legally protected since 1933; Greece followed in 1979. Yet in Australia anyone may still call themselves a psychotherapist or counsellor. Who gets to use which label, and after how much training, varies remarkably from one country to the next.
A psychologist studies mental states and how people perceive, think, feel and behave, often through experiment, observation and interpretation of how individuals relate to one another and their surroundings. The usual path is a bachelor's degree followed by a master's or doctorate. Unlike psychiatrists, most psychologists cannot prescribe drugs, although some jurisdictions license those with extra training to do so. In exchange, psychologists are trained extensively in psychological testing, which psychiatrists usually are not, and many specialise in talking therapies for anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress, eating disorders and more. Applied branches range from clinical and forensic work to sport, school and workplace psychology.
Australia regulates the title under a national law, with registration handled by the Psychology Board of Australia since 2010. The minimum has been a four-year accredited degree plus either a two-year master's or two years of supervised practice, but that four-plus-two route is being phased out in favour of postgraduate degrees. Membership of the national professional society is a separate matter from registration.
Elsewhere the bar differs. Belgium requires five years of university study, and since 2016 has recognised clinical psychology as an independent health profession. Finland demands a master's worth 330 credits, about six years, and counts roughly 6,200 licensed psychologists. Norway's six-year integrated programme ends in a Candidate of Psychology degree, and Germany's protected title requires at least five years of university training. New Zealand restricted the plain word psychologist to registered practitioners under a 2003 act. India defined the clinical psychologist in its Mental Health Act of 2017, requiring a recognised two-year MPhil.
South Africa is among the most demanding: three undergraduate years, an honours degree, a master's of about two years, a full-year internship and a board examination, with some specialities adding a year of community service. In the United States and Canada, a graduate degree or provincial licence is needed to use the title.
Source: Psychologist
