Life After Graduation: Career Options and Job Prospects in Healthcare

Have you nearly finished a college or university degree in healthcare? It's such an exciting time as you consolidate your learning, embark on final placements and get ready for exams. Whether you've studied a Masters in Health Education online, a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN), an online MS in Speech-Language Pathology, or another related degree, it's probably time to consider the next steps. You need to consider your career options and job prospects in healthcare, and it's such a broad field that you might be a touch stumped. Fear not - because this helpful article will share some viable options. Continue reading to learn more. 

Become a Specialized Nurse

If you've studied a BSN and want to become a full-time nurse, this is a rewarding and valuable career pathway. Once you're a qualified nurse, you can work in various healthcare settings. Even within a hospital, you could work across various wards. For instance, you could work in an emergency room setting, tending to patients presenting with immediate and sometimes dire injuries or conditions. Or, you could work in the fracture ward, assisting people to mend their broken limbs and joints. Oncology is another type of ward where you'll care for cancer patients. And that's just within a hospital environment.

However, you might want to specialize in a particular nursing field, such as an oncology specialist nurse, a surgical nurse or a geriatric nurse. Each has its unique requirements. The best baseline qualification is the BSN, but from there, after you've gained 2,000 hours of clinical experience, you can specialize and gain certifications in various fields that we've just mentioned. 

Mental Health Careers

If you've studied psychology, a rewarding career in mental health is a viable pathway for you. 

A psychologist is a registered health specialist trained in human behaviour, mental health and cognition. Some psychologists can complete further studies to become certified in different specialized areas of psychology, such as clinical psychology, health psychology, neuropsychology, organizational, forensics, community settings, and sports and exercise psychology - where you'll work with top athletes. 

Psychologists work in community health centres, outreach capacity, schools, hospitals (including mental health inpatient units), the justice courts, businesses, prisons and other forensic settings, and private practices.

Some psychologists may specialize in helping kids, teenagers or families and can work as family therapists. As a psychologist, you will use a variety of talk-based therapies to support your clients. These therapies include Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. 

A Career in Healthcare Management

Another viable career pathway in the healthcare system is to work towards a management role. Usually, you'll need a few years of experience in a direct healthcare setting as a nurse, psychologist, therapist or other clinician role. After you've gained valuable experience, you could apply for a team leader or lead role. Then, you can work your way up the ranks. There are a variety of management roles available in hospitals, non-profits, community care settings and other locations. Some management roles include ward unit managers, administrative managers, directors and even executive-level management. Some people go back to study for an MBA, which they can apply to healthcare management settings.

Become an Exercise Physiologist

Exercise physiologists are specialized healthcare professionals who help patients get fitter and healthier and treat people with medical conditions through exercise. You can work with patients who need to lose weight or modify their lifestyle to avoid the risk or exacerbation of chronic health conditions. 

As an exercise physiologist, you may work with people who have heart disease, high cholesterol, cancer or other physical health issues such as arthritis.

You can provide patients with coaching, health education and information, and physical rehabilitation so they can live their lives feeling better and performing well. 

Embark on a Medical Research Career

Another exciting role you can work in healthcare is as a medical researcher. You'll typically require a degree in biomedical science and usually postgraduate qualifications for this career pathway. You'll work in laboratories to study all about diagnosing, treating and preventing disease. As a medical researcher, you could specialize in specific fields such as viruses, blood, cellular biology, the immune system, or genetics. 

Medical researchers usually work on exciting projects such as finding the cures for various cancers, diabetes treatment and prevention, HIV treatment and other nasty diseases. This is a rewarding career where you'll genuinely make a difference. 

Become a Pharmacist

You might consider a career as a pharmacist, working to dispense vital medications to consumers. As a pharmacist, you'll be a trusted professional and support people with their everyday health and well-being. You'll become an expert in all medications, from tablets to ointments and liquids. You can advise customers on the most effective ways to treat common illnesses with over-the-counter medication and prescriptions. As a pharmacist, you can work in a local store or in a hospital setting, too. 

A Career as an Occupational Therapist

You could consider becoming an occupational therapist - a well-respected and viable career pathway. Occupational therapists, or OTs for short, assist people with illness, injury or disability to develop the skills they need for daily living and working - or their "occupation."

OTs can work with children to help them develop hand-eye coordination and fine motor skills for sports and school. They can also coach people to get moving and back to everyday life after surgeries such as hip replacements. In addition, they can provide equipment and advice for disabled people so they can work or engage in society, and they can also assist people in developing coping strategies and skills for dealing with mental health issues.

A Career Conclusion

This helpful article has shared all about life after graduation and what career options exist in the healthcare space. From nursing to psychology and everything in between, we've covered many jobs. Hopefully, this article has provided some inspiration.