Reflections from our critical conversation at APA 2024

Division 20 Early Career Folks,

Happy Fall! It was great seeing so many of you in Seattle this past August. We enjoyed hosting an early career “Critical Conversation” session titled “Career Development Strategies for Emerging Geropsychologists (and Those Considering Geropsychology!).” Joined by panelists Drs. Rowena Gomez, Michelle Mlinac, Latrice Vinson, and Wally Booth, we engaged in Q&A between panelists and attendees that evolved into a thoughtful conversation about tips and tricks for early career professionals.

We look forward to continued conversations about navigating the early stage of a geropsychology career. In the meantime, for those of you who were unable to attend, we’ve decided to use this space to offer a summary of key points from our conversation:

Don’t be afraid to reach out! Attendees were curious about how to get some low-stakes initial experience working with older adults in order to decide if geropsychology is the right career path for them. Our panelists encouraged attendees to not shy away from “cold calls and emails” to various organizations seeking training or shadowing opportunities. Veterans Affairs offices, for example, are promising places to reach out to in search of experience. And, remember to find multiple diverse opportunities - just because one experience is not a good fit doesn’t mean a career in gerospychology is not right for you.
The path to – and through – a career in geropsychology is rarely linear. Some session attendees were clinicians not necessarily trained to work with older adults, but have found that many of their clients and patients are older adults or their families. These attendees wanted to be prepared to be helpful to the growing number of older adult patients coming through their doors. Our panelists echoed this reality, with some of them having similar stories of starting their career working in another sector of psychology but eventually finding their way working with older adults. There are many resources to help folks transitioning into an aging-focused career, including grant funding. See the F99/K00 Transition to Aging Research for Predoctoral Studentsopens in new window funding opportunity from the National Institute on Aging, for example.
Mentors help you build community. Our panelists reminded attendees that sometimes the role of a mentor is not necessarily to guide you through a research or clinical project, but rather to connect you to the people and information you need for your next career step. Remember that short conversations can build into longer term relationships that open doors for you down the road.
Be open minded! Our panelists reminded us that psychologists have many skills that can be applied creatively and diversely to support older adults. No two careers in geropsychology look the same, and there is no template for what a geropsychologist looks like. No matter your specific interest, background, training, and skills, the growing older adult population needs you!

There are many career development opportunities related to geropsychology

Some mentioned in the session include:

If you were not able to attend the session in-person, we hope these highlights have helped fill you in! We wish you all the best this fall.