Reflecting on a journey to becoming a Counselling Psychologist- Dr Faye Volker

Hello everyone and welcome to our next blog entry. We have the pleasure of hearing from Dr Faye Volker, an experienced and inspring colleague working as a Counselling Psychologist. Dr Volker shares frankly her experience of choosing to pursue a career in Psychology and making the journey viable and successful, despite many setbacks and challenging decisions.

We hope reading about Dr Volker's journey will offer you a useful glimpse as to the pathway to a career as a Practitioner Psychologist.  

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Hello,

My Name is Dr Faye Volker, and I am a practicing Counselling Psychologist. 

Before sharing my experience of becoming a Counselling Psychologist, I would like to acknowledge that Psychology is a tricky career to navigate. The journey to becoming a Psychologist is like jumping through hoops... attached to an unidentified flying object. And… by the way… they are on fire!

Having left school with insignificant grades and very few options, I decided to spend a year resitting my exams. Unlike school, the college offered GCSE psychology, and I fell in love with the topic and, for the first time, with learning. I made the natural transition to Psychology and Biology at an advanced level, yet when it came to University applications, I had been rejected for all my choices. Admittedly, my fascination for Psychology and Biology left me somewhat short on credits. At the time, there was a process called Clearing... by the end of a three-day telephone marathon, I was accepted. Off I went to University. 

                                            

  Dr Faye Volker, Counselling Psychologist

 I studied Psychology and Neuroscience. I loved the course and its contents. I was equally captivated by Biology, Chemistry, and Neuroscience and how these related to Psychology. My fascination with the mind and body continued after I completed the degree. I was awarded a bursary to explore research methods in Psychology with a focus on neuroimaging. The mathmagicians were perhaps in their element, but I persevered with the challenge. My take-home message from neuroimaging was how amazing our minds are. And like the universe, there is so much we don’t know about what we don’t know. 

As many of you in clinical practice understand… there is a difference between knowing your theory and putting that theory into practice. Coming from a scientific background, words like intuition and artistry were not in the prescribed vocabulary. They were seen as untestable, unreliable words in the empirical school of Psychology at that time. Yet, the next stage of my journey was learning that Psychology is as much about art as science. 

The next stage of my journey took me to Counselling Psychology, which, for me, has always been the creative medium in which theory is translated into practice. Co-creation evolves in the therapeutic space between you as a practitioner with your own knowledge and experience and the client or clients with their own knowledge and experience. Powerful… but only when you acknowledge you’re by no means an expert in someone else’s life. You are a guide... using knowledge, theory, and experience as your points of reference.

I will skip over what the doctoral journey was like, as this article would be far too long to read otherwise. Nevertheless… after more than twelve years… I jumped through the final moving hoop of fire. When I qualified, I was awarded the title of Doctor. As many of you will know, up until receiving that official title, you’ll be a trainee, an assistant, or a student despite already having years of experience and years of training behind you.

We have a national shortage of Psychologists and long waiting lists for people to access psychological therapy. On the one hand, Psychology is incredibly valued, as reflected in the long waiting lists. On the other hand, there is little systemic appreciation, particularly from other professionals, about the arduous, not to mention costly, journey Psychologists embark on. Perhaps this shortage will be a moment worthy of reflection for the Psychology profession.

Our journey of perseverance is ultimately about Psychology. We jump through moving hoops of fire to apply what we love to benefit people, communities, and society. The reward of being able to guide people to create meaning in their life... be alongside people as they grow... is an appreciation beyond words… hold on to it and protect it. And the only advice I’d offer is to remember you’re on a journey where everything that happens along the way adds to being and becoming a Psychologist. 

I wish each and every one of you a bon voyage.

Thank you so much Faye for sharing your experience and reflections, it offers a useful glimpse of the trials and tribulations involved in studying to become a Psychologist, but also shows your determination and focus to succeed despite these obstacles.  A true inspiration!

We hope our readers will find Dr Volker's journey useful in making their own decisions about a career in Psychology. Each of us walks our own path with many winding turns and ups and downs. Sometimes we may consider giving up or choosing a different path, but perseverance often pays off.  Dr Volker's journey is an example of unrelenting perseverance and commitment and we hope it will inspire your own.

Kind regards, 

The Pathways team.