Graduates · Ontario · 2021 Census
What can you do with a psychology degree?
What graduates actually work as, from Statistics Canada, beside what Job Bank says about each job: openings, pay, and what it takes.
Published Last reviewed How we research and correct this
What can you do with a psychology degree in Ontario?
In the 2021 Census, the most common jobs among employed Ontarians aged 25 to 34 with a bachelor's degree or higher in psychology were therapists in counselling and related specialized therapies (7.2%), social and community service workers (5.3%) and post-secondary teaching and research assistants (3.5%). The 12 most common jobs cover only 37.9% of graduates, so psychology leads to a wide spread of work rather than one career.
What graduates really do
What jobs do psychology graduates in Ontario actually have?
Ontario is published for psychology as its own field, so the lead table is Ontario graduates aged 25 to 34.
| Job | Share of graduates | People | Job Bank outlook | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Therapists in counselling and related specialized therapies | 7.2% | 2,235 | Very good | $33.00/hr |
| Social and community service workers | 5.3% | 1,650 | Moderate | $26.50/hr |
| Post-secondary teaching and research assistants | 3.5% | 1,075 | No Job Bank outlook | — |
| Human resources professionalsOur guide | 3.3% | 1,040 | Limited | $39.90/hr |
| Elementary school and kindergarten teachers | 3% | 930 | Moderate | $46.15/hr |
| Retail salespersons and visual merchandisers | 2.7% | 845 | Limited | $17.95/hr |
| Administrative officers | 2.4% | 755 | Limited | $29.38/hr |
| Psychologists | 2.4% | 740 | Good | $51.82/hr |
| Administrative assistants | 2.2% | 685 | Moderate | $26.67/hr |
| Other customer and information services representatives | 2.1% | 640 | Very limited | $21.50/hr |
| Professional occupations in advertising, marketing and public relationsOur guide | 2% | 630 | Limited | $37.02/hr |
| Retail and wholesale trade managers | 1.8% | 555 | Moderate | $43.27/hr |
How does it look for other groups?
These are different groups of people, shown separately on purpose: a different place, age group or level of education. Do not read them as one comparison.
| Job | Share of graduates | People | Job Bank outlook | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Social and community service workers | 5.9% | 7,625 | Moderate | $26.50/hr |
| Elementary school and kindergarten teachers | 3.4% | 4,365 | Moderate | $46.15/hr |
| Administrative officers | 2.9% | 3,660 | Limited | $29.38/hr |
| Human resources professionalsOur guide | 2.7% | 3,525 | Limited | $39.90/hr |
| Therapists in counselling and related specialized therapies | 2.4% | 3,090 | Very good | $33.00/hr |
| Retail salespersons and visual merchandisers | 2.3% | 2,985 | Limited | $17.95/hr |
| Administrative assistants | 2.3% | 2,915 | Moderate | $26.67/hr |
| Social workersOur guide | 2.1% | 2,710 | Moderate | $38.66/hr |
| Retail and wholesale trade managers | 2% | 2,580 | Moderate | $43.27/hr |
| Early childhood educators and assistantsOur guide | 1.9% | 2,385 | Good | $22.00/hr |
| Elementary and secondary school teacher assistants | 1.9% | 2,380 | Moderate | $26.00/hr |
| Other customer and information services representatives | 1.7% | 2,150 | Very limited | $21.50/hr |
Do those jobs have openings?
Which of those jobs are hiring?
2 of the 12 most common jobs have a good or very good Ontario outlook from Job Bank for 2025 to 2027, together covering 9.6% of these graduates. Outlook is a province-wide forecast of openings against job seekers, not a promise for any one town or employer.
- Therapists in counselling and related specialized therapies: Job Bank outlook very good, 7.2% of these graduates.
- Psychologists: Job Bank outlook good, 2.4% of these graduates.
When the degree is not enough
What does the degree not lead to on its own?
A bachelor's degree in psychology does not on its own let you call yourself a psychologist or a psychological associate in Ontario. Those titles are tied to registration with the College, which asks for a master's or a doctoral degree.
The degree does build skills in research, writing and understanding people that employers in many fields ask for. Many graduates add a college graduate certificate or another credential aimed at a specific job.
Routes that need more than the degree
Register as a psychologist
The College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario says registration for autonomous practice as a psychologist requires a doctoral degree in psychology. It also says applicants first obtain a certificate of registration authorizing supervised practice before moving to autonomous practice. College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario: general information for applicantsRegister as a psychological associate
The same College says autonomous practice as a psychological associate requires a master's degree in psychology. Its supervised practice page says a master's graduate not previously registered anywhere must apply for supervised practice registration first, and describes 4 years of supervised post-master's work experience. College of Psychologists and Behaviour Analysts of Ontario: supervised practice for psychological associatesBecome an Ontario certified teacher
The Ontario College of Teachers describes a consecutive program as a four-semester program leading to a Bachelor of Education, open to students who have completed an undergraduate degree. Its becoming-a-teacher page lists a postsecondary degree of at least three years plus a four-semester teacher education program, then an application to the College for certification. Ontario College of Teachers: teacher education program providersAdd a college graduate certificate
Ontario Colleges states that graduate certificates require a university degree or a college certificate or diploma for admission, and build on knowledge and experience from earlier postsecondary study. Check each program on ontariocolleges.ca for its own entry requirements. Ontario Colleges: program types
Jobs to look at
Careers worth a closer look
Full guides: what the work is really like, who hates it, what it pays, and the route in.
- Social workerHelping people and families get through crises and hard systems, from housing and child safety to mental health and end of life.Career guide
- Human resources professionalHiring, paying, training and sometimes letting go of the people an organisation depends on, inside rules that exist for good reasons.Career guide
- TeacherGetting thirty people who did not choose to be there to learn something, five times a day, and marking it afterwards.Career guide
- Early childhood educatorTeaching and caring for young children in child care and early learning settings, where playing, feeding and comforting are all the curriculum.Career guide
- Marketing specialistGetting the right people to notice something and act on it, then proving with numbers whether it worked.Career guide
- Occupational therapistHelping people do the everyday things that matter to them, from dressing and cooking to returning to work, after illness, injury or disability.Career guide
Read this before you rely on it
What the numbers do not show
- The Census is from 2021. Jobs and hiring have moved since. Job Bank's outlook is current to 2025 to 2027.
- It counts employed people and what they do, not whether they wanted that job or use their degree in it. A graduate working as a retail supervisor is counted in the data exactly like one working in their field.
- It is a 25% sample, and Statistics Canada rounds every count to a multiple of five. Small groups are noisy.
- For Ontario the Census publishes bachelor's degree or higher together, so those tables include master's and doctoral graduates.
- Each person is counted once, by their highest credential. A person who finished a diploma and then a degree appears under the degree, not the diploma.
- The 12 jobs shown are the most common, not all of them. The rest of the graduates are spread across hundreds of other jobs.
Sources: Statistics Canada, 2021 Census of Population, tables 98-10-0447-01 and 98-10-0403-01; Job Bank (Employment and Social Development Canada) Ontario outlooks and wages, linked on each job. We join them by occupation code and change neither.
Finished the degree and stuck?
There is a plan for the next 90 days
Other degrees
Sociology Political science Business Biology Communications English Social work Education Engineering Computer science Health professions Visual and performing arts History Mathematics and statistics Physical sciences Legal studies Kinesiology and recreation Architecture Philosophy Languages and linguistics Environment and natural resources Family and human sciences Liberal arts and general studies Police foundations Culinary and personal services Engineering technology Construction trades Mechanic and repair trades Welding, machining and precision trades Transportation and materials moving Criminology and criminal justice All degrees Every job in Ontario