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I have always loved psychology, and so I went and got a first degree in that field. However, I also loved technology (especially computers) while growing up. Unfortunately, I wasn't well-informed about university programs, and so I didn't know I could do both psychology and computer science in my undergraduate, until I was admitted and wasn't allowed by my institution to pick on new programs. So after undergraduate I decided to go on to pursue a health technology (ehealth & telemedicine) master's program, but my lack of knowledge in computer science makes me not proficient in the tech aspect of my field and limits my PhD options in that field. My ideal career move involves combining technology in my psychology professional practice. But now, I am confused as to whether I should just go on and pursue a PhD Health technology or go in for a second master's in psychology to allow me further into PhD psychology afterwards? I can't apply for PhD in psychology without a master's in that field either, but I also feel I am not growing younger anymore and so time matters, if I want to enjoy a long career before retirement then I should get a PhD soon enough. But that will mean sticking to health technology and forgoing my psychology dreams. I am really confused now. Also, is there anyway I can get into psychology and still take a course in computer science? What are my options, what should I do?

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If it is possible to start your dream PhD without further prerequisites: do it. Also take notice that it'll be hard, but doable. In my opinion a second Master's has no benefit, taking the possible admission to the PhD program aside.

I know someone, who got a PhD in physics after a Master's in biology. I went to a PhD in CS after a Master's in mathematics.

(This is also a bit dependent on the field and on the social component, so please tag with a country for further answers. My experience references German system, but it should be generic enough for US too.)

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  • Hi Oleg Lobachev, Thanks for the clarification and helpful insights. However, there may be some further prerequisites to land a good PhD in the health technology field since I only have some basic self-taught knowledge in computers and programming with no prior accreditation besides my master's degree. Most of the PhDs I see in this field seem to require strong computer science background. For the country, I did my master's in Ehealth and Telemedicine at Norway. So, I intend to do further studies either in Canada or the USA.
    – Jach
    Commented Feb 8, 2018 at 0:05
  • It would make sense to ask the department at the destination university which courses would they expect to have for the successful admission in the PhD programme. To switch countries and to do MSc first is also not a bad idea, although I know enough international PhDs and they cope well.
    – Oleg Lobachev
    Commented Feb 8, 2018 at 8:40
  • Thanks Oleg, you've been very helpful. I appreciate your advise. I will give it a shot and provide feedback on my question later :)
    – Jach
    Commented Feb 8, 2018 at 23:31
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From my experiences, I would take the PhD road; being in the German and later Swiss environment.

I studied computer sciences first, and continued with a PhD on it. One of the best decisions of my life: it opened many doors. A second master can be added later, if you want. (I added an MBA some years after the PhD).

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  • Thanks Walter, you've been more than helpful. I really enjoy computer science-related activity, and wish to advance in it over the coming years.
    – Jach
    Commented Feb 8, 2018 at 0:08

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