17 things psychology majors should do in December to help their 2026 job search

I’ve built MVS Psychology Group from the ground up and hired multiple psychologists and administrative staff, so I’ve seen thousands of applications. Here’s what actually works: December is when you should be building your clinical portfolio, not just applying. Most psychology grads send the same generic resume, but the ones I remember show me specific evidence of their therapeutic approach.

One psychologist I hired, Myles, stood out because he came in with clear examples of his work with ADHD/ASD and trauma cases, plus he’d already completed additional training in Lacanian Psychoanalytic Treatment during his “downtime.” When we met, he could articulate his values and treatment style immediately–respect, openness, empathy, curiosity. That specificity made the decision easy.

My concrete advice: Spend December documenting 3-5 detailed case conceptualizations (anonymized, obviously) that showcase your clinical thinking. Write them like you’re presenting to a supervisor–what was the presenting problem, your formulation, your treatment approach, and outcomes. I’ve passed on candidates with better grades because they couldn’t articulate how they actually think through cases.

Also, get one specialized skill this month that sets you apart. When I need someone who does EMDR or works with adolescents, I’m not sifting through 100 applications–I’m asking my network “who’s trained in this?” That person gets the interview before the job is even posted.

I’ve spent 30+ years building a clinical practice and now train professionals worldwide, and here’s what nobody tells psychology majors: December is when you should be documenting your own nervous system regulation practices, not just studying them. When I interview clinicians, I don’t just want to hear what they learned in their psych courses–I want to know how they personally manage stress, because you can’t regulate a dysregulated child if you’re dysregulated yourself.

The professionals I’ve hired who make the biggest impact aren’t the ones with perfect GPAs. They’re the ones who can say, “I practice box breathing before sessions” or “I track my sleep because I noticed my patience drops when I’m under seven hours.” Start a simple log this month: track one personal regulation tool daily (sleep, movement, breathing exercises) and note what you observe. When you interview in January and someone asks about self-care, you’ll have real data instead of textbook answers.

I’ve seen this play out repeatedly with the clinicians in my programs. One therapist I hired had been tracking her own sensory regulation strategies for three months before her interview. When we discussed working with highly dysregulated kids, she pulled out her phone and showed me her notes on what grounded *her* during stressful weeks. That self-awareness translated directly into her clinical work–she now helps families implement the same tracking systems, and parents actually follow through because she speaks from lived experience, not theory.

The gap between psychology knowledge and clinical effectiveness is massive. December is your chance to close it by becoming your own first case study.

The single most important thing psychology majors can do in December is to finalize a research project, whether it’s a thesis, research abstract, or poster presentation, and integrate it into their professional materials. My work focuses on trauma and resilience, so I know that hiring committees in these fields value demonstrated rigor. Submitting an abstract for a conference or polishing a research manuscript shows that you can translate theory into outcome, and it highlights intellectual curiosity. December is quiet enough to get this work done, and it helps to ensure that you stand out as a candidate with high potential who can contribute to both clinical knowledge and research when application windows open early in 2026. This can really make you stand out in the applicant pool.

Early in my career, I noticed something odd: the strongest candidates had already made decisions before January. They knew what roles they wanted and had taken one concrete step to test that path.

For psychology majors, December is the moment to pressure-test your career direction. Instead of applying unthinkingly, use the month to narrow your focus to HR, behavioral research, learning and development, UX, or counseling tracks.

From an employer’s point of view, clarity is rare and valuable. Candidates who know where they fit move faster through the hiring process.

What I’d advise psychology majors to do in December: Choose one realistic career track, not five. Interview two professionals in that role. Rewrite your resume to match that path. Apply early to roles opening in January.

Clarity in December creates confidence in interviews. Employers don’t hire majors, they hire direction.

If you haven’t already really jumped into AI, this is the time to do it. Workers who can leverage AI will be able to accomplish far more than those who don’t. This does not mean you don’t need an education and a strong skill set. AI cannot do the thinking and decision-making for you. But if you know how to use and apply AI to everyday work situations, such as generating the framework for slide decks, memos, graphics, websites, or analyzing data, you are going to be well ahead of the curve. Be able to talk about how you can apply them at a job interview. The mental health field tends to grow slowly. If you learn and use AI tools, you will have a distinct advantage over your peers who haven’t taken the time to learn about AI yet.

Use December to volunteer or shadow at crisis hotlines, community mental health programs, or support groups that often need extra hands during the holidays. These organizations see a spike in demand when many regular volunteers are away or busy, so they’re more open to bringing on new helpers, even for a short time.

Getting this hands-on experience builds your resume and gives you real exposure to the kind of work psychology grads often do after school. It can also connect you with professionals who know what roles are opening up in the spring and are often willing to give references for jobs or grad programs. Starting early like this helps you stand out when applications open in 2026, because you’ve already shown you can handle real-world situations and take initiative when it’s needed most.

I’ve trained over 12,700 women across Uganda who had zero formal credentials but needed to prove they could do work that “only men were supposed to do.” The biggest barrier wasn’t their skills–it was that nobody *saw* them as capable until they had something concrete to show.

Psychology majors often get stuck because the work feels invisible or hard to demonstrate. Here’s what I’d do in December: pick one real problem in your community and document yourself solving it. I’m talking actual case study format–problem, what you did, measurable result. One of our trainees, Isabella, had no education but documented building her first rainwater tank at her church. When she sat before government officials for a contract, she didn’t talk about potential–she showed photos, measurements, and community testimonials. She won against educated competitors.

Your version could be: volunteer to redesign the onboarding process at a local nonprofit, measure before/after retention rates, and create a one-page case study with real numbers. Or help a small business improve their customer feedback system and track the impact over 4 weeks. When you walk into January interviews, you’re not selling theory–you’re showing “here’s a problem I solved last month, here’s the data, here’s what I’d do for you.”

The women I work with don’t wait for permission or perfect conditions. They build something small, prove it works, then scale. December is your building month.

One of the most valuable steps a psychology major can take this December is to pause the resume tweaking and instead draft a “Philosophy of Care” statement. In my private practice, ACES Psychiatry, I review many applications that look identical on paper. They list the same coursework, the same internships, and similar GPAs. What makes a candidate stand out is not their academic stats, but their understanding of the human element behind the diagnosis.

Use the holiday downtime to write a simple one-page summary that answers: How do I view the patient? What is my role in their recovery? Do I see myself as a fixer of symptoms, or a partner in building resilience? This exercise forces you to move beyond theory and define your professional identity.

When I hire, I look for traits I cannot teach. I can train a new team member on our scheduling software or specific billing codes. I cannot teach them curiosity, empathy, or the ability to listen without judgment. Walking into an interview with a clear, articulated sense of your own values shows a level of maturity and self-reflection that is rare in early-career applicants. It tells me you are ready to connect with people, not just treat disorders.

I’m not a psych major, but I’ve hired dozens of people over 15 years running a law firm, and I spent my first legal job on a fellowship studying how people make decisions under stress–which is basically applied psychology in crisis moments.

Here’s what I’d do in December: practice explaining complex emotional situations simply to strangers. Psychology majors often get stuck in academic language, but employers need people who can translate human behavior into actionable insights. I once hired someone specifically because during her interview, she explained family conflict patterns using a story about her neighbor’s garage sale dispute–I immediately understood how she’d help our clients steer inheritance drama.

Spend December having 10-15 coffee chats where you explain one psychological concept (like cognitive dissonance or loss aversion) using only everyday examples from your own life. By January, you’ll interview differently than every other candidate reciting textbook theories. When I’m hiring, the person who can make me understand why my clients avoid estate planning because they’re terrified of mortality–without using any jargon–that’s who gets the job offer.

A huge mistake psychology majors make during December is to rely on an automated system to tell their story for them. We now live in a time where many applicants’ resumes are deleted by computer filters before a human has a chance to read between the lines to see the passion and empathy that are so important to healers and counselors. This process is cold and takes away the very thing that sets you apart, which is your ability to empathize.

What psychology majors should do during this time is turn off the screens and start doing what I refer to as “Empathy Interviews”. These would be finding three directors of local clinics or wellness centers and having a brief conversation with them about some of the real challenges patients are facing in today’s society. It’s not about asking for a job; it’s about demonstrating that you have the ability to listen and empathize with the human experience. When psychology majors approach potential employers with a genuine desire to learn and grow, they will begin to establish relationships and will no longer be viewed as just another resume submitted via e-mail.

Using the time in December to develop a relationship of trust is extremely beneficial and will ultimately help secure your future while remaining true to the reasons you studied psychology in the first place. You will find that developing these relationships through real conversations will provide you with much more confidence than completing any other online application.

The most important thing a psychology major should do in December is shift their focus from studying theory to selling the application. They need to stop thinking about abstract psychological principles and start figuring out how their unique skillset solves a tangible business problem. Psychology gives them a deep understanding of human behavior, motivation, and team dynamics—that’s gold, but they have to learn to translate it into language a hiring manager understands.

My key tip is to take the entire month to actively audit and connect their academic knowledge to a specific industry need. If they want to work in HR, they should show how their knowledge of behavioral psychology improves employee retention. If they want to work in marketing, they need to explain how they’d use cognitive biases to improve website conversion rates for a company like Honeycomb Air. They need to create a one-page “translation guide” for their own skills.

They should prioritize reaching out to three or four people who work in their desired industry—even just service businesses here in San Antonio—and ask them one question: “What is the single biggest people problem you face right now?” Use that answer to re-craft their resume and cover letters, proving that their psychology background is not just academic knowledge, but a powerful diagnostic tool ready to generate results for the employer come January.

I’ve managed a busy executive office in Las Vegas for over five years, and I see hundreds of professionals come through looking for their next opportunity. Here’s what separates the ones who land jobs from those who don’t: they secure their professional identity in December before everyone else floods the market in January.

Get yourself a proper business address and phone number NOW–not your dorm or parents’ house. When I onboard virtual office clients (especially attorneys and consultants just starting out), the ones who set this up before their job search consistently get more interview callbacks. Employers Google you, and seeing a professional business address signals you’re serious. Our virtual clients pay $99/month and immediately look more established than candidates listing residential addresses.

Psychology majors especially benefit because you’re competing against people with “business” degrees who look more corporate on paper. I had a psychology grad use our Vegas address for three months during her job search–she told me employers assumed she was already consulting independently, which made her stand out. She landed a corporate training role because they saw her as an entrepreneur, not just another grad.

Set this up before December 15th when hiring managers are reviewing January interview schedules. You’ll have professional business cards, a legitimate address on your resume, and a dedicated line that doesn’t go to voicemail at your roommate’s apartment. Takes one afternoon to set up and changes how seriously people take you.

Many psychology profiles focus on degrees, GPA, and certifications, which rarely differentiate candidates. December is the right moment to rewrite LinkedIn as a thinking space. Posting short observations about workplace behavior, decision fatigue, bias in evaluation, or motivation breakdowns demonstrates psychological literacy in plain language. These posts act as signals to recruiters and hiring managers who scan profiles quickly. When hiring in January ramps up, candidates who consistently articulate how people behave at work are remembered as thinkers who can contribute beyond entry-level tasks.

For mentors, professors, or former internship bosses, inquire whom those persons might be able to vouch as to your skill sets.

These people are receiving more requests in spring, so asking sooner will already set you apart.

After some short thank-you greetings–or better still a Christmas/holiday card–you can engage with a less formal conversation, chatting about your plans and following up on what these rare people might be elated to say in your favor, if asked.

The time you put into updating your resume with select academic projects or practicum hours–which you might have forgotten about during the jamming months of the semester–will pay off.

I also think that psych majors should begin researching organizations they admire, following hiring trends so they are not just beginning in January.

LinkedIn updates, polished cover letter template, and a collection of job alerts would place you ahead of all other students when hiring picks up again.

Many times, a reference, a clear resume, and a well-timed thank-you note, even though you were not the first applicant, would hold even more weight.

For any psychology majors job hunting early next year, here’s my top tip: update your LinkedIn profile picture in December. When I changed mine last year, the interview requests and messages went up a notch. I even used an AI-generated photo. It sounds like a small thing, but it gets you noticed. It’s the simplest move with the biggest payoff.