What qualifications do i need and what do i need to study to become a Psychiatrist?
It’s important to note at the front the differences between the two: A psychiatrist is a medical doctor. In order to become a psychiatrist you would need to complete a four year undergraduate degree, take the MCAT, then medical school, the necessary residencies and typically an additional psychiatric residency. To study, you need to get the pre-med requirements in your undergrad years–your actual degree doesn’t matter as much (I can’t count the number of doctors I’ve known over the years with English degrees), but your pre-med requirements will matters (biology, genetics, chemistry, etc.). For psychiatry, for obvious reasons, I recommend psychology, as, outside of psychiatry rotations, there is very little psychology taught to psychiatrists. A psychologist is a Ph.D–no med school involved, and ultimately probably a few fewer years. To get to that point, you will need an undergrad degree, probably need to take the GRE, and then 5-7 years of graduate school, ending in a dissertation (i
