How to Become a Psychiatrist in 2023? Complete Career Guide

A psychiatrist focuses on the treatment of mental conditions, including behavioural and emotional disorders. A psychiatrist career is suitable for candidates who are specifically interested in understanding how the human mind works. If we look at the monetary benefit, the average psychiatrist's salary per month in India is INR 8-12 LPA

Candidates aiming to build a career as a psychiatrist need to first discover whether they have the necessary skill set. Moving ahead, it is required to pursue the relevant courses, followed by gaining internship experience. As the next steps, candidates must proceed with applying for a license & taking up certifications if needed. Finally, they are ready to prepare their resume and start their job hunt!

Table of Contents

• How to Become a Psychiatrist in India
• How Long does it take to become a Psychiatrist?
• Who is a Psychiatrist?
• What%20does%20a%20Psychiatrist%20do">What does a Psychiatrist do?
• Types of Psychiatrists
• Skills Needed to Become a Psychiatrist
• Career as a Psychiatrist: Jobs and Salaries
• Top Companies Recruiting Psychiatrists
• Pros and Cons of Becoming a Psychiatrist

How to Become a Psychiatrist in India

Candidates will understand how to be a psychiatrist by going through the steps given below.

• Step 1: Identify Skills
• Step 2: Complete the Required Courses
• Step 3: Pursue an Internship
• Step 4: Apply for a License and Obtain Medical Certification
• Step 5: Pursue Relevant Certifications
• Step 6: Develop An Impactful Resume
• Step 7: Get Started

Step 1: Identify Skills

The first step in approaching any profession is identifying whether the individual has relevant skills. Candidates who aspire to become a psychiatrist must possess soft skills like compassion, communication skills, sensitivity, stress tolerance, etc. Also, hard skills like analytical ability, reasoning, and understanding of scientific methods are required. 

Step 2: Complete the Required Courses

The next step for students wondering how to become psychiatrists in India is to pursue a formal degree or course. Importantly, candidates must pass class 12 with subjects like Chemistry, Physics, and Biology to pursue a career as a psychiatrist.

It is required by aspirants to pursue a bachelor’s degree after taking the entrance exams. After finishing the UG psychiatrist course, they can opt for higher education by studying for a master’s psychiatrist degree. It will help aspirants widen their knowledge base and get into better-paying jobs. The UG and PG programs that can be pursued by students to become a psychiatrist are:

Psychology Courses Entrance Exams

The average psychiatrist course fee in India ranges between INR 30,000 to INR 25,00,000 per annum.

Step 3: Pursue an Internship

After obtaining the qualifications to become a psychiatrist, candidates must mandatorily pursue an internship. During the bachelor’s degree course that is MBBS, they will have to take up an internship for 1 year.

Step 4: Apply for a License and Obtain Medical Certification

The next stage in the process of becoming a psychiatrist involves applying for a license to practice psychiatry in India. Candidates can obtain a general psychiatric certification from the medical board of the state. This license shall remain valid for a duration of 10 years.

Step 5: Pursue Relevant Certifications

After license application, we recommend aspiring psychiatrists pursue certifications that will add value to their resume & psychiatrist career. Here are a few specialised certifications that can be taken up:

• Positive Psychiatry and Mental Health
• Impact of Trauma on Mental Health
• Certificate Course on Mental Health and Counselling

Step 6: Develop An Impactful Resume

Once all the psychiatrist qualifications are obtained, and relevant experience is gained, aspirants must prepare an attractive resume. Post creating the resume, they should begin applying for psychiatrist jobs through several job portals like LinkedIn, Monster, Naukri, etc.

Step 7: Get Started

Candidates must now look for the best job role and get started with their career journey. They can work as psychiatrists in academic health centres, military settings, psychiatric hospitals, nursing homes, etc. Alternatively, candidates can practice psychiatry by starting their own clinic.

How Long does it take to become a Psychiatrist?

Approximately it takes around 7-8 years for candidates to become a psychiatrist in India. First, they need to pursue MBBS, which is a 5-and-a-half-year program. Further, candidates can opt for a master’s or a diploma program; hence it will take another 2-3 years.

An MD in Psychiatry is a master’s degree course that has a duration of three years. At the same time, a diploma in psychiatric medicine lasts for two years.

Who is a Psychiatrist?

In simple terms, a psychiatrist is a doctor who specialises in dealing with mental health and emotional disorders. Mental issues like anxiety, depression, & schizophrenia are treated by psychiatrists. Furthermore, psychiatrists work in hospitals, medical colleges, nursing homes, polyclinics, health centres, and research institutes. 

What does a Psychiatrist do"

Now that students are aware of the process to become a psychiatrist let us learn what are the duties of a psychiatrist. The role of a psychiatrist is explained through the pointers below.

• Treating a sudden mental health disorder
• Providing medication for a chronic mental health illness
• Collecting patient information and creating individual treatment plans
• Providing personalised support to patients or in discussion with their families
• Offering second opinions or recommendations
• Giving advice on modifying lifestyle choices for better well-being
• Admitting patients to the hospital, if needed

Types of Psychiatrists

There are various types of psychiatrists depending on the different kinds of mental illnesses or disorders. Aspirants can find the list of psychiatrists below, along with a brief description of each of them.

1. Geriatric Psychiatrist

A geriatric psychiatrist is responsible for treating mental illnesses and disorders of old age people. They generally work in hospitals, medical care centers, residential centre etc.

2. Addiction Psychiatrist

This type of psychiatrist essentially deals with any kind of addiction. The addiction diagnosed can be harmless or harmful, like consuming illegal drugs.

3. Forensic Psychiatrist

A forensic psychiatrist deals with patients who are in prison and suffering from mental conditions.

4. Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist

A child and adolescent psychiatrist diagnoses and treats several mental problems like depression, anxiety, eating disorders, etc. 

5. Clinical Psychologist

This kind of psychiatrist looks into the emotional, physical, and behavioural challenges of the patient and creates a personalised rehabilitation plan.

6. Neuropsychiatrist

The role of a neuropsychiatrist is to treat mental disorders that have occurred due to brain injuries and the nervous system. They also deal with conditions related to brain development, like ADHD, autism, etc.

7. Occupational Psychiatrist

Their job is to deal with patients who are facing mental challenges at the workplace. They can also assist organisations in creating policies to foster good mental health.

8. Emergency Psychiatrist

These psychiatrists focus on patients in emergency situations. The situations or conditions include suicide attempts, depression, substance abuse, etc. 

9. Consultation-Liaison Psychiatrist

They counsel patients who are facing psychiatric or emotional issues. Consultation-liaison psychiatry, also called psychosomatic medicine, primarily deals with treating psychiatric disorders.

Skills Needed to Become a Psychiatrist

The following are the top psychiatrist skills that every aspiring psychiatrist must possess:

• Empathy
• Analytical abilities
• Lateral thinking
• Compassion                 
• Stress Tolerance
• Sensitivity
• Communication skills
• Reasoning skills
• An understanding of scientific methods

Career as a Psychiatrist: Jobs and Salaries

There is a wide career scope for psychiatrists in India. A number of lucrative job opportunities are available for aspiring psychiatrists in hospitals, NGOs, rehabilitation centres, clinics, nursing homes, etc. Read below to know the psychiatrist's career progression.

• Junior Psychiatrist: The role of junior psychiatrists is to evaluate & diagnose patients along with providing medication. Moreover, they also monitor the progress of the patient.
• Senior Psychiatrist: Senior psychiatrists evaluate, analyse, and provide treatment to patients together with prescribing medications. They are experienced professionals who also oversee a team of junior psychiatrists.
• Cheif Psychiatrist:  Responsible for providing clinical leadership through clinical guidelines and specialist clinical information, training and education

Psychiatrist Salaries in India

The average psychiatrist salary in India is INR 8-12 LPA per year. Candidates must check out the psychiatrist salaries for different levels below as given by Payscale.

Top Companies Recruiting Psychiatrists

Mentioned below are some of the leading hospitals that hire psychiatrists across India:

• NIMHANS, Bangalore
• PGIMER, Chandigarh
• Institute of Behaviour and Allied Sciences, New Delhi
• World Brain Center Hospital, Delhi
• State Mental Health Institute, Dehradun
• Dr Vidyasagar Institute of Mental Health, Amritsar

Pros and Cons of Becoming a Psychiatrist

It is very important for aspirants to know the pros and cons of becoming a psychiatrist before embarking on this career path. Here we have discussed the same in brief:

Pros of Becoming a Psychiatrist

• Flexible Work Environment: There is a variety of work settings where psychiatrists can practice. They can work in mental health clinics, psychiatric hospitals, and NGOs or take up private practice. 
• Career Growth: There is a wide scope for pursuing a career as a psychiatrist. Psychiatrists also have the option to teach at institutes, mentor students, or pursue research studies.
• Job Satisfaction: Psychiatrists are able to make the lives of others better. Therefore, it becomes a highly satisfying and rewarding career option.
• Well-Paying Jobs: Psychiatry is an excellent career in terms of monetary benefits as well. Those psychiatrists who indulge in private practice earn even more than the ones working in clinics or hospitals. 

Cons of Becoming a Psychiatrist

• Stressful Job: At times, it becomes quite stressful for psychiatrists to deal with patients with mental and emotional conditions. 
• Uncertain Working Hours: Though psychiatrists have a flexible schedule, this also means that they might need to work at erratic hours. 
• Hampers the Work-Life Balance: Besides diagnosing patients, psychiatrists need to take up emergency calls from patients. Hence, they are not able to manage work-life balance.