Astronomers vs Clinical and Counseling Psychologists: $129K vs $101K Median Pay

Astronomers vs Clinical and Counseling Psychologists: what changes?

Consider Astronomers if you want to observe, research, and interpret astronomical phenomena to increase basic knowledge or apply such information to practical problems. Consider Clinical and Counseling Psychologists if you would rather assess, diagnose, and treat mental and emotional disorders of individuals through observation, interview, and psychological tests. Both list doctoral or professional degree; compare training and prior experience separately.

Try this next: Compare three local entry-level postings for Astronomers and Clinical and Counseling Psychologists. List the duties, credentials, prior experience, and paid training each employer actually asks for. Try a supervised class or sample project from each field before choosing a program.

BLS 2025 wages and 2025–2035 projections. National medians are not starting offers. Occupation size is not a count of vacancies. View the BLS data.

Compare the practical differences

Astronomers

National median pay (2025): $128,820
Route into the job: Doctoral or professional degree
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: BLS does not list a separate on-the-job training requirement. Employers may still provide orientation and role-specific training.
Work to investigate: Analyze research data to determine its significance, using computers.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 100

Know before you choose

This is a small national occupation (2,400 jobs in 2025), so location and employer concentration can matter more than the national median suggests.

See the full Astronomers brief

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

National median pay (2025): $100,580
Route into the job: Doctoral or professional degree; Internship or residency follows qualifying education. Check its duration, pay, and licensing requirements
Prior related experience: No prior related occupation is typically required; employer requirements vary.
Training and licensing: Internship or residency follows qualifying education. Check its duration, pay, and licensing requirements.
Work to investigate: Conduct assessments of patients' risk for harm to self or others.
Annual openings (2025–2035): 4,100

Know before you choose

Training continues through internship/residency after the degree path.

See the full Clinical and Counseling Psychologists brief

How the national numbers differ

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists has the edge on annual openings

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists is at 4,100 annual openings, compared with 100 annual openings for Astronomers.

Astronomers has the edge on median pay

Astronomers is at $128,820, compared with $100,580 for Clinical and Counseling Psychologists.

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists has the edge on projected growth

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists is at 11.7% projected growth, compared with 7.8% projected growth for Astronomers.

50.6/ 100

Astronomers

64.2/ 100

Clinical and Counseling Psychologists

Each available metric is ranked from 0 to 100 against the careers on ChooseField. The weighted average uses this profile: pay 30%, growth 25%, openings 30%, preparation level 15%. Missing values are not scored as zero; their weights are redistributed across available metrics. Occupation size has zero weight: employment is not accessible vacancies. Preparation categories do not measure admission difficulty or years without earnings. The score summarizes national measures; local opportunities and personal fit still need separate consideration.

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