OSCA 2612

Psychologists

Overview

  • Employed persons

    29,500

  • Employment status

    53.2% Full time

    46.8% Part time

  • Median age

    43 years

  • Employment by sex

    81.6% Female

    18.4% Male

    Highly female dominated

  • Indigenous employment share

    0.9%

  • Main employing industry

    Health Care and Social Assistance

Indicator Psychologists Total employment
Employed persons 29,500 12,049,400
Median age 43 years 40 years
Full-time share 53.2% 64.2%
Part-time share 46.8% 35.8%
Female employment share 81.6% 48.5%
Male employment share 18.4% 51.5%
Gender segregation intensity scale Highly female dominated Gender balanced
Indigenous employment share 0.9% 2.2%
Main employing industry Health Care and Social Assistance Health Care and Social Assistance
Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

Occupation overview

Psychologists provide individuals and groups with evidence-based assessment, prevention, intervention and treatment to foster personal, social, educational and occupational wellbeing and development.

Skill level (education and experience level)

Skill level 1
equivalent to a university level qualification (Bachelor degree or higher).

Note: While skill levels are described using formal education levels, some people use a combination of informal learning, on-the-job training and personal experience to achieve an equivalent level.

OSCA structure

Professionals (2)

Employment

On this page

    Industries

    Top 10 most common industries, 2021

    Psychologists Total employment
    Industry Share of occupation Industry Share of occupation
    Health Care and Social Assistance 73.3% Health Care and Social Assistance 14.5%
    Education and Training 16.4% Retail Trade 9.1%
    Public Administration and Safety 5.5% Construction 8.9%
    Professional, Scientific and Technical Services 1.5% Education and Training 8.8%
    Administrative and Support Services 1.1% Professional, Scientific and Technical Services 7.8%
    Other Services 0.6% Public Administration and Safety 6.6%
    Financial and Insurance Services 0.3% Accommodation and Food Services 6.5%
    Arts and Recreation Services 0.1% Manufacturing 5.9%
    Accommodation and Food Services <0.1% Transport, Postal and Warehousing 4.5%
    Construction <0.1% Financial and Insurance Services 3.7%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

    States and territories

    Employment distribution by states and territories, 2021

    • New South Wales

      32.4%

    • Victoria

      26.4%

    • Queensland

      20.3%

    • South Australia

      5.0%

    • Tasmania

      1.9%

    • Northern Territory

      0.5%

    • Australian Capital Territory

      2.5%

    Psychologists Total employment
    State / Territory Employment Share of occupation Employment Share of occupation
    New South Wales 9,600 32.4% 3,684,200 30.6%
    Victoria 7,800 26.4% 3,162,900 26.2%
    Queensland 6,000 20.3% 2,444,100 20.3%
    South Australia 1,500 5.0% 839,400 7.0%
    Western Australia 3,200 11.0% 1,306,200 10.8%
    Tasmania 550 1.9% 254,700 2.1%
    Northern Territory 160 0.5% 107,000 0.9%
    Australian Capital Territory 730 2.5% 248,600 2.1%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

    Age and sex

    Employment distibution by age group and sex, 2021

    Psychologists

    Total employment

    Age group Psychologists Total employment
    15–24 years 1.7% 14.3%
    25–34 years 24.0% 22.7%
    35–44 years 27.8% 22.3%
    45–54 years 22.8% 20.4%
    55–64 years 14.8% 15.3%
    65–74 years 7.7% 4.3%
    75 years and over 1.3% 0.6%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.
    Sex Psychologists Total employment
    Female 81.6% 48.5%
    Male 18.4% 51.5%
    Note: N/A values indicate data are not available due to confidentiality or data reliability requirements.

    On this page

      OSCA occupation profiles data

      This file contains data available from the OSCA Occupation Profile page.

      Use of this data must include the relevant attribution text provided.

      OSCA Occupation data - 2021 Census.xlsx

      xlsx 1236447

      Download

      Occupation Standard Classification for Australia (OSCA)

      Occupation Standard Classification for Australia (OSCA) is the skill-based classification used to categorise occupations across the Australian labour market. OSCA is used to define occupations across all official occupational statistics. OSCA replaces the Australian and New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO).

      Each job is classified to one, and only one, group of jobs at each level of the classification with no overlaps. This prevents the accidental double-counting of roles within the Australian labour market. For more information about OSCA, visit the What is OSCA information page, or the ABS website.

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