Your future

Students start their career in Developmental Psychology at Maastricht University and then spread out all over the world.

On this digital map you can find out more about the career paths of some of our alumni

Open the world map

• Graduated: 2018
• First job: Educational Support Specialist at an International Baccalaureate (IB) School.
• Current job: Educational Support and Neurodiversity Inclusion Coordinator at an International Baccalaureate (IB) School.

Developmental Psychology provided me with profound and state-of-the-art knowledge of topics related to the field. Moreover, the theoretical and practical approach of the master's introduced me to amazing frameworks and resources that come from the neurocognitive sciences and that suppose evidence-based approaches that I constantly use at my professional practice. When I was looking for a master's programmer, my main goal was for it to provide me with more knowledge and tools to enrich my practice with neurodiverse students, and that was exactly what this master's gave me. 

I especially appreciate the Problem-Based Learning (PBL) methodology that Maastricht University uses, since it challenged me in many dimensions and pushed me towards thinking, discussing and nurturing topics with other's perspectives. I was amazed by the excellent level and constant challenge that the lessons and activities supposed, the faculty was very supportive, and the facilities were great too. My time in Maastricht had a great impact in my personal life, but most of all, was a fundamental milestone in my professional career.

• Graduated: 2017
• First and Current Job: Lecturer in Psychology at Universitas Negeri Padang, West Sumatera, Indonesia.

Currently, I am working as a psychology lecturer at one of the best universities in Indonesia. Being a lecturer means I have to keep studying and improving my knowledge constantly. While studying at Maastricht University, I had the best opportunity to learn from the experts and use some advanced tools to support my research in psychology. Moreover, we used the Problem-Based Learning method that helped me enhance my understanding of the lesson. We were encouraged to always think critically in any aspect, which has contributed a lot to my current work.

Besides that, since it was an international programme, I was given a chance to study and have joint discussions with many students from different parts of the world; hence, it helped me learn more from another perspective and become a more open-minded person.

• Graduated: 2019
• First and current job: behavioural scientist and psychologist at the intensive home treatment of Koraal.

When I work with the children/youths, I do not only look at the problem from a clinical point of view, but thanks to the master, I also always know how to make a link with underlying brain mechanisms that may be affected. It is of great added value to know on which brain mechanism the behavioural intervention tries to exert an effect, to really understand what you are doing and why! Because of the knowledge I have gained during the master about the course of normal development in various domains, I can look critically in my work at complaints or problems that are sometimes incorrectly labelled as appropriate to a classification/diagnosis.

• Graduated: 2019
• First job: Operational assistant M&C FPN
• Current job: Psychologist Lifestyle and Vitality, Het Rughuis.

During my studies I never considered working in mental healthcare since psychology is so broad and I found everything interesting. I’ve always been interested in the development of the brain and our behaviour. My study showed me the normal and abnormal development of our brain and behaviour and also the critical periods. I learned what could go wrong and how we can predict problems in later cognitive development, but most importantly how it can be prevented. Even though I am now working with adults, I can still use some of the skills I learned during the master. My goal is to follow the postgraduate ‘GZ-psycholoog kind & jeugd’ programme after a while and start treatment and psychological education at an earlier age to avoid problems at a later age. 

• Graduated: 2017
• First job after MSc: Behaviour Modification Expert (at a school)
• Current job: School Psychologist

Attending Maastricht University was one of the most challenging yet enriching experiences I’ve been through. The Developmental Psychology programme is well-designed, systematic, and information rich. The professors were passionate, which made sessions all the more interesting. Problem-Based Learning was a new experience to me, but they were instrumental in making sure it was a smooth ride.

Having graduated from Maastricht University is one of my proudest moments; earning my degree instilled in me the confidence that I needed to throw myself into the professional world. It was definitely an experience I remember fondly!

• First Job: Psychologist in Tokyo. My main role was to provide neuropsychological assessment services.
• Current Job: Psychologist at a mental health clinic in Tokyo

I currently work as a Psychologist at a mental health clinic in Tokyo, extending my assistance mainly (but not limited) to children and adolescents within the international community. I offer neuropsychological assessment and counselling services to those who wish to have a better understanding of their current level of cognitive capacity for various reasons.

At UM, I was able to develop both in-depth and broader understanding of neuropsychological development of human beings. The overall experience allowed me to build a strong base for me to pursue career and educational pathways within the field of mental health.

• Graduated: 2017
• First and current job: working as a customer insights analyst, applying psychological research methods into commercial use

My master's in the Developmental Psychology programme gave me the chance to experience the amazingness and mysteriousness of the human brain and behaviours, not just in theory but also in real life. I still remember the time when our professor took us to the university hospital to see what pre-mature infants are like in real life, at that moment, the knowledge is no longer just some cold printed words in books. They are so lively and touching, made me realise how the knowledge learned can contribute to helping real human lives significantly. This is just a glimpse of what the master's has taught me – I’ve learned here the knowledge, the cooperation, the perseverance of reaching your goal, I would not be who I am now without these.