Is an M.A. necessary before you get a PhD?

What are the proper education steps to become a child and adolescene psychologist do you get BA MA PhD or is it BS MS PhD and is there any specific degrees for ex. master in developmental psy?

• Answer:

  You can get B.A. or B.S., it depends on the university/college you attend, and on the amount of science/art classes you take. I believe that once you want to get a job the difference isn't very significant. So, if you look into the programs you want to attend you can just choose between getting B.A. M.A. PhD and B.S. M.S. PhD. A Psy.D is for Clinical Psychology, but you mentioned Developmental Psychology so you should go for a PhD. You can get specific degrees, as in a Bachelor of Art/Science in Developmental Psychology, or in Child Psychology, Adolescent Psychology or in Child and Adolescent Psychology. So you get to choose. On the other hand, most institutions offer general psychology so you just get a B.A./B.S. in Psychology. And you can also choose with masters and doctorates. It doesn't really matter which Bachelor you get as long as it is psychology, alternatively your master and doctorate should be about the specific branch you choose. Oh, and yes, there are specific degrees. In all of them, Bachelor, Master and Doctorate.