Subspecialties
Subspecializing can cure identity crises, give you job security and raise your income. It can also limit your horizons and swallow up time (and income potential) with additional training. The most important factor when deciding whether to subspecialize is how much you enjoy the particular type of work that you’re considering.
In psychiatry, there are different routes to subspecialization. For analytic training, you must enter an institute. The American Psychoanalytic Association can direct you towards an institute and give you a better sense of current psychoanalytic theory. The American Academy of Psychoanalysis is an organization for physicians who want psychoanalytic training. There are also other psychoanalytic institutes that are not members of the American Board of Medical Specialties, but these Websites are good places to get started.
Fellowships are one of the most common ways to subspecialize. The New York State Psychiatric Association Fellowship Cybermanual offers some good general advice about choosing fellowships.
For Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, there are American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Inc. (ABPN) Examinations that you can take to gain certification in these subspecialties. For additional information about the examinations, visit the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, Inc. Each of these subspecialties has their own professional organization separate from the APA. The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law, the American Association of Geriatric Psychiatrists, and the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry can each direct you towards accredited programs.
In addition, there are many subspecialties that are not recognized by the ABPN. For advice on consultation-liaison psychiatry, including a listing of Consultation-Liaison Fellowships, go to the Academy of Psychosomatic Medicine. For occupational psychiatry, go to the Academy of Organizational and Occupational Psychiatry.