How Much Does a Neuropsychologist Make? (With Career Steps)

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Updated 4 March 2025

A neuropsychologist works to treat conditions that affect the brain and behaviour. They may test for, diagnose and treat these conditions. If you are thinking of becoming a neuropsychologist, learning the average salary for the profession may help you decide on a career path. In this article, we answer the question ‘how much does a neuropsychologist make?’, discuss their main duties and show you how to become one.Key takeaways:

A neuropsychologist's average annual salary is approximately $135,074, which varies based on experience, skill level and geographic location.
Becoming a neuropsychologist involves completing secondary school, obtaning a relevant Bachelor's degree, gaining a Master's or doctoral degree, securing a clinical neuropsychology practice endorsement, and applying for available jobs.
Key skills a neuropsychologist may have include a deep understanding of biology and psychology, strong IT skills, effective communication, teamwork, problem-solving capability and proficiency in risk management.

How much does a neuropsychologist make?

A neuropsychologist earns on average $135,074 per year. This can vary significantly, depending on years of experience, skill set and location. The entry-level salary is typically around $94,000 per year, and highly trained neuropsychologists with years of experience could earn over $160,000 per year.

Ways to earn more as a neuropsychologist

Here are some ways to earn more as a neuropsychologist:

Advance into senior positions: You may earn more as a neuropsychologist if you work in the field for several years or decades and progress into senior roles.
Take on more responsibility: If you take on roles like the head of a department or commit to other responsibilities, your wage may increase.
Do research tasks: Trained neuropsychologists often complete research tasks to discover new treatment options for people with brain conditions or injuries. You may find that these research tasks pay more.
Work in the court: Some neuropsychologists act as professionals in courts and offer private medico-legal consultancy, and can acquire a bonus for doing this.
Wages can be higher if you move from the government to the private healthcare sector. Wages can be higher if you move from the government to the private health care sector.
Move around: Some locations within the country may pay higher wages.

What does a neuropsychologist do?

Neuropsychologists are highly trained healthcare professionals who work with people who have brain-related disorders. These disorders may include central nervous system conditions or traumatic brain injuries. Neuropsychologists may diagnose these conditions and create treatment plans for patients, offering them any support that they need along the way. They may also administer treatment directly. In other situations, neuropsychologists act as academics, researching and suggesting new treatments.

Duties of a neuropsychologist

While neuropsychologists may have a broad range of general duties that can vary from day to day, some of their most common duties may include:

Assessing a patient who has an abnormal brain function
Determining the condition causing this abnormal function
Creating treatment plans for patients
Administering treatment, including PET scans and MRIs
Researching new findings in the field of neuropsychology
Offering expert advice at legal establishments

How to become a neuropsychologist

Here are the steps you may take to help you become a neuropsychologist:

1. Complete secondary school

Most neuropsychologists complete Year 12 qualifying in English, mathematics and science. They may have a particular aptitude for biology and psychology, too. Many candidates typically achieve high ATAR (Australian Tertiary Admission Rank) grades at this stage, which can help them get into a university course of their choice.

2. Obtain a Bachelor's degree

Most neuropsychologists usually have a Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline. These disciplines may include psychology, biomedical science, medicine or biology. These degrees are typically available across the country and, in some instances, you may complete them partially online. Bachelor's degrees can take between three to four years to complete.Related: The 16 Most Popular Bachelor of Psychology Careers

3. Obtain a Master's or doctoral degree

After acquiring your Bachelor's, the next step is typically to obtain a Master's or doctoral degree. Usually, neuropsychologists have a Master's or doctorate in clinical neuropsychology. This can give candidates a full awareness of the profession, with a mix of in-person teaching and clinical experience, supervised by senior neuropsychologists.

4. Secure the clinical neuropsychology practice endorsement

After completing your Master's or doctoral degree, you may then get the clinical neuropsychology practice endorsement. This licenses you to practise neuropsychology. It usually involves one to two years of neuropsychological practice, under the supervision of a senior clinical neuropsychologist. You may work closely with them and make a few independent decisions at first, but gradually gain more responsibility as you accrue more experience.

5. Apply for jobs

Upon completion of your neuropsychological practice, you may become fully licensed. You can then either choose to work in your existing place of work or apply for jobs elsewhere. You may find that your wage increases at this point.

Neuropsychologist skills

A neuropsychologist may have certain hard and soft skills to complete their work. These skills commonly include:

Biology

Neuropsychologists typically have a good knowledge of biology and how the human body works. They may have excelled in biology at school or studied it during their degree. While their main focus is on the brain, it's typically important for neuropsychologists to have an awareness of how different organs and other body parts react with the brain.Related: What Does a Biologist Do? (Including FAQs)

Psychology

Neuropsychologists tend to have a good education in psychology. They are usually experts regarding how the brain works and can assess whether mental health problems, other brain disorders or trauma are the cause of certain symptoms. Neuropsychologists typically take a science-based approach to psychology.

Information technology

These professionals often have good information technology (IT) skills. They may use IT throughout their job, including when they are communicating with other professionals, researching new treatments and presenting their ideas. Neuropsychologists may not have a formal qualification in IT but are often comfortable using all of the basic applications to complete their job successfully.

Communication

Communication is usually an important skill for neuropsychologists. They often communicate with a range of different staff members, including doctors, other psychologists, nurses and home care staff. They may speak to these people in a mix of medical-related and non-medical-related terms. Neuropsychologists may also adopt a different communication style when speaking to patients and their family members or friends.

Teamwork

Teamwork can be an important skill among neuropsychologists. In general, neuropsychologists work with other medical professionals to care for a particular patient. If they're not working with others who are on the care team, they are generally working with the patient themselves, which can also require teamwork to some extent.Related: How to Answer an Interview Question about Teamwork

Problem-solving

A large part of being a neuropsychologist can involve solving problems. Sometimes, the cause of brain trauma may not be obvious, and the neuropsychologist may use expert knowledge and problem-solving skills to decipher it. They may also use problem-solving skills when organising their tasks and observing timekeeping.

Risk management

Risk management can be a significant skill when working as a neuropsychologist. Neuropsychologists may often balance the positives and negatives of a particular treatment for patients. They could use their risk management skills to assess whether the treatment is the right method to help the specific condition. Having appropriate risk management skills can help a neuropsychologist feel comfortable with a fairly high level of responsibility for the patient's health.

Neuropsychologist FAQs

The following are FAQs about a career as a neuropsychologist:

Where do neuropsychologists work?

Neuropsychologists work in healthcare settings. These settings may be neuroscience departments in a hospital or specialised neuroscience centres. Alternatively, they could work in rehabilitation centres where they may offer direct support to people who are recovering from brain injuries. If the neuropsychologist focuses on research, they may work in offices and libraries or in court as an expert witness.

Who do neuropsychologists work with?

Neuropsychologists may work with a range of other professionals, including doctors, surgeons, other psychologists, nurses, healthcare staff and receptionists. They may also work with lawyers and other legal members of staff if they act as a medical expert. Neuropsychologists may discuss confidential information with some staff members and have more casual interactions with others.Related: What Does a Neurophysiologist Do? (And How To Become One)

What are the working hours of a neuropsychologist?

Neuropsychologists generally work Monday to Friday with some overtime when required. They may work longer if they are dealing with particular research or treatment for a certain patient. Occasionally, this may even require weekend work. Some neuropsychologists may be on call at the weekends if necessary. Usually, an employer negotiates typical working hours in the hiring process.Salary figures reflect data listed on the quoted websites at time of writing. Salaries may vary depending on the hiring organisation and a candidate's experience, academic background and location.

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