I/O PhD Programs and Advanced Standing

[Engali]

Hi,

I'm about halfway through my terminal masters program in I/O Psych and will be applying for to Ph.D. programs for Fall 2012. I did this because I needed the GPA boost due to a bad UGPA. Does anyone know of I/O programs that tends to give people with a masters advanced standing so that my time to complete the Ph.D. will only be 3 years and/o as short as possible? Thanks for any input.

[Zencarrot]

Yeah they typically do.

In my case, I also did a terminal master's in management because I was (and still am) considering going into a PhD in Business. I've been admitted to a few I/O programs so far, and even though my M.Sc. doesn't cover the full breadth of subject matter that an MA/MSc in I/O would, I am to be given advanced standing. I had a discussion with my potential supervisor about what I had taken and what their MA covers and we agreed that for any material I did not have enough knowledge of I could make it up - otherwise I was exempt from all MA coursework and the thesis.

If you feel that your program has prepared you to directly pursue a PhD in I/O Psychology then talk to your supervisor and the program coordinator about it when you are admitted to a program. However if you do NOT have the requisite knowledge to be exempt from the MA, I would under no circumstances recommend trying to skip out on material you have missed just to go ahead with the program faster.

However, the comprehensive exams that are to be taken in the PhD program should force you to fill in many of the knowledge gaps you may have anyway. They are administered to all students to ensure that everyone who graduates will possess the requisite knowledge in a wide variety of fields to be a successful scholar and/or practitioner.

Hope that helps. Don't worry - your terminal Master's will not have been a waste of time even if you have to make up some extra course material.

[Engali]

Yeah they typically do.

In my case, I also did a terminal master's in management because I was (and still am) considering going into a PhD in Business. I've been admitted to a few I/O programs so far, and even though my M.Sc. doesn't cover the full breadth of subject matter that an MA/MSc in I/O would, I am to be given advanced standing. I had a discussion with my potential supervisor about what I had taken and what their MA covers and we agreed that for any material I did not have enough knowledge of I could make it up - otherwise I was exempt from all MA coursework and the thesis.

If you feel that your program has prepared you to directly pursue a PhD in I/O Psychology then talk to your supervisor and the program coordinator about it when you are admitted to a program. However if you do NOT have the requisite knowledge to be exempt from the MA, I would under no circumstances recommend trying to skip out on material you have missed just to go ahead with the program faster.

However, the comprehensive exams that are to be taken in the PhD program should force you to fill in many of the knowledge gaps you may have anyway. They are administered to all students to ensure that everyone who graduates will possess the requisite knowledge in a wide variety of fields to be a successful scholar and/or practitioner.

Hope that helps. Don't worry - your terminal Master's will not have been a waste of time even if you have to make up some extra course material.

Thanks! That was a very helpful.