New to I/O Psychology field..what steps to take?

[serene88]

I've just discovered information about the I/O psychology field and I LOVE it! I would like to apply to PhD programs within the near future (probably within the next 2-3 years) and was wondering how to increase my chances of acceptance for these types of programs. Presently I'm working on completing my BA degree in social sciences and doing extremely well in my classes. However, during my first 2 years of college I did horribly as I was going through a lot of difficult circumstances at the time. Seeing that I still have time to improve my application, what would you suggest I do to improve my chances for acceptance into doctoral programs? How does one go about obtaining research experience that will look favorable to many schools? Also, what undergrad psychology courses should I consider taking as well? Thanks!

[dmaurath]

I've been accepted into an MS program, having never taken an I/O course. You'll want to take as much stats and psychometric courses as you can. Get involved in research as a research assistant. The best way to do that is to email professors, hopefully ones who know you already, and ask them if they have any openings to assist in research for credit. I went to a very large university (Ohio State) and so few students took advantage of this opportunity. I actually recruited three others for the lab I worked at. The research doesn't need to be I/O specific; research skills are transferable. However, I/O research would look great as would I/O courses, so take those if you can fit them in your next two years. Other courses such as Organizational Development or the like that are usually offered in business schools would be beneficial too.

Find an internship in HR. If you can gain both research and real world experience, you'll be above and beyond your peers. The professors I talked to said this was a rare combination and considered these applicants more favorably.

Consider a MS or MA program. As long as its not terminal (i.e. completely practitioner focused so does not qualify you to apply for PhD) you'll have the option to apply and move on to a PhD. This would be a good option if you graduate in two years without any publications or little research experience, which is what a PhD program would require. I assisted many studies but only conducted one study myself, which was for a course and never published.

In summary, take I/O courses, stats and psychometric courses, talk to I/O professors and get involved in research and find relevant internships.

[ILuvPsych2013]

I would echo everything that dmaurath said; I am getting ready to apply to IO programs this fall, and I have gotten all of this same advice. Research experience is the absolute most important thing! My university does not have an IO program, so I work in a social psych lab and just try to put a "workplace spin" on whatever project I am doing. I was also advised to get a business minor since I will then be letting ad comms know that I am familiar with both sides of the industry.

Welcome to the IO club!

[Gibbas]

I've heard similar things as well, but also learn what your research interests and end game are. For my interests (which is more O oriented), no one I applied to would care if I had HR interning experience or that I have a business minor(I have one, and was told before they'd rather see a stats minor, but my undergrad university didn't offer one), but that might matter for people whose interests are more I. And to be honest I feel like I wasted my time with my business minor because there was only 1-2 out of the 6 classes I had to take that were useful, and I wasn't allowed to take any other business classes that might have been. But all those things might be useful if you only want a masters and do consulting.

[serene88]

Thanks so much for the replies! I will definitely take everyone's advice into consideration and put it to good use. One thing I forgot to mention is that ultimately, I would like to work as a consultant once I complete my graduate studies. In the long run, do you think it would be better to obtain a PhD for this type of work or will a Masters be sufficient? Thanks again!

[ILuvPsych2013]

From what I have been told, a Masters vs a PhD ultimately comes down to the amount of autonomy that you want in your research; those with a Masters may end up having their work supervised by someone with a PhD.

One article that I found states,

"Master’s students are trained to practice I/O psychology. Ph.D. students are trained to conduct research in I/O psychology.

In practice, this means that an I/O psychology Ph.D. will generally have more responsibility than an I/O with a Master’s. If you are in an organization with lots of I/O psychologists, the Ph.D.’s will generally be making “the big decisions,” while the I/Os with Master’s will aid with implementation or conduct background research. Since many modern organizational problems are at the frontiers of our current understanding of organizations, a person with Master’s level training will generally not be prepared to conduct research within the organization to help answer these questions. Of course, there are many I/O’s with Master’s that start their own consulting agencies or work as the only I/O psychologist in an organization – but this is a matter of experience and personal drive."

Here is a link to the full article:

http://neoacademic.com/2011/06/14/grad-school-should-i-get-a-ph-d-or-masters-in-io-psychology/

Your actual job description also depends on what kind of company you are working for. Hope this helps!