The Study and Practice of I/O Psychology: Graduate Training and Career Opportunities

1. 2007 OSU Psi Chi Presentation The Study and Practice of I/O Psychology:Graduate Training and Career Opportunities Jennifer L. Kisamore Department of Psychology University of Oklahoma-Tulsa

2. Topics • Overview of I/O • My applied I/O-related experience • I/O degrees and related fields • I/O resources • Applying to graduate school • Advice for prospective graduate students

3. What is an I/O Psychologist? According to SIOP (2007) I-O psychologists work with organizations in a variety of areas such as selection and placement, training and development, organizational development and change, performance measurement and evaluation, quality of worklife, consumer psychology, and engineering psychology. From http://www.siop.org/gtp/GTPDescription.aspx

4. How do I Know if I/O is for me? • Career interest inventories and resources • Strong Interest Inventory • What Color is My Parachute? • Job shadowing • May do shadowing with several types of I/O psychologists • Internship or job experience • Research Experience • I/O-relevant conferences and organizations • Society of Industrial-Organizational Psychology (SIOP) • Academy of Management (AoM) • Midwest Academy of Management (MAM) • Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM)

5. Types of I/O Positions • Academician • Faculty member • Instructor • Internal Consultant • Work for one company; broad range of issues • External Consultant • Work for a consulting company • Sent to various organizations • May be specialized • Government

6. My Applied I/O-related experience • Intern, Productivity Development Systems • Conducted a validation study for a team-based selection instrument • Data Collector, Personnel Decisions Research Institutes • Collected performance evaluation data • Collected computer-based selection test data • Training Coordinator, University of South Florida • Conducted training seminars for new graduate teaching assistants and instructors • Conducted performance feedback observations • Instructional Designer and Program Evaluator, C2 Multimedia • Involved in a comprehensive program evaluation for interactive video-based training • Involved in a workforce planning project for government agency • Junior Systems Developer, Publix Supermarkets • Developed performance appraisal forms • Prepared cost-benefit analysis comparing multiple methods of training. • Analyzed survey responses. • Administered selection tests for job applicants • Psychometrician, Institute for Instructional Research and Practice • Facilitated focus groups in the development of teacher certification exams • Measurement Advisor, Leggett and Platt • Provide guidance in the development of a new selection system

7. Types of I/O Degrees Undergraduate degree in Psychology Terminal Masters degree in I/O Psychology Non-terminal Masters degree in Psychology or no degree Options: Thesis Project Comp. Exam Ph.D. in I/O Psychology

8. Fields Related to I/O • Social Psychology • Business • Human Resources, Organizational Behavior, Strategy, etc. • Ergonomics/Human Factors • Industrial Safety/Hygiene • Psychometrics • Vocational Counseling

9. I/O Study and Career Resources • SIOP Website • http://www.siop.org • Paul Spector’s Website • http://luna.cas.usf.edu/~spector • Human Factors and Ergonomics Society • http://www.hfes.org • American Psychological Association • http://www.apa.org • Academy of Management • http://www.aom.pace.edu • International Association of Applied Psychology Organizational Psychology Division • http://allserv.rug.ac.be/~pcoets/div/home.htm

10. SIOP Website • Searchable database of I/O and I/O-related programs • How to apply to graduate programs • Jobs in I/O

11. http://www.siop.org/gtp/Default.aspx

12. Paul Spector’s Website

13. Application Process • You send application by deadline • Make sure it is complete and on time! • Deadlines range greatly from late Fall to mid-Spring semester. Most around Jan 1 or Jan 15. • School sends postcard/email notice of material receipt • You will receive a letter/phone call of acceptance, rejection, or note that you are on the waiting list • If you are accepted, need to decide by deadline. Visit school and area! • If you are on the wait list, contact school, have faculty contact school

14. General Application Advice • Do what you love • Apply to multiple schools, different levels • “Ideal”, “Good shot”, and “Sure thing” schools • Avoid limiting yourself geographically • Apply to both Masters and Ph.D. programs • Tailor personal statement to program • Make application stand out • Research experience, thesis • Well-prepared, professional looking • Budget for applications-time and money • Do campus and departmental visits • Consider funding opportunities

15. Funding Opportunities • Most Ph.D. programs offer students funding, benefits: • Fellowships & Scholarships • Assistantships with stipends (GA, RA, TA) • Tuition Waivers • Health insurance? • Other opportunities • Fellowships & Scholarships • Grants • Internships

16. Application Materials$100/per school • Application (plus fee around $40) • Official GRE transcripts • general/subject-$15 per school • Official university transcripts ($5-$10) • Letter of intent/personal statement • Letters of recommendation (2 or 3) • Must be sealed; may need to send separately • Other materials • Resume/vita; Writing sample; Interview; self-assessment; MAT transcripts; residency documents; international student forms Realize you are applying to the program AND the university’s graduate school!

17. GRE Basics General Test • $140 • Computer-adaptive • Verbal Reasoning, Quantitative Reasoning, Analytical Writing PREPARE! PREPARE! PREPARE

18. GRE Basics Subject Test • $130 • Total Score • history of psychology, applied psychology, measurement, research designs, and statistics. (17%) • Experimental and social psychology questions • Experimental Psychology Score (40%) • learning, language, memory, thinking, sensation and perception, physiological psychology, ethology, and comparative psychology. • Social Psychology Score (43%) • clinical and abnormal, developmental, personality, and social psychology. Do NOT take both the general and subject tests on the same day!

19. General Advice for Grad Students • Get involved in research; publish while in graduate school • Get involved in professional organizations; go to conferences • Know whether you are academic or applied but get experience in both • Avoid working outside of the university/program if you can avoid it Graduate student Tago Mharapara presenting at the 2007 APA conference in San Francisco.

20. General Advice for Grad Students • Find a major professor early • Find a mentor several years ahead of you in the program • Learn to manage your time • Use your major professor’s time wisely • Be nice to secretaries! • Have fun!

21. Resources of Interest • Writing a Successful Thesis or Dissertation: Tips and Strategies for Students in the Social and Behavioral Sciences • Lunenburg & Irby • Writing and Publishing Your Thesis, Dissertation, and Research: A Guide for Students in the Helping Professions • Heppner & Heppner • Guide to the Successful Thesis and Dissertation: A Handbook for Students and Faculty: Fifth Edition • Mauch & Park • How to Write a Lot: A Practical Guide to Productive Academic Writing • Silvia

22. Questions & Comments ?