While you may think of a corporation or company as a large, faceless enterprise, in reality it is made up of individual people. The larger the company, the more individuals there are working together towards the goals of the company. In order to meet those goals, the individuals of that company must work to their greatest advantage singly and within any number of groups. Getting the most out of those individuals and groups is the job of the industrial-organizational psychologist.
According to the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, industrial-organizational psychology is “the scientific study of the workplace.” These specialized psychologists apply social science methods to the tasks of “talent management, coaching, assessment, selection, training, organizational development, performance, and work-life balance.” Industrial-organizational psychologists may perform research in one or more fields listed above.
The steps involved in becoming an industrial-organizational psychologist are:
- Find out if you are truly interested in becoming an industrial-organizational psychologist. This career requires you to develop a deep understanding of how people behave, but also how the business world works. What motivates people? What drives success? When is someone “burned out”? If this position requires you to be able identify talent and cultivate those abilities in the workplace. It is a good idea to reach out to an industrial-organizational psychologist to see if it would be possible to shadow them in practice or in their research. Motivated prospective students may look for volunteer opportunities or career fairs to talk with established members of the field.
- Obtain a bachelor’s degree in psychology from an accredited college or university. Training to become an Industrial-Organizational Psychologist starts with a bachelor’s degree. Strictly speaking, it is not necessary to have an undergraduate degree in psychology to move on to graduate education in Industrial and Organizational Psychology, but it is certainly a reasonable path. Even if your bachelor’s degree is not in psychology, you should take a number of introductory, intermediate and advanced psychology classes. Relevant business classes on your college transcript are also attractive to graduate programs in Industrial-Organizational Psychology. This step usually takes three to five years.
- Obtain a master’s degree (M.A. or M.S.) in Industrial-Organizational Psychology. Generally speaking, having a master’s degree in Industrial-Organizational Psychology is the minimum required step for entry into this career, especially if your goal is to practice (work with people as a psychologist). Many programs will offer specializations within the field, such as Workplace Diversity or Organizational Effectiveness. Most people take 18 to 24 months to obtain this master’s degree.
- Obtain a doctoral degree (Ph.D. or Psy.D.) in Industrial-Organizational Psychology. If you choose this path, often the requirements for the master’s degree will be fulfilled in the doctoral program. Ph.D. programs will require you to take and do well on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE). Since this degree culminates in a thesis after a certain amount of research, it is difficult to predict how long the degree will take to achieve. A reasonable estimate is three to six years.
- Practice under the supervision of a licensed psychologist. Your goal is to be licensed as a psychologist. State licensure boards require you to work under the supervision of a licensed psychologist for a period of time. Think of this as field training. These are paid positions, though earning less than you would as a fully licensed provider.
- Obtain a license. After completing your supervised work, you must pass the Examination for Professional Practice of Psychology (EPPP). The exam is 175 questions long and usually takes about four hours. Most states also require a separate oral examination prior to qualifying for licensure. Finally, you will need to obtain letters from others in the field that speak to your ability to practice.
- Salary and job outlook. The median income for industrial–organizational psychologists is $116,196. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the job outlook for psychologists over the next ten years is 22%, which is faster than average, though industrial-organizational psychologists may enjoy greater growth of 26%.
Industrial–organizational psychologists generally earn more than their peers in other specialties because their efforts can have a direct impact on a company’s bottom line. If an industrial–organizational psychologist can keep workers happy, mentally healthy, and productive, it makes for a stronger company overall and creates job security for the psychologist. One caveat is that these psychologists often have competing interests, one to the employee and the other to the company. It is important, too, for industrial–organizational psychologists to have strong ethical principles and the ability to work toward the common good through complex interpersonal issues.