Industrial Organizational Psychology Programs

If you enjoy working in the fields of manufacturing and employee relations, a degree industrial and organizational psychology would be a good choice to pursue.

Industrial and Organizational Psychology Roles

Industrial and organizational psychology (I/O psychology) has many roles in the world today. An I/O psychologist studies and analyses the relationships between individuals and their societies, be it in the work place or anywhere else. They look at laws and regulations to see how they affect the group and the individual. They also look at the shortages in the work place and the impact of losing people with particular skills. They also look at how the changes in the workplace affect the employees.

Courses of Study in University Programs

There is a lengthy list of the problems that I/O psychologists could study in their careers. They could look at how restructuring in a workplace can affect the employees. They also look at the training of executive and administrative staff. They also look at how productivity is affected by absenteeism and turn over. The study ways to keep the workplace a low stress environment and how to best help staff adapt to changes. They also look at the events resulting from promotions and other selections that could cause friction in a workplace.

Work Place Motivation is a Major Topic

One of the most important things that I/O psychologists study is workplace motivation. It is a big deal in the world today as many employers are looking for alternatives to higher pay as a motivation for working harder.

Skills You Will Need to Learn

When you enroll in a program studying I/O psychology you will learn a variety of skills. They will include studying ethics and legal issues as well as skills that you would use in a business environment and how to work as a consultant. You will look at career growth and development and how consumers behave. You will also look at health and stress conditions, as well as how the organization in the environment affects the way that employees perform. You will also study leadership, management, motivation, evaluation, and training. As a student of I/O psychology, you will be very busy.

Potential Career Avenues

The jobs you can do as an I/O psychologist include working as a consultant, which means you may be self-employed or work for a larger organization. You might also work for a large company that has thousands of employees. You could also work in a university as a researcher gathering information to move the field. You could also teach I/O psychology at the college level.

Benefits of the Career Choice

The benefits of being an I/O psychologist are that you do not work one-on-one with patients like a clinical psychologist does. Your work involves more research and observation. You will have to prepare hypotheses and be prepared to test them. An I/O psychologist will usually make very good money, since it is a leadership position in a large corporation. If you work as a consultant, you might be forced to travel around the world to help other organizations become more successful; this could be a pro or a con depending on your lifestyle. You would meet a variety of people, too.

Top Colleges and Universities

There are many colleges and universities that offer degree programs in industrial and organizational psychology. This is an advanced degree program and is not an available undergraduate degree program.

  • Albright College, Reading
  • Bowling Green State University
  • Colorado State University
  • CUNY Bernard M Baruch College
  • East Texas Baptist University
  • Florida International University
  • George Mason University
  • Georgia Institute of Technology
  • Madonna University
  • Maryville University of Saint Louis
  • Michigan State University
  • Missouri State University
  • Pennsylvania State University
  • Point Loma Nazarene University
  • Saint Xavier University
  • Texas Wesleyan University
  • The Chicago School of Professional Psychology
  • University of Akron
  • University of Illinois at Urbana/Champagne
  • University of Maryland
  • University of Minnesota
  • University of Puerto Rico
  • University of South Florida

Going for one of the industrial organizational psychology programs lets you earn between $35,000 and $45,000 in the first year with your masters degree, while a PhD pushes you up to the $65,000 area, which is not too bad. According to Department of Labor, there are many benefits of being a part of any of the programs because there will be a demand in the psychology professionals in the coming years as more organizations and businesses look for ways of retaining their skilled employees.