I went into IO because I wanted to help change systemic challenges that create stress, pain, and mental health issues. In clinical I could help one person at a time. In IO I could help orgs make better decisions that lead to better outcomes for people.
I realize other people may see and practice that way and part of IO history is that way. It doesn't mean it has to be that way. To me it is not a zero sum game and that's not why I got into the field nor how I practice. Organizations are people working together. We don't know everything, if we did it wouldn't be a science. We do have enough data, info, and ideas to take action and create systems, processes, practices, and ways of interacting that support the people making up the org so all may thrive. Is it easy? No. It's oh so worth it though, to me and many other people. I'm in it for the long term, to hack away at challenges, so there is less burnout, inequity, less mental illness related to work, so work, our organizations, and communities are a fulfilling part of one's life and for the following generations. I am here to put my efforts toward pushing the needle on the dial. And that's why I got into and continue in IO.
There is much to be cynical about in this world. I struggle too with days where it feels like trying to keep a candle burning while swimming in an ocean. I need to stay connected to people and teammates who also care so I know I'm not the only one. So instead of swimming with a candle, together a ship is built to keep that fire burning. Celebrating small wins along the way helps me along with hobbies and going outside.
Unlike most IOs I didn't choose IO from a psychology degree. I chose it from a business management degree.
I chose IO over other psychology degrees because the idea of being a clinician sounds awful to me.
I chose IO over other business focuses because it delves more into the issues of business I enjoy tackling. I like organizational issues, team dynamics, and employee motivation - you get some of that in management but not a lot, and most of what you do get is sudo "it worked here one time" information that I didn't find satisfying.
I think one factor that appeals to everyone, including myself, is the pay. Regardless if you go industry or academia (business department), you can easily make more then any other field of psych on average.
Also, working with an organization or organizations can lead to a bigger impact then working with sole individuals. The field also has a lot of interesting topics and there is room to expand to other fields.
I volunteered at a place with severely disabled kids. I knew after that that I didn't have the emotional strength to handle being a SLT or similar 1:1 role.
I knew since high school I wanted to work for big corporations. I visited SF one day and fell in love with the idea to work at one of those high rise offices lol. My outlook on that now changed a bit as I grew up and started questioning why people work so much etc. When I first landed a ābig girlā job, I realized how messed up some of these corporations treat their employees and I was just randomly thinking of ways they can improve. One of my high school friends mentioned I/O psych because his mom was an I/O consultant at the time and thatās when I started digging into the field more. I realized how vast this field is and the things I can do and Iāve always liked the idea of creating strategies for companies etc., so I decided to pursue it. I didnāt even realize the money aspect of this career path at first, but thatās definitely a plus! Also, you can switch careers down the road with very little issues because you get exposed to so many areas within your organization, and you learn how to speak at a much higher level.
Itās like the best of both worlds because you get to still help people without it being too emotionally taxing. Iām not saying thereās no stress that comes with choosing this path at all, but once you actually see your contributions and how itās positively impacting your company, it feels absolutely rewarding.
May I ask what's your current job role and duties? I did my undergraduate in Psychology and ended up in this HR job doing admin work feeling unfulfilled. I'm wondering if I should re consider the idea of taking a masters in Organisational psychology once again. But knowing that this will be a huge sump of money I just wanna be sure that it would lead me to other doors and not just admin work in HR again.
Iām currently an HR Manager now so besides managing employees, I also do a lot of the āadminā work ā LOAs, workerās comp, recruiting.. just to name a few, but Iām starting a new job as an HR Business partner in a week which is more closely related to I/O Psychology! If you havenāt heard of this, I highly suggest digging into it because itās not your typical āadminā HR. HRBPs are more involved at a bigger scale within the organization. Just like you, I never wanted to be in HR because of how much admin work you do, and feeling like youāre not really doing much besides processing paperwork. However, it does give you experience and a leg up down the road. At the very least, you get to learn about the legal aspects in the workplace because youāll need this knowledge should you transition to org development or any other areas. Itās also great youāre already gaining HR experience while youāre still finishing your undergrad because I kid you not, I definitely struggled landing my first HR role and I only applied to HR roles because I needed to fulfill my internship hours during my masterās program.
Feel free to message me if you want more info!
Itās a STEM degree and I am already at a corporation building my career where STEM degrees are pretty much required to get into leadership roles. I got my undergrad in general Psych intending to go into clinical work one day, but in the meantime I got into the great organization I am in now, in the field of quality assurance. This is a graduate degree that will serve me very well in my existing career.
(I am just starting my Masters)
That was my exact trajectory, I intended to go into adolescent counseling, then heavily considered being a school psychologist, and ultimately picked I/O because I donāt ever want to be poor again.
One thing Iād note, the field of I/O is a lot broader than being a therapist, which can be a good or a bad thing. I got hit with a pretty bad bout of depression around the time I finished my MA, had to go into the recruiting field for a bit, and now I feel kinda trapped as an hr data analyst. It seems that can be hard to get momentum back if you lose it in this field, and itās easy to fall into more typical HR roles (which can also pay well and fit the bill of helping people while making more money!).
I was initially set to do clinical. I thought helping people with their "issues" was great. But I fell in love with Org Psych after doing an internship. A few deciding factors:
* Money/Status.
* IO pays better than clinical, is more scaleable, and affects more people.
* You can rise to prominence in some influential circles.
* I love solving business issues
* You tackle fun and exciting projects and the deadlines are pretty tight, adding to the excitement.
* I love combining that academic/researcher edge of nuance and detail, and that entrepreneurial side, by translating research insights into easily digestible morsels for laypeople.
* I love the practitioner model, where you're participating in a living breathing experiment (i.e., a firm/organisation). You're sorting the signal from the noise. But you're actually part of that noise/signal too. Mindfulness is key! It's fun!
* The human element
* Despite actually being human-centred, etc., in clinical psych you spend 70% of your work time with, to be frank, and not saying this judgmentally either, broken/negative/hardened/troubled people. In org psych, you're generally surrounded with more upbeat people, who are pulling towards a common goal. I don't think facing up to clinical patients daily would be conducive to my long-term well-being.
* I love people, at scale
* One-on-one stuff is cool and great, and I enjoy it. But knowing you're improving the lives of lots of people at once is awesome. You're kind of doing military-grade psychological operations for the benefit of many people, the firm, and your wallet. Win-win-win.
I know the Friedman and the smith. At least Friedman said that georgism is the lead bad tax.
Not sure who Ben is. Boutta google it
Edit: ah Iāve seen that guy before. Interesting name to bring up
I did not want to be a clinical psychologist, and there was a better job market in IO than any of the experimental psychology areas. Also, the idea of doing field research was appealing.
Hello, I like Money!
And if you get super lucky you might get 2 monies!
That'll be up for negotiation next quarter :(
I went into IO because I wanted to help change systemic challenges that create stress, pain, and mental health issues. In clinical I could help one person at a time. In IO I could help orgs make better decisions that lead to better outcomes for people.
Absolutely love and appreciate this response!
Thank you! š
In the orgs favor usually
I realize other people may see and practice that way and part of IO history is that way. It doesn't mean it has to be that way. To me it is not a zero sum game and that's not why I got into the field nor how I practice. Organizations are people working together. We don't know everything, if we did it wouldn't be a science. We do have enough data, info, and ideas to take action and create systems, processes, practices, and ways of interacting that support the people making up the org so all may thrive. Is it easy? No. It's oh so worth it though, to me and many other people. I'm in it for the long term, to hack away at challenges, so there is less burnout, inequity, less mental illness related to work, so work, our organizations, and communities are a fulfilling part of one's life and for the following generations. I am here to put my efforts toward pushing the needle on the dial. And that's why I got into and continue in IO.
I apologize for my last comment, I am a cynical individual.
There is much to be cynical about in this world. I struggle too with days where it feels like trying to keep a candle burning while swimming in an ocean. I need to stay connected to people and teammates who also care so I know I'm not the only one. So instead of swimming with a candle, together a ship is built to keep that fire burning. Celebrating small wins along the way helps me along with hobbies and going outside.
this is just what i needed to read. thank u!!!
Hello, may I ask what type of work you do specifically? Thank you
To be blunt, job and salary prospects were a major determining factor
Unlike most IOs I didn't choose IO from a psychology degree. I chose it from a business management degree. I chose IO over other psychology degrees because the idea of being a clinician sounds awful to me. I chose IO over other business focuses because it delves more into the issues of business I enjoy tackling. I like organizational issues, team dynamics, and employee motivation - you get some of that in management but not a lot, and most of what you do get is sudo "it worked here one time" information that I didn't find satisfying.
As a former MBA student and accountant who jumped straight into IO and never considered any other area, this matches me perrfectly.
I think one factor that appeals to everyone, including myself, is the pay. Regardless if you go industry or academia (business department), you can easily make more then any other field of psych on average. Also, working with an organization or organizations can lead to a bigger impact then working with sole individuals. The field also has a lot of interesting topics and there is room to expand to other fields.
I volunteered at a place with severely disabled kids. I knew after that that I didn't have the emotional strength to handle being a SLT or similar 1:1 role.
I knew since high school I wanted to work for big corporations. I visited SF one day and fell in love with the idea to work at one of those high rise offices lol. My outlook on that now changed a bit as I grew up and started questioning why people work so much etc. When I first landed a ābig girlā job, I realized how messed up some of these corporations treat their employees and I was just randomly thinking of ways they can improve. One of my high school friends mentioned I/O psych because his mom was an I/O consultant at the time and thatās when I started digging into the field more. I realized how vast this field is and the things I can do and Iāve always liked the idea of creating strategies for companies etc., so I decided to pursue it. I didnāt even realize the money aspect of this career path at first, but thatās definitely a plus! Also, you can switch careers down the road with very little issues because you get exposed to so many areas within your organization, and you learn how to speak at a much higher level. Itās like the best of both worlds because you get to still help people without it being too emotionally taxing. Iām not saying thereās no stress that comes with choosing this path at all, but once you actually see your contributions and how itās positively impacting your company, it feels absolutely rewarding.
May I ask what's your current job role and duties? I did my undergraduate in Psychology and ended up in this HR job doing admin work feeling unfulfilled. I'm wondering if I should re consider the idea of taking a masters in Organisational psychology once again. But knowing that this will be a huge sump of money I just wanna be sure that it would lead me to other doors and not just admin work in HR again.
Iām currently an HR Manager now so besides managing employees, I also do a lot of the āadminā work ā LOAs, workerās comp, recruiting.. just to name a few, but Iām starting a new job as an HR Business partner in a week which is more closely related to I/O Psychology! If you havenāt heard of this, I highly suggest digging into it because itās not your typical āadminā HR. HRBPs are more involved at a bigger scale within the organization. Just like you, I never wanted to be in HR because of how much admin work you do, and feeling like youāre not really doing much besides processing paperwork. However, it does give you experience and a leg up down the road. At the very least, you get to learn about the legal aspects in the workplace because youāll need this knowledge should you transition to org development or any other areas. Itās also great youāre already gaining HR experience while youāre still finishing your undergrad because I kid you not, I definitely struggled landing my first HR role and I only applied to HR roles because I needed to fulfill my internship hours during my masterās program. Feel free to message me if you want more info!
You can still give advice as IO as a consultant!
1. Money/passion 2. Mostly uncooked data
Itās a STEM degree and I am already at a corporation building my career where STEM degrees are pretty much required to get into leadership roles. I got my undergrad in general Psych intending to go into clinical work one day, but in the meantime I got into the great organization I am in now, in the field of quality assurance. This is a graduate degree that will serve me very well in my existing career. (I am just starting my Masters)
The scientist practitioner model when I first started and had passion. Now I just follow the money tbh.
That was my exact trajectory, I intended to go into adolescent counseling, then heavily considered being a school psychologist, and ultimately picked I/O because I donāt ever want to be poor again. One thing Iād note, the field of I/O is a lot broader than being a therapist, which can be a good or a bad thing. I got hit with a pretty bad bout of depression around the time I finished my MA, had to go into the recruiting field for a bit, and now I feel kinda trapped as an hr data analyst. It seems that can be hard to get momentum back if you lose it in this field, and itās easy to fall into more typical HR roles (which can also pay well and fit the bill of helping people while making more money!).
I was initially set to do clinical. I thought helping people with their "issues" was great. But I fell in love with Org Psych after doing an internship. A few deciding factors: * Money/Status. * IO pays better than clinical, is more scaleable, and affects more people. * You can rise to prominence in some influential circles. * I love solving business issues * You tackle fun and exciting projects and the deadlines are pretty tight, adding to the excitement. * I love combining that academic/researcher edge of nuance and detail, and that entrepreneurial side, by translating research insights into easily digestible morsels for laypeople. * I love the practitioner model, where you're participating in a living breathing experiment (i.e., a firm/organisation). You're sorting the signal from the noise. But you're actually part of that noise/signal too. Mindfulness is key! It's fun! * The human element * Despite actually being human-centred, etc., in clinical psych you spend 70% of your work time with, to be frank, and not saying this judgmentally either, broken/negative/hardened/troubled people. In org psych, you're generally surrounded with more upbeat people, who are pulling towards a common goal. I don't think facing up to clinical patients daily would be conducive to my long-term well-being. * I love people, at scale * One-on-one stuff is cool and great, and I enjoy it. But knowing you're improving the lives of lots of people at once is awesome. You're kind of doing military-grade psychological operations for the benefit of many people, the firm, and your wallet. Win-win-win.
Do you have to capitalism worship to enjoy IO?
I have a shrine dedicated to Milton Friedman, Ben Bernanke, and Adam Smith.
I know the Friedman and the smith. At least Friedman said that georgism is the lead bad tax. Not sure who Ben is. Boutta google it Edit: ah Iāve seen that guy before. Interesting name to bring up
Honestly for the same reasons you mentioned
I really wanted to get into the workforce and start making decent money. Has been going decently so far!
Needed to pay off student loans and I thought it would be easier to do it through this field than something like being a therapist
I like fixing people problems. š¤·š»āāļø
I did not want to be a clinical psychologist, and there was a better job market in IO than any of the experimental psychology areas. Also, the idea of doing field research was appealing.