This article is the second of a two-part series addressing the question: Is your I/O psychology program providing you with the knowledge, experiences, and credentials needed to obtain a career oriented job upon graduation? The January 1996 column focussed on the needs of I/O psychology students interested in obtaining an academic position. The current column addresses the same issues for students seeking an applied position. Although these articles focus on concerns of graduate students in I/O Psychology, this information may be of interest to a wider audience. In particular, on the eve of a review of the Guidelines for Education and Training at the Doctoral Level in Industrial/Organizational Psychology those who are concerned with curriculum design for I/O Psychology students may wish to consider how our industry evaluates and selects newly trained I/O psychologists for jobs. This issue is addressed at the end of the following article.

Want an Applied Job? Get Experience!!

Jenna R. Sebolsky

The Claremont Graduate School

Anne L. Brady

University of Missouri St. Louis

Stephen Wagner

Northern Illinois University

While in graduate school, the primary thought on most students minds is, "What can I do now to help me get a job when I get my Ph.D.?" This article focuses on how graduate students can prepare for a job in an applied setting, as well as the competencies organizations and consulting firms look for when hiring I/O psychologists.

What Can Graduate Students Do To Help Prepare For A Career In An Applied Setting?

Although money is a key factor for graduate student survival, a student should not turn down an internship because it is unpaid. All respondents mentioned that it was not important when hiring someone whether the internships they had were paid or unpaid. "The most important thing is that the student has gained experience out in the corporate world."

Networking: Another frequently mentioned way for students to prepare for a career in an applied setting is to network with colleagues and practitioners in the field. Networking may be defined as building relationships with people established in a specific area to obtain information about a field of interest, find out about possible job opportunities, or to help establish oneself in an area of practice. One I/O consultant told us that graduate students are reluctant to approach others in the field because they do not want to impose on them. He said, "What students don't recognize is that most psychologists want to talk about their jobs, and the exciting things happening in the field. The benefit of networking is that students can obtain information and get to know psychologists established in the field without the pressure of asking for a job. Then, if a job becomes available, the person will remember meeting you and your qualifications." Networking gives students an opportunity to market themselves to professionals in their field.

One way that students can network with colleagues is at professional conferences. Students may join many of the major psychological and business associations such as The Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, The Academy of Management, and The American Society for Training and Development. All of these associations have annual conventions that give students an opportunity to network with fellow colleagues.

Develop "People Skills": Perhaps the most important skill any graduate student can develop is strong interpersonal skills. This is perhaps one of the few things a student cannot learn in any graduate course. According to one consultant, "Interpersonal skills and flexibility are necessary to progress in any consulting firm." All of the people with whom we spoke said that developing communication skills is one of the most important things that graduate students can do to help prepare them for any applied career.

What Criteria Do Organizations And Consulting Firms Use When Hiring I/O Psychologists?

While talking with the consultants and executives, we asked them what criteria they use when hiring Ph.D. I/O psychologists. Applied experience and applicant fit were the most frequently mentioned. Other criteria received mixed or low responses. These will be discussed briefly in order to dispel graduate students' misperceptions. This is not an exclusive list, nor exactly what organizations or consultants are looking for, but these are some common themes we found. The most common deficiencies or misconceptions Ph.D.'s have once entering the "real world" will also be addressed.

Applied Experience: As previously discussed, applied experience is essential. One consultant remarked, "With rare exception, all of the people we hire for consultant positions will need to have worked in an organization." Applied experience, whether internships, practicums, or consulting projects with professors was mentioned as one of the most important criteria for hiring in applied settings. The point of view appears to be that work experience in corporate settings indicates that an individual knows how to act and what to expect in such an organizational climate. As one I/0 psychologist stated, "If you want to go applied, you better develop an understanding about organizations and how they operate!"

Applicant Fit: Applicant fit was another important criteria used in selection decisions. Applicant fit refers to the degree to which the candidate matches the needs of the organization rather than how similar the applicant is to the organization's members. Respondents consistently stressed matching the needs of a particular job with the applicants' qualifications.

Other criteria which were mentioned, but less frequently, include: integrity, adaptability, initiative, analytical skills, interpersonal skills, project management skills (to include delegation), planning and organizing skills, strategic thinking, and self presentation (to include a good first impression). Criteria receiving mixed responses included:

Statistical Knowledge: "At a minimum for all positions, statistical knowledge of correlational analysis and regression is important," noted one I/0 psychologist from a consulting firm. Most respondents cited basic statistical knowledge (for survey analysis/interpretation) as a requirement, yet not advanced statistics. The need for quantitative skills did vary according to the job, but not many people mentioned an overwhelming need for higher level statistics. One I/0 psychologist stated that for employment in his organization, "An understanding of factor analysis is a plus but not a disqualifier."

University: Using the university the applicant attended as a criterion for employment received mixed responses. Some respondents said they did not consider it; others considered it somewhat; and still others made statements such as, "It is the first thing I look at," or "What university they graduated from is probably the most important." The latter respondents acknowledged that a lot of assumptions are based on the school because they know that students coming out of certain universities have a solid research and statistical background. One consultant clarified the question by responding, " Do we look at the school? Yes, in the sense of looking at the faculty there. The school itself may have an excellent overall reputation, but the I/0 department there may or may not be turning out good research/students. Likewise the overall reputation of a school may not be as high as the overall reputation of the department." With respect to university as a criterion, there does not appear to be any consensus. However, we did find that many organizations and consultants viewed a balance of psychology and business classes as valuable. In terms of importance of grade point average, virtually every respondent had the point of view that as long as the applicant had the degree, grade point average was irrelevant.

Before we began our interviews, we had some preconceived notions about what we thought were important criteria for organizations to consider. We were surprised to find out that the following criteria were not important to organizations and consulting firms.

Research: While research is the most frequently used criterion in evaluating applicants for academic jobs, it appears to rarely be considered in applied settings. Many respondents said it is good to have an understanding of research and applied research issues, in other words, to have it as a foundation, but they weren't concerned with publications or specific research projects unless it directly related to something in the job description.

Teaching Experience: Teaching experience is a measure often used in academia, and understandably so, yet, not a highly used determinant in applied fields. The exception seemed to be training experience. Having previous training facilitation experience seems to be an asset. What is important, and what can be gained from a teaching or training experience, is the ability to present oneself to an audience. One respondent stated, "Teaching teaches some important things that are transferable, but internship experience can be as much or more valuable."

I Thought I Was Prepared For My Career, But I Wasn't?

We posed a question to the survey participants about the most common deficiency or misconception of Ph.D. graduates. We found a variety of responses and some very interesting quotes. These deficiencies also point to additional criteria graduates may consider reviewing.

A common theme emerged: Graduates know the material and content of their field, but lack many skills beyond that. For example, a frequent response concerned writing and communication ability. "Graduates need to learn to get away from 'academic writing style' (managers understand bullet point messages)," noted one psychologist in industry. The ability to talk informally with managers and to 'talk their language' was an additional communication deficiency. Many of the responses can be summarized by this quote, "Too many graduates lack the interpersonal skills, presence, and political sensitivity necessary to be effective in large, conservative corporate settings." It appears Ph.D. graduates need to polish their interpersonal skills and communication abilities when seeking and while on the job.

Another general theme was that Ph.D. students were too theoretical and complex when they needed to be practical and to keep things simple. Often the new employees had a narrow world view. One I/O psychologist remarked, "They don't live in the real world." Another commented, "New Ph.D.'s are often academic purists who have highly developed skills in critiquing research methods, conclusions, etc. but little understanding of the practical realities of conducting field research in forprofit companies." In other words, they are better at questioning than producing. They want to do everything "by the book" or "the way Professor X taught it." "They are very confident in their knowledge but have trouble applying it and adapting their procedures to situations that vary from classroom examples." Another I/0 psychologist offered some insight to move beyond the deficiency, "Graduates have a highly developed set of technical skill and know what should be done. But that isn't the way it always happens in the applied setting. Once they get over that shock they can learn where they can apply what they know in a quick manner without losing the integrity of the process." The realization that things are different in the "real world" would seem to improve this deficiency and help graduates better adjust.

In fact, adjustment and change will be increasingly important for graduate students seeking applied jobs. The field of I/O psychology is rapidly changing and growing as many companies are becoming globally competitive and looking for ways to maximally utilize their human resources. Some of the most frequently mentioned changes taking place are: organizations are using more external consultants, the need to know how to improve the "bottomline" in business, and the need for I/O psychologists to better link the psychological side and the business side. As one consultant put it "It is a time where I/O psychologists can help the organization help the individuals through change." It is an exciting time to enter the field, but we must be prepared, both academically and socially before we do so.

The Guidelines for Doctoral Training in Industrial/Organization Psychology

The discussion in this and last month's Student Network column suggests that preparing for a career in I/O Psychology can be a very challenging endeavor. One very important factor influencing how prepared the recent graduate will be for competing in the job market is the training s/he has received in the course of obtaining the Ph.D. Although the content of doctoral training varies from one institution to another, the content is likely to have been influenced by the Guidelines for Education and Training at the Doctoral Level in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. Because these guidelines are meant to be reevaluated periodically, the question of the suitability of these guidelines for the current environment is receiving growing interest given that they are now more than a decade old.

The current guidelines were designed to identify the competencies necessary to begin a career in I/O psychology. Twentyone areas of competence are described in the guidelines (e.g., Work Motivation Theory, Job and Task Analysis, etc.) accompanied by a variety of suggestions for the means of obtaining these competencies. Although the current guidelines are an improvement over past guidelines that prescribed a detailed program of formal course work, the current guidelines may not focus sufficient attention on the processes of obtaining the competencies described. The last two editions of The Student Network have identified a number of criteria used to select I/O psychologists for academic and applied positions. Two particular criteria stand out as the most consequential: (1) conducting and reporting research and (2) applied experience.

Experience in conducting and reporting research is the most important criterion used in hiring for academic positions in I/O psychology. Additionally, the applied activities of I/O psychology often involve the analytic ability and methodological knowledge developed from conducting and reporting research. Thus, research is an important factor for both the scientist and practitioner aspects of an I/O psychologist's career. Although the 1985 guidelines do describe the competencies of Research Methods and Statistical Methods/Data Analysis, future consideration of these guidelines should explore the processes of conducting and reporting research during doctoral training. Traditionally, the full extent of one's research activities during doctoral training is conducting a thesis and dissertation. However, the contemporary market for I/O psychologists often demands more exposure to research than this traditional model of training provides. Thus, future revisions of the guidelines may need to delineate additional processes of gaining experience in conducting and reporting research. Future revisions could describe a variety of methods for initiating and supporting research, including the behaviors and skills of effective mentors or the characteristics of effective research teams.

Applied experience is primarily important for those graduates desiring a career in an applied setting, but the nature of our science also demands that academicians be knowledgeable of the realities of the organizational setting. Doctoral students typically obtain applied experience through an internship. Some graduate programs have developed relationships with organizations in order to place students in internship positions whereas other programs require their students to find an internship on their own. Some graduate programs have highly structured internships wherein the responsibilities of the student, faculty, and onsite coordinator are explicitly specified whereas others program have very little structure. It would be beneficial for graduate programs to compare how they go about providing applied experience for their students in order delineate the qualities of a successful internship experience. Future revisions of the guidelines for graduate training might describe a variety of successful internship programs to serve as models for providing applied experience.

The recommendations above are not meant to suggest that future versions of the guidelines should revert to a rigid prescriptive style. Rather, a variety of methods for supporting research and applied experience should be described. By suggesting many different methods of promoting research and applied experience, the guidelines would allow a program to decide on the method that is best suited to its resources and culture.