Program Overview

Here you will find an overview of our graduate programs, including our mission and focus, courses offered, programs available and contact information. DePaul offers an M.A./Ph.D. program as well as a Five-Year B.A./M.A. program for individuals enrolled as undergraduates at DePaul University.

Mission & Focus

The Five-Year B.A./M.A. and M.A./Ph.D. programs in Industrial/Organizational Psychology prepare students for careers in industry, government, and university settings. These programs focus on the theory and techniques of selecting, evaluating, and developing individuals within an organization. Topics include personnel selection, performance appraisal, training and development, employee attitudes, motivation, leadership, and organizational theory. The Ph.D. program allows flexibility for the advanced student to pursue related disciplines such as management, information systems, and marketing.

The I/O curriculum is based on the scientist/practitioner model of graduate education and follows two basic principles:

1. The Industrial/Organizational psychologist must have a solid foundation in general psychological theory, research methodology, and philosophy of science, in addition to knowledge in the content area of I/O Psychology.

2. The Industrial/Organizational psychologist must be aware of the contributions of other disciplines to the study of organizations and must have practical experience in working with formal organizations as a psychologist.

To develop the "practitioner" part of this model, the DePaul Industrial/ Organizational Psychology program encourages students to work in industrial/organizational settings within the Chicago area. The Chicago metropolitan area offers a rich environment for research and practice in I/O psychology; it includes more than 34,000 retail businesses, 14,000 wholesalers, 40,000 service organizations, 13,000 manufacturers, and many other types of organizations. Adjunct and part-time faculty from these organizations can provide students with unique training and experience. The "scientist" aspect is addressed by encouraging students to participate fully in the research and publication process. We do not believe that students should be trained to be either academics or practitioners, but rather to have both sets of skills.

M.A./Ph.D. Program

Students in DePaul's M.A./Ph.D. program take required and elective courses for the first three years. During this time, students propose and defend their Master's theses, earning a Master's of Arts degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. Ph.D. candidates take comprehensive written and oral doctoral exams in the Spring of the third year or in the Fall of their fourth year. After comprehensive exams, students begin work on their dissertations. The dissertation is the final step in obtaining a Ph.D. in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from DePaul University.

I/O MA/PhD COURSE REQUIREMENTS^*

The following list is a general overview of class requirements for the MA/PhD I/O program. The I/O Psychology courses are typically alternated every other year. Therefore, the year you enter the program will determine which I/O Psychology courses you take during your first, second, and third years. All I/O Psychology courses are taken, but the year in which they are taken may vary.

Statistics & Methodology (24 credits)

410 Advanced Statistics I

411 Advanced Statistics II

418 Multivariate Analysis

419 Factor Analysis

420 Advanced Research Methodology

450 Psychological Measurement

Psychology Core (16 credits)

404 Learning Processes

430 Advanced Social Psychology

402 Perceptual Processes OR 406 Physiological Processes

437 Advanced Personality OR 439 Advanced Developmental Psychology

Industrial/Organizational Psychology (40 credits)

440 Psychology of Work and Motivation

441 Psychology of Leadership

442 Personnel Psychology

444 Performance Appraisal

445 Advanced Training and Development in Organizations

446 Psychological Theories of Organization

447 Organizational Consultation

448 Concepts, Methods, & Ethics for Industrial Psychology

559 Seminar in Industrial/Organizational Psychology (twice)

Research (16 credits)

597 Master's Thesis (4 credits)

599 Doctoral Dissertation (12 credits)

Electives (24 credits)

At least one of the six electives must be a content-type course and at least one must be a methods-type course.

*For the MA, students must complete 72 hours of course-work, which must include 410, 411, 420 and either 418/419; all 4 of the Psych Core courses; 6 of the I/O courses; 597 and the MA thesis.

^*See I/O Rules and Policies for details on the minor option. At least one elective must be a content-type course and one must be a methods-type course.

ELECTIVE COURSES

Many graduate-level courses at DePaul are available to I/O students in the B.A./M.S. and Ph.D. programs as electives. Two issues regarding electives require further specification.

Psychology 586 (Practicum in Applied I/O Psychology) and Psychology 587 (Practicum in Advanced Research in I/O Psychology) may be taken by second- and third-year I/O graduate students for elective credit. Each course carries 4 quarter hours of credit. Students may take no more than two practica; that is, a student may take each course once or one of the two courses twice.

At least one elective must be of a quantitative or methods nature. That is, the focus of the course must be to teach students how to use one or more specific statistical or methodological techniques. Courses about the uses and applications of technology do not meet this requirement, unless they specifically teach how to develop and/or use the technology. Examples of courses that meet this requirement are:

PSY 416          Methods in Qualitative Research
PSY 422          Computing for the Behavioral Scientist
PSY 558          Seminar in Advanced Statistics
ACC 500         Financial Accounting
MAT 456         Applied Regression Analysis
MAT 457         Nonparametric Statistics
MAT 458         Statistical Quality Control
MAT 512         Applied Time Series and Forecasting

Five-Year B.A./M.S. in I/O Psychology

This program is designed for DePaul undergraduate students who wish to obtain both the B.A. and the M.S. degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. It prepares the students to work at the Master's level in the field of I/O Psychology in a variety of businesses, government, and consulting work settings. It is not primarily designed to be a precursor to doctoral-level work, and students who wish to obtain the Ph.D. should speak to their I/O Psychology advisor.

The B.A./M.S. program has two goals. The first is to provide the student with sufficient breadth in the methodology and content of psychology to demonstrate competence in two major areas:

Core areas of the discipline of psychology
Methods of the discipline of psychology

A second goal of the program is to provide the student with sufficient information and skills to apply the knowledge of I/O Psychology competently in their daily lives and careers. This includes course work in the theory and techniques of the application of psychological principles, and also includes a thorough grounding in ethical and professional standards of I/O psychologists. Although the program builds upon a core of basic courses, it provides some flexibility for students (with the approval of their advisors) to shape their course of study to fit special interests and needs.

The First Three Years. Students who are interested in the five-year program should meet with an I/O Psychology advisor as soon as possible, ideally by the middle of the sophomore year. Most of the coursework follows the standard plan for a Psychology major with an I/O concentration. However, the student must complete 39 courses rather than the normal 36 during these three years. By the end of the junior year, the student should have completed the following courses:

21 Liberal Studies
5 Psychology core classes
2 I/O (380 plus 340 or 343)
3 Psychology electives
8 General electives

At the end of the junior year the student applies for admission to the graduate portion of the program. The deadline for application is June 1. The application materials must include:

Application form, available from the I/O Program Director
Official transcripts from all colleges and universities attended
General GRE scores
Statement of career goals and interests

The Fourth & Fifth Years. During the fourth (senior) and fifth years the student takes graduate-level coursework. A grade point average of no less than 3.0 is required to remain in good standing. During these years the student takes three classes per quarter, for a total of 18 graduate courses.

4 Psychology core
5 I/O (448 plus four others)
3 statistics and research methods
5 electives
1 thesis registration

The B.A. is awarded at the end of the fourth year upon completion of 192 credit hours. The M.S. is awarded at the end of the fifth year upon completion of 228 credit hours and the Master’s thesis.

I/O BA/MS COURSE REQUIREMENTS

The following list is a general overview of class requirements for the BA/MS I/O program. The I/O Psychology courses are typically alternated every other year. Therefore, the year you enter the program will determine which I/O Psychology courses you take during your first, second, and third years. All I/O Psychology courses are taken, but the year in which they are taken may vary.

Undergraduate (156 credits)

Liberal Studies (21 courses = 84 cr)    I/O Psychology
105 Introductory Psychology I            340 Statistics II OR 343 Measurement
106 Introductory Psychology II            Psychology electives (3 courses = 12 cr)
240 Statistics I                                    General electives (8 courses = 32 cr)
241 Research Methods I
242 Research Methods II

Statistics & Methodology (12 credits)

410 Advanced Statistics I
411 Advanced Statistics II
420 Advanced Research Methodology

Psychology Core (16 credits)

404 Learning Processes
430 Advanced Social Psychology
402 Perceptual Processes OR 406 Physiological Processes
437 Advanced Personality OR 439 Advanced Developmental Psychology

Industrial/Organizational Psychology (16 credits)

440 Psychology of Work and Motivation OR 441 Psychology of Leadership
442 Personnel Psychology OR 444 Performance Appraisal
445 Advanced Training and Development in Organizations OR
446/447 Psychological Theories of Organization/Organizational Consultation
(447 will count as an elective)
448 Concepts, Methods, & Ethics for Industrial Psychology

Research (4 credits)

597 Master's Thesis

Electives (24 credits)

At least one of the six electives must be a content-type course and at least one must be a methods-type course.

ELECTIVE COURSES

Many graduate-level courses at DePaul are available to I/O students in the B.A./M.S. and Ph.D. programs as electives. Two issues regarding electives require further specification.

Contact Information

For general inquiries or admissions information, please contact DePaul University's Psychology Department at 773-325-7887 or gradpsych@depaul.edu.

Graduate Psychology Program
DePaul University
2219 North Kenmore Avenue
Chicago, Illinois 60614-3504

Phone: 773-325-7887
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