Careers in organisational psychology

Updated on: Thursday, July 07, 2011

The word psychologist reminds you of the image of an old person with a face mapped by lines of wisdom acquired through years of study. What this image fails to convey, though, is that the profession encompasses much more than just studying an individual’s mind and behaviour. From unique fields like animal psychology to its popular applications in the field of education, psychology offers a host of career options. One of these is psychology is at the industry/ organisation level.

Industrial Organisational Psychology, also referred to as I/O psychology, focuses on increasing workplace productivity and related issues such as the physical and mental wellbeing of employees. It involves hiring qualified employees, conducting tests, designing products, creating training courses and performing research on different aspects of the workplace.

Becoming an Organisational Psychologist

A basic degree in psychology is a must to enter this field. Dr H L Kaila, PhD, Head (Psychology), SNDT Women's University says, “In India, the top universities to study Organisational Psychology are SNDT, Mumbai University (Kalina campus), Pune University and the University of Delhi. The basic educational qualification needed to become an organisational psychologist is a bachelor’s degree in psychology and post that, a master’s degree preferably with internship experience. But in today’s competitive age, such degrees won’t be enough to join top positions in organisations. Ideally, one requires to work towards a doctorate degree in organisational psychology after a few years of work experience, post the master's degree.”

Work while you study

Internship experience is critical to becoming an organisational psychologist, as it is a bridge between academia and practical work. Bhavini Merchant, a 23-year old psychology student has just finished her one-year corporate internship. She says, “Working with a corporate while you are still studying psychology helps you understand concepts in terms of real world situations. The more you relate academics to the workplace, the more you learn.”

At some universities such as SNDT, internship is part of the curriculum and students split their time every week between the workplace and classroom. In organisational psychology, most students prefer to opt for corporate jobs in the HR department. This field allows them to apply their superior understanding of people. “As an individual, you can learn so much from study of psychology. On several occasions, I have counseled my colleagues. My background as a psychologist gives me an edge. It enables me to build better interpersonal relationships at work. Even for the organisaiton, it ensures the mental health of the workforce and acts as a catharsis for the individual who might be stressed,” says Merchant.

Lorraine Pereira, a Mumbai-based organisational psychologist, interned with one of the leading Tata Group companies while she was pursuing her master's course. “Having had the opportunity of interning with the Tata’s, it opened doors that I never knew existed. My passion lies in psychometric testing – partly because of the exposure and the work I’ve done in that area. Academia is limited to theory, somehow it all makes sense when you look at the broader picture and learn to apply the psychology to business. The challenge lies in keeping it in line with the business goals and perspectives. There’s only so much you can learn from the books, while it is essential to understand the concepts the real journey begins when you are on the job – interacting with people and making decisions. My internship taught me to connect application of psychology with work principles and demands of the business. But most of all, I’ve learnt that psychology can really be used anywhere, in any kind of work, in any kind of industry,” she says.

Money matters

The salary trends in this field largely depend on your qualification and experience. It is also affected to a large extent by the type of employer. For a master’s degree holder/ fresher, the salary range maybe around Rs 25-30, 000 per month. For a master’s degree holder with 4-5 years of work experience, the salary range maybe around Rs 50-60, 000 per month or more. For a doctorate degree holder with the same work experience, the salary may range around Rs 60-90, 000 per month or more.

The right skills

Today, while many individuals are pursuing psychology as a mainstream career option, it is still not widely accepted. Pereira, says, “People don’t take psychology seriously. In India, it is still confined to only counselling and teaching. Some more exposure and recognition in the field is needed. Psychometric testing, for example, is a field that is gaining momentum quickly. The corporate world will soon consider having psychologists on board because the skills and the value addition that a psychologist can add will just take it to a whole new level.”

Becoming an organisational psychologist is not everyone’s cup of tea. There are specific skills you need to have or be able to develop to succeed in this field. “To become a successful applied psychologist, an individual needs to adapt to various work assignments and continue observing and learning from their mentors at the workplace and gain practical work life psychological experiences interacting with people to understand their work behaviour,” says Dr Kaila.

Careers in organisational psychology

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