MTSU is recognized for having one of the top-ranked Industrial/Organizational Psychology master’s programs in the nation. With a projected job growth rate of 53% for the I/O field through the year 2022, the future continues to look bright for program graduates. MTSU offers a wide range of courses designed to prepare students for positions in human resource departments, consulting opportunities, or entry into an I/O doctoral program. Graduates lead careers that specialize in recruitment and selection of employees, training, job analysis, compensation, performance measurement and evaluation, leadership, workplace attitudes, organizational development, and more. The program aims to produce professionals who can apply their I/O psychology knowledge base, grounded in scientific theory and research, to organizations. Beyond a required internship, students are involved in multiple applied projects with client businesses and organizations that provide real-world experience prior to graduation. With seven dedicated faculty members, a diverse group of students, strong research opportunities, and applied experiences with actual clients every semester, the I/O program at MTSU offers students a unique and high-quality education.

The Industrial/Organizational Psychology concentration is designed for those interested in applying psychology principles in business, industry, or government. Those pursuing the I/O concentration will complete a two-year, full-time program.

A master’s degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology is designed to prepare graduates for opportunities in human resource departments of business, industry, and government, as well as careers in consulting or entry to related doctoral programs. The placement rate for landing a career-relevant job has typically been 100% for graduates of this program. Research by alumnus Felix Thai shows that the program provides an impressive return on investment ranging from 786% to 2,226%. Alumni of MTSU’s I/O program have successfully found jobs throughout the United States and internationally. MTSU master’s I/O graduates work in a variety of organizations ranging from large Fortune 100 companies to government and nonprofit organizations. Some alumni job titles include

Compensation analyst
Corporate human resources director
Director of overseas operations
Director of training
HR generalist
Research analyst
Senior consultant of HR and organizational development
Vice president of international services