The Ph.D. Program in Industrial/Organizational Psychology at Texas A&M University

The Industrial/Organizational (I/O) program trains individuals to be both scientists and practitioners. We believe that a strong grounding in basic and applied research skills and the theoretical underpinnings of I/O psychology are essential for both academic and applied work. The goal of the I/O program is to continue to enhance its national reputation as a center of scholarly excellence in I/O psychology by conducting high-quality basic and applied research. Consequently, faculty and student collaboration in ongoing research projects is strongly emphasized. The program has a major emphasis on academic research-based training with the objective of placing students in academic careers. However, in addition to academic positions, our graduates are qualified for positions in research organizations, government agencies, corporations, and consulting firms. Since 2000, approximately 40% of our graduates have obtained academic positions and 60% have secured applied jobs. Recent academic placements have included Northern Arizona University, DePaul University, Tulane University, University of Oklahoma, University of Wisconsin-River Falls, the State University of New York at Albany, and Southern Methodist University. Recent applied placements have included Merck & Co., Inc., PepsiCo, U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory, Xerox Corporation, State Farm Insurance, Home Depot, and Personnel Decisions International. Over the last decade, all of our students have accepted jobs immediately upon graduation.

The domains of I/O psychology represented in the program include the areas of personnel selection, criterion development, training, performance appraisal, individual differences, motivation, productivity, job attitudes, group processes, decision-making, and conflict. We currently have 5 full-time core I/O faculty and 2 affiliated faculty with a student/faculty ratio of approximately 4:1. The I/O psychology faculty consists of a renowned group of scholars. The program was recently ranked 11th in I/O psychology doctoral programs in North America in terms of publications in the top research journals in the field (Gibby et al., 2002 in The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist) and 11th in terms of presentations at the annual conferences of the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (Payne et al., 2001 in The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist). There are numerous faculty in related areas in the Psychology Department and the Management Department in the College of Business Administration.

The standards of scholarship exhibited by the I/O faculty are also reflected in the high standards set for admissions to our graduate program. Over the past 5 years (2001–2005), students accepted into the program have averaged GRE (verbal + quantitative) scores of 1233 and an undergraduate grade point average of 3.86.

All graduate students admitted to the Department of Psychology are provided a fellowship or assistantship that pays a competitive monthly salary. Almost all students retain their fellowship or assistantship for their entire period of graduate studies (four or five years). Students also may be funded by research grants or practical placements. Office space, computers, funds to travel to professional conventions, and free health insurance also are provided. The I/O program locates summer internships, often with potential employers, for most of its students who want them. The program also supports an active speakers series that each year brings to campus a number of faculty members from other universities. This series provides exposure to different perspectives on the field and the opportunity to network with professors at other institutions.

Industrial/Organizational Psychology Faculty

Dr. Winfred Arthur, Jr. - Ph.D. University of Akron (1988)

Dr. Ludy Benjamin, Jr. - Ph.D., Texas Christian University (1971)

Dr. Mindy Bergman - Ph.D., University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (2001)

Dr. Chris Berry - Ph.D. University of Minnesota (2007)

Dr. Kathi Miner-Rubino - Ph.D., University of Michigan (2004)

Dr. Stephanie Payne - Ph.D. George Mason University (2000)

Dr. Charles Samuelson - Ph.D., University of California, Santa Barbara (1986)

Dr. Aaron Taylor - Ph.D., Arizona State University (2008)

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