Organizational Psychology Online

Submitted by admin on Mon, 12/12/2011 - 04:22

Are you wanting to take a bachelors in organizational psychology online or perhaps an industrial organizational psychology masters? This page will help you to find out more about this area of study and to locate suitable programs.

What does it mean to study organizational psychology (or industrial organizational psychology)? "Psychology" is the study of human behaviour and why people behave in certain ways. So organizational psychology or industrial psychology is the study of human behaviour in an organizational setting.

Acheiving harmony in groups is difficult, and as most working people know, this is particularly true in an organizational setting. The role of an organizational psychologist is to assist in maintaining harmony, good workng relationships and a positive working environment in an organization.

Online organizational psychology degree programs are very popular amongst working students and lead to jobs with good salaries. Many students who are are unable to attend on campus classes take distance learning organizational psychology degrees instead. So this page is for those students. However, if you wish to explore the on-campus organizational psychology programs available, go to the on-campus programs page.

You can study university online organizational psychology degree programs at the bachelor, masters and doctoral levels.

Where can you take organizational psychology online?

There are several schools where you can take organizational or industrial psychology online. Here are a few that are strongly recommended:

Kaplan University Online
- BS in Psychology / Applied Behavioral Analysis

Capella University Online
- MS - Industrial / Organizational Psychology
- MS - Leadership Coaching Psychology
- PhD - Industrial / Organizational Psychology

American InterContinental University Online
- Bachelor's of Business Administration - Organizational Psychology and Development
- MBA - Organizational Psychology and Development

Argosy University Online
- Master of Arts in Industrial / Organizational Psychology

University of Phoenix Online
- Doctor of Philosophy in Industrial / Organizational Psychology

The University of the Rockies Online
- Doctor of Psychology
  - Business Psychology
  - Executive Coaching
  - International Leadership
  - Mediation and Conflict Resolution
  - Non-Profit Management
  - Organizational Consulting
  - Organizational Diversity
  - Organizational Leadership
- Master of Arts in Psychology
  - Business Psychology
  - Executive Coaching
  - International Leadership
  - Mediation and Conflict Resolution
  - Non-Profit Management
  - Organizational Consulting
  - Organizational Diversity
  - Organizational Leadership
- Graduate Certificates
  - Business Psychology
  - Organizational Leadership

What do you study in organizational psychology online programs?

Careers in organizational psychology require you to deal with people in a number of business settings. Thus, you need the following:

Knowledge of how to improve the work place environments and workplace communications;
Ability to understand how groups function;
Knowledge of negotiations strategies, problem solving, and group cohesion.

These skills are generic and so are easily transferred from one job to another should you decide to change in the future. More specifically, the skills taught in industrial psychology courses include:

Business skills
Communication skills
Team building skills
Management skills
Leadership skills
Analytical skills
Motivational skills
Consulting skills
Evaluation of programs skills
Critical thinking skills
Market Research skills

So in organizational behavior programs and organizational psychology online degree you would take courses in: Communication skills, group dynamics, social psychology, organizational management, organizational behavior, research methods, negotiations training, psychological measurement, statistical methods, and training and development.

In an industrial organizational psychology masters degree you learn about how to examine the culture of a given organization and evaluate the effect it has on the business so as to create work environments conducive to better performance. So you would also need to cover the following knowledge and skills in greater depth: Communication, management, team building, motivational, analysis and evaluation, leadership, and critical thinking.

What jobs do graduates of organizational psychology online programs get?

Many organizational psychologists, work in Human Resource (HR) departments. With a bachelor's degree in organizational psychology, you could work as a human resources generalist but in order to advance in your career, a master's degree in organizational psychology is often required.

With a masters degree in industrial organizational psychology or organizational behavior, you can begin a career in human resources or organizational development as a facilitator in corporate communications, team building, or coordinating professional development and training programs. With a masters in organizational psychology online degree you could also work in executive search firms, or as a research consultant, or in universities.

Accredited online degrees in organizational psychology provide many career opportunities in the private and public sectors. And prospects are good. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) predicts an increase in organizational psychology jobs over the next several years, mainly because of concern over worker productivity, retention rates, workplace diversity, and anti-discrimination.

Salaries are high among some of the jobs that organizational psychologists take, but vary widely depending on the job type, geographical location, company size, education level and experience. For example, as an HR Manager with 5-9 years experience, you would earn over US57,000 per annum (PayScale.com). With over 20 years experience you could expect to earn over US70,000 per annum. Some other job titles to look for are: Senior Research Consultant, Human Resources Consulting Assistant and Employee Relations Manager.