Prospective Graduate Students

Application Information

Thank you for your interest in our Ph.D. concentration in Industrial-Organizational (I-O) Psychology. Our concentration is a rigorous training experience intended to provide students with sound research skills and expertise in quantitative methods. We prepare students for university faculty positions as well as research-oriented positions in government and industry.

Over the years we have talked to many students with varying backgrounds as they have contemplated graduate education. As a result, we are well aware of how difficult it can be to obtain all of the information you need about graduate concentration in I-O psychology. We believe that this letter, along with other departmental materials, will answer many of your questions. If you have general questions about the application process or about careers in the field of psychology, we encourage you to read the resources noted in the P.S. below. You can also obtain more information regarding our graduate program by visiting the USF psychology department home page.

If you have specific questions about our I-O concentration after reading this material, please feel free to contact the chair of I-O admissions by e-mail. Unfortunately due to the high volume of applications we receive we cannot set up individual meetings with interested students. In the meantime, we wish you good luck in making your decision and hope that you will seriously consider applying to our program.

Those of you who are inquiring for the first time about graduate programs in I-O psychology may find some of this material discouraging. This is not our intention. We simply want to aid you in making an informed decision. Please keep that in mind as you read the information below.

  1. The competition for acceptance into our I-O concentration is intense. In the past two years over 200 students applied for a class of 3 entering in 2021 and a class of 5 entering in 2022. Acceptance is based on a number of factors, including GPA, GRE scores, interests, and past experiences. In general, if you are interested in attending a Ph.D. program in I-O Psychology, you should consider applying to multiple programs. Following this strategy will increase your chances of acceptance into at least one program.

  2. Our program strongly encourages applications from minority members. Minority members are underrepresented in the field of I-O psychology, thus we hope that students who represent cultural minorities will seriously consider applying.

  3. Other than the minimum criteria set by the university for all graduate programs, we do not have formal cutoffs for GRE scores and GPA, nor do we have minimum experience requirements. Nevertheless, there are some guidelines you can use to evaluate your chances for admission. Here are the scores of the 2021-2022 entering classes to use as a guideline: UG UL GPA 3.80, GRE V 84th percentile, GRE Q 71st percentile. Please realize, however, that students admitted into our program have lower (and higher) scores. Furthermore, these are not the sole criteria for admission.

  4. You will need three letters of recommendation. Optimally, these letters will be from professors with whom you have worked and who can speak to your abilities and accomplishments. For example, professors with whom you have worked as a research assistant would be good references.

  5. Most of our students have an undergraduate degree in Psychology, but this is not required. It is highly desirable for a student to have some background in Psychology and in Research Methods (e.g., Introductory Psychology, Experimental Design, Statistics, etc.).

  6. The Ph.D. program can be completed in four years of full time academic work, although many of our students require five to six years. All students are involved in conducting research projects under the supervision of faculty members throughout this period. These projects include two independent research projects: a thesis and a doctoral dissertation.

  7. You should not enter the program with the intention of obtaining only a M.A. degree. If you cannot commit to the Ph.D. program, you should investigate the large number of other schools that offer a terminal masters program in I-O Psychology.

  8. Many incoming students already have a Master’s degree. Students entering with a Master’s degree can waive previously taken graduate courses that are judged to be equivalent to requirements in our Ph.D. program, and can potentially transfer up to 15 credits toward the Ph.D. However, all of the course requirements from our Masters Along the Way must be met either by waiving the requirement based on courses already taken in the previous Master’s degree or by taking the courses en route to the Ph.D. Decisions about course waivers and credit transfers can only be made after review once an applicant has been accepted into the program. Each individual case must be evaluated by the concentration after admission. Likewise, it is sometimes possible to count a completed Master’s thesis if it is judged equivalent in quality to theses conducted by students in our major. After acceptance into the major, a faculty committee will review your thesis to determine whether it can meet our requirements.

Once again, we welcome your interest in our I-O Psychology concentration and sincerely hope that this letter along with other departmental materials will enable you to make an informed decision about applying. If you have additional questions after reading all these materials, we will gladly answer them. In the meantime, good luck in your pursuit of graduate education!

Sincerely,
Steve W. J. Kozlowski, Ph.D.
World Class Scholar and Professor
Chair, I-O Admissions

P.S. There are a number of excellent books that can help with the application process. Two books that our students have recommended are: Getting in: A step-by-step plan for gaining admission to graduate school in psychology and Graduate study in psychology. Both of these books can be ordered from the American Psychological Association: 1-800-374-2721. The Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology also has information listing graduate programs in I-O psychology. It can be accessed online. We hope these references help you become more educated about the application process.