I/O Program Requirements

Masters Program

Upon entry to the Masters Program, students will form a program advisory committee consisting of their advisor and two additional faculty members, typically from the I/O program. Students should meet with this committee at least twice each year, once in late September or early October and once in late March or early April. The purpose of these meetings is to review the student’s plans and progress toward the degree requirements. Students are welcome to consult with their committee members at any time to seek advice. The composition of the initial program advisory committee might change at the time the student is prepared to defend a thesis proposal. At this time, the thesis advisory committee will serve the same functions described above.

Students typically take two years to complete the MSc. in I/O Psychology at Western. There are two components to achieving a Masters:

MSc Course Requirements

Year I
Psychology 9551 and Psychology 9552
2 substantive courses in I/O psychology

Year II
2 substantive courses in I/O psychology*

* Students who progress from the MSc to the PhD program at Western can count their MSc Year II course credits to the PhD, thereby eliminating the requirement for two additional I/O courses in PhD II.

M.Sc. Thesis Proposal and Defense

Students work on the development of the MSc. thesis research project during the first year in the program and conduct the research during their second year. Students typically select two members of the faculty in addition to their chief advisor to serve as an advisory committee. The committee will read the proposal and provide feedback and guidance.

Students defend their MSc. thesis in the second half of Year II in the program. The examining committee will consist of two members from the Department of Psychology (excluding the chief advisor), typically the members of the advisory committee, and one member from outside the Department.

PhD Program

Upon entry into the PhD Program, students will form a program advisory committee consisting of their advisor and two additional faculty members, typically from the I/O program. Students should meet with this committee at least twice each year, once in late September or early October and once in late March or early April. The purpose of these meetings is to review the student’s plans and progress toward the degree requirements. Students are welcome to consult with their committee members at any time to seek advice. The composition of the initial advisory committee might change at the time the student is prepared to defend a dissertation proposal. At this time, the thesis advisory committee will serve the same functions described above.

Typically, it takes students four years to complete the Ph.D. There are three components to achieving a Ph.D.:

PhD Course Requirements

Year I
2 core courses in I/O psychology

Year II – IV
2 core courses in I/O psychology*
1 Advanced Topics course*

* Students who progress from the MSc to the PhD program at Western can count their MSc Year II course credits to the PhD, thereby eliminating the requirement for two additional I/O courses in PhD II. They may also count any Advanced Topics courses taken during MSc Year 2 as filling the PhD Advance Topics requirement.

Students must receive credit for a minimum of five half courses. These should include any remaining core courses in I/O Psychology and at least one Advanced Topics course.  However, students are strongly encouraged to enroll in more than one Advanced Topics course in I/O Psychology as well as advanced courses in Research Methodology and Statistics.

**Note. The course requirements listed here are for students entering the PhD program following completion of the MSc program at UWO. The course requirements for students entering the PhD program from another program or institution will be determined on a case by case basis to ensure compliance with requirements of the Department of Psychology (https://psychology.uwo.ca/graduate/index.html) and the I/O graduate program.

Comprehensive Examinations

The purpose of the Ph.D. Comprehensive Examination is to ensure that students in the Ph.D. program in I/O Psychology have been exposed to and have a basic understanding of key issues pertaining to theory, research, and practice in I/O Psychology.

Typically, the comprehensive examination covers four major content areas: Industrial Psychology, Organizational Psychology, Methods and Psychometric Issues, and Ethics. Students will be provided with a reading list at the start of the semester when the comprehensive examination is written. The examination items consist of short answers and essays. The examination will be written by all candidates in two 4-hour sittings. Normally these sittings will occur on two consecutive days. The exam is typically written in April of Year I.

Internships

Although not a program requirement, students will be supported in the pursuit of practical experience of relevance to I/O Psychology through involvement in internships. Internships should be pursued only after completion of the comprehensive examination, and ideally after successful defense of a dissertation proposal. As graduate students are expected to pursue their studies on a full-time basis (https://grad.uwo.ca/administration/regulations/4.html), applied experiences and/or internships should not normally exceed 10 hours per week. Students should consult with their advisors and advisory committees regarding internship opportunities they wish to pursue. A key consideration in support of internship opportunities is acceptable progress toward degree requirements.

Ph.D. Thesis Proposal and Defense

Students typically work on the development of their Ph.D. thesis research project in their second year in the program. Ideally, they should be prepared to present a formal proposal to their dissertation advisory committee by the end of Year II. The dissertation advisory committee may be different from the program advisory committee formed at entry into the program and may also serve as the program advisory committee for the remainder of the student’s tenure in the program. Acceptance of the proposal by a committee made up of the chief advisor and two additional members is required before the research is conducted. The committee will read the proposal, provide feedback and, when ready, give approval in principle to the project.