A user asked via twitter if I had any advice for how to find a job in IO. While I am not personally qualified to give advice on jobs within the IO space in particular, I can talk a bit about finding jobs in general. I have plenty of experience with that.

Typically, in the US, you will hear the mantra “Nothing happens from November to January.” The thinking here is that we have a long list of holidays that the decision makers most likely take off and nothing except essential keep-the-place-running tasks take place. I can vouch for a slow down this time of the year and a desire to push off otherwise important things to the New Year, but sometimes hiring cannot be pushed off.

I have held two full time, permanent jobs since leaving college with my B.S. in Psychology and both hiring decisions were made between Thanksgiving and Christmas. So it’s not impossible, you just have to be:

1. Exactly the right candidate for the position
2. Show an open willingness to do top-notch work for peanuts
3. Or, the company needs to be really desperate.

In our current economic climate (according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, current unemployment in the US is just over 10%), you cannot bank on a company being ready to hire the first drug-free, decently dressed and awake candidate that walks in. That crosses out desperation since there are likely several qualified candidates that dressed well enough and had enough coffee before heading into the interview.

I can’t help you with B either, but you would be surprised how well your psych skills can map to the “real world.” For example, let’s look at some of the things you learn along the way to your psych degree:

• Scientific Method: As a graduate, you should be able to form a hypothesis, explain why that hypothesis is logical, devise a method for testing that hypothesis, run the tests, then measure and interpret the results. Maybe not end to end. You’re not ready to run a research lab, but you can participate in one. In grad school you would refine and expand that knowledge and get more first-hand experience applying it. You should at this point, however, have the basic understanding of how to form an opinion based on relevant information and have some idea of how to test. This, I would argue, is the single most valuable thing to take away from an undergrad program. (Note: If you are an undergrad now and reading this, seek out the professors that are actively conducting research and see if you can get into one of their labs. That will help reinforce what you learn in Stats and Research Methods)
• Basic Statistics: Do you know your mean from your mode? Great. You know more statistics than the average MBA(strike) non-graduate. Being able to interpret research findings from others, including those “reports” from marketing, is a valuable skill.
• Professional Writing: being able to collect, organize, and express your thoughts in a clear and concise manner is very important when writing emails and letters to both current and potential clients, partners, and bosses. I’m not talking about Tweet concise, more like really good blog post concise.

Look at those 3 skills. When you are writing your resume think about how those skills would benefit you in the job you are trying to obtain. When you write the descriptions for the jobs you have already held, frame your experiences so that it serves to highlight those skills (and any other skills you actually have that will be of value to the current prospect). Yes, this means a lot of individualization, but that’s kind of the point. What makes you a great fit for a position in HR may seem out of place for securing an internship in Marketing. We’re still talking about the same 3 skills, but showing that you know how to apply them within the proper context is almost as important a skill in and of itself. That goes for the cover letter as well – when sending your resume via email, consider the body of the email to be the cover letter.

Once you have the interview, dress appropriately, be as awake and clear-headed as possible. Most importantly, be yourself. Acting a certain way in order to get a particular job not only backfires in the interview, but also sets you up to work in a place where you will be a bad organizational fit.
Lastly, remember that your new degree is a foundation. It will take the bulk of your career to build the rest of the house.
Should you decide to go on to grad school and hone those research skills, prepare to become a professor – or want to specialize in a particular area of IO Psych, stay tuned for a post from Prof. Jennifer Bunk on how to prepare.

If you have recent experience in the IO Job market and have specific tips, please add them here. If you have any comments, questions or complaints, use the comment section below or email me at OPIEWeb@Gmail.com.