Wright State University

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Industrial-Organizational Psychology Degrees Offered at Wright State University

Wright State University appears in our ranking of the Top 15 Master’s in Human Factors and Ergonomics.

Wright State University offers three human factors and industrial-organizational psychology degrees at the undergraduate and graduate levels. Students explore basic theories of group and human performance as well as how to improve the quality of socio-technical systems. Students identify how attitudes and behaviors can be improved through:

  • feedback systems
  • training programs
  • hiring practices

Current students engage in ongoing projects such as interdisciplinary collaborations with:

  • engineering
  • computer science
  • medicine
  • defense

Students may pursue a Bachelor of Science in Psychology with a concentration in industrial-organizational psychology. They can also choose from either a human factors or industrial-organizational psychology program at the master’s and doctoral levels.

The BS in Psychology with a concentration in industrial-organizational psychology focuses on applying psychology to the workplace. The curriculum pulls from several disciplines of psychology, including:

  • behavioral psychology
  • social psychology
  • cognitive psychology

The concentration introduces students to industrial-organizational psychology. It also allows them to develop the critical reasoning skills required for success in the field. Students complete a total of 120 hours of study, including courses such as:

  • Tests and Measures
  • Engineering Psychology
  • Social Psychology
  • Personality Psychology
  • Conditioning and Learning
  • Cognition and Learning
  • Industrial and Organizational Psychology

Two capstone courses are required for graduation.

Students earn a Master of Science degree in either human factors psychology or industrial psychology before completing their Doctor of Philosophy in either concentration. The master’s program provides a greater understanding of:

  • human cognition and perception
  • the design of effective organizations
  • organizational, group, and individual behavior

Students must complete 37 hours to earn the M.S. degree, including an acceptable research-based thesis that includes:

  • a proposal
  • the thesis itself
  • an oral defense of both

Graduate students can take advantage of research opportunities with organizations such as:

  • the Crew Station Evaluation Facility at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base
  • the Human Effectiveness Directorate of the Air Force Research Laboratory

On-campus learning facilities include:

  • observation rooms
  • audio-visual equipment
  • laboratories
  • Fawcett Hall, which is dedicated solely to psychology research.

The Doctor of Philosophy in Human Factors and Industrial-Organizational Psychology at Wright State focuses on both areas of psychology as well as the relationship between them. Students identify how certain feedback systems, training programs, and hiring practices can improve attitudes and behaviors.

They also learn how to select employees based on the work environment and how to assist companies by designing effective organizational structures. The program requires 91 hours of study, including focus courses in:

  • human factors and industrial-organizational psychology
  • quantitative methods
  • electives

Ph.D. students must also complete a doctoral dissertation and defend the dissertation in an oral examination. Graduates are prepared for careers in:

  • consulting
  • industry and business
  • government
  • teaching
  • research

About Wright State University

Wright State University is a public research university located in Dayton, Ohio. It also operates an additional campus in Celina, Ohio. Founded as a branch campus of Miami University and Ohio State University, Wright State achieved full independent status in 1967. Wright State was named in honor of aviation pioneers Wilbur and Orville Wright, residents of Dayton. It’s comprised of eight colleges and three schools. Today, Wright State offers more than 290 affordable on-campus and online bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees to more than 13,000 students.

Wright State University Accreditation Details

Wright State University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). Although none of its industrial-organizational psychology degree programs is accredited, Wright State’s human factors program is accredited by the Human Factors Ergonomics Society. Accreditation is important because it helps prospective students determine if a particular school meets or exceeds minimum standards of quality set by the accrediting body. Accreditation also assists colleges and universities in terms of accepting transfer credits. In other words, many institutions will not accept transfer credits if they have not been earned at a regionally accredited college or university.

Wright State University Application Requirements

Undergraduates wishing to apply to Wright State University must complete an application for undergraduate admission and submit official ACT and/or SAT scores. An official high school transcript and a $30 application fee are also required.

The application requirements for graduate students depend on the program chosen. However, all incoming graduate students are required to submit an online application and pay a nonrefundable $40 application fee. Students must also hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution and submit one official transcript from each university or college attended.

Specifically, students considering either the Master of Science or Doctor of Philosophy in Human Factors and Industrial/Organizational Psychology program must also include:

  • one official copy of their Graduate Record Examination (GRE) test scores
  • an essay outlining their research interests and professional goals
  • three letters of recommendation

Recommendation letters should come preferably from professional or academic sources that can attest to the students’ capacity for graduate-level study.

Tuition and Financial Aid

Wright State University provides the Wright Guarantee Tuition Program. It guarantees the same annual cost of meal plans, housing rates, and in-state tuition over a four-year academic career for new degree-seeking undergraduate students.

Ohio residents can expect to pay $4,789 per semester, while nonresidents pay $9,498 per semester. Those taking fewer than 11 credits per semester are charged on a per-credit-hour basis, with residents paying $417 per hour and nonresidents paying $851 per hour. After meals, books, housing, and fees, the total cost for two semesters for residents living on-campus and nonresidents is $21,654 and $31,072, respectively.

Commuting undergraduates are not required to pay for housing, meals, and other fees. Graduate students who are residents of Ohio pay $7,149 per semester and non-residents pay $12,143 per semester for course loads of 11 to 18 hours. Those taking one to 10 and a half hours per semester are charged $660 per credit hour if they are residents and $1,125 per credit hour if they are nonresidents.

Wright State offers several types of financial aid to help offset the cost of tuition, including:

  • loans
  • grants
  • scholarships
  • the Federal Work-Study Program

All Wright State University students considering an organizational psychology, human factors psychology, or industrial-organizational psychology program are encouraged to determine financial aid eligibility by completing the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

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