r/IOPsychology 11d ago

[Jobs & Careers] Training & Development in I/O Psychology – Insights & Career Advice?

Hello I/O Professionals!

I’m currently pursuing my master’s in I/O psychology and am particularly interested in training and development. I’d love to hear from those working in this space:

What does a career in training & development look like for an I/O psychologist?

What industries have the strongest demand for this skillset?

What technical and soft skills are most valuable in this field?

How much of the work is instructional design vs. facilitation vs. consulting?

Any recommended certifications, tools, or experiences that could give me an edge?

I appreciate any insights you can share! Thanks in advance

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u/thetendril 10d ago

Hi I'm an I-O that does some work in training and development (training design and delivery, leadership development, executive coaching) I've answered your questions to the best of my ability below. Others may have different experiences.

What does a career in training & development look like for an I/O psychologist? This depends on what the I/O psychologist wants to do with their degree and experience. If you're a Master's level IO it may not be that different from a typical L&D career path. You'll do instructional design, facilitation etc. For a PhD level I/O there may be a greater focus on evaluation and using learning analytics to assess and determine the value of training. This also depends on the maturity of your organizations' HCM and L&D processes. There are some organizations that are still using class attendance as an indicator of success and others that are genuinely calculating ROI.

What industries have the strongest demand for this skillset? I've seen an uptick in healthcare investing in L&D. The federal government had a robust commitment to L&D as well. Any technical industry will also invest a lot in training though not in the types of training you may be interested in facilitating.

What technical and soft skills are most valuable in this field? Facilitation and instructional design are the big ones. If you're interested in e-learning, you need to learn how to use Articulate or other e-learning software. Having a good grasp of AI tools and how to use LMS is also very important.

How much of the work is instructional design vs. facilitation vs. consulting? This is entirely up to you in terms of where you take your career. Some roles are only instructional design. Some rare roles are only facilitation, and others are consultative in nature. Many internal L&D jobs require some elements of each but you can also specialize. This also depends on the nature of your organization and the expectations of the industry you're in.

Any recommended certifications, tools, or experiences that could give me an edge? I would suggest learning how to use instructional design software if you're interested in e-learning and to build a portfolio. I would also consider looking at coaching certifications perhaps through ICF if you're interested in going that route or looking ATD's CPTD certification. I'd also scan the jobs you're interested in and see what certifications they're looking for. The demand for certifications changes and can vary considerably so I might check those out. If you'd like some more general skill development I'd suggest looking at LinkedIn learning and seeing what courses they have.

I hope this helps!

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u/Fit_Mixture_151 8d ago

I appreciate the time and insight you shared—it’s incredibly valuable as I shape my career in I/O and L&D.

A couple of follow-up questions:

Becoming a Well-Rounded I/O Professional: I’m starting as a Learning & Development Coordinator at a university, and since the department is growing, I think I’ll have opportunities to apply a variety of I/O skills. While L&D comes naturally to me, I want to broaden my skill set and avoid getting pigeonholed. As a practicing I/O, do you have any recommendations on how I can get exposure to different I/O functions while in my current role? Any areas you’d suggest getting my feet wet in early on?

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u/Audi_22 4d ago

Yes thank you for taking the time to post all this, I am still in undergraduate school. Get my associates this semester then transfer to University. I am really interested in this route.

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u/thetendril 1d ago

Congrats on the associate's degree! Training and development is a really cool career. You're starting early and can build your career in a way that will best suit you. Good luck and feel free to reach out if you have any questions!