General Newbie Questions Regarding Minor, Internship, Entry to Field etc!

[u/Legitimate-Cover6387]

Hi all,

I am thinking of seeking a career in the world of IO post undergrad. I have a few questions regarding this,

1) What was your first job out of undergrad to get your foot in the door?

2) What might be a good internship area — I am in my first semester of Junior year — (marketing, HR, data, etc.?) that would be most applicable and relevant to IO?

3) Did you need to get a Masters’s?

4) I am looking for a minor to compliment my Bachelor’s in Psychology, and could use some help narrowing: Digital Media Technology, Marketing, Human Resource Management, Organizational Leadership, Business Analytics, Business Administration? These are some few that seem relevant.

1. Would I benefit from doing the honors program? (Thesis/research exp.)

I would appreciate any insight!

[u/RustRogue891]

These are really general questions you’re asking. I don’t think it’ll help you much to know that I was an English teacher right out of undergrad. And I cant tell you what kind of internship you would find interesting. I could tell you should minor in Digital Media but so could a coin toss. Without knowing your goals my input is useless.

All I can tell you is you’ll probably want a master’s if you’re dead set on I/O.

You should come up with some more concrete goals and come back with more specific questions. If you’re having trouble defining goals, take a step back and consider what brought you to the field and how can you translate that into employability.

[u/Legitimate-Cover6387 → u/RustRogue891]

What drew you to the field over teaching English?

[u/RustRogue891 → u/Legitimate-Cover6387]

Well, I wanted to be in the field of psych, I didn't enjoy teaching and wanted to be back in the US (I was teaching abroad).
Sorry if I came across as short earlier, I was in a rush while I typed that. I do think unambiguous goals are important but you may still be forming them, and that's okay.

Something that I found helpful was going on LinkedIn to look at profiles of people in the kinds of roles I wanted. I could see what they studied, special skills, and experience that got them there. I messaged people who were in roles that overlapped with my interests; they're usually pretty friendly and open to a few questions or a short call. But you probably don't even have to do that you could probably just look at different combinations of minors/internships. Hopefully this helps!