What Employers Want From Psychology Graduates

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What Employers Want From Psychology Graduates

• R. Eric Landrum
• Department of Psychology
• Boise State University
• MPA Symposium College-to-career transition
  issues Strategies, skills, and shock
• Midwestern Psychological Association
• Chicago, IL
• April 29, 2004

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Psychology Degrees Conferred in the United
States, 2000-2001

• Doctoral 4,659
• Men 1,475
• Women 3,184 (68.3)
• Masters 15,196
• Men 3,615
• Women 11,581 (76.2)
• Bachelors 73,534
• Men 16,572
• Women 56,962 (77.4)

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What Can You Get Paid with Your Bachelors in
Psychology?

• There are a variety of estimates available.
  These are STARTING SALARIES
• NACE Fall 2000 28,811
• NACE Summer 2001 30,388
• NACE Fall 2001 29,952

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Prior WorkSkills Desired

• Eison (1988) enthusiasm, motivation, grades,
  communication and interpretation skills,
  students non-college jobs, types of
  extracurricular activities, and self-presentation

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Prior WorkSkills Desired

• Appleby (2000) social skills, personal skills,
  communication skills ranked highest by employers

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Desired Bachelors Level Abilities

• Work effectively with others
• Ability to acquire and use information
• Use technology to solve problems
• Communication skills
• Computational skills/numeracy
• Problem solving skills
• Flexibility
• Proficiency in field of study

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Methodology

• Asked employers of psychology graduates (that
  employ 75 employees total) to rate 88 potential
  skills and abilities
• Employers in Ohio, Illinois, and Idaho were
  mailed a survey 26.9 response rate

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Methodology

• Each item was rated on a 4-point importance scale
  from 0 not at all important to 3 extremely
  important

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What Employers Want Top 20 Qualities, Skills,
and Abilities

• Listening skills
• Ability to work with others as part of a work
  team
• Getting along with others
• Desire and ability to learn
• Willingness to learn new, important skills
• Focus on customers/clients
• Interpersonal relationship skills
• Adaptability to changing situations
• Ability to suggest solutions to problem

• Problem solving skills
• Ethical decision making
• Critical thinking
• Ability to see the big picture
• Flexibility/shifting gears
• Being able to identify problems
• Working smarter to improve productivity
• Timely decision making
• Time management
• Problem-definition skills
• Personality

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Conclusions

• What emerges as most important?
• Interpersonal skills (listening, relationship
  skills)
• Teamwork skills (work with others, getting along
  with others)
• Work ethic (desire and ability to learn,
  willingness to learn new skills)

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Conclusions

• Adaptability seems key (see also the covert
  curriculum)
• Important to remember the goal of a liberal arts
  education is more than job training, but
  preparation for life-long learning and good
  citizenship

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Conclusions

• Faculty members may choose to design
  instructional experiences that maximize the
  development of the skills and abilities valued by
  employers