Sam Merzel, I-O Graduate Program 2016 alum, shares his professional journey from Touro to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA), why the pandemic expanded opportunities in the field and how students interested in I-O psychology can prepare for an exciting career.    Can you describe the field of Organizational Psychology or Industrial Organizational Psychology? Industrial Organizational Psychology, or I-O Psych, is the discipline that looks to solve various aspects of the workforce and workplace, such as candidate selection, motivation of employees, and training and development through the lens of data, measurable outcomes and the scientific method. It ultimately grapples with researching and implementing ways to enhance both employers and employees’ work life.  How did you become interested in I-O? Why did you choose it as your career path? I was a psychology major in college. I was always fascinated with the human mind and understanding what made people “tick”. While I knew I was interested in Psychology, I had an understanding that clinical psychology just wasn’t for me, and that it didn’t line up with my skill sets or passions. I was exposed to I-O Psych early in my Introduction to Psychology course in college and I was immediately enamored.  I think what drew me most to the field is the fusion of interpersonal interactions and exposure with real data driven research. It allows me to work in environments where I get to talk to multitudes of different people within different areas of my organization, everyone from custodial workers to Chief Officers and I’m not locked in front of a computer screen all day while also allowing me to be directly involved in some of the more analytical work that I enjoy doing as well. How did you enter the field and how did you land your position at the MTA?  I was actually still in graduate school when I began working at the MTA. Touro’s flexible schedule and night classes, coupled with the fact that my office was only a 15-minutes subway ride from campus, allowed me to work full-time while maintaining my regular school schedule. At the time, Touro sent out a job posting for an entry-level position in  my current unit. I applied, took a few job-related assessments and interviewed. The rest is history.   You’ve moved up from an Analyst to Manager at the MTA. What does it take to get promoted in this field?  Every company is different, and every job is different. For me, I like to believe it was a number of things including; genuine interest in the work; producing quality work and maintaining good relationships with the people I work with.  What is a day in your life like as a Manager in the Assessment and Selection Unit at the MTA? One of the things that I love about my job is that no single day is the same. Some days I will be reviewing the work of my staff, other days I may be focused on drafting a few important emails and on another, I focus my attention on developing new training materials or focusing on improving efficiencies in a process.  What do you find most rewarding about I-O?  The thing that I find most rewarding and one of my primary motivations for entering the field, is having the ability to reshape the workplace […]

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