Thesis Requirement
The Thesis is a professional research paper and an example of the student's research skills and ability to write an organized report. The student will defend the completed thesis at an examination conducted by the thesis committee.
Topics for a thesis come from work conducted during the internship, research conducted in field settings, and from lab-based research.
Click here for the ECU Thesis Scoring Rubric that must be used for each defense.
Comprehensive Exams
Specialty comprehensive exams in I/O Psychology are administered in April of the student's second year. The exam consists of essay questions related to the following topic domains:
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Organizational Behavior (PSYC 6343)
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Special Topics in I/O Psychology (PSYC 6521)
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Ethics and Professional Practice (PSYC 6465)
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Issues in Personnel Selection (PSYC 6420)
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Methods in Human Measurement (PSYC 6327)
The exam items are written by faculty who teach the graduate classes listed above. Students may approach any of the professors involved to seek study guides/reading lists.
The format of the exam allows the student to answer three out of five total items. One of the five items is required (i.e., it must be answered by all students), and the student is asked to choose and answer two of the four remaining items. Three hours are allotted for the entire exam.
Grading
On each of the three questions, if the student receives either an A or a B from the first reader (grader), then that is the student's final grade on the examination. If the student receives either a C or an F from the first reader, the examination automatically goes on to a second reader. If the second reader returns the same letter grade (any pluses or minuses will be ignored), then that is the student's final grade. If the first and second readers differ, then the examination goes to a third reader, in which case the final grade is simply the median of the three grades given.
Students who receive on three exams:
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All A's, pass with honors.
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No final grade lower than a B, pass unconditionally.
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One C and no F's must retake the examination on which the C was received.
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Two final grades lower than a B must retake all three examinations.
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One final grade of F must retake the entire examination.
A student is allowed to retake the exam one additional time, no sooner than the subsequent semester (excluding summer semesters). If unsuccessful on the second attempt, the student is terminated from the program.
