Student Projects

The IO Master's program at UMD works to provide students with out-of-class opportunities to help develop and apply IO knowledge, skills, and abilities to a real organizational setting. This is especially important for students who are new to the field of IO or early in their career journey. It helps students to process their learning more robustly, as well as serves as an opportunity for resume building!

Clark Construction: Employee Motivation, Employee Values, and Safety Behaviors
We have partnered with Clark Construction to help them better understand how to improve their employees' wellbeing at work. Our goal with the project is to evaluate what Clark employees value, what motivates them to come to work, and how supervisors can interact with their employees most effectively. The ultimate goal is to improve communication and improve employee quality of life and wellbeing in the workplace. Presently, we have 6 graduate student consultants working on the Clark project: Zach Roman, Noah Kalodner, Fola Augustin-Glave, Courtney Braxton, Ysabella Yumul, and Derek Bussman. As part of their role as consultants, they are: managing the project and stakeholders, developing data collection materials, collecting and analyzing data, and developing recommendations. They will also be developing a new assessment and training materials.

Clark Construction: Employee Motivation, Employee Values, and Safety Behaviors

We have partnered with Clark Construction to help them better understand how to improve their employees' wellbeing at work. Our goal with the project is to evaluate what Clark employees value, what motivates them to come to work, and how supervisors can interact with their employees most effectively. The ultimate goal is to improve communication and improve employee quality of life and wellbeing in the workplace.

Presently, we have 6 graduate student consultants working on the Clark project: Zach Roman, Noah Kalodner, Fola Augustin-Glave, Courtney Braxton, Ysabella Yumul, and Derek Bussman. As part of their role as consultants, they are: managing the project and stakeholders, developing data collection materials, collecting and analyzing data, and developing recommendations. They will also be developing a new assessment and training materials.

Personnel Board of Jefferson County: Selection and Assessments
Our faculty have a one-of-a-kind partnership with two local government organizations in Alabama: the Jefferson County Commission and the Personnel Board of Jefferson County. Each year, IO professionals from these organizations visit us in DC with candidate responses to interviews and/ or work samples...along with an amazing opportunity. During this event, students have the unique opportunity to receive general assessor and job specific training on how to assess structured interview responses, and the chance to actually assess interview responses, leading to hires being made into these organizations at all levels. This is an amazing resume building experience, and we also offer opportunities to network with the IOs in these organizations.

Personnel Board of Jefferson County: Selection and Assessments

Our faculty have a one-of-a-kind partnership with two local government organizations in Alabama: the Jefferson County Commission and the Personnel Board of Jefferson County. Each year, IO professionals from these organizations visit us in DC with candidate responses to interviews and/ or work samples...along with an amazing opportunity.

During this event, students have the unique opportunity to receive general assessor and job specific training on how to assess structured interview responses, and the chance to actually assess interview responses, leading to hires being made into these organizations at all levels. This is an amazing resume building experience, and we also offer opportunities to network with the IOs in these organizations.

PTC-MW Consulting Challenge
The annual Graduate Student Consulting Challenge is hosted by the Personnel Testing Council Metro Washington, a local IO group in the DC/ Maryland/ Virginia area. Each year, the challenge is sponsored by a prominent IO consulting organization. Previous sponsors have been: Aon, PDRI, and FMP Consulting among others. All IO graduate students are eligible to apply, and 30 students are selected each year to participate, and students are placed into teams. When the challenge begins, students are presented with an RFP (request for proposal) that outlines a real organizational challenge. Each team will then have 3 days to develop a proposal that is to be presented to the organization orally (in a presentation) and in a written form (in an executive summary). Representatives from the organization and IO experts will judge presentations and rate executive summaries. This challenge provides a realistic job preview for the role of an external consulting as they "bid" on the consulting project. Presentations are judged on theory, technical merit, and innovation, according to PTCMW. Students also get to expand their network by meeting other IO graduate students, organizational representatives, and other IO experts; they develop consulting skills and communication skills; winners also eligible to win prizes! We have had our students participate and place in the competition the last few years! Previous UMD IO Master's students include: Derek Bussman, Jinah Rhee, Taylor Dotson, Soudeepya Chinni, and Jessaline Tuason.

PTC-MW Consulting Challenge

The annual Graduate Student Consulting Challenge is hosted by the Personnel Testing Council Metro Washington, a local IO group in the DC/ Maryland/ Virginia area. Each year, the challenge is sponsored by a prominent IO consulting organization. Previous sponsors have been: Aon, PDRI, and FMP Consulting among others.

All IO graduate students are eligible to apply, and 30 students are selected each year to participate, and students are placed into teams. When the challenge begins, students are presented with an RFP (request for proposal) that outlines a real organizational challenge. Each team will then have 3 days to develop a proposal that is to be presented to the organization orally (in a presentation) and in a written form (in an executive summary). Representatives from the organization and IO experts will judge presentations and rate executive summaries. This challenge provides a realistic job preview for the role of an external consulting as they "bid" on the consulting project. Presentations are judged on theory, technical merit, and innovation, according to PTCMW. Students also get to expand their network by meeting other IO graduate students, organizational representatives, and other IO experts; they develop consulting skills and communication skills; winners also eligible to win prizes!

We have had our students participate and place in the competition the last few years! Previous UMD IO Master's students include: Derek Bussman, Jinah Rhee, Taylor Dotson, Soudeepya Chinni, and Jessaline Tuason.