If you have an interest in designing forms of work that are conducive to the well-being and health of people, which also offer the opportunity for personal development, and if you would like to integrate psychological expertise into the working world, then this master’s degree program is just right for you. Advantageous qualities for this program include an openness to work in an interdisciplinary team and a willingness to take on social responsibility.

Entrance requirements for the Master of Science in Psychology – Occupational and Organizational Psychology are:

• Proof of a bachelor’s degree in psychology from a higher education institution in Germany or an equivalent degree obtained in Germany or abroad in a subject area that does not differ significantly
• Passing a subject-specific scholastic aptitude test

If you have not yet received your bachelor’s degree certificate by the application deadline, but have earned at least 135 credits in your bachelor’s program, you must apply by the set deadline with a transcript (certified copy issued by your university) of all coursework and exams completed to date, including your average grade to date.

Applicants who have not obtained a university entrance qualification at a German-speaking institution or a degree in a German-speaking course must provide proof of sufficient German language skills. These must correspond to the level DSH-2 of the “German Language Proficiency Examination for Admission to Higher Education for Foreign Applicants” and must be proven by the time of enrollment at JGU.

Good to know: The legally binding basis for selection, admission and enrollment is the text of the entrance requirements as specified in Section 2 of the currently valid examination regulations and, where applicable, in the appendix.

The examination regulations for this master’s degree program can be found here.

Course sequence

Specializations offered in Occupational and Organizational Psychology:

• Organizational consulting and development
• Work and health
• Personnel and profession
• Project in occupational and organizational psychology (planning and implementation of thematic research work)
• Master’s thesis with a colloquium

Additional content:

• Advanced statistical methods
• Advanced diagnostics (preparation of expert reports, test theory)
• Clinical psychology (fundamentals of neuroscience, mental disorders over the course of a lifetime)
• Specializations in the fundamentals and practical application (two elective seminars each)
• Internship (at least 6 weeks)
• Minor (lecture and seminar)

You may select one of the following areas as a minor: economics, law (criminology is particularly recommended), psychiatry, child and adolescent psychiatry, sports science, and computer science.

Stays abroad

Would you like to live abroad for a semester or a year? Do you want to learn another language and get to know a new culture? Or gain a different perspective on your particular subject? A stay abroad provides you with the perfect opportunity to achieve this and is possible with every degree program – either self-organized or by taking advantage of one of the popular exchange programs. This is made possible by various cooperation agreements and partnerships with foreign universities.

For more information on this topic, please visit our websites on studying abroad. Visit our student exchange platform for an overview of cooperating universities in your field.

This program of study does not require you to spend time abroad, but you nevertheless have the opportunity to do so.

Internships

As a part of your program of study, you will take part in an internship that lasts at least six weeks and that consists of practical psychological work. It is recommended that you complete this internship during your third semester of studies.

Voluntary internships are another good opportunity to obtain more in-depth insight into a professional field.

An internship allows you to discover whether everyday life in a particular occupation suits your career expectations and interests. You can gain qualifications for a professional field and acquire important professional and personal skills to start a career. An internship helps you both shape your career path, and mold the remainder of your course sequence – in particular by selecting specializations that suit your practical experience.

You can find further information and relevant internships on the Career Service website.

As a graduate of the degree program, you will be optimally prepared to work in the field of occupational and organizational psychology. You will be proficient in methods regarding personnel appointment processes and aptitude diagnostics and will be able to design and carry out psychological risk evaluations. Beyond this, you will become familiar with the development, implementation, and evaluation of personnel development measures and will be able to get involved in organizational change processes and also plan various events for organizational consulting.

With these subject-specific requirements, you will have an array of exciting professional opportunities from which you can select:

• Human resources manager (HR) with various focus areas (selection of personnel, personnel and organizational development, corporate strategy)
• Organizational consultant
• Operational health manager
• Consulting activities
• Research and teaching

Not sure what to do after graduation? Don’t worry!

A university degree generally does not prepare you for a single profession but qualifies you for a wide range of career paths – for example, in research, in a typical profession related to your field of study, or in one of many other academic fields.

This is why career orientation is also part of your studies. Gaining practical experience is key, and you can do so through internships, working student positions, part-time jobs or voluntary work, for example.

JGU’s Career Service will support you throughout the entire process with information, advice, workshops and numerous events – from career orientation and working on your profile and skills to finding your dream job and successfully applying for it.