Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 19-3032

Industrial-Organizational Psychologists

The published band from $79,010 to $247,220 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of Political Scientists.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Industrial-Organizational Psychologists: Political Scientists ($142K) , Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers ($102K) , Astronomers ($129K) , Geographers ($102K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Industrial-Organizational Psychologists publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 19-3032 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Provide advice on best practices and implementation for selection
  2. 2. Develop and implement employee selection or placement programs
  3. 3. Analyze data, using statistical methods and applications, to evaluate the outcomes and effectiveness of workplace programs
  4. 4. Develop interview techniques, rating scales, and psychological tests used to assess skills, abilities, and interests for the purpose of e…
  5. 5. Observe and interview workers to obtain information about the physical, mental, and educational requirements of jobs, as well as informat…
  6. 6. Facilitate organizational development and change
  7. 7. Analyze job requirements and content to establish criteria for classification, selection, training, and other related personnel functions
  8. 8. Advise management concerning personnel, managerial, and marketing policies and practices and their potential effects on organizational ef…
  9. 9. Conduct presentations on research findings for clients or at research meetings
  10. 10. Coach senior executives and managers on leadership and performance
  11. 11. Conduct individual assessments, including interpreting measures and providing feedback for selection, placement, or promotion
  12. 12. Train clients to administer human resources functions, including testing, selection, and performance management

O*NET skills and knowledge for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 19-3032 - entity-keyed; sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Reading Comprehension 4.4
  2. 2. Active Listening 4.4
  3. 3. Writing 4.3
  4. 4. Speaking 4.1
  5. 5. Critical Thinking 4.1
  6. 6. Judgment and Decision Making 4.1
  7. 7. Complex Problem Solving 4.0
  8. 8. Systems Evaluation 4.0

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Personnel and Human Resources 4.9
  2. 2. Psychology 4.8
  3. 3. Education and Training 4.5
  4. 4. Administration and Management 4.0
  5. 5. Mathematics 4.0
  6. 6. English Language 3.8
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$79,010 to $247,220
median $193,950 · ~3.1× spread
$194K
National median
↑ +6%
Growth 2024-2034
400
Annual openings
790
Estimated US jobs
Political Scientists
Highest-pay peer · $142K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Master's degree

Top Paying States for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists

1. Texas $139,520
2. Oregon $174,980

Other Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations titles

  1. 1. Astronomers $128,820
  2. 2. Geographers $102,040
  3. 3. Political Scientists $142,080
  4. 4. Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers $101,920
  5. 5. Sociologists $106,030
  6. 6. Physical Scientists, All Other $122,570

The OEWS band for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists runs from $79,010 (10th) to $247,220 (90th), about 3.1× wide, with median $193,950. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect +6% change between 2024 and 2034 (faster than average vs baseline 3.1%). About 400 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Master's degree as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Texas at $139,520. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Political Scientists at $142,080. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Where Industrial-Organizational Psychologists sits in Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations

Among 48 detailed Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations with a published OEWS median, Industrial-Organizational Psychologists is pay-rank #1, the upper third of that major group. The order is ROW_NUMBER on national median (title as tiebreak), not a worker-level percentile.

Other upper-third titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024–2034.

Dive into Industrial-Organizational Psychologists in more depth or explore nearby career data.

Full Salary Details

State, metro, and percentile breakdown

Jobs in Texas

Top-paying state for this role

Jobs in Oregon

Second-highest state pay

Political Scientists

Highest-pay peer · $142K

Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers

Lower-pay peer · $102K

Compare Side-by-Side

Head-to-head with another role
Compare Industrial-Organizational Psychologists with another occupation →

Pay-band next reads

Entry-Level vs Experienced Pay

What percentile bands reveal

Using Salary Data for Negotiation

Leverage BLS percentiles

Frequently Asked Questions

Which Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations titles sit near Industrial-Organizational Psychologists at the top of the pay table? ▼
Industrial-Organizational Psychologists is pay-rank #1 of 48 detailed Life, Physical, and Social Science Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Physicists ($172K), Political Scientists ($142K), Astronomers ($129K), Biochemists and Biophysicists ($127K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do industrial-organizational psychologists do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists. Leading ones include: Provide advice on best practices and implementation for selection; Develop and implement employee selection or placement programs; Analyze data, using statistical methods and applications, to evaluate the outcomes and effectiveness of workplace programs; Develop interview techniques, rating scales, and psychological tests used to assess skills, abilities, and interests for the purpose of e…. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for industrial-organizational psychologists? ▼
For SOC 19-3032, O*NET importance scores lead with Reading Comprehension (4.4), Active Listening (4.4), Writing (4.3), Speaking (4.1). Knowledge areas emphasize Personnel and Human Resources, Psychology, Education and Training. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How wide is the published pay band for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists? ▼
OEWS places the 10th percentile at $79,010 and the 90th at $247,220 for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists (3.1× spread). The national median is $193,950. OEWS does not isolate experience, employer, or geography as the cause of that spread.
What employment change does BLS publish for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists is +6%. Projected annual openings: about 400. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: faster than average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Industrial-Organizational Psychologists? ▼
BLS assigns Master's degree as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Is state-level OEWS pay published for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists? ▼
Texas ($139,520), Oregon ($174,980) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024–2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Industrial-Organizational Psychologists card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 19-3032. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Industrial-Organizational Psychologists. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics