The need for programs that accommodate diverse types of students and adopt an interdisciplinary approach to the study of organizations has led universities with traditional I-O programs to also offer nontraditional programs. Nontraditional programs tend to attract highly heterogeneous sets of students in terms of age and academic and professional backgrounds or may be tailored for special types of students. Due to the mixed student population and high percentage of working adults, nontraditional programs tend to be more application and applied-research oriented than their traditional program counterparts.
Faculty, students, and administrators of nontraditional programs face a variety of challenges. In this column, we explore and address these challenges based on our experiences in running and teaching in such programs. We hope this column will provide the impetus for open dialogue among I-O psychologist educators regarding how to diversify educational opportunities in I-O psychology
