PSYCH 490 Senior Seminar in I-O Psychology. This course will require the application of science and practice of psychology to understand careers in the 21st century. Students will read about career-related topics in academic literature, business literature, and popular press, then will apply that information to demonstrate their knowledge and analytical skills.
Overview
PSYCH 490 consists of 15 individual Lessons. The first Lesson acquaints you with the course materials and procedures, and it is not graded. Lessons 7 and 14 include multi-media assignments that will require you to use the Internet to find readings or professionally-developed videos that are related to the course content. Lesson 8 is the mid-course exam and Lesson 15 is the final exam. For the remaining Lessons, you will engage in the following activities, typically in the order listed below:
- Read the Lesson Introduction, including the learning objectives for the Lesson.
- Complete the Reading assignment listed in the course schedule.
- Review the learning objectives to ensure that you have achieved them.
- Complete a Lesson Assignment and submit to your instructor a written report on the activity according to the instructions given. This writing assignment will be graded.
Course Objectives
As a result of this course, students will be able to:
- Describe the changing nature of work and careers in the 21st century
- Consider how individuals’ identities are impacted by their careers
- Analyze and critique psychological assessments of career-related individual differences variables including intelligence, personality, interests, and values
- Explain how organizations’ cultures and values impact employees’ careers
- Evaluate the concept of employee engagement from practitioner and scientific perspectives
- Describe complications and solutions regarding giving and receiving job performance feedback
- Consider the impact of networking and related psychological variables on careers
- Explain how leaders and followers affect each others’ careers
Required Course Materials
Most World Campus courses require that students purchase materials (e.g., textbooks, specific software, etc.). To learn about how to order materials, please see the Course Materials page. You should check LionPATH approximately 3–4 weeks before the course begins for a list of required materials.
Library Resources
Many of the University Libraries resources can be utilized from a distance. Through the Libraries website, you can
- access magazine, journal, and newspaper articles online using library databases;
- borrow materials and have them delivered to your doorstep—or even your desktop;
- get research help via email, chat, or phone using the Ask a Librarian service; and
- much more.
You must have an active Penn State Access Account to take full advantage of the Libraries' resources and service. The Off-Campus Users page has additional information about these free services.
Technical Requirements
| Operating System | Canvas, Penn State's Learning Management System (LMS), supports most recent versions of Microsoft Windows and Apple Mac operating systems. To determine if your operating system is supported, please review Canvas' computer specifications. |
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| Browser | Canvas supports the last two versions of every major browser release. It is highly recommended that you update to the newest version of whatever browser you are using. Note: Cookies must be enabled, and pop-up blockers should be configured to permit new windows from Penn State websites. |
| Additional Canvas Requirements | For a list of software, hardware, and computer settings specifically required by the Canvas LMS, please review Canvas' computer specifications. |
| Additional Software | All Penn State students have access to Microsoft Office 365, including Microsoft Office applications such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. |
| Hardware | Monitor: Monitor capable of at least 1024 x 768 resolution |
| Mobile Device (optional) | The Canvas mobile app is available for versions of iOS and Android. To determine if your device is capable of using the Canvas Mobile App, please review the Canvas Mobile App Requirements. |
Student Education Experience Questionnaire (SEEQ)
During the semester you will receive information for completing the Student Education Experience Questionnaire (SEEQ). Your participation is an opportunity to provide anonymous feedback on your learning experience. Your feedback is important because it allows us to understand your experience in this course and make changes to improve the learning experiences of future students. Please monitor email and course communications for links and availability dates.
If you need technical assistance at any point during the course, please contact the Service Desk.
For registration, advising, disability services, help with materials, exams, general problem solving, visit World Campus Student Services!
Exam Information
It’s likely that the exams for this course are unlike those that you have taken previously. These exams are intended to require you to review the readings from the Lessons covered by the exam, and act like open-book reviews of the main points.
The exams are unproctored and open-book, open notes. But students are expected to do their own work. If a student receives help from any other individual during the test, this will be considered a violation of academic integrity.
Grading
Assignments have two completely separate purposes: (1) to allow students to participate in active learning by applying what they have learned in the course; and (2) to allow grades to be assigned. Your grade in the course will be based on the total number of points earned on 12 writing assignments, 2 multi-media assignments, and two essay exams. The final exam will focus on material from the second half of the course, but because some general principles from the first half of the course continue to apply in the second half, and because understanding ideas in the second half of the course depends on knowledge from the first half, retaining knowledge from both portions of the course is necessary for doing well on the final exam.
The point breakdown for graded assignments is as follows:
- 12 writing assignments at 15 points each = 180 points (~67%)
- 2 multi-media assignments at 10 points each = 20 points (~7%)
- Mid-term essay exam = 35 points (~13%)
- Final essay exam = 35 points (~13%)
- Total points for course = 270
A letter grade will be assigned as follows:
| Points | Percentage | Grade |
|---|---|---|
| 252-270 | 93.3-100% | A |
| 243-251 | 90-93.2% | A- |
| 234-242 | 86.7-89.9% | B+ |
| 225-233 | 83.3-86.6% | B |
| 216-224 | 80-83.2% | B- |
| 207-215 | 76.7-79.9% | C+ |
| 189-206 | 70-76.6% | C |
| 162-188 | 60-69.9% | D |
| 0-161 | 0-59.9% | F |
Late Work
This is a semester-based course with deadlines. Students are expected to complete work by posted deadlines. Please check the course schedule for the times and dates that assignments are due in this course (times are listed in North American Eastern Time). Please contact your instructor to discuss legitimate and unavoidable situations that may cause lateness (such as illness, injury or family emergency). If you know that you are going to miss a deadline, please contact your instructor in advance of that deadline to discuss an extension (or if you are not able to contact the instructor before the deadline, as soon as you are able). Decisions regarding extensions will be made at the discretion of the instructor on a case-by-case basis.
In the absence of a legitimate and unavoidable situation, late work will be accepted at the discretion of the instructor and will be penalized up to 10% of the total assignment points for each day of lateness. Unless there is a legitimate and unavoidable situation that causes prolonged lateness, work more than 1 week late will not be accepted.
Submitting Assignments to Drop Boxes
Be sure to read the instructions for uploading your completed assignment to the drop boxes. These are located in each drop box.
Remember:
- to upload the correct document in the appropriate file format (i.e., your file name should end in .doc or .docx.
- to leave the drop box and return to check that you submitted the correct file successfully. Note that the date and time are listed for each submission.
- it is your responsibility to check that files have uploaded correctly, i.e. that it is the correct file and that it is uploaded to the drop box.
- files that are incomplete, incorrect or don't open will be considered late and follow the policy outlined in the syllabus.
Additional Grading Policies
Please refer to the University Grading Policy for Undergraduate Courses for additional information about University grading policies.
Course Schedule
- Course length: 16 weeks
Week 1
| Lesson 1: Getting Started | |
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| Assignments: |
Please complete the following assignments in the order listed below:
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Week 2
| Lesson 2: Work & Careers in the 21st Century | |
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| Assignments: |
Please complete the following assignments in the order listed below:
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Week 3
| Lesson 3: Identity | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following assignments in the order listed below:
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Week 4
| Lesson 4: Intelligence, Part 1 | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following assignments in the order listed below:
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Week 5
| Lesson 5: Intelligence, Part 2 | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following assignments in the order listed below:
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Week 6
| Lesson 6: Personality | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 7
| Lesson 7: Multiple Intelligences - Multimedia Assignment | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 8
| Lesson 8: Mid-term Exam | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 9
| Lesson 9: Interests | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 10
| Lesson 10: Values | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 11
| Lesson 11: Organizational Culture and P-O Fit | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 12
| Lesson 12: Employee Engagement | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 13
| Lesson 13: Social Networks at Work | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 14
| Fall Break | |
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| Assignments: |
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Week 15
| Lesson 14: Feedback - Multimedia Assignment | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Week 16
| Lesson 15: Final Exam | |
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| Assignments: |
Complete the following tasks in the order listed below.
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Formal instruction will end on the last day of class. Provided that you have an active Penn State Access Account user ID and password, you will continue to be able to access the course materials for one year, starting from the end date of the academic semester in which the course was offered (with the exception of library reserves and other external resources that may have a shorter archival period). After one year, you might be able to access the course based on the policies of the program or department offering the course material, up to a maximum of three years from the end date of the academic semester in which the course was offered. For more information, please review the University Course Archival Policy.
Note: If you are planning to graduate this semester, please communicate your intent to graduate to your instructor. This will alert your instructor to the need to submit your final grade in time to meet the published graduation deadlines. For more information about graduation policies and deadlines, please go to the Graduation Information on the My Penn State Online Student Portal.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity—scholarship free of fraud and deception—is an important educational objective of Penn State. Academic dishonesty can lead to a failing grade or referral to the Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response.
Academic dishonesty includes, but is not limited to
- cheating,
- plagiarism,
- fabrication of information or citations,
- facilitating acts of academic dishonesty by others,
- unauthorized prior possession of examinations,
- submitting the work of another person or work previously used without, informing the instructor and securing written approval, and
- tampering with the academic work of other students.
Students are responsible for maintaining academic integrity. Violations include cheating on exams or quizzes, talking to others during an exam or quiz, getting help from others on exams or quizzes, having notes accessible during exams or quizzes, looking at another student's answers during an exam or quiz, plagiarizing, and dishonesty in any aspect of course participation. Also, you may not share any information from this course (including assignments and papers) with others, nor post such information electronically without the permission of the instructor. Violations of academic integrity including charges of plagiarism) and may result in a grade of F for the course as well as other penalties (see Faculty Senate Policy 49-20).
Heads up – several note-taking/note-sharing companies approach students about “jobs” (including Nittany Notes and those that appear to be connected to PSU). If this is something that you want to do, you MUST talk with your instructor first. Unless you have permission, you risk academic sanctions related to charges of plagiarism and disciplinary sanctions.
How to avoid plagiarism in this course
- Always place copied information within quotation marks, cite the source, and include information about the source in a bibliography.
- Always cite paraphrased information and include information about the source in a bibliography.
- When in doubt, cite and include the source in a bibliography.
Please make sure you submit the correct version of your paper. Whatever you hand in will be considered your final version and will be graded, even if you submit a blank document. Please note, claiming that you submitted the wrong file is NOT an acceptable excuse for work containing plagiarism.
How Academic Integrity Violations Are Handled
In cases where academic integrity is questioned, procedure requires an instructor to notify a student of suspected dishonesty before filing a charge and recommended sanction with the college. Procedures allow a student to accept or contest a charge. If a student chooses to contest a charge, the case will then be managed by the respective college or campus Academic Integrity Committee. If a disciplinary sanction also is recommended, the case will be referred to the Office of Student Accountability and Conflict Response.
All Penn State colleges abide by this Penn State policy, but review procedures may vary by college when academic dishonesty is suspected. Information about Penn State's academic integrity policy and college review procedures is included in the information that students receive upon enrolling in a course. To obtain that information in advance of enrolling in a course, please contact us.
Additionally, World Campus students are expected to act with civility and personal integrity; respect other students' dignity, rights, and property; and help create and maintain an environment in which all can succeed through the fruits of their own efforts. An environment of academic integrity is requisite to respect for oneself and others, as well as a civil community.
For More Information on Academic Integrity at Penn State
Please see the Academic Integrity Chart for specific college contact information or visit one of the following URLs:
- Penn State Senate Policy on Academic Integrity
- Turnitin (a web-based plagiarism detection and prevention system)
Accommodating Disabilities
Additional Policies
The purpose of course communication tools is to provide students with a quick method for contacting faculty, teaching assistants, and other students of the class, in regards to course related questions, comments, and concerns. Please note that, according to University policy AD95/AD96, course communication tools may not be used as a method for emailing unauthorized content including but not limited to: solicitation for businesses, advertisements, selling or distributing personal or class materials, transmitting offensive, obscene, or harassing materials, chain letters, news posts, or other forms of “spam” email. Doing so will be considered a violation of course and/or University policies, and might also violate the student code of conduct and the expectations expressed in the Penn State Principles. Resulting penalties might include the suspension or termination of system access, as well as disciplinary or academic sanctions. When appropriate, information about violators will be passed on to University Police Services. If you have any questions in regards to whether or not a particular email you wish to send would violate University policies, please check with your instructor before sending messages to others through the University system.
For information about additional policies regarding Penn State Access Accounts; credit by examination; course tuition, fees, and refund schedules; and drops and withdrawals, please see the World Campus Student Center website.
Disclaimer: Please note that the specifics of this Course Syllabus are subject to change, and you will be responsible for abiding by any such changes. Your instructor will notify you of any changes.