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1. After the Degree: Research Psychology in
the ‘Real World’
Career Options for Graduates
By Candice Lee Rascher
4th Southern African Students’ Psychology Conference
22-26 June 2015
UNISA, Polokwane Campus, Limpopo

2. BACKGROUND
This topic formed part of a research psychology masters
final research report
The research was conducted by Candice Lee Rascher
from the University of the Witwatersrand
This presentation was created for, and presented at, the
4th Southern African Students’ Psychology Conference
Conference Date: 22-26 June 2015
Conference Location: UNISA, Polokwane Campus,
Limpopo

3. ABSTRACT

4. BACKGROUND – ORIGINAL AIMS
• Track former research psychology masters students and gain an understanding of the
different career paths this degree led them to, and why they chose these paths, as well as
why they chose research psychology as a masters degree
Career Paths:
• Determine respondents’ HPCSA registration status, why they chose to register as a Research
Psychologist or not, and whether or not they think the category is relevant
The HPCSA Registration Category:
• Determine what skills they found useful in their careers as well as what they think could be
added to the degree to make it more relevant for the world of work
Research Skills:
• Assess the extent of demographic transformation that has been achieved in the category, and
provide useful information about career options, job location and earning potential
Information about Research Psychologists:
FOCUS

5. AIMS OF THIS PRESENTATION
1
• Highlight some of the career options available to
research psychology masters graduates
2
• Highlight what type of activities graduates can
expect to be doing in a variety of different settings
3
• Describe the factors that encouraged respondents
to pursue various career paths
4
• Provide some reasons as to why respondents chose
to do a research psychology masters degree

6. PROJECT BACKGROUND
Instrument
• Self-generated online survey used to collect self report data (created using
Survey Monkey)
• Both open ended and forced choice questions were utilised
Sample
• Population was former students who had completed a masters degree
which could lead to registration with the HPCSA as a Research
Psychologist
• WITS, UNISA, UP, UKZN, UWC, NWP
Sampling Strategy
• Non-probability purposive snowballing sampling strategy
• Respondents obtained from various methods i.e. personal contacts,
universities, social networking sites etc

7. RESPONDENTS WITS n=38
UP n=26
UNISA n=25
UKZN n=11
NWU n=11
UWC n=9
RAU n=2
Pre 2000 n=8
Early 2000’s n=13
Late 2000’s n=45
Early 2010’s n=36
Recent
Graduates
n=18
In Progress n=2
Total
Sample
n=122
• The highest percentage of respondents graduated
from the University of the Witwatersrand, the
University of Pretoria, or UNISA.
• The majority had graduated within approximately the
past ten years, in the late 2000’s or early 2010’s.

8. RESPONDENTS
Male n=24
Female n=98
Gauteng n=88
Western Cape n=11
KwaZulu-Natal n=8
Outside SA n=6
Eastern Cape n=3
North West n=3
Multi-Provincial n=2
The Free State n=1
n=6 n=40 n=33 n=10 n=7 n=8 n=18
The majority of respondents…
• Worked in the Gauteng Province
• Were female (common in psychology)
• Were between the ages of 25-34

9. RESPONDENTS
n=13 n=26 n=27 n=21 n=14 n=10 n=11

10. Clinical
Psychology
Counselling
Psychology
Research
Psychology
Industrial
Psychology
Educational
Psychology
HPCSA CATEGORIES

11. HPCSA CATEGORIES
Total Number of HPCSA Registered Psychologists in Various Categories
(As at 11 March 2014)
Clinical Psychology 2721
Community Service Clinical Psychology 141
Counselling Psychology 1627
Educational Psychology 1471
Industrial Psychology 1512
Research Psychology 231
Total 7733

12. RESEARCH PSYCHOLOGY
Smallest Category
• 231 registered Research Psychologists out of 7733 in total
HPCSA Scope of Practice
• Be “involved in planning, developing, and applying psychological research
methods which have broad scientific validity among scientific peers” (HPCSA, n/
d, p. 13)
Discrepancy
• Discrepancy between number of students graduating with research psychology
masters, and registering as Research Psychologists… So what are they doing?
• (According to the 2011 SA census, there are 588 people who have completed a
masters degree who are NOT registered with the HPCSA) (Louw &
Machemedze, 2015)

13. RESEARCH PSYCHOLOGY
Unfortunately….
• Research Psychology is perceived as ‘inferior’ (NOT my view!)
• It’s seen as a ‘back up plan’ for those that did not get into clinical masters degrees
• “Research psychology as a field appears to be currently sidelined in South Africa” (Laher,
2005)
• “Research psychologists were largely employed in relatively secure academic
positions…”(Wassenaar, 1998, p. 136)
• “…the biggest highlight… was the thought provoking debate regarding the perceived
supremacy of clinical psychology over research psychology” (Mdakane, 2013, p. 125)
• ”It also seems that the clinical category dominates the profession, while research
psychology is disturbingly underrepresented” (Fouche & Louw, 2002, p. 19)
The problem may be…
• People don’t really understand the degree
• People are not sure what they can do with the degree

14. RESEARCH PSYCHOLOGY CAREER PATHS

15. POSITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT
n=122
• One Position
n=59
• Two Positions
n=21
• Three Positions
n=9
• Forth Position
n=2
• Fifth Position
213
• Total Number of Positions
Respondents were asked to provide information about…
• The name of the organisation they were employed at
• The number of years they had worked there
• Their job title
• A brief job description
• What factors encourages them to accept the position
• Note: Respondents could
provide information for up
to 8 positions.

16. RESEARCH CATEGORIES
Health/Social
Research
Academia
Marketing
Research
Corporate
Research
Monitoring &
Evaluation
Psychometrics
Some respondents were independent research consultants, some no longer worked in research and
others could not disclose due to confidentiality.

17. RESEARCH CATEGORIES
n=56
n=37
n=36
n=22
n=17
n=15
n=13
n=9
n=8
213

18. HEALTH / SOCIAL RESERCH
Category Description
• Health and Social research interrelated e.g. research on HIV/AIDS
• Community based research focusing on the social development of South Africa
• Research areas include HIV/AIDS; TB; infant circumcision; community development; child
safety programmes; crime, violence and injury reduction; general social science issues
Typical Activities
• Some respondents reported doing their internships with these organisations
• Junior researchers reported engaging in many stages of the research phase: desktop
research; literature reviews; data collection; data cleaning and analysis; writing reports;
general administration duties; conference attendance
• More senior level employees did more overseeing and management of projects; supervision
Job Titles
• Researcher (n=4); Junior Researcher (n=3); Research Intern (n=3); Project Manager (n=2);
Research Assistant (n=2); Research Fellow (n=2); Research Manager (n=2); Research
Psychologist (n=2); Senior Researcher (n=2); Senior Social Scientist (n=2)

19. HEALTH / SOCIAL RESERCH
Aurecon 1
British Red Cross 1
Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 1
Centre for Health Policy 1
Centre for HIV/AIDS Prevention Studies 1
Centre for Rural Health (UKZN) 1
Centre for Social Development in Africa (UJ) 1
Centre for Social Science and Career Development (PsyCAD) (UJ) 1
Centre for the Aids Programme for Research in South Africa (CAPRISA) 4
Clinton Health Access Initiative 1
Department of Social Development 1
Digby Wells Environmental 1
Equispectives Research and Consulting Services 1
Golder Associates 2
HIV Pathogenesis Programme (UKZN) 1
HIV/AIDS Vaccines Ethics Group (UKZN) 2
Human Science Research Council (HSRC) 4
Impact Research International (IRI) 3
Institute for Social and Health Sciences (UNISA) 6
LifeLine Southern Africa 1
loveLife NGO 1
Medical Research Council (MRC) 8
People Opposing Woman Abuse (POWA) 1
Perinatal HIV Research Unit (PHRU) 2
Project Support Group Southern Africa 1
SOS Children's Villages 2
South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG) 1
Student Equity and Talent Management Unit (SETMU) (WITS) 1
The SHM Foundation 1
Triquetrus: Personal Development Programmes 1
University of Natal, Pietermaritzburg 1
Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute 1

20. HEALTH / SOCIAL RESERCH
NRF Intern
• “The internship is for a
duration of a year. I am
employed by the National
Research Foundation
(NRF) and was placed at
the Centre for Health
Policy. As the intern, I assist
in Fieldwork of ongoing
projects, develop literature
reviews as well as have the
freedom of developing my
own research project from
start to finish for the
duration of the internship.
the nature of the research
conducted here is within the
field of health systems and
strengthening.”
Research Psychologist
• “Assessment and
intervention development
toward crime, violence and
injury reduction,
programme evaluation,
community engagement,
conference presentation
and attendance, journal
clubs , data collection and
analysis for a mortality
surveillance system, writing
for publication.”
Research Fellow
• “Being part of the clinical
team assisting with study
coordination. Engaged in a
health systems
strengthening program in
local public health clinics.”

21. ACADEMIA
Category Description
• These respondents work at universities, engaging in activities such as lecturing and supervising
students. The main factor was that they were situated in a university environment.
• Although research does form an important part of the job, the main activities reported related to the
education of students.
Activities
• Duties typically included preparing and conducting lectures, preparing, invigilating and marking tests
and exams, developing courses, answering student queries, supervising students, doing research
and writing publications.
• Some respondents were doing (or had done) an internship at an academic institution, and other
called themselves ‘researchers’ or ‘research assistants’. These respondents typically were involved
in research projects, and some also had the opportunity to lecture and supervise students.
Job Titles
• Lecturer (n=10); Researcher (n=4); Senior Lecturer (n=3); Part-time Lecturer (n=2); Research
Assistant (n=2); Research Psychology Intern (n=2); Postgrad Assistant; Research Supervisor (n=1);
Student Supervisor (n=1)

22. ACADEMIA
Cannot Disclose 4
Centurion Academy 1
College of Graduate Studies 1
Council on Higher Education 1
International Pre-University College 1
Midrand Graduate Institute 2
Monash University 1
North-West University (NWU) 3
Rhodes University 1
University of Fort Hare 1
University of Kwa-Zulu Natal (UKZN) 3
University of Pretoria (UP) 4
University of South Africa (UNISA) 5
University of the Free State (UFS) 1
University of the Western Cape (UWC) 1
University of the Witwatersrand (WITS) 6

23. ACADEMIA
Part Time Lecturer
• “I design course material; set
exams, assignments and
tests; lecture; mark exams,
assignments and tests;
moderate exams,
assignments and tests;
supervise research projects;
co-ordinate the courses I
lecture; develop study guides
and lecture material.”
Lecturer
• “I am a senior lecturer in the
psychology department and
teach a range of subjects on
the BPsych and MPsych
programme. I am responsible
for the co-ordination and
supervision of practical
community projects and am a
research supervisor both at
the Honours as well as
Masters level.”
Research Intern
• “Developed and administered
an experiment; conducted
quantitative and qualitative
analyses; worked on the
development of computer
software for the use within
social psychology; managed
literature databases; worked
on and published multi-author
papers; administered a
student 'think tank';
supervised student research
at an Honours level; lectured
at both undergraduate and
postgraduate level.”

24. MARKETING RESEARCH
Category Description
• Marketing Research, similar to Corporate Research, is situated in a more corporate environment,
however, people in this category work at marketing research suppliers.
• Marketing research is the systematic gathering and interpretation of information about individuals or
organisations to gain marketing insights and support decision making. (Adapted from ICC/
ESOMAR’s International code on Market and Social Research) (ESOMAR, 2015).
Typical Activities
• Many respondents in this category claimed to be involved in the whole research process, involved in
projects from start to finish. This would typically involve dealing with clients, writing proposals,
designing questionnaires/discussion guides, conducting data analysis, compiling presentations and
presenting back to the clients.
• Clients and products mentioned include media owners, automotive companies, telecommunication
companies, FMCG’s (fast moving consumer goods), media and brand health.
Job Titles
• Senior Research Executive (n=6); Research Executive (n=5); Account Manager (n=4); Researcher
(n=2); Key Accounts Manager (n=2); Research Assistant (n=1); Qualitative Research Executive
(n=1); Quantitative Researcher (n=1)

25. MARKETING RESEARCH
AC Nielsen 2
Ask Afrika 3
BMI Market Research 3
Columinate 2
Confidential 2
Consulta Research 2
Genex Holdings (Pty) Ltd 1
Interact RDT 1
Ipsos 6
KLA 1
Lida Groenewald Research Consultants 1
Millward Brown 4
Plus 94 Research 1
Research International 2
SAARF 2
Spinach 1
TGI 1
The Planning Shop International 1
TNS 1

26. MARKETING RESEARCH
Key Accounts Manager
• “Responsible for achieving a sales target in
the service markets sector. Manage
research projects from inception to
completion; both qualitative and quantitative.
This includes managing the research,
statistics and field teams to ensure seamless
and timely execution of research projects. I
provide high level input into proposal writing,
research design, questionnaire/discussion
guide design, analysing data, preparing
reports that provide clients with workable
solutions and actionable insights; and
presenting results to clients. Also
responsible for training and up-skilling the
team of research executives.”
Junior Research Executive
• “Quantitative Research Executive on the
FMCG team at Synovate. I worked primarily
on the SAB Africa Tracker team and gained
exposure to many aspects of the
quantitative research process including
brainstorming of proposals, project brief and
timing, questionnaire design and testing,
quality checks and assurance on all data
outputs, analysis of data (using analysis
tools such as Webreporter and Artifact),
compiling weekly update reports for tracking
studies, as well as report writing.”

27. CORPORATE RESEARCH
Description
• Similar to Marketing Research, but those classified in the Corporate Research category
were typically corporate clients of marketing research agencies, or the respondent was
working in-house in the research departments at a corporate company.
Activities
• Job descriptions in ‘Corporate Research’ included more mention of strategy formulation
and identifying consumer and media trends than in the ‘Marketing Research’ category
• Organisations ranged from banks, to retails stores, to telecommunication companies,
to companies forming part of the media industry..
Job Titles
• Research Manager (n-2); Intern Research Psychologist (n=2); Brand Insight Specialist
(n=1); Client and Market Insights Consultant (n=1); Client Experience Consultant (n=1);
Customer Insights Manager (n=1); Team Leader Research Analyst (n=1)

28. CORPORATE RESEARCH
Brand South Africa 1
Catalyst Research 1
Clientele limited 1
Confidential 1
Cycan 1
Health at Work Wellness Actuaries 1
Independent Newspapers 1
It's confidential (Major Finacial Services Provider) 1
Kimberly Clark 1
M-Net 1
Media Tenor 1
Mondelez /Kraft Foods / Cadbury 1
MPI 1
Pick n Pay 1
RPI 1
SABC 1
South African Breweries (SAB) 1
Teba bank 1
Telkom SA 1
The Growth Laboratory 1
Thinkroom Consulting 1
ZaPOP 1

29. CORPORATE RESEARCH
Client and Market
Insights Consultant
• “I basically
conducted a lot of
desk top
research, and
mined secondary
databases. I also
created and
analysed online
surveys, and
dealt with project
administration for
primary research
that had been
outsourced to
market research
agencies.”
Assistant Manager
• “I head up the
Market
Intelligence unit,
which consists of
3 telephonic
interviewers and
a data analyst.
We are
responsible for
customer and
employee
measurements
as well as
competitor
research.”
Brand Insights
Specialist
• “I essentially
support the brand
marketing teams
with insight
generation and
consultancy as
well using custom
research to assist
in making
decisions with
regards to
marketing and
business
objectives.”
Intern Research
Psychologist
• “I worked in the
Market
Intelligence
Department
where I analysed
data for the 18
SABC radio
stations.”

30. MONITORING & EVALUATION
Category Description
• Although some respondents classified in other categories, namely Health/Social Research and
Academia, did mention Monitoring and Evaluation briefly as a small part of their job description, the
respondents classified in this category worked predominantly in the Monitoring and Evaluation field.
• “Monitoring is the regular observation and recording of activities taking place in a project or programme.
It is a process of routinely gathering information on all aspects of the project and reporting on it, which
enables the collected information to be used in making decisions for improving project performance.
Evaluation is the process of determining the worth or significance of an activity in order to determine its
relevance, efficacy of design and implementation, the efficiency or resource use, and the sustainability
of results. The primary objective of an evaluation is to gain insight and assist in the identification of a
future change” (Regenesys, 2013).
Typical Activities
• Respondents in this category had a variety of job descriptions including monitoring and evaluation, as
well as other tasks such as qualitative and quantitative data analysis, writing evaluation proposals, as
well as conducting fieldwork.
Job Titles
• M&E Researcher (n=1); Advisor: Programme evaluation (n=1); Associate (n=1); Intern/Research
Assistant (n=1); Intern/Evaluator (n=1); PEPFAR Fellow/ Monitoring & Evaluation Officer (n=2); Senior
Associate (n=1)

31. MONITORING & EVALUATION
Centre for Evaluation and Assessment 1
Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconcilliation (CSVR) 1
Childline Gauteng 1
City of Cape Town 1
Confidential 1
Desmond Tutu HIV Foundation 1
Feedback Research and Analytics 1
Foundation for Professional Development 1
Khulisa Management Services 5
M&E Researcher
• “I worked as a monitoring
and evaluation researcher.
This involved analysing
qualitative and quantitative
data as well as contributing
to new and upcoming
projects.”
Intern Research Assistant
• “I write evaluation research
proposals. I conduct
evaluation research from
planning, to fieldwork to
analyses and report writing.
I manage proposal teams.”
Pepfar Fellow (M&E Officer)
• “Monitoring, Evaluation and
Research for the Mobile
Clinics doing HIV testing in
under-resourced
communities.”

32. PSYCHOMETRICS / TESTING
Category Description
• They psychometrics / testing category was created based on the organization name (a
organization specializing in psychometric testing) as well as the job description provided
(included working with psychometric assessments)
Typical Activities
• Activities typically included creation and validation of psychological tests, and research into
the psychometric field.
• Some respondents also did data capturing, test scoring and interpretation, and quantitative
and qualitative research, as well as reporting.
• Quite a few intern psychologists in this field, some indicated they were involved in test
validation,
Job Titles
• Intern Research Psychologist (n=4); Research Psychologist (n=2); Research Psychology
Intern (n=1); Intern Psychometrist (n=1); Psychometrist (n=1); Psychometric Advisor (n=1);
Senior Consultant (Research) (n=1); Psychometrist and Portfolio Manager (n=1)

33. PSYCHOMETRICS / TESTING
Assessment Centre Technologies 1
JvR Psychometrics 2
NIPR (Later absorbed into the HSRC) 1
Paton Personnel 1
Profiles International 1
SHL South Africa 2
South African National Defence Force (SANDF) 5
Stellenbosch University, Stikland Hospital 1
TUT 1
Research Psychologist
• “Research into the
psychometrics field
tool and questionnaire
development validity
studies benchmarking
client specific value-
add solutions project
management.”
Psychometric Advisor
• “I advise clients (other
professionals
registered with the
HPCSA as
psychologists/
psychometrists) on
various assessment
instruments.”
Intern Research
Psychologist
• “My primary role an
intern research
psychologist entails
being involved in the
validation of
psychometric test
materials.”
Research Psychologist
• “Psychometric testing,
patient recruitment,
data capturing,
formulating data basis,
clinical interviews
(specifically with
schizophrenic
patients).”

34. EARNING POTENTIAL
n=26 n=9 n=29 n=9 n=18 n=9

35. FACTORS TO ACCEPT POSITION
n=39
n=39
n=36
n=28
n=27
n=26
n=23
n=18
n=17
n=17
n=12
n=11
n=11
n=9
n=6

36. Health/Social
Research
(26.3% n=56))
Experience/
Exposure
(23.6% (n=13))
Needed a Job/
Money
(23.6% (n=13))
Better
Opportunities
(18.2% (n=10))
Academia
(16.9% (n=36))
Passion
(23.5% (n=8))
Environment/
Colleagues
(23.5% n=8)
Job Flexibility
(20.6% (n=7))
Marketing
Research
(17.4% n=37))
Experience/
Exposure
(30.6% (n=11))
Better
Opportunities
(19.4% n=7))
Needed a Job/
Money
(16.7% (n=6))
Corporate
Research
(10.35 (n=22))
Better
Opportunities
(45.5% (n=10))
Good Salary
(31.8% (n=7))
Career
Progression /
Apply Skills
(18.2% n=4))
Monitoring &
Evaluation
(6.1% n=13))
Good Salary
(33.3% (n=4))
Make a
Difference
(25.0% (n=3))
Type of
Organisation
(25.0% (n=3))
Psychometrics
(7.0% (n=15))
Needed a Job/
Money
(33.3% (N=5))
Type of
Organisation
(26.7% (n=4))
Experience/
Exposure
(20.0% (n=3))
FACTORS TO ACCEPT POSITION

37. WHAT RESPONDENTS APPLIED TO
What Respondents Applied To
Only Research n=86 70.5%
Clinical Psychology n=30 24.6%
Counseling Psychology n=16 13.1%
Educational Psychology n=3 2.5%
Neuropsychology n=2 1.6%

38. WHY RESPONDENTS CHOSE
RESEARCH MASTERS
n=41
n=26
n=17
n=17
n=16
n=12
n=10
n=8
n=7
n=4
n=3
n=3
So it’s NOT just
a ‘back up
plan’!!

39. REFERENCES
ESOMAR. (2015). Market research explained. Retrieved from https://www.esomar.org/knowledge-and-standards/market-
research-explained.php
Fouche, J.B., & Louw, D.A. (2002). A profile of academic, non-academics and graduate students in South African Psychology.
Journal of Psychology in Africa, 12, 19-39.
HPCSA. (n/d). Frequently asked questions. Retrieved from http://www.hpcsa.co.za/downloads/psychology/
updated_frequenty_asked_questions.pdf
Laher, S. (September, 2005). The status of research psychology in South Africa. Paper presented at the The 11th South
Africa Psychology Congress, International Convention Centre, Durban.
Louw, J., & Machemadze, T. (2015). Psychology in the 2011 South African census. South African Journal of Psychology, 45,
223-233.
Mdakane, M. (2013). Conference Report: The 3rd South African Students’ Psychology Conference, Johannesburg, 24-28
June 2013. New Voices in Psychology, 9(1&2), 123-126.
Regenesys. (2013, June 25). Get Ready to Monitor and Evaluate! Retrieved from http://regenesys.co.za/2013/06/get-ready-
to-monitor-and-evaluate/
Wassenaar, D.R. (1998). A history of ethical codes in South African psychology: an insider’s view. South African Journal of
Psychology, 28, 135-145.

40. Thank you! Feel free to contact me if you have any queries.
Email: CANDICERASCHER@GMAIL.COM Cell: 083 237 9903