Career In Psychometrics In India

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Career in Psychometrics in India 

Pursuing Psychometrics in India

Have you ever thought about how a psychological test is constructed? How it can reflect aspects of our behavior? The science behind this is 'Psychometrics'. Let's know more about Psychometrics and how to pursue it in India.

What is Psychometrics?

Psychometrics, simply put, is the study of psychological measurement. It is a science where psychological tests are developed, constructed, used, scored, and reported. If you’ve ever been curious about how a personality test was able to decipher a lot about you than your friends ever could, then psychometrics could well be the answer to your curiosity.

 

How to Pursue Psychometrics in India?

There is neither a defined way to classify a psychometrist nor a streamlined pathway to becoming one in India. The field isn’t just limited to students of psychology and currently consists of individuals from various other disciplines. With the lack of exclusive degrees or diplomas being offered for psychometrics, the only prerequisite right now is competency. One must have worked on honing their skills while having at least a Master’s degree in Psychology.

 

Related Post: Masters in Psychology in India

Along with that, the following are a few suggestions that would be helpful:

 

• Work hard on getting your fundamentals right (probability, central tendency, variability, etc.).
• More importantly, learn the philosophy of statistics.
• Read books instead of skimming over quick fix YouTube videos.
• Some suggested readings:
  • Statistical Reasoning in Psychology and Education by Edward W. Minium.
  • Psychological Testing by Anne Anastasi.
  • Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences by Jacob Cohen.
• Keep up with all the recent works and developments in the field (tip: follow psychometrics groups on LinkedIn )
• Bonus #1: Learn to code. The future of psychometrics lies in machine learning and AI. 
• Bonus #2: Refrain from psychological jargon. Learn corporate lingo instead (e.g., mental health/wellness). Internships would help you with that.

 

Related Post: Internships in Psychology 

 

Scope of Psychometrics in India

Other than counseling and clinical practice, if there’s any other secure profession that will always have market demand, then that’s psychometry. Be it a two-year-old toddler or a ninety-year-old elderly; there’ll always be a need to assess and quantify behavior for clinical, industrial, behavioral, or educational use. 

 

With the current market saturated with outdated and predominantly western practices, the demand for new, updated, and indigenized tools is sky-high.

 

Work Settings

Psychometricians in India typically work in corporate sectors under HR consultancies or recruitment agencies. Some are also recruited by government organizations like NCERT, National Assessment Agency, AICTE.

 

Institutions Providing a Course for Psychometrics

Though UGC has a provision and a curriculum for psychometrics specialization, there are no specialized courses as of now. There, however, are organizations like NEA life that run workshops and courses on psychometrics.

 

Until there isn’t a regulating body or a certification process set up in India, much of what’s to be done must be by oneself. However, if you’re willing to go the extra mile, opportunities await you!