<div class="edu-card" data-widget-id="13" data-cy="edu-card"> <div class="edu-card-banner" data-cy="edu-card-banner"> Advertisement </div> <div class="edu-card-container" data-cy="edu-card-container"> <div class="edu-card-content" data-cy="edu-card-content"> <div class="edu-card-title" data-cy="edu-card-title"> <h1 class="edu-card-title-heading" data-cy="edu-card-title-heading"> Pepperdine's Online MAP </h1> <p class="edu-card-title-subheading" data-cy="edu-card-title-subheading"> Earn a Psychology Master's Online. No GRE Req'd. </p> </div> <div class="edu-card-content-description" data-cy="edu-card-content-description"> <div class="edu-card-content-description-content"> <p>Earn Your Master's in Psychology online from Pepperdine in as few as 18 months. Bachelor's degree required.</p> </div> <span class="edu-card-content-description-readmore"> <input type="checkbox" id="edu-card-content-description-readmore-input-13" class="edu-card-content-description-readmore-input" /> <label for="edu-card-content-description-readmore-input-13" class="edu-card-content-description-readmore-label"> <span class="edu-card-content-description-readmore-label-arrow"></span> </label> </span> </div> <a class="edu-card-content-button" target="_blank" href="https://onlinegrad.pepperdine.edu/requestinfo/map/">Learn More</a> <span class="edu-card-content-caption"> </span> </div> <div class="edu-card-action" data-cy="edu-card-action"> <picture class="edu-card-picture" data-cy="edu-card-picture"> <img src="https://fortune.com/img-assets/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/PEP-PSY_School_Stacked.png?w=250&amp;h=165" class=""> <span class="edu-card-picture-label"> </span> </picture> <div class="edu-card-action-cta" data-cy="edu-card-action-cta"> <a class="edu-card-action-button" target="_blank" href="https://onlinegrad.pepperdine.edu/requestinfo/map/">Learn More</a> <span class="edu-card-action-caption"> </span> </div> </div> </div></div><script> function checkWidgets() { document.querySelectorAll('.edu-card-content-description-content').forEach((content) => { const readMoreBtn = content.nextElementSibling; if (!readMoreBtn) { return; } if (content && content.clientHeight === content.scrollHeight) { readMoreBtn.style.display = 'none'; } else { delete readMoreBtn.style.removeProperty('display'); } }) } window.removeEventListener('resize', checkWidgets); window.addEventListener('resize', checkWidgets); checkWidgets();</script>

<div class="edu-card" data-widget-id="14" data-cy="edu-card"> <div class="edu-card-banner" data-cy="edu-card-banner"> Advertisement </div> <div class="edu-card-container" data-cy="edu-card-container"> <div class="edu-card-content" data-cy="edu-card-content"> <div class="edu-card-title" data-cy="edu-card-title"> <h1 class="edu-card-title-heading" data-cy="edu-card-title-heading"> MA in Psychology from Pepperdine </h1> <p class="edu-card-title-subheading" data-cy="edu-card-title-subheading"> Earn Your MA in Psychology in as Few as 18 Months </p> </div> <div class="edu-card-content-description" data-cy="edu-card-content-description"> <div class="edu-card-content-description-content"> <p>No GRE Required: Earn Your Master's in Psychology online from Pepperdine. Bachelor's degree required.</p> </div> <span class="edu-card-content-description-readmore"> <input type="checkbox" id="edu-card-content-description-readmore-input-14" class="edu-card-content-description-readmore-input" /> <label for="edu-card-content-description-readmore-input-14" class="edu-card-content-description-readmore-label"> <span class="edu-card-content-description-readmore-label-arrow"></span> </label> </span> </div> <a class="edu-card-content-button" target="_blank" href="https://onlinegrad.pepperdine.edu/requestinfo/map/">Learn More</a> <span class="edu-card-content-caption"> </span> </div> <div class="edu-card-action" data-cy="edu-card-action"> <picture class="edu-card-picture" data-cy="edu-card-picture"> <img src="https://fortune.com/img-assets/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/PEP-PSY_School_Stacked.png?w=250&amp;h=165" class=""> <span class="edu-card-picture-label"> </span> </picture> <div class="edu-card-action-cta" data-cy="edu-card-action-cta"> <a class="edu-card-action-button" target="_blank" href="https://onlinegrad.pepperdine.edu/requestinfo/map/">Learn More</a> <span class="edu-card-action-caption"> </span> </div> </div> </div></div><script> function checkWidgets() { document.querySelectorAll('.edu-card-content-description-content').forEach((content) => { const readMoreBtn = content.nextElementSibling; if (!readMoreBtn) { return; } if (content && content.clientHeight === content.scrollHeight) { readMoreBtn.style.display = 'none'; } else { delete readMoreBtn.style.removeProperty('display'); } }) } window.removeEventListener('resize', checkWidgets); window.addEventListener('resize', checkWidgets); checkWidgets();</script>

ad_Psychology

cat_Graduate

Low Intent

ptype_Explainer

Sydney Lake

<p>After graduating from <a href="https://www.goshen.edu/">Goshen College</a> in 2000 with a bachelor’s degree in business and economics, Clara Swald went on to pursue a career in customer service. While she says she got a great education from Goshen, “I think I chose the wrong program for me,” she tells <em>Fortune. </em></p><div class="paywall-selector"></div><div class="paywall">



<p>Swald worked for nearly two decades in customer service and sales jobs, eventually landing at <a href="https://www.harman.com/">Harman International</a>, a branch of <a href="https://fortune.com/company/samsung-electronics/global500/">Samsung</a>. But when the company started closing plants in Elkhart County, Ind., where Swald was working, she reevaluated her career plans and explored graduate degree programs. </p>



<p>Because Swald studied business and economics as an undergrad, she was looking for something different from an MBA so that she could develop new marketable skills. Then she landed on psychology. </p>



<p>Swald graduated from <a href="https://www.purdueglobal.edu/degree-programs/psychology/master-degree-psychology/">Purdue University’s online master’s in psychology program</a> with a concentration in industrial/organizational (I/O) psychology in 2020 and now works as a human resources generalist with the <a href="https://mcc.org/">Mennonite Central Committee</a>, a relief service organization. <em>Fortune </em>sat down with Swald to find out why she chose to pursue her degree online. </p>



<p><em>The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.</em></p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-a-master-s-in-psychology-led-to-a-role-in-hr">How a master’s in psychology led to a role in HR</h2>



<p><strong><em>Fortune: </em>Why did you decide to pursue your master’s in psychology online as opposed to in-person?</strong></p>



<p>Swald: When I started searching, I found <a href="https://fortune.com/education/business/mba/rankings/indiana-university-bloomington-kelley/">Indiana University</a>. They had a I/O psychology program, but it wasn’t online. I was looking for it to be online was because I’m a mom of two girls; I’m a wife. And I knew that it would be hard, and I would also be working full-time. It would be hard for me to go to a building for my classes.</p>



<p>I don’t know if this is all women, but we tend to do a lot more, a lot of stuff all at once. So I knew that the online way would be better for me. And so that’s how I ended up at <a href="https://fortune.com/education/business/articles/2022/03/01/4-things-to-know-about-purdues-online-mba-program/">Purdue</a>. </p>



<p><strong>What was your work/life/school balance like? How much time did you spend on school?</strong></p>



<p>Two hours every day or more. Sometimes I wouldn’t take a lunch at work. I would be eating while studying just to get ahead—I wanted to be ahead. My goal was to complete it in a year and a half. I ended up completing it in a year and a half, which was a blessing for me because during March 2020, when everything was closing down and COVID was kicking in, I was actually diagnosed with breast cancer.</p>



<p>I learned a lot from that. It allowed me to push myself to graduate ahead of time. After I was done with chemo and done with all my treatments, I was able to say I’ve graduated. Now, how can I use this degree that I’ve earned? </p>



<p><strong>How did you know that you wanted to study psychology?</strong></p>



<p>I knew that I wanted to work in HR. During my life, as an employee, HR was considered one of those groups of people that you are scared of. But after taking my psychology classes, I realized that HR has been there from the beginning. HR is there to help to provide solutions before things get muddled or complicated. I was hoping I could be part of the solution, not the problem. Instead of just assuming HR is there to mess things up or to reprimand you, they’re not the disciplinarian that are there to just give you a lecture.</p>



<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-benefits-of-a-master-s-degree-in-psychology">Benefits of a master’s degree in psychology</h2>



<p><strong>How did the online program help you get to where you are now?</strong></p>



<p>I feel like I have been empowered to speak on a lot of what’s going on in our company and the recruiting. My degree was in I/O psychology with an emphasis in human resources, and right now I’m working with some of my coworkers to create a uniform onboarding process. I know that if I didn’t go to <a href="https://www.purdueglobal.edu/">Purdue Global</a>, I would not have any knowledge or ideas or know where to start. </p>



<p>It also has empowered me in how we do interviews. I can actually speak in interviews and say, ‘Hey, I don’t think this is something that we want to deal with right now,’ or I could say, ‘Hmm, let’s make it uniform.’ </p>



<p>My supervisor asked, ‘Hey, what, what kind of training do you think we need?’ And I was like, ‘I think bias training would be a very strong thing at this time because I think everyone has biases, and we could learn a lot and it would help us with our recruiting.’ So right now we’re planning to have a bias training coming up in May, and I think that’s going to be beneficial to all members in HR. </p>



<p>I know for a fact that if I did not do my degree at Purdue Global with I/O psychology and an emphasis in human resources, I would not be at this job.</p>



<p><strong>What advice do you have for candidates who are looking to pursue their degree online?</strong></p>



<p>The biggest thing is discipline. Every weekend you go and eat dinner with friends, go to movies—that all can wait. And I think this also applies to any other degree.</p>



<p>You have to try to read ahead, stay ahead of the program, look at the syllabus, plan your few months according to that syllabus. Nothing stops in your personal life. For instance, your kids still need you, your husband still needs your support and help. You still have to get your eight hours in every day at work. Discipline is important. </p>



<p><em>See how the schools you’re considering landed in </em>Fortune’<em>s rankings of the best <a target="_blank" href="https://fortune.com/education/business-analytics/masters/rankings/best-online-masters-in-business-analytics/" rel="noreferrer noopener">business analytics programs</a></em>, <em><a target="_blank" href="https://fortune.com/education/data-science/masters/rankings/best-online-masters-in-data-science/" rel="noreferrer noopener">data science programs</a>, and <a target="_blank" href="https://fortune.com/education/business/mba/rankings/best-parttime-mba-programs-in-2022/" rel="noreferrer noopener">part-time</a>, <a target="_blank" href="https://fortune.com/education/business/mba/rankings/best-executive-mba-programs-in-2021/" rel="noreferrer noopener">executive</a>,<a target="_blank" href="https://fortune.com/education/business/mba/rankings/best-mba-programs/" rel="noreferrer noopener"> full-time</a></em>,<em> and <a target="_blank" href="https://fortune.com/education/business/mba/rankings/best-online-mba-programs/" rel="noreferrer noopener">online</a> MBA programs.</em></p>
</div>

Fortune sat down with Clara Swald to find out why she chose to pursue her degree online at Purdue University.

Why I chose to get my master's degree in psychology online

F-Search

Education

Education Articles

Jasmine Suarez

Health and Wellness

Why I chose to get my master’s degree in psychology online

Fortune earns a commission for purchases made from affiliate partners via some links on our site; other links are not affiliate partner links. <a href='/affiliate-disclosure/'>Click here</a> to read the full Fortune advertiser disclosure and how we earn commissions.

We have independently evaluated the products and services below. We may earn affiliate revenue from links in the content.

Fortune Editors

Fortune Education is designed to be your guide to navigating this new, rich and somewhat overwhelming world of education. Our team of experienced editors is committed to scouring the universe of online offerings in order to rank, rate, provide comparisons and recommend the right solutions for you and your career.

Fortune Education

Uncategorized

homepage

articles

Articles Hub

By Region

By State

By Cost

Business

Career Hub

Tech

EDUCATION

EDUCATION ARTICLES

WHY I CHOSE TO GET MY MASTER'S DEGREE IN PSYCHOLOGY ONLINE

Why I chose to get my master's degree in psychology online | Fortune Education

Rich Griset

10 free data analytics courses you can take online

https://fortune.com/education/articles/free-data-analytics-courses/?itm_source=parsely-api

Preston Fore

2024 real estate school review: AceableAgent

https://fortune.com/education/articles/real-estate-school-review-aceableagent/?itm_source=parsely-api

Northwestern, Columbia, and UPenn have the best EMBA programs in the country. Here's why

https://fortune.com/education/articles/best-exec-mba-programs-news/?itm_source=parsely-api

Brit Morse

A law associate making $300,000 a year at Skadden Arps quit over the firm’s deal with Donald Trump

/article/rachel-cohen-making-300k-year-law-associate-skadden-arps-quit-protest-firms-deal-trump/

Get ready to pay more than $2,000 for a new iPhone: Experts say Trump’s 125% tariff on China is a ‘complete disaster for Apple’ akin to ‘Armageddon’

/2025/04/10/apple-iphone-16-price-complete-disaster-china-trump-tariffs/

It’s about to get a lot harder for job seekers as tariffs are set to make the hiring landscape even more daunting

/2025/04/07/trump-tariffs-labor-market-more-challenging-job-seekers-economists-say/

This company does peer performance reviews—And then lets everyone read each other’s evaluations

/2025/03/24/performance-review-process-company-allows-all-workers-read-garner-health-workplace-culture/

2024 health coach certification review: Catalyst Coaching Institute

/education/articles/health-coach-certification-review-catalyst-coaching-institute/

A guide to a nurse’s salary: Broken down by all 50 states and industry type

/education/careers/nurse-salary/

2024 health coach certification review: Institute for Integrative Nutrition

/education/articles/health-coach-certification-review-institute-for-integrative-nutrition/

10 high-paying public health jobs right now

/education/careers/public-health-jobs/

Jason Del Rey

Is eBay actually sexy again as the ecommerce old-timer’s stock surges to an all-time high?

/2025/07/31/ebay-earnings-live-sports-cards-trading-pokemon/

Erik German

Meet the CIA-backed venture fund behind Palantir, Anduril—and a spy tool that might be on your phone

/2025/07/29/in-q-tel-cia-venture-capital-palantir-anduril/

Dana Hull

Kiel Porter

Bloomberg

Tesla engineering VP Moravy says company in ‘big swing moment’

/2025/07/27/tesla-engineering-vp-lars-moravy-big-swing-moment-musk-robotaxi-optimus-semi/

Christiaan Hetzner

Volkswagen seeks audience with Trump, dangling more than $10 billion in U.S. investments in exchange for tariff exemptions

/2025/07/25/volkswagen-trump-tariffs-exemptions/

Whether you’ve just completed your undergraduate degree or you are a professional with years of experience, Fortune is here to guide you on the next step of your educational journey.

Why I chose to get my master’s degree in psychology online

About the Contributors

Top Articles

10 free data analytics courses you can take online

2024 real estate school review: AceableAgent

Northwestern, Columbia, and UPenn have the best EMBA programs in the country. Here's why

MA in Psychology from Pepperdine