Chartered occupational psychologist and lecturer — Linda Engles

Linda completed her MSc Occupational Psychology at the University of Leicester and stage two qualification in occupational psychology with the British Psychological Society. She is now a lecturer at the University of Aberdeen

How did you get your job?

I had been approached by the university and asked to design an online course in occupational psychology during COVID. Having ran the course for two years, I was asked if I was interested in being a member of staff. I applied, got the job and here I am.

What's a typical working day like?

Some days I am involved in teaching. I teach MSc in Psychological Studies and the MSc in Business Consulting with Psychology. My approach is that students will watch a pre-recorded lecture on a particular subject, and then in class I use a workshop approach to encourage students to think about the practical application of research and models.

Outside of the lecture hall, I spend time supporting my students, engaging with other stakeholders, and reviewing research. I also supervise a PhD project on menopause in the workplace.

I spend a lot of time arranging events and sharing information.  As part of my role, I am also on the university equality, diversity and inclusion committee. This involves attending meetings to help shape our policies. This means that I am often invited to deliver talks on menopause by external organisations, such as the city council. I am also the chair of the university menopause network, which is open to all staff and students.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

I love teaching and engaging with students - helping them to understand the practical application of psychology in the workplace. I get such joy from having great discussions in class and spreading the word of occupational psychology at a career level.

I also love having the opportunity to shape not only research, but research which has impact. My work as an occupational psychologist has always been about developing evidence-based interventions and relying on others to produce the evidence, the research. Now being able to shape the research, which could ultimately inform such interventions, is such a privilege.

What are the challenges?

I am involved in more than just my day job, so this can leave me feeling a bit stretched at times. However, these are areas that I am passionate about and can potentially make a difference in people's lives - so I don't complain too much.

How is your degree relevant?

My degrees are very relevant as I teach the subjects that I studied. Importantly, the knowledge gained has informed my professional practice and how I have delivered projects internally at the university and to external clients.

I use the skills I gained on a daily basis, such as:

• conducting analysis
• critical thinking
• communicating professionally with clients via reports or presentations.

Even as a personal tutor, I find myself drawing on my psychological knowledge to help and support students.

How has your role developed and what are your career ambitions?

Being involved in research is the main change. Also, as chair of the menopause network, I am often invited to be part of working groups which analyse:

• people and culture
• the staff survey
• procurement of the new employee assistance programme.

I want to continue developing my research, as I am so passionate about menopause in the workplace and wanting to make women's lives at work better.

I would be keen to progress to senior lecturer. I also want to continue being involved in external projects, as these are important to me in terms of using my applied knowledge and skills to inform my teaching, giving students insight into how psychological practices and models can be used to resolve workplace challenges.

What advice can you give to others wanting to get into this job?

• Speak to people who are doing the job you want to do. Find out more about it, what it involves, and what opportunities there are for training and future development.
• Know your strengths. It is so important to know what your strengths are and your weaknesses too. Anticipate and prepare for the things that might trip you up along the way.
• Actively search for opportunities that give you a chance to develop your knowledge, skills, and build your network.

Find out more

• Discover how to become an occupational psychologist.
• Check out our advice on getting an academic job.
• Explore what you can do with a psychology degree.