F.A.Q.

This will depend, in part, on what type of career you desire. If you want to teach, conduct research, and serve as a consultant to academic grants, then colleges and universities would be the natural employer. Nearly every college or university that grants graduate degrees would have the need for one or more individuals trained in research, measurement, and evaluation. If you are interested in a career that focuses on designing and implementing large-scale evaluations of programs (such educational programs, or health-related programs), then a public or private research agency, or large-scale testing agencies, such as ETS, ACT, and The College Board, would be examples of potential employers. Finally, if you are interested in measurement issues related to large-scale testing, then public testing agencies (i.e., state testing agencies) and private testing agencies (e.g., ETS, ACT, the American Board of Medical Examiners) would be examples of potential employers.

Simply stated, the career opportunities are fantastic. Demand for individuals with graduate training in research, measurement, and evaluation outweighs the current supply. Private and public agencies, as well as universities, are constantly searching for individuals with expertise in these areas. This demand is, in part, fueled by the increase in national and state-level achievement testing mandated by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) act, which requires individuals trained in applied statistics and measurement for the psychometric/technical development of tests (i.e., determining from a statistical point of view whether the items of a test are working properly, and how to best estimate and individual’s ability based on the responses to the test items). Additional demand for experts in research methodology and measurement is generated through the increasing use of standardized psychological testing for diagnostic purposes and the high level of demand for the evaluation of educational and psychological programs implemented in school systems.