Name, Credentials:  Meghan Bean, Ph.D.

Job Title:  Consultant

Company / Organization:  Research Into Action

City, State:  Portland, OR

Email:  mgbean@gmail.com

Education: 

BS in Psychology, Minor in Italian, Tufts University, Medford, MA

Ph.D. in Social Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL

How long have you worked for your current company or organization?  2 years

What are your primary duties in this position?  Market research  Data analysis  Report writing  Client management  Consulting on applied experimental and quasi-experimental research.

What do you enjoy about your work? What are the perks and drawbacks?  I enjoy that my work is challenging and that there's always more to learn. I have a diverse set of responsibilities, so every day is a little different.   It was important to me to find a job where I care about the output of my work. Working in the energy efficiency field is a great fit!

Career path: how did you land this position? What do you see in your future career plans?  I happened upon my company by Googling "best companies to work for in Oregon." They weren't actively hiring at the time, but I sent them my resume and they contacted me a few months later. My plans are to continue working and building my knowledge around energy efficiency.

What career advice would you like to share with graduate students seeking careers in your field?  Get involved however you can (attend mixers in your area, etc.) and start learning about the energy efficiency industry.   Leverage the data analysis and writing skills you gained in grad school.   Cast a wide net.

Ways I am involved with SPSSI:  Read newsletters / mailings / website; Attend conferences / workshops

What is the importance of SPSSI for psychologists working outside of academia?  There is a lot of really important applied research, evaluation, etc. going on outside of academia. SPSSI is a great forum for folks working in academia to learn about opportunities, research, and lessons learned from the "real world" and for folks working outside of academia to stay up-to-date on advances in psychological theory and research.