ORGANIZATIONAL CHART

Who’s who? Finding help in the

Department of Psychology

It’s not always easy figuring out who to go to for help or guidance. My default recommendation is to go and see the undergraduate academic advisor. The majority of times, this advisor can point you in the right direction -- but not always. And if you are a graduate student, although you might have your own personal academic and research advisor, such advisors vary in terms of their knowledge and experience with the chain of command. Furthermore, sometimes there is no “right” person to talk to. An issue might fall under the purview of multiple people or seemingly no one. Sometimes, there are conflicts of interests involved. To aid you in your quest for enlightenment, I lay before you the Byzantine organizational structure that is the Department of Psychology. I authored this organizational chart (around 2014) while I was the Department Head and it took longer than you might think. It took me several months just to get the titles of all the administrative positions straight. The people holding these roles are in constant flux, so there’s no point attaching names to each one. Nevertheless, once you know their titles, it is relatively easy to find them with “the Google.” As a rule of thumb, go to the person lowest on the hierarchy who you think can help. Gradually escalate upwards if you do not get satisfaction. Do not jump the chain of command unless there are exceptional circumstances; it is bad form and potentially counterproductive.