Master of Science

Leadership and Organisational Psychology

Gain extensive insight into a company’s most valuable resource, its people. This programme is suited for people aiming for a career in strategic human resource management, consulting, or individual and organisational development.

What will you learn?

This programme equips you, as a future practitioner in leadership and organisational psychology and a future leader, with the skills to responsibly navigate increasing societal complexities and support organisations in addressing these complexities. You will gain advanced knowledge of theories and research in organisational psychology and leadership, and learn how to use this knowledge to concretely help individuals and organisations. You will learn how individual, group, and organisational factors influence performance, problem solving, well-being, and decision making in organisations, how to analyse leadership and organisational challenges using the most up-to-date theories and research, and how to turn relevant insights into meaningful action. You will also learn to use central research methods and psychometric tools, and to align actions with strategic and sustainability goals. 

You will learn to: 

  • Apply psychological theories, research, methods and tools to support individuals and organisations. 
  • Use scientific methods to analyse and solve problems with impact at the individual, team and organisational levels. 
  • Design and carry out research and development projects, and communicate analyses effectively to different audiences. 
  • Use technology to address individual, team and organisational problems, and work successfully in diverse groups. 
  • Evaluate and challenge current practices with attention to strategic benefit, values, ethics and sustainability, including consequences for people and organisations. 

Popular courses covered in this programme

Illustration of data

Ethics and Sustainability in Organisations

Get the knowledge and skills necessary to take an active, professional part in the economic and environmental challenges of today, including climate change, poverty and employment issues.

Illustraion of multiple heads

Psychological Measurement and Individual Differences

Understand individual differences or the individual as part of a system, by getting extensive knowledge of individual characteristics as reflected in different theories.

Picture of a Globe with countries

Managing Across Cultures

Use organisational and psychological research, and explore the concepts of culture, mobility, and cross-cultural leadership and human resource management.

Illustration of a hand

Responsible Leadership

Learn the various scientific perspectives used for studying leadership, and how leaders influence individual and organisational performance.

Why choose this programme?

Engaging learning experiences and quality teaching are something we strive to provide to help you build a solid skill and competency base, making you relevant for the future of work. In the video below, you will get the perspectives of our students, faculty, and the industry to understand the reasons for choosing to study an MSc in Leadership and Organisational Psychology at BI.

Why choose an MSc in Leadership and Organisational Psychology?

Trying to decide which master programme is right for you? Take our Master Quiz to find your best match. 

Career possibilities

Employers look for practitioners who ensure that change is actually implemented, align their actions with values, ethics, and sustainability, and communicate evidence clearly. 

You can work in: 

  • Talent acquisition and assessment – recruitment and selection, job analysis and leadership assessment. 
  • Learning, leadership and people development – training, coaching, leadership development programmes. 
  • Organisation and change – team and organisational design, organisational culture, change management. 
  • People analytics and decision support – workforce data and artificial intelligence, analysis and experimentation, and responsible use of algorithms in human resource management. 
  • Sustainable human resource management and well-being – inclusion, engagement, health and safety. 
Former student Max Paul Trautwein
Max Paul Trautwein Consultant Accenture Interactive Structuring organisations for the future

Customise your degree

As a master student at BI, you have several exciting opportunities that will contribute to a varied and interesting student life, at the same time as you build relevant competence and gain an advantage in the job market by tailoring your degree.

Tracks

By completing the required combination of specialisation elective courses, your diploma will automatically reflect one of two special tracks. Both tracks are available at Campus Oslo and Bergen. Use this as an opportunity to explore during your first year and decide later on a track once you’re in the programme. 

  • Workplace Psychology: People, Health, and Performance  
    Courses in this track will help students develop the skills to effectively support individual and team development in contemporary organisations and to contribute to the creation of healthier workplaces. 
  • Psychology, Technology & Analytics  
    Courses in this track will help students develop the skills related to new technologies, including AI and people analytics, to effectively contribute, as practitioners in organisational psychology, to organisational change and development in connection to the digital transformation. 
Internship

Our internship programme is a credit-bearing course that allows you to test subjects and industries based on your interests, competency, and personal qualities. An internship is valuable as a means of allowing you to experience how your field of study is applied in the business world and provides you with work experience that can be highly attractive to potential employers.

Elective courses

We offer a number of elective courses so that you can adapt your studies to your own interests and goals. This way you can build up competency and pursue a combination of courses that will make you attractive and unique. Please be aware that the availability of elective courses may vary per campus. 

Exchange

Take part in your education abroad! If you want to work abroad or in an international company after your studies, this should be particularly relevant for you. Culture and language are important in all companies and organisations, but knowledge of other countries' customs, governance and behaviour can be absolutely crucial to global success.

;

Programme Structure

The academic year at BI is divided into two semester, one in the autumn and one in spring. There are exams at the end of each semester. This programme structure provides an overview of which courses you will be taking and when you will be taking them.

1. Year

  • 60 credits (ECTS)

Autumn

  • Research Methods, Psychometrics, and Data Analysis for Organizational Psychology

    7.5 ECTS

  • Ethics and Sustainability in Organizations

    7.5 ECTS

  • Advanced Topics in Organisation Science

    7.5 ECTS

  • Motivational Science - Creating Work Motivation and Motivating Work Environments

    7.5 ECTS

Spring

  • Responsible Leadership

    7.5 ECTS

  • The Psychology of Decision-Making and Algorithmic Management

    7.5 ECTS

  • Sustainable Human Resource Management

    7.5 ECTS

  • Leading Across Borders: Culture, Mobility, and Virtuality

    7.5 ECTS

2. Year

  • 60 credits (ECTS)

Autumn

  • Master thesis for the 2026-2028 class

    7.5 ECTS

Spring

  • Master thesis for the 2026-2028 class

    22.5 ECTS

Please be aware that the study plan and courses can be subject to change, and that availability of elective courses may vary depending on the campus where you choose to study.

Tuition fee

The academic year 2025-2026: NOK 122,800.
Updated fee for 2026-2027: TBA.

The tuition fee is invoiced per semester and adjusted annually. It includes access to lectures and the standard examination fee.

Students with a bachelor's degree from BI are eligible for a discounted tuition fee. Different rates apply to students from countries outside the EU/EEA and Switzerland. Certain exceptions and variations may apply.

Read more about tuition fees.