Core Courses and Concentrations
To satisfy the degree requirements for the Organizational Leadership program, all students must complete 36-39 credit hours.
- All students must complete 21 credits in the core courses.
- All students must complete 12 credits in their chosen concentration
Leadership in Higher Education
Leadership in Counseling-Related Services
Leadership in Information Technology
Leadership in Communication - Some students may be required to complete a 3-credit internship.
- All students must complete a 3-credit elective course. The elective course can be chosen from a variety of graduate courses in business, arts, and education.
Core Courses for all Organizational Leadership Students
LEAD-500 Introduction to Leadership Organization- (3 credits)
This course will introduce students to classical and current view of leadership and to the process of graduate-level scholarship. Students will gain foundational knowledge in the theories and models of leadership, will asses their own leadership style, and will learn to develop and answer research questions in leadership studies. They will be asked to apply this knowledge to analyze and address leadership issues within organizations they work, study, or volunteer.
LEAD-510 Organizational Communication- (3 credits)
This course will acquaint students with classic and contemporary approaches to organizational communication and provide them with analysis and research assignments to further the process of graduate-level scholarship. Students will gain knowledge of the breadth of theoretical approaches to understanding communication in organizations as well as processes relevant to communicative life in organizations. Students will gauge the presence of various approaches to organizational communication and communication processes in organizations which they work, study, or volunteer and evaluate their effectiveness. Students will ask questions that can be answered by systematic research in academic and professional/practitioner organizational communication literature, demonstrating information literacy skills. Prerequisite: LEAD-500 or concurrent with LEAD-500.
LEAD-530 Leading and Motivating in a Cross-Functional Leadership Role- (3 credits)
This course will inform students about leadership concepts and models for identifying and working with the motivations, influences and tactics present in conflict and its resolution in personal and organizational settings. Through group dynamics exercises, the themes of developing leadership identity, recognized and affirmed by self-awareness; understanding and exercising relationship awareness and group behavior; and recognizing the multiple relational dimensions of leadership will guide both the understanding and practice of leading people and managing relationships. Prerequisite: LEAD-500 or concurrent with LEAD-500.
LEAD-540 Information and Financial Resources in Organizations-(3 credits)
This course explores the importance of information and financial resources within the culture of organizations, and the necessary relationship that exists between the two. The course draws on current literature and student experience to explore resource management and focuses on the effective use of information resources within the boundaries defined by financial realities. The relationship between data analyses and effective decision making will be explored. Prerequisite: LEAD-500 or concurrent with LEAD-500.
LEAD-550 Organizational Research- (3 credits)
The purpose of this course is to prepare future organizational leaders to read professional journal articles, plan research, and critique research. The course covers basic research methods, such as experimental, ex post facto, correlational, case study, time series, interviews, surveys, and basic statistics. These concepts are taught within the framework of organizational leadership. Prerequisite: LEAD-500 or concurrent with LEAD-500.
LEAD-560 Legal issues, Ethics and Conflict Resolution- (3credit)
This course will provide students with knowledge of ethical guidelines and current laws/regulations to ensure appropriate work place behaviors. Students will gain knowledge and skills in the use of conflict resolution strategies to help build harmonious relationships in the workplace. Potential sources of conflict that lead to employee grievances and litigation will be identified. Students will complete self-assessment tools to determine their own conflict resolution style. The course will cover legal issues found in the workplace, such as sexual harassment, collective bargaining agreements, employment law, etc. Prerequisite: LEAD-500 or concurrent with LEAD-500
LEAD-598 Project Seminar in Organizational Leadership- (3 credits)
An original investigation is designed and completed by the student. The project involves: the identification of an organizational problem; the delineating of several course of action; the establishing of evaluative criteria; an analysis selecting the optimum course of action; the setting forth of steps for implementation; and a plan for evaluating project outcomes. The project is developed and carried out in multiple direct and interactive guidance sessions with the instructor. Prerequisite: Completion of all prior degree coursework.
Internship - If Required
LEAD-570 Internship in Organizational Leadership- (3 credits)
This required course provides students enrolled in the M.A in Organizational Leadership degree program with the opportunity to gain practical experience through an organized and mentored internship. Through specialized readings and the completion of significant project, students will be asked to apply their knowledge of leadership concepts to analyze and address leadership concepts in organizations where they work, study, or volunteer. The internship must be related to and entails active observations and participation in a variety of leadership roles and organizational functions. If the candidate has one year of documented leadership experience in his or her area of concentration, this requirement may be waived. Prerequisites: sequence including LEAD-500. Students must also be matriculated in the M.A in Organizational Leadership degree program.
