Leadership Graduate Certificate Program

Kelly Corey, Ph.D. Program Director, Business Department

The Leadership Graduate Certificate Program is a 15 credit semester hour program that equips learners with an industry-specific, practitioner-oriented leadership skill set to inspire teams and organizations to create and sustain positive momentum. Inspired by the University of Olivet’s relationship-focused, social justice-oriented character, holding the certificate signals commitment to Be More and Do Good in leadership roles while inspiring colleagues to collaboratively achieve shared goals.

A total of 15 credit hours must be completed to earn a Graduate Leadership Certificate. The first course in the Certificate program, a foundational leadership theory course, must be completed within the first term of the first semester of study.

Leadership Graduate Certificate Admission Requirements

Students wishing to pursue the 15-credit hour Graduate Leadership Certificate must meet the following requirements. Admission will be offered on a rolling basis, aligned with scheduled course offerings.

1. A bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university.
2. A cumulative GPA of 3.0 or greater on a 4.0 scale for all undergraduate coursework.

Course Scheduling and Structure

Courses are scheduled in five eight-week terms each academic year within the Adult, Professional and Graduate (APG) academic calendar (Fall 1, Fall 2, Spring 1, Spring 2, and Summer). This calendar provides clarity and structure for adults who are balancing school with work and personal responsibilities.

An annual course schedule including all required courses in regular rotation is developed and provided to students prior to each academic year. Students work with academic staff to develop an academic plan that accommodates their work and family demands and to schedule courses to facilitate efficient progression through the academic program.

The program faculty includes highly credentialed, proven organizational and academic leaders from a wide variety of fields as adjunct instructors located throughout the world, as well as University of Olivet graduate faculty.

This graduate program utilizes blended distance learning technology (synchronous and asynchronous) that allows students to interact weekly in real time with faculty and students online while completing much of their coursework at their own pace and on their own schedule via the University’s Canvas learning management system (LMS). The synchronous online class meetings are scheduled collaboratively and will be recorded and made available asynchronously to enable completion of courses by learners unable to attend live on occasion.

True to its nature as a relationship-focused program, students are encouraged to participate regularly in an online Leadership Learning Community, through which students, faculty, and practicing leaders will convene monthly for workshops and dialogues around leadership, social justice, and transformational topics.

Leadership Graduate Certificate Program Learning Outcomes

Each graduate certificate program will prepare students to inspire colleagues to work together to achieve shared goals, find solutions to complex problems and opportunities to create change in specific contexts. Accordingly, the certificate will empower students to achieve learning outcomes that demonstrate leadership competencies related to each unique concentration discipline.

Creativity, Innovation and Change Concentration Learning Outcomes

• Students will demonstrate creative confidence by choosing to take risks in order to grow your perspective, skills, and leadership opportunities.
• Students will be able to apply systems thinking techniques including mapping, experimenting and iterating to spot opportunities and determine where to start.
• Students will be able to co-create change by involving the people it affects from the beginning and sharing big stories about early, small changes.

Leading and Managing Nonprofit Organizations Concentration Learning Outcomes

• Students will be able to integrate the responsibility for and commitment to ethical leadership and productivity among the board staff, volunteers, and community members.
• Students will be able to plan and achieve financial sustainability through integration of sound fiscal practices, fund raising, and earned income.
• Students will be able to champion strategic processes that maintain momentum, engagement, priorities, and mission focus.

Sport Coaching Leadership Concentration Learning Outcomes

• Students will be able to critically analyze the role of sport coaching leadership through the domains of sociocultural, legal, and ethical issues as well as the various applications within the sport industry.
• Students will be able to develop sport coaching leadership standards, which reflect responsible, sustainable ethical practices within the sport world.
• Students will be able to demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to become an effective visionary leader of a sport organization.