Organizational Leadership

What Is Organizational Leadership ?

Organizational leadership is an interdisciplinary program that combines a liberal arts education and selective business subjects with classes, guest lectures and seminars in leadership. This program provides a coherent pathway for students wishing to become leaders by targeting skill areas essential for leadership, organizational success and a lifetime of personal and professional achievement.

Success Factors

Success in organizational leadership requires the following competency areas:

• Leadership
• Written, oral and electronic communication  
• Problem-solving   
• Diversity    
• Teamwork   
• Social change   
• Critical thinking  
• Decision-making
• Global awareness   
• Ethical decision-making

Career Possibilities

Like students who graduate with other liberal arts majors, graduates with a BA in organizational leadership are prepared for further academic or professional study and for many different career options in the nonprofit and for-profit sectors.

Graduates are employed as:

• Human resource recruiter
• Marketing manager
• Bank financial loan officer
• Retail manager
• Loan processor, financial institution
• Sales representative
• Local government agencies
• Hospital administration supervisor
• Restaurant owner/manager
• Airline customer service manager
• Education administrator
• Employee relations representative
• Training and development manager
• Healthcare administrator

Organizational leadership students may also choose to go on to law school, master's programs in business administration, human resource management or graduate programs in communication, psychology and other liberal arts disciplines.

Additional career options are listed on the Career Development Center's Web site.

Major Details

The primary objective of the organizational leadership program (ORGL) in the UC McMicken College of Arts and Sciences (A&S) is to provide students with the skills and knowledge to perform as effective leaders within their organizations and society. It is a degree for students who want an interdisciplinary program with a social sciences orientation that will make them competitive in the job market. The goal of the degree is to educate students to use critical thinking and communication skills to enhance the performance of their organizations, communities and professions.

The program produces graduates who can initiate and respond to change through leadership, teamwork and organizational effectiveness skills, and whose critical-thinking skills, problem-solving and decision-making skills enable them to view situations from new perspectives and to find new solutions. Full-time students can complete the program within four years, and part-time students can complete the program in five to six years.

McMicken College's flexible degree requirements allow for and highly encourage students to pursue multiple areas of study. Free electives allow for enough credits for students to pursue a minor, certificate program or even complete a second major. Some of the most common pairings are listed below.

• Communication
• Business
• Political science
• Spanish

Minor Details

A minor in Organizational Leadership is not available.

Students majoring in Organizational Leadership might pursue the Business Minor.  Interested students should make an appointment with the Business Minor advisor by contacting the Undergraduate Programs Office in the College of Business (Room 105, Carl H. Lindner Hall) at (513) 556-7030.

Curriculum

This curriculum information is intended as a general information guide for students considering enrollment in this major. These online tools are designed to assist you, but are not a substitute for planning with an academic or faculty advisor.

If you are currently enrolled at UC, you can audit your degree online. If you are considering transferring to this major from another school use the course applicability system (CAS) to see how credits you have earned will apply to this major at UC. For course descriptions by college, click here.

Organizational Leadership Major Checklist

College Requirements Checklist

*Needed to fulfill A&S college requirements.

Special Opportunities

Students in the UC McMicken College of Arts and Sciences enjoy many benefits afforded through study at a research-intensive institution ranked among the nation's top 25 public research universities. UC's urban, tri-state location offers exciting opportunities for global education, research and service learning, while its student-centered focus includes an 11:1 student-faculty ratio, a nationally recognized Center for Exploratory Studies and a highly successful First Year Experience program that teaches critical skills for first-year students and provides connections with important campus resources.

Special Programs

Admission Requirements

Admission criteria for this program vary based on the relative strength of test scores, class rank and GPA. Please see the Freshman Class Profile for this major in the Quick Facts sidebar on this page for the range of academic credentials typically accepted into this program. Test scores in the lower range may be acceptable with higher class rank and/or GPA. Freshmen applying to this program should also have completed the following state of Ohio articulation requirements with no more than two units missing:

• English (4 units)*
• College-preparatory mathematics (3 units)*
• Science (2 units)
• Social science (2 units)
• Foreign language (2 units)*
• Fine arts (1 unit)
• Additional college-prep subjects (2 units)

*McMicken College of Arts & Sciences does not allow units missing from these areas.

Transfer Requirements

Applicants to A&S whose most recent enrollment was not in any of the UC colleges must apply through the Office of Admissions. Applicants in this category must submit transcripts for all secondary school and college-level work. A cumulative GPA of 2.0 for all college-level work is required for admission consideration. Admission to A&S is generally available for any off-campus applicants who have received an associate degree from an accredited college or university and whose cumulative GPA is 2.0 or higher.

Although midyear, off-campus transfer students are not able to participate in early registration in the quarter prior to their enrollment, they are included in the summer registration period prior to their fall quarter enrollment.

Changing Major Requirements

Applicants to A&S whose most recent enrollment was as a degree-seeking student in one of UC’s other colleges can apply directly to the A&S college office. Admission to A&S is generally available for any on-campus students who have:

• at least a 2.0 GPA in all college-level courses (both at UC and at other institutions),
• successfully completed two quarters of English Composition or its equivalent, and
• gained credit for a college-level mathematics course.

Further details on individual programs are available online or in the A&S Office of Undergraduate Student Affairs and Advising (102 McMicken Hall).

Graduation Requirements

In addition to meeting the university's General Education requirements, the requirements listed in the McMicken College Core Requirements are common to all potential graduates of the college, whether they are pursuing the bachelor of arts, bachelor of science, or bachelor of interdisciplinary studies degree.

Application Deadlines

UC operates on a quarter system, with 10-week grading periods beginning in late September, early January, late March and mid-June. While midyear admission is possible, fall quarter is generally the best time to enter the college, since many course sequences begin in that quarter. Applicants to the UC McMicken College of Arts and Sciences who are enrolled or who were previously enrolled as degree-seeking students in A&S or in other UC colleges should apply for admission directly to A&S (in McMicken 102). All other applicants who wish to earn an undergraduate degree from A&S should apply through the Office of Admissions (3rd Floor, University Pavilion).