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 and teamwork
• Written, oral and electronic communication
• Social change   
• Critical thinking, decision-making, and problem solving
• Global awareness and diversity
• Ethical decision-making

Career Possibilities

Like students who graduate with other liberal arts majors, graduates with a B.A. 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 recruiters
• Marketing managers
• Bank financial loan officers
• Retail managers
• Loan processors, financial institution
• Sales representatives
• Local government agencies
• Hospital administration supervisors
• Restaurant owners/managers
• Airline customer service managers
• Education administrators
• Employee relations representatives
• Training and development managers
• Healthcare administrators

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 in 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.

A&S provides flexible degree requirements which encourage 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
• Psychology

Organizational Leadership with HR Track

Organizational leadership students interested in pursuing a career in Human Resources (HR) are encouraged to take the HR track within the major.  Students in the HR track are required to complete the organizational leadership core set of classes, which combine business fundamentals with coursework in leadership.  Their major-related electives, however, are focused on learning the fundamentals of HR and the various functional areas within HR.  Specific courses include:

• OLHR 300 - Introduction to Human Resources (required)
• OLHR 451 - Employment Law (required)
• OLHR 401 - Compensation
• OLHR 402 - International HR
• OLHR 403 - Training and Development
• OLHR 404 - Health & Safety
• OLHR 405 - Staffing Organizations
• OLHR 525 - Ethics in HR

The complete list of requirements for the HR Track can be found here.

Minor Details

The minor requires 26 credit hours of course work as outlined below:

Course requirements for minor:

• OLHR 250 (3 hrs)     Foundations of Leadership
• OLHR 251 (3 hrs)     Organizational Behavior for Effective Leaders
• OLHR 351 (3 hrs)     Research Methods for Leaders
• OLHR 400 (5 hrs)     Leadership and Organizational Effectiveness
• OLHR 502 (3 hrs)     Lessons in Leadership
• Elective Coursework: Choose 3 courses from the list below (9 hrs)

Elective courses (choose 3 from the following)*

• OLHR 295 (3 hrs)     Diversity in the Workplace
• OLHR 312 (3 hrs)     The Gendered Workplace
• OLHR 450 (3 hrs)     Teaching Assistant Practicum
• OLHR 525 (3 hrs)     Ethical Issues in Employment Relations
• PSYC 215 (3 hrs)     Social Psychology
• PSYC 242 (3 hrs)     Psychology of Interpersonal Relations
• PSYC 365 (3 hrs)     Psychology of Conflict and Conflict Resolution
• PSYC 395 (3 hrs)     Groups at Work
• PSYC 504 (3 hrs)     Industrial Psychology

*Note: Students are limited to one course substitution in the elective courses. For instance, if a student takes an ethics course outside the minor, he or she can use that for credit toward the minor, but most choose two other electives from the preceding list to complete the requirements for the minor.

Minor in Business

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.

Click here for more information about combining the Business minor courses with your Organizational Leadership major.

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

Organizational Leadership with HR Track Major Checklist

College Requirements Checklist

*Needed to fulfill A&S college requirements.

NOTE: To meet graduation requirements, students must maintain a minimum 2.0 GPA in all courses counting for the organizational leadership major.

Special Opportunities

Students in 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.

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)*
• Additional college-prep subjects (3 units)

*A&S 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.

University transfer scholarships are available to those who meet specific requirements and ANY admitted A&S transfer student might qualify for an A&S transfer scholarship. Deadlines and eligibility criteria are online via the previous links.

Changing Major Requirements

Applicants to A&S whose most recent enrollment was as a degree 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.

A&S students must meet the college residency requirement of 45.0 hours which begins immediately upon matriculation in the college and consists of courses taught within A&S.

Graduation Requirements

To graduate from McMicken College of Arts and Sciences, students must:

• Earn at least 180 credits. This can include transfer credit, AP credit, and free electives, but does not include preparatory coursework. Students who have met all other degree requirements must continue earning credit until the total number of their earned hours comes to at least 180.
• Attain a 2.0 grade point average for all courses taken at the University of Cincinnati.
• Be in good academic standing, that is, not on either academic probation or disciplinary probation or suspension.
• Complete the residency requirement by earning at least 45 credits after matriculating into the college. These minimum 45 credits must be taught within McMicken College of Arts and Sciences (15) and also must be completed after gaining admission to the college.
• Complete all of the requirements of at least one major (see major requirements above).
• Complete the College Core Requirements.
• Submit an application for graduation to the registrar's office by their posted deadline.

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 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 French Hall West, 2nd Floor). All other applicants who wish to earn an undergraduate degree from A&S should apply through the Office of Admissions (3rd Floor, University Pavilion).