Strategic Leadership
Is a Strategic Leadership Major for Me?
Being a leader in today’s rapidly changing society requires content knowledge as well as knowledge about self and leadership style. Southwestern College Professional Studies’ strategic leadership major provides students the ability to know themselves better in order to effectively forecast and lead change in the workplace.
Students completing a bachelor of science degree with this major will be able to take a proactive approach to strategic leadership and decision making.
Because our program is offered completely online, learners can finish their degrees at their convenience without leaving current jobs or locations.
Program Outcomes
Being a leader in today’s rapidly changing society requires content knowledge as well as knowledge about self and leadership style. The Strategic Leadership major provides learners with the ability to enhance their self-awareness and to effectively forecast and lead change. Learners completing this major will be able to take a proactive approach to strategic leadership and decision making.
- The learner demonstrates that s/he has gained breadth and depth of key strategic leadership concepts and generally accepted theories and practices.
- Learners demonstrate the skills necessary for competency in understanding and working with people, including personality types and group dynamics applicable to preparation for a career in strategic leadership.
- The learner will demonstrate the ability to apply critical thinking to the completion of projects and case studies associated with the strategic leadership field.
- The learner can demonstrate an understanding of how to effectively lead people and processes in the strategic leadership field.
- The learner can demonstrate the ability to craft documents which showcase their understanding of the use of technological tools.
- The learner can demonstrate an understanding and appreciation of ethical reasoning in organizations.
- The learner can demonstrate the use of effective written communication skills.
Required and Core Courses
Required Major Courses
STL 302 Self Awareness and Personality Traits
STL 307 Leadership Theories and Practical Application
STL 310 Interpersonal Group Dynamics
STL 410 Negotiation Skills
STL 420 Forecasting & Leading Change
STL 430 Multi-Cultural Perspectives and Global Trends
STL 435 Strategic Planning
CAPS 495 Senior Capstone
Required Core Courses
HRD 210 Building Academic Success
CLO 320 Critical Thinking
CLO 340 Ethics in Today’s Organization
CLO 410 Decision Sciences
CLO 415 Professional Communication
CLO 499 Responsibility for the Future
Recommended Elective
BQM 310 Team Management
BQM 320 Organizational Leadership
HRD 330 Microsoft Office Applications
HRD 322 Training and Development
HRD 325 Developing Workforce Talent
SOCS 320 Adults in Transition
All classes are 3 credit hours unless otherwise indicated.
Course Descriptions
STL 302 Self Awareness and Personality Traits
This course is designed for learners to enhance their self-awareness, creativity and identify their leadership style. Requires learners to evaluate and enhance their personal leadership skills and develop a personal model of leadership.
STL 307 Leadership Theories and Practical Application
This course is an introduction to various leadership theories and models. Learners evaluate and apply leadership theories to practical real work situations.
STL 310 Interpersonal Group Dynamics
Designed to focus on the interpersonal dynamics of groups and individuals. Learners will examine how non-verbal communication, perceptions of self and others influence people’s behavior.
STL 410 Negotiation Skills
This course helps learners develop the tactics, strategies and interpersonal skills necessary for today’s complex organizations. Learners are introduced to strategies for conflict management and the technique of dispute resolution. The process of mediation, facilitation and negotiation will be reviewed.
STL 420 Forecasting and Leading Change
Designed to enable learners to use market trends and societal changes to forecast change. Learners will look at topics that include demographic changes, market trends, national income, and societal shifts to effectively forecast future changes by using forecasting techniques.
STL 430 Multi-Cultural Perspectives and Global Trends
A study of the leadership implications surrounding political, social, economic and other world views. Learners will explore how global events affect decision making and strategic goals.
STL 435 Strategic Planning
Designed to help learners take a proactive approach to strategic planning. A variety of perspectives, models and approaches will be used in the most common form of strategic planning.
HRD210 Building Academic Success
Introduces academic success topics and tools that are intended to establish and strengthen understanding of the learner and academic success coach relationship, critical thinking and reading, institutional policies and procedures, and the basics of online research and academic writing while experiencing the Southwestern College Professional Studies course format on the way to becoming a Southwestern College Moundbuilder.
CLO 320 Critical Thinking
This course prepares learners to critically interpret, synthesize, analyze and evaluate information. It is designed to introduce learners to complex problems and help them come to well reasoned conclusions and solutions.
CLO 340 Ethics in Today’s Organizations
This course will utilize the expertise of professionals working in the various disciplines as well as the moral reasoning of ethicists. An approach to the ethical challenges of a modern society is developed.
CLO 410 Decision Sciences
This course introduces the learner to utilizing and applying both quantitative and qualitative methods for individual, organizational, and societal decision making. A variety of tools and techniques will be examined as the foundation for the development and interpretation of attributes and variables in addition to the use of data sources for the purpose of improving processes and organizational environments.
CLO 415 Professional Communication
A study of the communication processes in situations encountered in organizations and professional environments. Analysis of simulated and real life situations will include the creation of professional documents and various functions of written, oral, and interpersonal communications.
CLO 499 Responsibility for the Future
Seniors with various majors will share learning and approaches from their different disciplines toward dealing holistically with issues that shape the future, seeking to integrate disciplines and to synthesize knowing, caring, and doing.
CAPS 495 Senior Capstone
Learners will be required to develop a portfolio project that demonstrates their knowledge, skills, and abilities in their major discipline. Particular attention will be given to the presentation of evidence and artifacts from their major courses as well as recent research relevant to their specific program outcomes. The purpose of the final portfolio project is to document learner achievement and to ensure learning outcomes are met.
All classes are 3 credit hours unless otherwise indicated.
Admission Requirements
Entering students must have earned at least 30 college credits from previous college coursework or ACE evaluated military training, a GPA of 2.0, and have three years of work experience. Transfer hours accepted for Professional Studies admittance should include English Composition I and II, and mathematics (college algebra preferred). These courses may be considered in transfer or completed at Southwestern College.
Contact a program representative to evaluate your options.
Graduation Requirements
A total of 124 credit hours must be earned to graduate. You must have at least 60 credit hours from a four-year university or college and at least 30 hours from Southwestern College (does not include prior learning experience credits). Of the 30 hours required from Southwestern, 15 of the last 30 hours earned toward your degree must be at Southwestern College. Contact your Academic Success Coach for more information.
Meta
Southwestern College Professional Studies’ strategic leadership major provides students the ability to know themselves better in order to effectively lead change in todays fast paced workforce.
