Organizational Leadership, Bachelor of Science (545E, 545)
Program Coordinator
Tanja N. Bibbs, bibbstn@wku.edu, (270) 745-5305
The Bachelor of Science in Organizational Leadership provides an academic foundation for the professional and career-focused study of leadership principles and skills. It is specifically designed to advance the professional objectives of students who desire to complete a baccalaureate degree for career advancement and expanded job opportunities. The combination of leadership, management, and global and social-cultural perspectives provides graduates with the knowledge and skills necessary to provide effective leadership at various levels and in a variety of occupational settings.
A baccalaureate degree requires a minimum of 120 unduplicated semester hours. More information can be found at www.wku.edu/registrar/degree_certification.php.
Students who began WKU in the Fall 2014 and thereafter should review the Colonnade requirements located at: https://www.wku.edu/colonnade/colonnaderequirements.php.
Program Requirements (30-48 hours)
The School of Leadership and Professional Studies provides two options for the Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Leadership. The non-extended option requires a minimum of 30 credit hours and a minor, certificate, or second major is required. The extended option requires a minimum of 48 credit hours and no minor, certificate, or second major is required. For both options, students will complete a 24 hour core curriculum. Elective hours will vary based on the chosen option.
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Required Courses | ||
| LEAD 200 | Introduction to Leadership Studies | 3 |
| or LEAD 300 | Leadership Theory and Application | |
| LEAD 325 | Leading Change | 3 |
| LEAD 330 | Leadership Ethics and Decision-Making | 3 |
| LEAD 395 | Contemporary Leadership Issues | 3 |
| LEAD 400 | Practicum in Leadership | 3 |
| LEAD 440 | Leading Teams | 3 |
| LEAD 450 | Leadership in Global Contexts | 3 |
| LEAD 465 | Leadership Coaching | 3 |
| Electives: | 6-24 | |
| Select 6 hours (non-extended) or 24 hours (extended) from the following: | ||
| Accounting for Decision Makers | ||
| Project Management | ||
| Technology Management / Supervision / Team Building | ||
| Introduction to Business and Entrepreneurship | ||
| Process and Effects of Mass Communication | ||
| Business Communication | ||
| Organization and Supervision | ||
| Organizational Promotions and Advertising | ||
| Human Capital Supervision | ||
| Effective Listening | ||
| Leadership Communication | ||
| Advanced Intercultural Communication | ||
| Statistics | ||
| Business Writing | ||
| Innovation Management | ||
| Entrepreneurship | ||
| International Entrepreneurship | ||
| Small Business Management | ||
| Principles of Finance | ||
| Health Care Organization and Management | ||
| Human Resources Management for Healthcare Managers | ||
| Health Systems Management | ||
| Ambulatory Care Administration | ||
| Principles and Methods of Health Planning | ||
| Investigative Methods in Interdisciplinary Studies | ||
| Legal Environment of Business | ||
| Organization and Management | ||
| Business Communication Fundamentals | ||
| Business Law | ||
| International Business | ||
| Ethics and Critical Thinking | ||
| Human Resource Management | ||
| Decision Modeling | ||
| Operations Management | ||
| International Management | ||
| Managing Projects in Organizations | ||
| Management of Nonprofit Organizations | ||
| Human Resource Information Systems | ||
| Employment Law | ||
| Effective Staffing Practices | ||
| International Human Resource Management | ||
| Organizational Behavior | ||
| Management of Organizational Conflict | ||
| Basic Marketing Concepts | ||
| Consumer Behavior | ||
| Integrated Marketing Communications | ||
| Services Marketing | ||
| International Marketing | ||
| Personal Selling | ||
| Social Media Marketing | ||
| Senior Seminar-Marketing | ||
| Marketing Research | ||
| Marketing Management | ||
| Supply Chain Management | ||
| Sales Force Management | ||
| Advanced Personal Selling Strategies | ||
| Marketing Study Abroad | ||
| Legal Ethics | ||
| Public Policy | ||
| Government and Ethics | ||
| International Organization and Law | ||
| Issues in Human Resource Management | ||
| Social Psychology | ||
| Issues in Cross-Cultural Psychology | ||
| The Psychology of Sales Behavior | ||
| Social Psychology | ||
| Industrial / Organizational Psychology | ||
| Recreation Leadership | ||
| Grant Writing for Nonprofit Organizations | ||
| The Community in Rural and Urban Settings | ||
| Diversity in American Society | ||
| Systems Thinking and Problem-Solving in Complex Organizations | ||
| Total Hours | 30-48 | |
The following restrictions apply to this major: no more than 24 semester hours from the School of Media; no more than 30 hours in courses administered by the Gordon Ford College of Business; no more than 12 upper-level semester hours from the Gordon Ford College of Business.
Students enrolled in the extended major, who transfer to WKU with an applied associate degree (e.g., Associate of Applied Science), receive a 12-hour waiver from the overall upper-level course requirement.
Finish in Four Plans
Organizational Leadership, Non-Extended Option (30 hours)
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: College Composition | 3 | LEAD 330 | 3 |
| MATH 109 (or higher) | 3 | Second Major, Minor, or General Elective | 3 |
| LEAD 200 or LEAD 300 | 3 | COMM 145 | 3 |
| Colonnade: Arts & Humanities | 3 | HIST 101 or HIST 102 | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | Colonnade: Literary Studies | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| LEAD 325 | 3 | LEAD 395 | 3 |
| Second Major, Minor, or General Elective | 3 | Second Major, Minor, or General Elective | 3 |
| Colonnade: Social and Behavioral Sciences | 3 | Second Major, Minor, or General Elective | 3 |
| Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences | 3 | Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences with lab | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| LEAD 440 | 3 | LEAD 450 (fulfills major and Connections: Local to Global) | 3 |
| Second Major, Minor, or General Elective | 3 | Second Major, Minor, or General Elective | 3 |
| Colonnade: Writing in the Disciplines | 3 | Colonnade: Social and Cultural | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| LEAD 465 | 3 | LEAD 400 | 1-6 |
| Second Major, Minor, or General Elective | 3 | Second Major, Minor, or General Elective | 3 |
| Colonnade: Systems | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total Hours 120 | |||
Organizational Leadership, Extended Option (48 hours)
| First Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| Colonnade: College Composition | 3 | LEAD 330 | 3 |
| MATH 109 (or higher) | 3 | Major Elective | 3 |
| LEAD 200 or LEAD 300 | 3 | COMM 145 | 3 |
| Colonnade: Arts & Humanities | 3 | HIST 101 or HIST 102 | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | Colonnade: Literary Studies | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Second Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| LEAD 325 | 3 | LEAD 395 | 3 |
| Major Elective | 3 | Major Elective | 3 |
| Colonnade: Social and Behavioral Sciences | 3 | Major Elective | 3 |
| Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences | 3 | Colonnade: Natural & Physical Sciences with lab | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Third Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| LEAD 440 | 3 | LEAD 450 (fulfills major and Connections: Local to Global) | 3 |
| Major Elective | 3 | Major Elective | 3 |
| Colonnade: Writing in the Disciplines | 3 | Colonnade: Social and Cultural | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Fourth Year | |||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours |
| LEAD 465 | 3 | LEAD 400 | 1-6 |
| Major Elective | 3 | Major Elective | 3 |
| Colonnade: Systems | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| General University Elective | 3 | General University Elective | 3 |
| 15 | 15 | ||
| Total Hours 120 | |||