Organizational Leadership (DOL)

To be considered for admission to the program, applicants must: 

• Complete the online application here.
• Submit an official transcript for a master’s degree. (Applicants must have completed a master’s degree with a minimum 3.25 GPA and taken at least one course in statistics.)
• Submit a résumé that demonstrates a minimum of 8-10 years of progressive professional work experience.
• Submit two letters of recommendation: One from your employer that speaks to your professional work experience and leadership skills, the second from an individual who can attest to your leadership skills.
• Submit a 400- to 500-word personal essay that describes what attracts you to this doctorate program. 
• Submit a 500- to 750-word essay in response to one of the following prompts: 
  • What is the role of leadership in an organization as it focuses on challenges and issues of the twenty-first century?
  • Leadership is often defined as the “art of influence.” What lessons have you learned from a leader you admire?
  • Compare and contrast your leadership style with that of a leader you admire and respect.
  • Describe how sustainable leadership (economic, social and environmental) fits with your personal paradigm of leadership.
• Provide one of the following admission elements:
  • Standardized test scores (SLLA, GRE, GMAT or MAT) - OR - 
  • Evidence of master’s level culminating research experience (capstone project, thesis, field work or action research project)

Program Requirements

The doctoral programs Doctorate in Organizational Leadership (DOL/DBA) requires sixty credits beyond the master’s degree and consists of twenty-seven credits of core coursework, twelve credits from a specialization tier, nine credits of research methodology courses, and a twelve-credit applied research-based capstone dissertation project.

Research Methodology Tier

To address the research tier, all candidates complete the following three Research Methodology courses for a total of nine credits:

Core Leadership Tier

Courses delivering the 27 core credits are designed to provide every cohort member with a common set of understandings about key elements of effective organizational leadership. This tier of courses includes the following:

Additional Requirements for DBA candidates

• Six approved management workshops 
• Conference presentation (local, regional, national, or international) 
• Experiential opportunity with a faculty member 
• Paper publication (or preparation of paper to be published)

Specialization Tier

Candidates who enter the doctoral program come from many different sectors including business, education, non-profits, the military and government. In order to provide a flexible program that meets the personal and professional needs of candidates, the specialization tier provides opportunity to develop more specialized study. Selection of courses are guided by the candidate’s goal of enhancing understanding of their industry or building new content development in a complimentary area. Candidates will work closely with their faculty adviser and select courses to support their personal and professional goals. The candidates will identify courses at the end of year one coursework and submit a declaration of specialization form to the Doctoral Program Director for approval. Year Two coursework will include the specialization courses outlined in the declaration form. Candidates will complete their specialization coursework no later than fall semester of year three.

All candidates will select one specialization from the following:

• General Leaderhip

• Education Leadership

• Business Leadership

• Government Leadership

The twelve specialization credits are selected by candidates from among the graduate course offerings within the disciplines of Counseling, Economics & Business Administration, and Education; the selection of specialization courses is subject to the approval of each candidate’s adviser and Program Director.  With similar approval, appropriate courses from other departments may also meet this requirement. Candidates complete all course requirements for each of the three courses in this series and, in addition, in consultation with their adviser, design and conduct a project related to each course. These projects will involve either the candidate’s employer or a local organization and have as their goal to help inform the candidate concerning the ultimate subject of his/her research-based capstone experience. Up to six credits beyond the master’s degree may be transferred toward meeting this requirement with the approval of the advisor.

Select three of the following:

Candidates design an capstone dissertation research project to address a challenge within their working context, organization, or community. The project incorporates leadership-based research, the working context of the candidate, and the impact of effective leadership. The capstone credits are distributed across three semesters of 3-four credit classes:

Comprehensive Examination: Students will sit for a comprehensive examination that tests their grasp of the first four leadership core classes and the three research methods courses.  Comprehensive exams are completed int he spring of Year II of the program.

Portfolio Evaluation: Students will be required to maintain a portfolio of their work in Chalk and Wire. The major assignment from each class must be submitted to Chalk and Wire. This collection of assignments will comprise the student portfolio, which will be reviewed at the end of the second year by a faculty team. In addition, students are required to submit a statement indicating their plans for future research and capstone work at the end of the first year. This statement will also be reviewed by a faculty team.