Leadership, M.A.
Lead with purpose and cultivate diverse, effective teams. Be prepared for leadership in today’s complex and changing contexts.
In today's world, leaders are tasked with managing increasing complexity. As organizations become more geographically distributed and diverse, leaders must be able to effectively guide people and manage systems through innovation, change-acceleration and globalization.
Our flexible, online Master of Arts in Leadership program is designed for working adults who seek to strengthen their leadership skills and aspire to take on new leadership roles. In this 33-credit hour program, you will learn to lead teams and organizations both relationally and strategically. You will develop your leadership purpose and strengths to lead effectively in a wide variety of contexts.
The program can be started in any semester and be completed at a full-time, half-time or part-time pace.
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Program Customization
You work with an advisor to craft an interdisciplinary course of study that best prepares you for current or planned leadership contexts. More than a third of the degree credits are electives where you can choose from more than 100 courses to match with your career interests and desired areas of leadership development.
For example, courses of study can be customized for the following focus areas:
- Business
- Diversity, equity, and inclusion
- Nonprofit
- Higher education
- Sports teams and organizations
Program Delivery
Leadership is all about engaging with people. So, to enable our students to learn the personal aspects of leadership, the core leadership courses include 90-minute synchronous class sessions using Zoom once a week. Each class session enables you to discuss what you are learning from that module and engage with others as part of your learning experience.
Many of the core leadership courses are conducted in a mini-term format, allowing you to focus your attention on fewer classes at once.
Note: While the program is offered in a format that makes it available to students in a fully remote manner (i.e., does not require attending courses on-site), some elective courses do not offer that option. In addition, electives vary in scheduled format, with some offered in mini-terms and others offered over the course of a full term.
I am applying what I have learned in my leadership courses to my career every day. The courses challenged me to be a critical thinker in the workplace, embracing leadership and diversity.
Accreditation
Lenoir-Rhyne is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.
The M.A. in Leadership is not accredited by the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP) due to the nature of the program.
Program Requirements
In today's world, leaders are tasked with managing increasing complexity. As organizations become more distributed and diverse, leaders must be able to effectively guide people and manage systems through innovation, change-acceleration, and globalization. The purpose of Lenoir-Rhyne University's Master of Arts in Leadership is to develop innovative, relationally perceptive, and reflective professionals skilled at leading with purpose in a changing world. Students who currently work in (or plan to work in) public, private, and nonprofit organizations will benefit from this 33-credit hour degree designed to provide analytical and practical tools for leadership in multiple contexts.
Program Goals
The program is designed to develop four particular leadership capacities in graduate students.
- Leadership Range
Students are fluent in applying interdisciplinary leadership theory and data to address the challenges and opportunities of an organization or community. - Relational Leadership Savvy
Students are perceptive in applying cognitive and emotional skills to lead themselves and diverse others. - Reflective Practitioners
Students habitually use a reflective and iterative approach to leading. - Purposeful Leaders
Students demonstrate confidence in making leadership choices based on clarity of personal and organizational purpose.
Flexible Structure
Designed for working adults, this degree provides flexibility in both the course of study and the sequence and pace of the program.
- Personal Course of Study
Drawing on Lenoir-Rhyne's liberal arts heritage, at the start of the program, students work with their advisor to craft an interdisciplinary course of study that best prepares them for their current or planned leadership contexts. More than a third of the degree credits are electives where students can choose from over 100 courses. In particular, students often choose to pursue elective in business, non-profit, sports organizations, higher education and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. - Degree Sequence and Pace
Designed for adult students who are working full-time or managing other significant external commitments, this program can be started in any semester and be completed at a full-time, half-time or part-time pace. Additionally, students can pursue this degree remotely since the courses are offered in a Blended Streaming format (which means a portion of the class is synchronously broadcast from an instructor's computer to students in remote sites in real time and a portion of the class is asynchronous online).
Program Admission Requirements
Visit graduate admission for the most current program admission requirements.
Program Core and Electives
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MA in Leadership Core (21 hours)
- LED 500 - Leadership Assessment
- LED 517 - Foundations of Leadership
- LED 527 - Strategic Leadership and Communication
- LED 537 - Leading Change, Innovation, and Agility
- LED 547 - Leading Diverse Teams
- LED 557 - Personal Leadership Development and Ethics
- LED 570 - Leadership Practicum Applied Research
- LED 590 - Leadership Reflections
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MA in Leadership Elective Credits (12 hours)
Any graduate level course that does not require a prerequisite and up to 6 credits of LED 501 Leadership Internship. Note: While the program is offered in a format that makes it available to students in a fully remote manner (i.e., does not require attending courses on-site). some elective courses do not offer that option.
Graduate Admission and Financial Aid
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Connect with UsWe offer regular virtual information sessions via Zoom so watch our calendar for upcoming sessions. Or reach out directly to a graduate enrollment counselor for assistance.
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ApplyWith your convenience in mind, we have outlined a step-by-step process that should assist you in submitting your application and supporting documentation — and we are here to answer any questions.
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Admission CounselorsThe Graduate School admission team is here to talk one-on-one with prospective students to help you make your enrollment as easy as possible. Our counselors will provide the information and guidance you need to submit your application, apply for financial aid, visit and learn more about the many opportunities available to new students.
News & Events
Lenoir-Rhyne will honor the Class of 2025 with commencement ceremonies in Columbia on May 8, Hickory on May 9 and Asheville on May 10.
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The prestigious Carnegie Classifications place LR among a select group of institutions nationwide for focus on professional programs, student access and career outcomes.
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