2009-2010 Catalog - Graduate School - Bethel University

Academic Programs and DisciplinesOrganizational LeadershipM.A. in Organizational LeadershipMajor in Organizational Leadership (ORLG)The organizational leadership program prepares learners for professional service andleadership through a body of learning grounded in the liberal arts and a Christianworldview. It builds on the foundation of an undergraduate education, enhancingthe knowledge, capacities, and competencies learners have gained therein.Leadership, in its broadest sense, is a relationship between people in which someare able to bring about changes that benefit all involved. In an organization thisrelationship has structure, with mutual expectations and modes of behavior. Thus,leaders play roles that depend partly on their social situation but also on the needs,values, and opportunities of the entire group.The M.A. in Organizational Leadership program at Bethel has three primarypurposes:• Prepare learners to apply creative and critical thinking to leadership opportunitiesand challenges.• Equip learners to adopt new approaches and techniques of information managementand application.• Empower learners to discern and apply Christian ethics and worldviews toleadership practice.Bethel University seeks applicants for the M.A. in Organizational Leadership whoare seeking to further develop their leadership knowledge and skills.Program OutcomesThe desired outcomes for graduates of the program are:• Ability to take leadership roles in business, civic, education, government,health, nonprofit, religious, social service, and other organizations.• Sensitivity to the needs and perceptions of others.• Ability to envision opportunities and desirable futures and to devise meansof attaining them.• Effective communication skills, both interpersonal and through print and/orelectronic media.• Awareness of the means of gaining and using power, both positively andnegatively.• Ability to build and work with teams and networks, within and outside alearner’s organization.74