Program Overview

Program Overview

The Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Leadership is a 100% online degree program that features a flexible curriculum, allowing students with prior learning to potentially complete their degrees more efficiently. This program is designed to help students confront complex social, cultural, and organizational issues that they will face as leaders or managers.

Program Details

• The program requires a minimum of 120 credits.
• A student enrolled in this major must receive a grade of C or better in all courses required for the major.
• The program includes prescribed courses, additional courses, and supporting courses and related areas.

Prescribed Courses (21 credits)

• OLEAD 100: Introduction to Leadership (3 credits)
• OLEAD 201: Organizational Theory and Functions for Leaders (3 credits)
• OLEAD 210: Evidence-Based Leadership (3 credits)
• OLEAD 464: Communication Skills for Leaders in Groups and Organizations (3 credits)
• OLEAD 465: Collective Decision-Making (3 credits)
• PSYCH 100: Introductory Psychology (3 credits)
• PSYCH 484: Work Attitudes and Motivation (3 credits)

Additional Courses (12 credits)

• Select one course from each area:
  • Critical Thinking (select 3 credits)
    • IST 110: Information, People, and Technology (3 credits)
    • PHIL 10: Critical Thinking (3 credits)
  • Organizational Behavior (select 3 credits)
    • LHR 202: Understanding Employee Behavior (3 credits)
    • PSYCH 281: Introduction to Industrial-Organizational Psychology (3 credits)
  • Conflict Management (select 3 credits)
    • CAS 404: Conflict Resolution and Negotiation (3 credits)
    • LHR 312: Research Methods in Labor Studies and Employment Relations (3 credits)
    • LHR 437: Workplace Dispute Resolution (3 credits)
    • SOC 207: Research Methods in Sociology (3 credits)
  • Ethics (select 3 credits)
    • LHR 460: Ethics in the Workplace (3 credits)
    • PHIL 119: Ethical Leadership (3 credits)

Supporting Courses and Related Areas (select 3–4 credits)

• Select 3–4 credits at the 400-level from the following list of courses.
• Courses that are used in the Additional Courses category may not be double-counted to satisfy this requirement.

Bachelor of Arts Degree Requirements

• Some Bachelor of Arts requirements may be satisfied by courses required for the major, General Education courses, or electives.
• Students should work with an adviser to select courses.
• The degree requirements include:
  • Foreign Language: 0–12 credits
  • B.A. Fields: 9 credits
  • Other Cultures: 0–3 credits

General Education Requirements

• Some General Education requirements may be satisfied by courses required for the major.
• Students should work with an adviser to select courses.
• The General Education requirements include:
  • Foundations: 15 credits
  • Knowledge Domains: 15 credits
  • Integrative Studies: 6 credits
  • Exploration: 9 credits

Elective Courses (select 18-24 credits)

• Among the degree requirements, students should incorporate at least:
  • 3 credits in U.S. cultures
  • 3 credits in international (IL) cultures
  • 3 credits in writing-across-the-curriculum courses

Career Opportunities

• The Bachelor of Arts in Organizational Leadership can prepare students to work in a range of relationship-focused careers in which their leadership skills can contribute positively to the overall business climate and interpersonal interactions.
• Potential career fields include:
  • Manufacturing
  • Service industries
  • Government
  • Communications
  • Charitable and nonprofit organizations
  • Multinational organizations

Faculty

• The program is taught by highly regarded faculty from Penn State's College of the Liberal Arts.
• The faculty includes:
  • Elaine Farndale, Director, School of Labor and Employment Relations
  • Brian Redmond, Lead Faculty
  • Carol Cameron, Faculty
  • Donna J. Dennis, Faculty
  • Michael Hamel, Faculty
  • Carmen Jones, Faculty
  • Douglas Lindsay, Faculty
  • Allison Maurer, Faculty
  • Kim Trahan, Faculty

Tuition and Financial Aid

• Undergraduate tuition is calculated based on the number of credits for which you register and the number of total credits you have accrued at or transferred to Penn State.
• The 2025–26 academic year rates are:
  • $638 per credit (if you have 59 or fewer credits)
  • $685 per credit (if you have 60 or more credits)
• Financial aid and military benefits are available to eligible students.