Business Leadership Certificate

Mission

The mission of CU Boulder’s Leeds School of Business is to educate principled, innovative leaders who drive value for businesses. We are introducing the Business Leadership Certificate as a way to enhance our existing programming around leadership.

Certificate Description

The Business Leadership Certificate provides Leeds School of Business students with the foundations of theory and research on leadership, but emphasizes personal growth and professional experiences such as coaching, mentoring, and engaging in leadership roles. By the time they graduate, students should be poised to start embracing leadership challenges as they unfold, make sense of leadership experiences, feel comfortable with business leadership and societal leadership dynamics, and lead with an ethical compass.

The Business Leadership Certificate is recommended for Leeds School of Business students who:

  • are interested in learning about the art and science of leadership
  • have the desire and motivation to engage with personal growth and to discover their own potential
  • understand and accept that the leadership is based on personal development as much as professional development
  • want to accelerate their leadership development so they can best learn from their early career experiences
  • want to start their own companies or lead important projects for social change

Benefits

Business leadership certificate students get:

  • Access to the most updated and multidisciplinary findings from science
  • The chance to practice leadership concepts and tools for work and life
  • Guidance in their own personal growth process

Requirements

To teach students to be leaders, we must go beyond the traditional classroom, providing students with the opportunity to engage in leadership experiences and to make sense of those experiences to prepare them for future leader roles. As such we include both classroom and experiential requirements to the certificate.

Coursework

Required Courses for Leadership Certificate (Total: 6 credits)

  • Principles of Organizational Behavior (BCOR 2202)1.5 credits
  • Business Ethics and Social Responsibility (BCOR 2302) 1.5 credits
  • Critical Leadership Skills (ORGN 3030) 3 credits

Choose Any Two Elective Courses for Leadership Certificate (Total: 6 credits)

  • Negotiation and Conflict Management (ORGN 3010) 3 credits
  • Fundamentals of Ethical Leadership (ORGN 3040) 3 credits
  • International Business and Management (INBU 3300 or INBU 3301) 3 credits
  • Leading Diverse and Inclusive Organizations (ORGN 4300) 3 credits

Experiential

Experiential Learning: 

  • Students must complete a Leadership Experience (organized and led every year by the director in collaboration with other possible professionals) such as a weekend retreat or some practical workshops. These experiences are meant to take the learning beyond the classroom.
  • Students must complete a Team Project to show understanding and applications of modern leadership dynamics. This project is part of the course “Critical Leadership Skills” or “Systems Thinking,” one of the courses for the certificate. By passing either course, students automatically fulfill the Team Project requirement. 

Apply for Admission

Please complete your application here and email the director of the program Dejun “Tony” Kong at DejunTony.Kong@colorado.edu.