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Mar 15, 2026
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2025-2026 SGPP Catalog and Student Handbook
Organizational Leadership, M.A.
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Program Description
The M.A. in Organizational Leadership combines theoretical and practical leadership strategies with best practices to equip today’s adaptive leaders—those who stand poised to respond quickly yet intelligently to ongoing change. In addition to developing their own leadership style, students gain proficiency in leveraging emerging technologies, including artificial intelligence, to enhance decision-making, strategic planning, and team performance. They learn analytical and interpersonal skills such as influencing, collaborating, and managing conflict, alongside the ability to ethically apply AI tools for data-driven insights, process optimization, and innovative problem solving. Students become agents of organizational development and effectiveness as they learn to think critically and strategically about a myriad of organizational and ethical issues, to communicate and collaborate effectively, to manage talent, to build high-performing and inclusive teams, and to address challenges with both human-centered leadership and intelligent technological solutions.
Program Outcomes
Graduates of the Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership program are expected to be able to do the following:
- Evaluate and apply leading theories, models, and best practices in organizational leadership to real-world challenges.
- Demonstrate an awareness of one’s evolving leadership identity.
- Model effective communication strategies to influence individuals and organizations.
- Analyze the ethical implications of leadership decisions and practices.
- Evaluate the internal and external contexts in which organizations operate, including economic, social, political, and cultural factors.
- Explore organizational strategies that build inclusive cultures and support diverse perspectives.
- Integrate advanced analytical tools and conceptual frameworks to inform complex, high-level strategic decision-making.
- Demonstrate the ability to collaborate across diverse teams using inclusive and results-oriented communication and leadership techniques.
- Develop creative, adaptive strategies that foster innovation, resilience, and sustainable transformation in organizations.
- Design, execute, and communicate rigorous research to support evidence-based leadership practices and organizational improvement.
- Integrate artificial intelligence (A.I.) tools and data-driven insights into ethical decision-making, strategic planning, and leadership practices to enhance organizational effectiveness and innovation.
Program Structure and Delivery
The Master of Arts in Organizational Leadership program is offered fully online.
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Degree Requirements
| Required Core Courses | 27 cr. | | Required Capstone Course | 3 cr. | | Total | 30 cr. | Required Core Courses: 27 cr.
Required Capstone Course: 3 cr.
Faculty
The faculty members for this program have earned doctorate or master’s degrees. Faculty are selected for their combination of educational and professional experience and expertise. Admission Requirements
Applicants may apply for admission to master’s degree programs at any time during the year. Applicants must have completed an undergraduate degree from a regionally accredited institution and maintained an overall grade point average of 2.75 on a 4.00 scale. Applicants must demonstrate the language proficiency necessary for successful graduate coursework. Applicants may complete an interview with a program administrator as part of the admission process. Graduate Certificate to Master’s Degree
Students currently enrolled in a Saint Mary’s University graduate certificate program that can be used toward this degree are eligible to enroll in the master’s program through the Change/Add Program process. Students that have been withdrawn from the university must seek readmission through the Registrar’s office. Application Process
Applicants must submit: - Completed application form and,
- An official transcript issued to Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota from the institution posting the applicant’s completed bachelor’s degree and other relevant transcripts documenting program prerequisites and potential transfer credits. (An official transcript is one that is sent to the university by the credit-granting institution. Transcripts from countries other than the U.S. must be evaluated on a course by course basis by a university accepted evaluation service, such as World Education Services, Educational Credential Evaluators, Educational Perspectives, or One Earth International Credential Evaluators and be deemed equivalent to accredited U.S. university standards). Evaluations from an approved member of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES.org) will also be accepted.
Students with transcripts issued in the U.S. may be admitted without an official transcript. Students must provide an official transcript by the last day to add/drop classes in their first term of attendance. In cases where students are completing coursework while simultaneously applying for admission, students may be admitted with an in-progress transcript, and an official transcript posting final grades and, when appropriate, degree attainment, must be submitted before students are allowed to register for subsequent semesters. See individual programs for additional application requirements. Please Note: Application materials should be sent to the attention of the Office of Admission on the Minneapolis Campus. Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
Office of Admission
2500 Park Ave S
Minneapolis, MN 55404 |
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