Doctor of Strategic Leadership

The Doctor of Strategic Leadership is a 54-hour professional degree program designed to prepare graduates to apply research techniques and theories to create the most effective environment and practices for leadership in the commercial, nonprofit, government, military, education, medical, and arts sectors. Graduates will apply critical evaluation of the quality and applicability of published leadership research coupled with research operations and systems analysis to develop innovative approaches to leadership as it applies to their concentration.

Students will choose from one of the following concentrations: Christian Ministry; Education; Humanities and Culture; or Nursing Organizational Leadership.

Program Outcomes

Students who matriculate to completion of the Doctor of Strategic Leadership will:

Discern the various leadership styles, assess best practices within a chosen field, and apply strategic leadership theories to one’s research.
Develop leadership skills as they pertain to entrepreneurship, change management, and conflict.
Design and conduct original research that adds to the scholarly knowledge and community in the area of leadership.
Analyze, synthesize, design, develop, and evaluate advanced research and methodologies as they apply to a Christian perspective on global leadership within the 21st Century.

Admissions Requirements

Requirements for students with graduate GPA of 3.4 or greater:

Complete the online application and pay the application fee.
Provide official transcript for all degrees, one of which must be a conferred Master’s degree. (No action required from student if degrees were earned solely from WBU.)
Submit current resume.

Requirements for students with graduate GPA of 3.0 to 3.39:

Complete the online application and pay the application fee.
Provide official transcripts for all degrees, one of which must be a conferred Master’s degree. (No action required from student if degrees were earned solely from WBU.)
Submit current resume.
Participate in a Personal Interview with someone from the Admissions Committee

Course Requirements - 54 hrs

Leadership Core - 24 hrs:
LDRS 6000 - Orientation to the Doctor of Strategic Leadership 0 hrs
LDRS 6301 - Leadership Theory 3 hrs
LDRS 6302 - Intercultural Leadership and Communication 3 hrs
LDRS 6303 - Servant Leadership 3 hrs
LDRS 6304 - Ethical Leadership 3 hrs
LDRS 6305 - Strategic Planning and Vision Casting 3 hrs
LDRS 6306 - The Influential Leader 3 hrs
LDRS 6307 - Critical and Complex Issues in Leadership 3 hrs
LDRS 6308 - Strategic Team Management 3 hrs
Concentration Electives - 12 hrs:
Students will choose 12 hours (6325 - 6328) from one of the following concentrations
MNST 6325 - Christian Leadership in Contemporary Contexts 3 hrs - MNST 6328 - Leadership Topics in Christian Ministry 3 hrs
EDUC 6325 - Leadership Topics in Education 3 hrs - EDUC 6328 - Leadership Topics in Education 3 hrs
HUMA 6325 - Leadership Topics in Humanities and Culture 3 hrs - HUMA 6328 - Leadership Topics in Humanities and Culture 3 hrs
NURS 6325 - Leadership Topics in Nursing 3 hrs - NURS 6328 - Leadership Topics in Nursing 3 hrs
Research Courses - 9 hrs:
LDRS 6340 - Principles of Research 3 hrs
LDRS 6341 - Research Framework and Design 3 hrs
LDRS 6342 - Candidacy 3 hrs
Dissertation Coursework - 9 hrs:
LDRS 6443 - Dissertation I 4 hrs
LDRS 6444 - Dissertation II 4 hrs
LDRS 6141 - Dissertation Defense 1 hrs