First Semester
6 credits

Dynamics of Group & Organizational Behavior
4 Sessions/ 2 credits

This module is a study of group behavior and how group functioning affects organizational effectiveness.  Emphasis is placed on decision-making and conflict resolution in groups.  Students develop strategies for efficient and productive group management and determine which tasks are best handled by groups of individuals.

Report Writing
4 Sessions/ 2 Credits

Students will explore techniques for improving the effectiveness of writing styles and forms common to the business world.  Students in the course will have the opportunity to improve their ability to communicate through critical thinking, writing, revising and editing.  Students will also prepare for the writing of the Applied Research Project.

Leadership and Social Concern I
2 Sessions/ 1 Credit

Through an analysis or readings of selected individuals who have developed positions on social concerns, a model for social change will be developed.  This course is seen as a concluding experience intended to integrate the various theories with a dimension that is uniquely Wheeling Jesuit University’s: the Jesuit dimension of “Men and Women for Others.”

Adult Development and Learning
4 Sessions / 1 Credit

Students use readings, classroom discussions and assignments to develop an understanding of adult growth, especially as it relates to personal and professional development.  They will examine a variety of learning styles and content areas as they explore adult development and learning across the life span.

System Management
4 Sessions/ 2 Credits

Students examine the organization using a system model.  They analyze various formal and informal aspects of the organization including structure, purpose, leadership, rewards, relationships, helpful mechanisms and power and decision-making.  This analysis can be applied to the student’s work-related research project or to another organization of the student’s choice.

Research Methods
6 Sessions/ 3 Credits

Students will examine key concepts of research design, methods of data collection and data analysis.  Students will cover how to write a clear research question, hypothesis formation, sampling techniques, questionnaires, interviews and design of tables and graphs among other topics.  The module will help students produce a well designed and executed Applied Research Project.

Effective Interpersonal Communication
4 Sessions/ 2 Credits

This module investigates the roles of communication and relationships creating a productive work environment.  Effectiveness in personal and social relationships is covered through readings and exercises concerning non-verbal communication, constructive feedback, assertiveness and conflict resolution.

Applied research Project
2 Credits

The project examines an organizational problem in the student’s occupational or vocational setting and proposes a solution or a combination of solutions.  The student formulates the problem statement and develops and implements a research design.  The project includes a review of literature and is completed over a 12-month period.

Culture and Culture Conflict
4 Sessions/ 2 Credits

Students use literature and interviews to explore the values, beliefs, customs and perceptions of racial and ethnic groups, especially as these affect interactions in the workplace.  The concepts of culture and social class are developed through simulations.  The obligations and implications of equal opportunity laws are discussed.

Religion and Belief
2 Sessions/1 Credit

The focus is an examination of a key question:  What is the meaning of life?  The module presupposes that religion is expressive of the human activity which seeks to answer this question satisfactorily.  Within the module itself will be the consideration of alternative religious schema.

Third Semester
12 credits

Principles of Management and Supervision
8 Sessions/ 4 Credits

The major theme of this module is behavior within organizations and its impact upon and by the organization.  Emphasis will be placed on understanding (a) motivational theory and how it may explain individual as well as group actions; (b) leadership style as it relates to organizational theory or design; (c) negotiations within the organization; (d) current management theories including their use within the organization; and (e) supervisory issues such as performance appraisal, legal concerns in employment practices and employee benefits.

Business Ethics
5 Sessions/ 3 Credits

The purpose of this module is to enhance the students’ ability to recognize actual and potential ethical problems in the workplace for the purpose of preventing or resolving them.  Through readings, videos and discussions, students learn to apply ethical principles to cases involving such things as hiring, conflicts of interest, gifts and bribes, fairness and consumer, environmental and safety issues.

Leadership and Social Concern II
2 Sessions/ 1 Credit

A continuation from the first semester.

Applied Research Project
4 Credits

A continuation from the second semester, the student’s major research project is completed and orally presented to BOLD faculty and the learning group.