in person, hybrid

Leadership

MA in Leadership

The Master of Arts in Leadership (MAL) is a fast-track degree for working professionals that develops the knowledge, skills, and self-insights to lead others with confidence and impact.

Designed for working professionals, the master’s program in leadership is designed to advance careers within a profession, rather than providing entry to a new profession. Typically, students will have 5-20 years of work experience and will be seeking additional credentials to advance into more senior leadership roles. The MA in Leadership is a professional degree that is completely focused on leadership skills rather than the broad business training found in an MBA program. Our unique cohort+ model provides the network and mutual support of a learning cohort, with optional electives that allow learners to take advantage of the graduate liberal arts education that is unique to CGU.

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Program Highlights
  • Enjoy a hybrid program that is primarily online, with in-person classes held one weekend per month.
  • Study Drucker principles integrated with positive psychology to develop both leadership skills and self-insight.
  • Address leadership at levels of self, team, organization, and society along dimensions of people, purpose, and performance.
  • Personalize your degree with elective offerings from throughout CGU.
  • Increase personal growth through leadership assessments, applied experiences, and an international trip.
  • Expand your leadership competencies with personalized, faculty-led coaching.

Program At-a-glance

  • 30 units

    required units

  • MA in Leadership

    degree awarded

  • In Person, Hybrid

    modality

  • Spring, Summer, Fall

    program start

  • 12-18 months | full time*

    estimated completion time

Request info Apply now

Michael Mirabella

Director of Recruitment for the Drucker School of Management

909-607-9049

Faculty

  • Stephen Gilliland

    Stephen Gilliland

    University Professor

    Research Interests

    Organizational Justice, Employee Attitudes and Motivation, Leadership

  • Portrait of Michelle Bligh

    Michelle Bligh

    Executive Vice President & Provost
    Professor of Organizational Behavior

    Research Interests

    Leadership, Organizational Culture, Charismatic Leadership

  • Portrait of Katharina Pick

    Katharina Pick

    Clinical Associate Professor

    Research Interests

    Organizational behavior, Teams, Organizational theory, Leadership, Corporate governance, Power and influence

  • Portrait of Bernie Jaworski

    Bernie Jaworski

    Peter F. Drucker Chair in Management and the Liberal Arts

    Research Interests

    Client Management, Leadership, Management, Marketing, Strategy

  • Cindi Gilliland

    Cindi Gilliland

    Professor of Practice in Organizational Psychology

    Research Interests

    Social Innovation, Resilience & Well-Being, Diversity and Inclusion

  • Maria Gloria Gonzalez

    M. Gloria González-Morales

    Associate Professor of Psychology
    Director, Center for Academic & Faculty Excellence

    Research Interests

    Work stress; work-life issues; workplace victimization and incivility; relational practices and cultures; diversity; positive organizational interventions to enhance well-being and performance.

  • Portrait of Jeremy Hunter

    Jeremy Hunter

    Associate Professor of Practice
    Founding Director, Executive Mind Leadership Institute

    Research Interests

    Mindfulness, Self-management, Executive mind

  • Portrait of Lori Anne Ferrell

    Lori Anne Ferrell

    Dean, School of Arts & Humanities
    Director, Early Modern Studies Program
    Director, Kingsley & Kate Tufts Poetry Awards

    Research Interests

    English Renaissance and Reformation Literature; Early Modern British and European History; Reformation Studies, Protestantism, the Bible and English-language Culture; the Bible in America; William Shakespeare

  • Kristine Kawamura

    Kristine Kawamura

    Clinical Professor of Management

    Research Interests

    Responsible management, Care (as a strategic resource), Values-based management systems, Leadership, Organizational strategy and culture, Cross cultural competence, Human performance and resilience

Curriculum

Core Classes

The core classes for the MA in Leadership are taken in a combination of formats: 3-day intensives (in-person), 8-week modules (hybrid), and 16-week semesters (hybrid).

  • Drucker Philosophy
  • Executive Mind
  • Diversity & Team Leadership
  • Leadership Ethics
  • Organizational Culture & Design
  • Leading Change & Innovation
  • Effective Leader Story Telling
  • Leading Through Data
  • Global Leadership (international trip)
  • Leadership Practicum I & II

Join a Cohort+

In the MA in Leadership program, you’ll experience our cohort+ model. In addition to gaining the network and support of a cohort of MAL students all completing core classes at the same time, you’ll benefit from additional features not usually offered in cohort-based professional programs.

  • Your core classes allow a limited number of CGU students in other programs to enroll, thereby expanding your network of peers and adding new perspectives in class.
  • You can take electives outside of your cohort-based classes from throughout CGU.

Customize Your Degree with Electives

8 units of electives* can be used to contextualize your degree based on your career focus (e.g., healthcare leadership, public policy leadership) or personal interests (e.g., positive psychology). You can take electives from programs across CGU or take full advantage of the unique CGU transdisciplinary experience with classes such as:

  • Transdisciplinary tools for equity: Institutions, organizations, and systems
  • Integrating Arts and Sciences
  • Urban studies
  • Data analytical tools, technologies, and applications
  • Science of human flourishing

*Note that some electives may be offered as in-person classes only.

Application Guidelines

Requirements Summary

Item Description
Application Fee $80
Official Transcripts Yes
Statement of Purpose Yes
Resume Yes

Spring 2024
Priority Deadline – November 1, 2023
Final Deadline (International) – November 15, 2023
Final Deadline (Domestic) – December 1, 2023
Classes begin – January 16, 2024

Summer 2024
Priority Deadline – February 1, 2024
Final Deadline (International) – March 1, 2024
Final Deadline (Domestic) – April 1, 2024
Classes begin – May 13, 2024

Fall 2024
Priority Deadline – February 1, 2024
Final Deadline (International) – July 5, 2024
Final Deadline (Domestic) – August 1, 2024
Classes begin – August 26, 2024

Application Checklist

Cost & Aid

Tuition and Fees

ESTIMATED TUITION (CALIFORNIA RESIDENTS, NON-RESIDENTS, INTERNATIONAL)
Program 30 units
Tuition per unit* $2,020

*Based on 2023-2024 tuition rates.

STUDENT FEES (PER SEMESTER)
$245 Student Fee
$150 Technology Fee
International Student Services Fee*: $661 fall semester, $776 spring semester
**Applies to all international students (F-1 visa only) who are registered in coursework, doctoral study, or continuous registration. The fee is assessed each fall and spring semester for annual ISO accident and sickness plans and administrative fees. Subject to change.

For estimates of room & board, books, etc., please download CGU’s Cost of Attendance 2022-2023 .

Review General Costs

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