Doctorate in Strategic Leadership

Program Overview

Mission

Students will use their Divine Design, God-given talents and passions, as consultants to serve Christ and the world in their life, careers and ministry, learning, and leadership. They will exemplify leader traits (Be), leadership studies (Know), and work in academia or business (Do). Courses contain face-to-face (F2F) residencies on SEU campus in Lakeland, Florida, and virtual asynchronous and synchronous components online.

Doctor of Strategic Leadership (DSL)

An applied, multidisciplinary program for individuals called to serve others as an organizational consultant, executive coach, or executive leader in business, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, government agencies, military, and ministry.

Program Learning Outcomes (PLO)

Upon completion of the program, students will be able to do the following:

• Core 1: Demonstrate an in-depth knowledge of leadership theory by analyzing and evaluating organization trends.
• Core 2: Apply qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods research to study and advise organizations.
• DSL 1: Conduct an organizational consulting assessment in order to inform clients of their vulnerabilities, mitigate them, and optimize organizational performance.
• DSL 2: Disseminate Strategic Leadership ideas via collaboration, advocacy, and literature.  

 

Career Options

• Organizational Consultant for business, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, government agencies, military, and ministry
• Executive Coach for business, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, government agencies, military, and ministry
• Executive Leadership for business, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, government agencies, military, and ministry

 

Program Summary 

The DSL consists of 18 courses (54 credit hours) plus a minimum of 6 credit hours of capstone project work. Our delivery model is hybrid. We will conduct residencies each semester. Summer residency is 5 days in early May, typically the week before Mother’s Day. Fall residency is 3 days, just before and during Labor Day weekend at the end of August, beginning of September. Spring residency is 3 days in March and coincides with SEU’s Leadership Forum. It falls during the middle of that semester. Courses are offered in 8-week sessions. Some courses contain face-to-face classroom time during residencies. Others are completely online. These will contain both asynchronous and synchronous sessions, like webinars and virtual lectures.

Graduation Requirements                                 

• DSL students complete 54 hours of course work and 6 hours of major capstone project for a total of 60 credit hours
• 3.0 cumulative GPA for all courses with no more than two “C” grades
• Give at least one presentation at an academic or professional conference
• Submit at least one article in an academic or professional journal for publication
• Pass all questions on comprehensive exam, proctored on campus at SEU
• Capstone project

 

Entrance Requirements

Prospective students must provide evidence of character, excellence in scholarship, experience with leadership, and potential to conduct scholarly research and presenting results at the doctoral level. Requirements:

• Master’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university with a minimum GPA of 3.0. Official transcripts are required.
• Resume or Curriculum Vita. We will holistically evaluate this to determine how the person’s past education and work experience have established a basis for continued development of higher-level academic skills in the study of leadership.
• Two professional letters of recommendation that address person’s character, experience with leadership, and ability to complete the doctoral program.
• Admission Essay that addresses why you chose SEU for your doctoral studies, your goals for the program, talents and experiences that can lead to success, and how you will contribute to others. See specific requirements.

DSL Admission Essay: Please complete these essay questions to assist in evaluating your fit with our doctoral program. This is an opportunity to articulate your goals for the program, talents and experiences that can lead to success, and how you will contribute to others. Answer the following questions in approximately 1000 words. Your essay should be e-mailed directly to the Admission Office at admission@seu.edu.

• Describe your personal and professional goals and how a doctoral degree from the Jannetides College of Business and Entrepreneurial Leadership will help. Program descriptions to assist you in your response:
  • Doctor of Strategic Leadership (DSL): An applied, multidisciplinary program for individuals called to serve others as an organizational consultant, executive coach, or executive leader in business, nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, government agencies, military, and ministry.
• Why have you selected Southeastern University to help you achieve your goals?
• Doctoral programs in the Jannetides College of Business and Entrepreneurial Leadership are rigorous and rewarding. Comment on personal attributes and experiences that demonstrate your ability to successfully complete a doctorate-level program. Include previous academic and professional experiences that document your capacity for learning.
• Servant leadership is important to the Southeastern University community. Comment on how your personal characteristics and faith inform your concept of servant leadership and how you will contribute to the program, faculty, and fellow students.
• Doctoral Writing Sample that demonstrate your research, writing, analytical, and problem-solving skills. See specific requirements.

Doctoral Writing Sample: Writing samples play an important role in helping the Admissions Committee evaluate a doctoral applicant’s research, writing, analytical and problem-solving skills. Please provide a 600-word essay addressing the topic. E-mail your doctoral writing sample to the Admission Office at admission@seu.edu.

• What is the most pressing leadership issue of today? We will evaluate it with the following criteria:
  • Thesis Development and Critical Thinking. The thesis expresses the main idea of the paper in one sentence and informs the reader of the paper’s focus. Critical thinking is the act of examining, analyzing, and evaluating information followed by drawing accurate conclusions.
  • Paper is a professional product. It is separated into clear sections. It includes a clear transition from one section to the next. Paper is free of capitalization, format, grammar, punctuation, and spelling errors.
  • Correct writing style. Professional publications require specific writing styles in order to get published. Compose the writing sample in APA, MLA, or other acceptable style. Please state the style you use. Ensure you use the styles paper format, in-text citations, and reference/works cited/bibliography section.
  • Use one leadership book, one scholarly journal article, and one online news article in your essay.

 

Other policies specific to this program

Transfer credits

Doctoral coursework from regionally accredited universities may be transferrable to your doctoral program on a case-by-case basis. Transfer courses must have been at the doctoral level, earned a grade B or higher, and should be an appropriate match to the courses required in SEU’s doctoral program. If you have completed graduate coursework after your master’s degree that was not included in another degree and which you believe should be counted toward your doctoral plan of study, discuss these courses with your academic advisor in your first advising session. You must submit copies of your unofficial transcript, the course catalog description, and official information from the institution’s catalog. Transfer courses must be approved by the academic advisor at the point of admission to the program. Future courses from other universities will not be transferred without prior approval from the academic advisor and DSL Coordinator.

Overview of Capstone Project Process

The capstone project is the culminating activity for DSL students. It is an application of leadership theories, principles, and concepts from throughout the program, for a particular audience. We encourage students to be entrepreneurial in their proposals. Students will work with their project chair on the details and deliverables of the project. The capstone project is more flexible than a formal dissertation but no less of a considerable undertaking. Chairs will assist students in finding two other project committee members. Students will conduct the capstone project in the LDSL 9013 and 9023 courses. A one-credit continuation course, LDSL 9051, is available per semester for students who have not completed their project after the two-course sequence. Capstone Projects should cover topical areas such as: leadership, followership, teamwork, motivation, organizational culture, strategy, management, and structure. Project ideas include but are not limited to the following:

• Write a book. Complete a book manuscript and submit to a publisher on one or more of the topics studied in the program.
• Educational video or audio webinar. Design and conduct an extensive webinar on one or more of the topics studied in the program.
• Educational video or audio conference. Design and conduct an extensive conference workshop on one or more of the topics studied in the program.
• Organizational consulting project. This could be for an external organization or internally with a student’s current organization. It can include: diagnosing a problem or challenge through surveys and interviews, then conducting quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods analysis to recommend solutions.
• Design a new organization and business plan or major change initiative in an existing organization, incorporating concepts studied in the program.
• Dramatic presentation (play, movie, concert) on one or more of the topics studied in the program.
• Other creative ideas are welcome!

 

Course Plan/Sequence. See course plans and audit sheets.

• DSL Program Plan
• DSL Degree Audit

 

Program Plan

Doctorate in Strategic Leadership Program Plan