THE ONLINE MASTER OF SCIENCE IN ADMINISTRATION
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COURSE DESCRIPTIONS
FOUNDATION COURSES (All Are Required)
ADM 510: Advanced Technical Communication
Principles and practices of writing material particular to science, technology, and specialized professions. Includes expanded definitions, technical descriptions, process explanations, instructional pamphlets, laboratory reports, proposals, writing for the web, communicating with international audiences, and managing effective presentations. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to effectively write various types of technical documents, adapt rhetorical forms to technical communications, and provide constructive feedback regarding written communication in collaborative and leadership settings.
ADM 511: Interpersonal Communication Skills
Conceptual and developmental views of interpersonal communication. Theory and practice of effective interpersonal communication. Self, perception, and cultural diversity in interpersonal communication. Skills relating to listening and responding, verbal and nonverbal communication, and conflict resolution. Understanding, developing, and nurturing interpersonal communication relationships with family, friends, and colleagues. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to effectively exercise fundamental interpersonal communication skills, build and nurture interpersonal relationships, provide constructive feedback regarding interpersonal communication in leadership settings, and exercise teamwork skills.
ADM 520: Quantitative Decision Making
Regression and forecasting techniques applied to real world problems encountered in various professions. Model building (including time series techniques) and the methodology of experimental design. The case study format is utilized in the diagnosis of problems and search for statistical solutions. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to interpret statistics reported in empirical research literature and statistical software printouts, formulate research questions and experimental designs to assist in decision support, utilize statistical software packages to organize data and make calculations, and independently carry out a research project.
Prerequisite: one course in Statistics.
CORE COURSES (15 Units) 3 Courses Selected From:
Note: The 500-level core requirements build foundation skills that will be further reinforced and applied in 600-level courses. Generally, the 500-level portion of the core should be completed before the 600-level courses. Specific prerequisites are enumerated.
ADM 514 Benefit-Cost Analysis
Techniques for evaluating the benefits and costs of projects and policies. Topics include time value of money and financial math, decision rules, expected inflation and relative price changes, discount rates, after-tax analysis, replacement analysis, risk and uncertainty, input constraints and benefit-cost ratios, and use of cost-effectiveness analysis when goals are mandated. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to use benefit-cost analysis to evaluate projects, utilize spreadsheets to make benefit-cost calculations, and concisely report the assumptions and conclusions of a benefit-cost analysis.
ADM 515 Project Management
The process of integrating and harmonizing systems, techniques, and people to achieve the desired results of a project within established goals of time, budget, and quality. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to identify a project, articulate its goals and objectives, plan all aspects of its execution, execute and control the project, close out the project, and devise appropriate follow-up activities.
ADM 525 Human Resource Management Foundation
This course is an examination of the Human Resource foundation. Students will complete a series of projects that focus on the labor market, the external legal environment, and the manager’s view of the employee life cycle (recruiting & selection, training, supervision, and termination). Upon completion of this course, students should be able to analyze the legal and market forces affecting jobs, perform a job analysis, hire an employee, supervise employees, identify initial training needs and methods, and separate an employee from an organization.
ADM 603 Program Evaluation
Definition, history, and development of program evaluation. Professional roles, ethics, and standards for the practice of program evaluation are emphasized throughout the course. Topics include development of program goals and objectives, reliability and validity, importance of multiple measures, reporting results, and use of program assessment to plan and implement change. Qualitative and quantitative methods covered include interviewing techniques, focus groups, surveys, and observation. Case studies utilized. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to: (1) evaluate validity, reliability and attainment of ethical/professional standards in various case studies of program evaluation and (2) carry out an effective program evaluation. statement Each student will develop a proposal for their final project. The final project will be the primary course deliverable in ADMIN 690.”
CULMINATING EXPERIENCE (5 Units)
ADM 690 Capstone
In the capstone course, candidates for graduation complete a culminating project under the direction of a faculty team and present a portfolio demonstrating competency goals of the academic program.
REQUIRED Pre-Req: All pertinent Upper Division Coursework
ELECTIVES (minimum of 2 courses and 10 units)
ADM 519 External Economic Environments
An analysis of the external economic environments of organizations. Environments to be analyzed include the national macroeconomy (growth, inflation, interest rates, exchange rates), industries and occupations (including roles of technology, demographics, and legal environment), the regional economy, and social trends that have been analyzed with rational choice models (e.g., demographics). Economic models are reviewed to identify causal relationships, and information resources are identified for monitoring and analyzing trends. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to locate information and data essential for analyzing external environments, use cause-effect models to analyze changes in variables that are external to an organization, monitor and interpret fundamental trends in external economic environments, and effectively communicate one’s findings.
ADM 526 Dealing with a Difficult Employee
This course examines a topic that has become more important to organizations -- the management of human resources. Students will complete a series of projects that focus on supervisory methods (e.g., coaching and counseling), discipline, training, termination, and related legal issues (e.g., unfair termination, sexual harassment, abusive employees). Upon completion of this course students should be able to analyze and interpret the changing legal environment, exercise supervisory methods to effectively manage human capital to meet tactical and strategic organizational goals, and effectively address disruptive employees behaviors.
Prerequisite: ADMIN 525
ADM 600 Organizational Structure and Processes
This course is designed to acquaint students with the principles of organizational environments and structure and the ways in which decision-making, the use of technology, communications, political processes, organizational change, and conflict can be approached more effectively. Students will complete a series of projects in which they use the theories and models discussed in the course to critically examine an actual organization and to generate suggestions for improvement. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to analyze processes in organizations, diagnose organizational effectiveness, develop recommendations for improving effectiveness, and effectively communicate recommendations. Prerequisite: ADM 525.
ADM 612 Leadership
This course is designed to prepare students to understand and be successful in leadership roles. Topics include historical and contemporary models of leadership, effective leadership behaviors, power and influence, change process, self-assessment, personal character in leadership, and leadership in the future. Upon completion of the course, students should be able to assess their own strengths and weaknesses as a leader, inspire and motivate others toward a common purpose, and articulate a personal vision for organizational leadership.
ADM 625 Advanced Human Resource Management
This course examines advanced topics in Human Resource Management. Students will complete a series of projects that focus on strategic human resources, selection, staffing planning, compensation, benefits; training and employee development. Upon completion of this course students should be able to develop new selection methods, devise a plan for filling employment vacancies, develop compensation plans, and identify training and development needs. In addition, each student should be able to integrate information from the various areas for strategic HR planning decisions.
Prerequisite: ADM 525
Other Electives:
ADM 527 Contracting and Outsourcing
This course identifies chains of production and marketing processes, considers the conditions under which buying in markets and vertically integrating these processes have inherent strengths and weaknesses, and analyzes the optimal structuring of outsourcing contracts. Upon completion of this course, the student will be able to identify separable production and marketing processes, identify and evaluate outsourcing versus vertical integration alternatives for specific production and marketing processes, and manage outsourcing activities through effective structuring of contracts.
ADM 528 Strategic Competition
The process for formulating, evaluating, and executing competitive strategies for services, products, and product-mixes through identification and analysis of opportunities, challenges, and risks associated with dynamic and uncertain changes within industries in the domestic and international marketplace. Upon completi0n of this course, students should be able to: analyze forces shaping and sustaining competitive advantage in an industry, develop strategies for creating a competitive advantage, and monitor and analyze technological and other trends influencing industry structure.
