School of Business and Technology

Human Resources Development (M.A.)

Locations

Human resources development courses are offered at the following locations:

Continental United States

International

Geneva, Switzerland

Program Description

The main objective of the human resources development program is to develop professionals in human resources development who have both a broad conceptual understanding of human resources development and a "working knowledge" of a wide range of individual, group, and organization development strategies and tactics. This combination will enhance the careers of students already in human resources development, and increase the likelihood that students wanting to enter the field will be productive in their new careers by leveraging this knowledge base. Another objective of the program is to develop knowledge, skills, and abilities that are relevant in a wide variety of different human resources development settings and roles. For example, the program should prepare students to work in corporate offices, boutique training firms, or human resources development consulting firms.

Program Learning Outcomes

Students will demonstrate, through a written exam, their comprehension of the mandatory topics.
Students will be able to analyze complex factual situations using the important facts, concepts and theories of the Human Resources Development field to help diagnose best practices, problems, and opportunities for program development.
Students will be able to integrate theories and models to develop solutions to complex HRD problems. They will demonstrate the effectiveness of their solutions using either quantitative or qualitative criteria.

Program Curriculum

The 36 credit hours required for the master of arts (M.A.) or the 48 credit hours required for the master of business administration (M.B.A.) must include the following courses for a major/emphasis in human resources development:

HRDV 5000 Introduction to Human Resources Development (Requisite Course)
MNGT 5590 Organizational Behavior
HRDV 5610 Training and Development
HRDV 5560 Group Development and Change
HRDV 5630 Organization Development and Change
HRDV 5700 Career Management
HRDV 5750 Research and Assessment Methods in Human Resources Development
HRDV 6000 Integrated Studies in Human Resources Development

In addition, the student chooses elective courses offered in this major and/or from the program curricula of other School of Business and Technology majors.

If the requisite course is waived, the student must choose an elective course from this major or from the program curriculum of another School of Business and Technology major. Students pursuing dual majors who have the requisite course(s) waived will complete only the remaining required courses for the dual majors.

[ Top of Page ]

Course Descriptions

HRDV 5000 Introduction to Human Resources Development (Requisite Course) (3)
This course introduces the area of human resources development. The objective of the course is to expose students to the breadth of human resources development topics. The primary topics are training and development, career management, and organizational development and change. A wide variety of secondary topics may also be covered in this course, including learning principles, evaluation of human resources development interventions, employee orientation and socialization, performance management and coaching, diversity, and employee counseling.

MNGT 5590 Organizational Behavior (3)
This course introduces students to many of the basic principles of human behavior that effective managers use when managing individuals and groups in organizations. These include theories relating to individual differences in abilities and attitudes, attribution, motivation, group dynamics, power and politics, leadership, conflict resolution, organizational culture, and organizational structure and design.

HRDV 5500 Professional Seminars (1-3)
Students participate in seminars designed to examine contemporary issues in human resources development. The professional seminar supplements the core and graduate elective courses in the area of human resources development by focusing on issues of current and special interest. Course may be repeated for credit if content differs. Graduate students may apply a maximum of 3 credit hours of these seminars as electives to meet the credit-hour requirements for graduation. This course may not be completed by directed study.

HRDV 5560 Group Development and Change (3)
Effective groups and teams are critical in modern organizations, yet there are often dysfunctional dynamics and processes within the group. This course teaches the fundamental concepts relating to group dynamics, group decision making, and interpersonal conflict. The course also introduces students to different types of group-level interventions designed to improve group performance. The course also applies this conceptual knowledge to common group problems.

HRDV 5570 Planning Organization Development Programs and Interventions (3)
This is an elective, advanced course in organization development in which students will learn to design and implement programs and interventions used in organization development. The course builds professional skills by having students learn a variety of conceptual models and intervention methods used in organization development, and then applying that knowledge by analyzing organizational problems and proposing effective OD programs. Students must complete HRDV 5630 prior to taking this course.

HRDV 5610 Training and Development (3)
Rapid changes in technology and job design, along with the increasing importance of learning- and knowledge-based organizations, make training and development an increasingly important topic in human resources development. In this course, the student will learn how to 1) identify training and development needs through needs assessments, 2) analyze jobs and tasks to determine training and development objectives, 3) create appropriate training objectives, 4) design effective training and development programs using different techniques or methods, 5) implement a variety of different training and development activities, and 6) evaluate training and development programs.

HRDV 5620 Interpersonal and Organizational Communications (3)
Students in this course investigate the phenomenon of communication. Students learn the dynamics of the process of communication; the skills required to achieve successful communication; the importance of effective communication in work situations; methods of evaluating communication problems in the workplace; and methods for increasing productive communication in the workplace. The course affords students opportunities to explore a variety of personal and organizational methods of enhancing communication.

HRDV 5630 Organization Development and Change (3)
Organization development (OD) is the process of planning and implementing interventions to create interpersonal, group, inter-group, or organization-wide change. This course presents the theoretical foundations of organization development as an applied behavioral science. Students will also be introduced to many types of interpersonal, intra-group, inter-group, and organizational interventions that are used to effect comprehensive and lasting changes.

HRDV 5660 Issues in Human Resources Development (3)
Current and significant issues in human resources development are examined. The course focuses on existing theories and practices with emphasis given to new and emerging topics in the field. Course may be repeated for credit if content differs.

HRDV 5680 Ethics, Values, and Legal Issues in Human Resources Development (3)
This course introduces the student to the various theories concerning values and human acquisition of values. Students explore personal value systems and how these systems influence their behavior and the behavior of others. Students examine ethical standards that can relate to human resources development and how these standards can affect actual workplace situations. This course investigates selected legal issues and situations that relate to the practice of human resources development.

HRDV 5700 Career Management (3)
Career management is the process through which individuals and organizations jointly plan, guide, direct, and influence people's careers to meet the individual's and the organization's future needs. This course introduces students to current ideas about how organizations and individuals are trying to manage the problems created by the new rules of the workplace through career management.

HRDV 5710 Diversity in the Workplace (3)
This course provides the student with foundational information concerning our multicultural society. Students explore the importance of learning to understand cultural similarities and differences and how this information relates to the workplace. The major subcultures are investigated in a workshop format. The second half of this course provides a specific investigation of social issues that are of current importance to the workplace.

HRDV 5750 Research and Assessment Methods in Human Resources Development (3)
This course introduces students to basic descriptive and inferential statistics, research principles, sampling designs, survey methodologies, and simple experimental and quasi-experimental designs. The course also introduces students to other assessment methods used in human resources development, such as learning assessments, performance evaluations, and program evaluation.

Capstone Course

HRDV 6000 Integrated Studies in Human Resources Development (3)
The student is expected to synthesize and integrate the learning experiences acquired in human resources development and to evaluate the research and current topics relative to this major. Techniques used to accomplish these goals may vary. Prerequisite: completion of all other required courses in this major.

[Top of Page] [Table of Contents] [Locations-US] [Locations-International] [Search]
[Mission Statement] [Course Schedules] [Admissions and Financial Aid]
[Tuition, Fees, & Refunds] [Accreditation] [Academic Advising]
[Bookstore] [Webster University Front Page]

For technical questions or corrections regarding this online catalog please e-mail marketing@webster.edu