Explore the differences between a Master of Liberal Arts degree and a Master's in Organizational Leadership.
How do you lead effectively in times of profound disruption? Our world and our businesses are going through a series of transformations that require individuals to rethink their approaches:
Responding to changes like these, McKinsey declared that we live in a time of “perpetual organizational upheaval,” which “demands new approaches to organizational management to replace models designed for a less complex, less unstable bygone age.”
During this era of both immense possibility and deep uncertainty, leaders across all industries benefit from re-evaluating their practices and augmenting their skills. Advanced education can prepare you to lead effectively through the next wave of transformation.
In this article, we’ll consider two possible educational paths toward being an effective leader in a time of dramatic realignment. Depending on your career path and personal interests, you might choose to pursue a Master of Arts or a Master of Science in Organizational Leadership or a Master of Liberal Arts. Before you make the investment in time and tuition for a master’s program, you should understand how each of these degrees can prepare you to excel during periods of rapid change.
Organizational leadership is an approach to managing large departments or entire companies that’s focused on setting and accomplishing shared strategic goals. This is a pressing concern at a wide range of global companies: In a 2023 survey of organizations around the world, McKinsey found that only 25% of respondents felt they had engaged, passionate leaders who did everything possible to inspire workers.
At fast-paced, multinational organizations, managers and executives often need to keep employees who are physically distant from each other and have disparate areas of expertise all working in tandem toward achieve shared objectives. With the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projecting more than a million job openings in management occupations per year between 2022 and 2032, many businesses will be searching for individuals with a firm grounding in the principles of organizational leadership.
An MA or MS in Organizational Leadership takes a multidisciplinary perspective to help executives and managers advance their career goals and gain a competitive edge in the marketplace. These are business-oriented programs that may hold accreditation from organizations like the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB) or the Accreditation Council for Business Schools and Programs (ACBSP). Students learn the best practices and strategies they need to propel their teams forward.
An organizational leadership curriculum brings together concepts from business administration, social science, and communications to help students become more strategic thinkers and inspiring leaders.
Courses often examine topics such as:
Organizational leadership master’s programs may offer concentrations for particular industries or electives investigating topics that are directly related to your career. These programs commonly take about two years to complete and often conclude with a capstone or thesis project. Students perform research and develop a project that exhibits the steps they’ve taken to become better informed, more empathetic, and strategically agile leaders.
Earning a graduate degree in organizational leadership also gives you the chance to meet professionals who are following a similar career trajectory. By connecting with other current and aspiring leaders, you can expand your network and interact with different perspectives on some of the most urgent issues that businesses face.
A master’s program in organizational leadership teaches a combination of essential business processes and soft skills. The curriculum is designed to help you marshal the efforts of employees and peers who have diverse educational professional backgrounds and may be spread out around the globe.
Students learn to:
As businesses evolve in unpredictable ways over the coming years, leaders will need to stay nimble and embrace novel approaches to solve problems. Studying the liberal arts — which encompass the array of disciplines that constitute the foundation of modern university education, including the arts, humanities, and sciences — can help you look at those challenges from unique angles and develop a versatile intellectual toolkit.
In a liberal arts master’s program, you think proactively and creatively about how to lead in this period of constant upheaval. That makes this educational path a powerful alternative to a more traditionally business-oriented program. By harnessing insights from historical wisdom and current research, you can grow as not only a leader, but as a thinker and collaborator.
These are some of the reasons why the University of Chicago Master of Liberal Arts attracts a learner community of accomplished individuals seeking personal and professional growth. On average, people who enroll in the UChicago MLA are already 18 years into their careers. Nearly a third are executives, and most hold at least one graduate degree. Often, they decide to study the liberal arts because they want to evolve their decision-making ability and account for the nuances of people’s behaviors, emotions, and values.
For example, Cara Brennan Allamano, chief people officer at the software management company Lattice, chose the UChicago MLA program because she saw clear connections between liberal arts education and effective organizational leadership.
“What helps leaders stand out is the broader perspective to be able to step back from a tough situation and guide people through it, to know how to ask the right questions, to understand and have empathy and sympathy for the people around you,” Cara said. “I’m really excited about gaining some of those skills for myself through this program, because that is what liberal arts can do for you.”
Students investigate topics by applying ideas and methods from a variety of disciplines. Rather than taking a series of courses from experts in a single area, they learn from scholars who conduct illuminating research across the spectrum of the liberal arts.
The UChicago MLA core curriculum incorporates the following areas of inquiry:
MLA courses in every discipline are driven by vibrant discussions among a community of learners, not one-sided lectures. Class sessions take the form of Socratic dialogue, with professors asking probing questions that invite students to apply their individual experiences. Fabiola Delgado, the assistant vice president for finance and chief of staff for national laboratories at UChicago, appreciated how the University’s MLA program let her engage with a diverse range of informed viewpoints.
“I would have never thought about solving an ethical dilemma in the same way that a classmate of mine who was a poet or who was a marine biologist would solve it,” she said. “I think that seeing the different angles, the different life experiences and professional contributions that this great group of people bring to the table allows you to enhance your thinking in ways that you never thought possible.”
In addition to class discussions, MLA students write extensively, assembling ideas from multiple courses and disciplines into original arguments. In the UChicago MLA program, this intellectual exploration leads up to a thesis or special project. Working with a faculty advisor, students have the flexibility to research and grapple with the topics that interest them in the format they choose.
MLA programs may feature concentrations that delve into the areas of study that students are most interested in. At UChicago, students can select an optional concentration in:
Enrolling in an MLA is a commitment to growth as a thoughtful, socially engaged individual. Students build skills they can apply in every area of their professional and personal lives:
In this time of perpetual organizational upheaval, leaders must routinely contend with previously unimaginable challenges. Technological leaps and social disruptions make it more important than ever to maintain a sound footing in the principles of strategy, social responsibility, and empathy. By pursuing graduate education, current or aspiring managers and executives can prepare to achieve their long-term objectives (even under trying circumstances) while also becoming more well-rounded and understanding people.
The University of Chicago Master of Liberal Arts welcomes a diverse community of accomplished professionals to participate in a transformative educational experience. Our students develop their skills in leadership, critical thinking, collaboration, and communication by engaging in live seminar discussions guided by eminent faculty members with expertise in multiple disciplines.
Customize the online MLA to fit your goals by choosing from three optional concentrations. You can complete all the requirements online or visit us on campus for UChicago’s week-long, immersive residential seminars, held twice a year.
Contact us to learn more about how our program can help you achieve your professional goals.
This article is part of a series commissioned by the Graham School comparing the Master of Liberal Arts with other degrees to demonstrate the continued relevance of the liberal arts.
Seth Green has been reappointed as dean of the University of Chicago’s Graham School of Continuing Liberal and Professional Studies for a second five-year term, President Paul Alivisatos and Provost Katherine Baicker announced.
MLA alumna’s research appeared in the Spring 2023 issue of the peer-reviewed, open-source Journal of Public and Nonprofit Affairs.