Organizational Leadership (B.S.)

Special Academic Regulations for Organizational Leadership Degree Programs

To graduate with an OL B.S. degree students must have a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or above and a major GPA of 2.5 or above.  The major GPA consists of all required and elective courses prefixed with OLS. 

OLS, business, and technical courses taken more than 10 years ago will be reviewed to determine if the course can be used to fulfill program requirements.

Students receiving credit for cooperative education experience can use these credits as unrestricted electives only. If you complete three (3) credits in OL cooperative education, you may use these to fulfill one of your OL electives.

If you have not registered for degree-applicable courses as a Purdue Fort Wayne OL major for two consecutive semesters (excluding summer), you must satisfy the degree requirements specified in the Purdue Fort Wayne catalog that includes your year of re-entry.

College Scorecard

The U.S. Department of Education has created a scorecard for each university and its programs.  The scorecard shows data for the university such as graduation rate, average annual cost, and median earnings.  Then, when certain minimum standards have been met, data are available for a specific program.  That data could include median earnings, median total debt, and number of graduates. The link below will help you learn more:

https://collegescorecard.ed.gov/school/?151102-Purdue-University-Fort-Wayne&fos_code=5202&fos_credential=3

Program Requirements:

Organizational Leadership B.S. 4-Yr. Plan:  

General Education: Credits 30

Effective Fall 2025, the General Education program at PFW requires 30 credits to be completed, such that students pass each course listed below with a grade of C- or better:

• Category A. Foundational Intellectual Skills (Foundational Intellectual Skills Course Lists)   
  • One course in A1. Written Communication Cr. 3. 
  • One course in A2. Speaking and Listening Cr. 3.
  • One course in A3. Quantitative Reasoning Cr. 3.
• Category B. Ways of Knowing (Ways of Knowing Course Lists)   
  • One course in B4. Scientific Ways of Knowing Cr. 3.
  • One course in B5. Social and Behavioral Ways of Knowing Cr. 3.
  • One course in B6. Humanistic Ways of Knowing Cr. 3.
  • One course in B7. Artistic Ways or Knowing Cr. 3.
  • One course in B8. Interdisciplinary Ways of Knowing Cr. 3.
• Six additional credits from any Foundational Skills (A1-A3) or Ways of Knowing (B4-B8) categories
• At least one Ways of Knowing course that is designated as having a focus on diversity, equity, inclusion, and/or global awareness

Some programs recommend courses and/or require a specific course as part of the major that may also be used to fulfill General Education requirements. Please see below or your Academic Advisor for courses that fulfill both purposes.  You can familiarize yourself with other program regulations at General Education Requirements .

Supporting Courses Required for the BS in Organizational Leadership

• ENGL 13100 - Reading, Writing, And Inquiry I Cr. 3.  (also fulfills General Education A.1)
• COM 11400 - Fundamentals Of Speech Communication Cr. 3.  (also fulfills General Education A.2)

•  

  Select one of the following MA courses (also fulfills General Education A.3):

• MA 14000 - Practical Quantitative Reasoning Cr. 3.
• MA 15300 - College Algebra Cr. 3.

•  

• PSY 12000 - Elementary Psychology Cr. 3.  (also fulfills General Education B.5)
• SOC 16101 - Principles Of Sociology Cr. 3.  (also fulfills General Education B.5)

OL Core and Major Courses: Credits 33

• OLS 25200 - Human Relations In Organizations Cr. 3.
• OLS 26800 - Elements Of Law Cr. 3.
• OLS 27400 - Applied Leadership Cr. 3.
• OLS 37500 - Training Methods Cr. 3.
• OLS 37600 - Human Resource Issues Cr. 3.
• OLS 38400 - Leadership Process Cr. 3.
• OLS 45400 - Gender And Diversity In Management Cr. 3.
• OLS 47400 - Conference Leadership Cr. 3.
• OLS 47500 - Human Resource Development Cr. 3.
• OLS 48500 - Leadership For Team Development Cr. 3.
• OLS 49600 - Leading Change: Theory And Practice Cr. 3.

Technical Support Requirements: Credits 21

• BUS 20000 - Foundations Of Accounting Cr. 3-5.  or
• BUS 20100 - Introduction To Financial Accounting Cr. 3.

•  

• ECON 20000 - Fundamentals Of Economics Cr. 3.  or
• ECON 20101 - Introduction To Microeconomics Cr. 3.

•  

• ENGL 23301 - Intermediate Expository Writing Cr. 3.

•  

• OLS 28000 - Computer Applications For Supervisors Cr. 3.

Concentration Credits: See list below for credits required

In consultation with Purdue Fort Wayne academic departments, OL has compiled interdisciplinary career concentrations such as:

Environmental Health and Safety (18)
Hotel, Restaurant, Tourism Management (18)
Human Resource Management (18)
Information Technology (18)
Legal Studies (18)
Physical Therapy (19)
Pre-Med (31)
Service Industry (18)
Sports Leadership (18)
Training & Development (18)

A minor may be substituted for the concentration. See the OL academic advisor for additional information.

All concentration or minor courses must be completed with a C- or higher.

Unrestricted Electives: Credits 9

Note

Lists of specific courses required for each career concentration are available online and at the OL office (Neff 288). Other options for filling this requirement include using a Purdue Fort Wayne-recognized minor as a basis for your concentration area or designing a concentration that reflects your own career goals. Your proposal for an alternative concentration and a formal plan of study must be accepted by an OL faculty advisor and approved by the OL Curriculum Committee. If your plan is approved, it will become a formal part of your degree requirements.

Total: Credits 120

Student Responsibility

You are responsible for ensuring that you satisfy all graduation requirements specified for each selected program. Thus, it is essential that you develop a thorough understanding of the required courses, academic policies, and procedures governing your academic career. If you cannot complete all program requirements by your stated graduation date but fail to remove those from your plan of study, the Registrar’s Office in consultation with your academic advisor will remove unmet pursuits from your plan of study. Changing curricular records during the graduation term of application may affect state or federal financial aid awards. All requests for exceptions to specific requirements must be made in writing and may be granted only by written approval from the appropriate chair or dean. 

Additional Course Use:

Courses listed below may also be considered in meeting specific degree requirements.

MA 14000, 15300 required, MA 15400, 16500, 22900 accepted

PSY 20100, CRIM 30000 or STAT 30100 required, ECON 27000 accepted