The Application due date for the Spring 2010 cohort of the Executive Certificate in Organization Development program is December 21. Click on the Apply Now button to begin your application.

Click here for Spring 2010 Dates

Description:

Organizations are rapidly changing and the ability to stay abreast of local, national and global changes is increasingly more difficult. Understanding the dynamics and process of change, and the systems that operate within an organization, are critical to ensuring that organizations keep pace with the changing marketplace.

Organization development is a powerful strategic approach to furthering business objectives. Through the use of organization development, businesses are tapping into the resources within their employees at all levels, fostering a stronger workplace dynamic that supports on-going change, and enabling higher levels of productivity and effectiveness organization-wide.

The Georgetown University Executive Certificate in Organization Development Program will provide you with the knowledge, skills, tools and perspectives to support organizations through on-going change that will help you stay on the leading edge in today’s marketplace. The Organization Development program focuses on building high performance organizations while paying attention to human resources. The program includes real work with clients, with just-in-time learning emphasized, and is suited to both internal and external organization development consultancies.

Core Competencies:

The Georgetown University Executive Certificate in Organization Development is designed to help you:

• Understand the breadth and depth of the practice of organization development through real work with a client system
• Define and practice elements of an organization development consultancy relationship
• Understand and practice the concept of “use of self” as an intervention tool in an organization
• Increase your ability to self-manage within a client system
• Understand and be able to convey to a client the business objectives of an intervention
• Understand the three levels of a system: individual, group and organization and how to determine the appropriate level at which to intervene
• Assemble an organization development toolkit

Designed For:

• Practicing organization development consultants, either internal or external to organizations looking to hone or build new skills
• Practicing executive/organization coaches who would like to gain more knowledge and skills in team and organization-wide interventions
• Experienced human resources and performance management professionals interested in the larger organizational perspective
• Facilitators and training professionals looking to broaden their skills
• Business leaders, including government and non-profit professionals, who would like to take their organization to the next level
• MBA’s looking to acquire or expand organization development knowledge
• Individuals or business professionals who are transitioning into the organization development profession

Format:

The Executive Certificate in Organization Development program includes 144 hours of instruction. Classes meet from 8:30 AM to 5:30 PM on three consecutive days, Thursday-Saturday, approximately once a month. Additional meeting times with faculty are arranged to fit the schedules of participants. Classes cannot be taken independently of the certificate program. This executive certificate is a cohort program; participants are required to complete all courses to earn the certificate. The program targets a national and international audience of organizational leaders and practicing consultants.

Supplementing the 18 days of in-person classes, participants will complete significant outside reading and written assignments throughout the program. Participants will also gain valuable experience, within a supervised team structure, delivering an organization development intervention in an actual client organization selected for the program.

While learning and applying the tenets of organization development, you will receive coaching and advising from members of your Learning Team and Learning Team Advisor, who is a practitioner in the field. Each session will include time for shared learning related to issues that participants are facing with their clients.

Estimated level of effort outside the classroom is 10 – 20 hours per week throughout the 6 month program. The Organization Development program culminates with an oral debrief and critique of the intervention, including observations from the Learning Team Advisor, and a final written paper of 20 to 25 pages in length.

In addition to the amount of study of organization development content outlined below, participants are required to engage in reflection and self-examination to develop themselves as an instrument of change in the client organization.

Tuition:

Tuition for this program is $10,250.00. A payment plan, to break the total tuition fee into three parts, is available.

Admission and Registration:

The Organization Development certificate program has a competitive admissions process. For each cohort, a faculty selection committee chooses a collection of students who represent a variety of backgrounds, occupations and goals for the program in order to enrich the classroom experience. In order to insure that there is a baseline of knowledge and experience in the cohort, the following pre-requisites have been established by the faculty:

• Openness to feedback, a large capacity for self-examination and challenging one’s own beliefs are pre-requisites for acceptance into the program
• A bachelors degree
• At least five years of education, training and/or professional experience in coaching, human resources, leadership, organization development or a related field.

Application Requirements:

• A completed application form.
• $35 application fee.
• Updated resume or CV.
• Official transcript(s) from all relevant institutions of higher education previously attended
• Send two letters of recommendation in which the recommenders specifically address the following points:
  • How you know the applicant.
  • The applicant's self-knowledge and capacity for self-reflection and challenging his or her own beliefs.
  • The applicant's receptivity to feedback from others.
  • The applicant's commitment to his or her own development, with examples.
  • The applicant's commitment to the development and growth of others.
• An essay in which you address the following questions:
  • Why did you choose the Georgetown Organization Development Program and why now?
  • What are your goals, both personal and professional, in attending this program?
  • Describe your background, training and experience with organization development, organization effectiveness, and/or change management as either an internal/external consultant or participant.
  • Describe a recent situation when a) you examined or challenged a belief you held; or b) you were open to feedback. What impact did it have on you?
  • What have you learned about yourself in the last three years?
  • What activities have you been engaged in to foster your own personal growth?

Application Process:

Prospective students interested in applying to the Organization Development program must submit an application online. Note that only complete applications will be considered. Applicants are responsible for tracking the status of transcripts and reference letters and for ensuring that application packages are complete.

All transcripts, letters of recommendation, and supplimental application materials must be sent to:

School of Continuing Studies-Admissions Office
Certificate in Organization Development
3307 M Street NW, Suite 202
Washington, DC 20057

Admission:

The faculty selection committee will begin reviewing complete applications after the assigned application deadline. Only complete applications will be considered for admission. Late applications are accepted and will be considered for admission following a review of all applications that meet the priority deadline. As this is a cohort program, each applicant will be evaluated as an individual and as part of a well-balanced group of students. Due to the complex nature of the selection process, we are not able to provide individual feedback to applicants on their applications. Notification of admissions decisions will be made a month following the application deadline via e-mail. Please insure that your e-mail provider is configured to accept e-mail from the @georgetown.edu domain.

Admission Deadline:

The deadline for each successive cohort is listed at the top of this page. Two cohort programs take place each academic year - one in the Spring semester and one in the Fall semester.

Faculty for Program Include:

Anne Aden; Marellen Ahern; Ann Carr; Becky Choi; Laura Gramling; Shirley Gross; Ken Kesslin; Caroline Nicholl; Mark Nozaki; Nancy Reuscher.

More Information:

For more information or to speak with a program advisor, please complete the Request More Information Form, send an email to ccpeod@georgetown.edu, or call 202.687.7000.

Required Courses:

Course 1: Foundations of Organization Development: Theoretical Frameworks, Tools, and Research Implications
Course 2: Ethics and the Role of the Consultant in Organizational Change: Behaving with Integrity, Use of Self and Entering the Client System
Course 3: Organization Assessment and Intervention Design: Understanding the Data and Its Potential Impact
Course 4: The Feedback Process: Connecting Feedback Data to the Organization’s Business Objectives
Course 5: The Art and Science of Intervention: Moving to Action
Course 6: Organization Development Program Integration: Making Meaning, Assessing Objectives and Moving into the Business Community