The Certificate in Strategic Thinking and Leadership encourages leaders across sectors to make informed decisions, implement strategies, and lead effectively.
The Strategic Thinking & Leadership Academy is a comprehensive 3-day intensive program designed to empower aspiring leaders in government, industry, education, and nonprofits with the skills and knowledge needed to make informed decisions, implement strategies, and lead effectively in today's complex environment.
Ideal for: Aspiring leaders in all economic sectors
Ideal for
Aspiring leaders in all economic sectors
Duration: 3 days
Duration
3 days
Format: On-Campus
Format
On-Campus
Schedule: 3 days on campus
Schedule
3 days on campus
Semester of Entry: Spring or fall
Semester of Entry
Spring or fall
Tuition: $2,995
Tuition
$2,995
Upon successful completion of the certificate, you’ll be able to:
Learn how to make better decisions by discovering and overcoming mental blocks in your thinking and judgment
Recognize multiple ways to solve problems and embrace divergent thinking
Critically reflect on your own leadership qualities and the qualities necessary to lead ethically in today's professional reality
Identify interior practices that cultivate self awareness and social awareness needed to lead ethically in today's world
Understand best practice tools to measure strategy performance
Understand organizational-level, business unit, and functional strategy integration and the importance of alignment
Create a suite of influential stories based upon a purposeful planning process for use within your organizations.
Learn practices to synergize organizational culture and leadership for success and thriving.
Identify both the stated and the enacted leadership and organizational culture, values, and commitments, including how diverse people experience the organization and leadership
Testimonials from current students and alumni.
The Strategic Thinking and Leadership Academy is designed to equip leaders with the critical thinking skills necessary to make difficult decisions and execute effective strategies in today's globally diverse workplace. It is an intellectually rigorous program that caters to organizational leaders across various sectors.
Jeffrey Warner
Executive Director of Professional Education
Curriculum & Schedule
To earn the Certificate in Strategic Thinking & Leadership, professional learners must complete the three-day academy for a total of 3.2 Continuing Education Units (CEUs), which is equivalent to 32 contact hours.
Prelude to the Academy for Strategic Thinking & Leadership Academy (Online)
Day 1 of the Academy (at Georgetown SCS Campus)
Day 2 of the Academy (at Georgetown SCS Campus)
Day 3 of the Academy (at Georgetown SCS Campus)
Follow-up (Online)
What Is On-Campus Learning?
On-Campus programs combine traditional classroom learning with interactive experiential methodology. Classes typically meet for two or three consecutive days once a month at our downtown Washington, D.C. campus.
The Academy is a new format for SCS Professional Certificate Programs. Please see the program schedule for more detailed information.
Learning Objectives:
Strategic Thinking and Problem Solving: This module helps you understand the decision-making process, how to break down complicated information, and make better choices by applying analytical and critical thinking. Ethical considerations in decision-making are also highlighted.
Putting Ideas into a Plan and into Action: This module enables you to grasp how strategy works at different organizational levels. It also helps you understand the tools to measure strategy performance and how to tackle cultural and global challenges in strategy implementation.
Becoming a Discerning Leader: This module focuses on personal and ethical leadership qualities. It helps you reflect critically on your own abilities and teaches you how to lead ethically. It introduces a reflective framework and resources for decision-making, especially in situations involving ethical ambiguity.
Strategic Storytelling for Influence: This module will help leaders to be better stewards of the story ecosystems that they operate within. It will help them to reflect upon their own stories as well as how to strategically develop and share them with key stakeholders. Through interactive activities, the leaders will also be equipped with tools to be ethical story-conveners and story-amplifiers of those they support.
Succeeding with an Inclusive and Aligned Culture: This module supports leaders to discover their true values and how to integrate these with the needs of the present and emerging future. In these times of increasing division and polarization, leaders and organizations are challenged to align values, culture and ways of operating.
Classroom
Wed/Thu/Fri 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Mar 12 to Mar 14, 2025
Spring 2025
Faculty
Stewart Brown
Mr. Brown is a Principal with Dunkirk Partners, with more than forty-five years of experience in management and leadership at all levels: strategic, operational, tactical, military and civilian. Mr. Brown’s ... Read more
John Corso
John Corso is an adjunct instructor in the Certificate in Strategic Management program. He is president and chief executive officer of Strategent Corporation, a management consulting firm. His academic and ... Read more
Peter Kralovec
Jamie Kralovec serves on the faculty of the Urban & Regional Planning program and is associate director for mission integration at Georgetown University’s School of Continuing Studies. Formed in the ... Read more
Sharon Newport
Sharon is an experienced organizational consultant, international facilitator and speaker, and award winning executive. Sharon Newport, CAE is an organizational development consultant who partners with leaders to advance their ... Read more
Jessica Srikantia Field
Jessica Srikantia Field, Ph.D., PCC, ITCA, is the Academic Director and Associate Professor of the Practice with the Georgetown Institute of Transformational Leadership (ITL). Jessica has engaged in global solidarity work with extraordinary ... Read more
Gary Steinberg
Mr. Steinberg is a distinguished member of the Federal Senior Executive Service and a recognized leader in strategic planning, performance management, and organizational management. Mr. Steinberg has served as Agency ... Read more
John Trybus
John D. Trybus, Ph.D. is a social strategist on a mission to help impact organizations embrace the blur—between sectors, functions, departments and human strengths—for good. He leads and manages Georgetown ... Read more
How to Register
Please review the refund policies in our Student Handbook before completing your registration.
Degree Requirement
You must hold a bachelor's degree or the equivalent in order to enroll in our certificate programs.
Registration
This certificate is an open-enrollment program. No application is required. Click the "Register Now" button, select your courses, and then click "Add to Cart". Course registration is complete when your payment is processed. You will receive a confirmation email when your payment is received. Please retain the payment confirmation message for your records.
You can combine on-campus and online courses (if available) to complete your certificate. Depending on the certificate program, we may suggest taking courses in a specific order, but this is not a requirement.
Most students register for all courses at the same time and complete their certificate within a few months. However, you may choose to register for courses one by one over time. Once you begin a certificate, you have up to two years from the time you start your first course to complete all required courses.
International Students
International students who enter the U.S. on a valid visa are eligible to enroll in certificate courses. However, Georgetown University cannot sponsor student visas for noncredit professional certificate programs.
A TOEFL examination is not required for non-native English speakers but students are expected to read, write, and comprehend English at the graduate level to fully participate in and gain from the program.
Students from most countries may register for our online certificate programs; however, due to international laws, residents of certain countries are prohibited from registering.
Tuition & Funding
Total program tuition for all 3.2 CEUs is $2,995. All study materials, snacks, three lunches, and one dinner are included. A Georgetown University certificate will be awarded at the successful conclusion of the Academy.
Funding
Noncredit professional certificates do not qualify for federal financial aid, scholarships, grants, or needs-based aid. However, several finance and funding options do exist, as listed below.
Some employers offer funding for employee education or professional development. If an employer guarantees payment for employee education and training, Georgetown will accept an Intent to Pay form. If you are using employer sponsorship or training authorizations, you must submit an Intent to Pay form with your registration.
If your employer will pay for your tuition, select “Third-Party Billing” as your method of payment when you register for courses online. Please submit an Intent to Pay form indicating that your employer or another third party should be billed for tuition. Invoices will not be generated without this form on file.
Eligible Georgetown employees may use their Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) benefits to fund 90% of the certificate program tuition—employees will be invoiced for the remaining 10% of tuition and must pay any other charges associated with their certificate program. Employees using TAP benefits may work directly with the HR Benefits Office to ensure payment prior to the start of any course. This payment option is only valid if registration occurs at least 10–14 business days prior to the start date of the first course. Any fees incurred due to course withdrawal are the student’s responsibility and are not funded by Georgetown University TAP. For questions regarding TAP benefits, please contact the HR/Benefits Office at tapbenefits@georgetown.edu or (202) 687-2500.
SCS is registered with GoArmyEd.com to accept SF-182 training authorization forms. GoArmyEd.com is the virtual gateway for all eligible active duty, National Guard, and Army Reserve soldiers to request Tuition Assistance (TA) online. GoArmyEd.com is also the virtual gateway for Army Civilians to apply for their Civilian education, training, and leadership development events.
The professional certificate programs offer an interest-free payment plan for certificate programs that are more than one month in duration and for which the total tuition is greater than or equal to $4,000. The payment plan is structured in the following manner:
Payment #1: A down payment of 25% of the total tuition balance must be paid online (within 72 hours after you register and select Payment Plan) via the Noncredit Student Portal. Please submit your down payment as soon as possible.
Payments #2, #3, and #4: Your remaining balance will be due in three (3) equal monthly installments beginning 30 calendar days after your down payment is processed. Your monthly payments must be paid via credit card in the Noncredit Student Portal. You will be able to access each invoice and payment due date in your student account.
PLEASE NOTE: Automatic Payment Service is not available. You must make each subsequent payment via the Noncredit Student Portal.
A number of tuition benefits are available through the Department of Veterans Affairs and under various parts of the GI Bill®. Please visit the Resources for Military Students page for additional information and instructions.
While you may choose to complete your certificate program in one semester, many programs (but not all) allow up to two years to complete all requirements. As a result, you may choose to register for required and elective courses over several semesters to spread out the cost of tuition over time. We generally offer every course in a program each semester, so you'll have many opportunities to enroll in required and elective courses within the two-year time frame.
Tuition Discounts
Only one tuition discount may be applied at the time of registration. Tuition discounts cannot be combined. Tuition discounts are not applied retroactively. Please contact pdcprograms@georgetown.edu with any questions.
Georgetown University alumni and SCS certificate completers are eligible to receive a 30% tuition discount for many certificates offered within SCS’s Professional Development & Certificates (PDC) portfolio. When registering for an eligible certificate through the SCS website, you will see the "30% Georgetown Alumni Discount" as an option. The Enrollment Team will then verify your eligibility status as a Georgetown University alumnus or certificate completer.
Georgetown SCS offers a 20% discount for eligible certificates to organizations that register 5 or more employees for the same certificate cohort at the same time. Eligible organizations include government agencies, nonprofit agencies, and for-profit businesses. Please contact pdcprograms@georgetown.edu for steps and procedures to ensure your group has access to the discount.
Employees of companies that belong to the EdAssist education network may receive a 10% tuition discount on select programs and courses. Contact EdAssist directly to find out if you qualify.
Eligible federal employees across the country receive a 10% scholarship applied to the current tuition rate for all SCS degree programs and professional certificate programs each academic semester. Please contact pdcprograms@georgetown.edu for steps to be added to this discount group.
