Degree Requirements:
Completion Time: 1.5 years
Earned Credits: 36
Saybrook University’s M.A. in Leadership and Management: Project Management & Collaborative Work Systems program assists professionals and entrepreneurs in developing the mastery and expertise needed to accomplish their professional goals. Guided by faculty with years of experience in the field, students in this Project Management and Collaborative Work Systems program will examine the following:
- Project Management and Execution: A Social Systems Approach
- Managing Cost, Resources, and Vendors
- Project Schedule, Quality Control, and Risk Management
This specialization is designed for leaders responsible for managing projects of all sizes and scales. The courses address principles and practices of collaboration and project management.
Students who enroll in this program have the opportunity to study project management at a university dedicated to making substantive positive change in the world. Project management graduates will understand how to communicate with internal and external stakeholders, recruit team members, manage relationships, and procure resources and materials. They will develop an impressive range of professional assets, including:
- A global mindset
- An understanding of integrative social systems analysis
- Organizational technology design skills
- Sustainable business principles
This Project Management and Collaborative Work Systems program is an 18‐month lockstep cohort program completed in four consecutive semesters (including summer sessions) to earn 36 credits to graduate. Saybrook’s approach sets itself apart from project management schools in employing a humanistic and holistic approach, placing academic and professional development in interdependent and interactive contexts. Going beyond the core practical technical knowledge and skills needed in one’s profession, this program also helps develop interpersonal and critical thinking skills essential for today’s leaders and managers.
More program information can be found in our academic catalog.
Residential Requirements
Participation in three five-day Residential Conferences (RCs) is required. Students must attend the RC each semester they are enrolled except for summer. Dates are announced well in advance so students can plan for and prioritize the required participation.
Course Requirements
The 12 courses are taken in a prescribed sequence. All courses are 3 credits, comprising the 36 credits required to graduate. Coursework must be evaluated as equivalent to B or better at the graduate level to earn credit.
Course Participation
Satisfactory “class attendance” in online courses requires students to log into the university’s online course site multiple times during the week to participate in discussions and other learning activities. Course syllabi indicate their specific participation requirements.
Project Management and Execution: A Social Systems Approach
With organizational systems and collaborative management principles and practices as the foundation, this course examines the fundamental nature of both project management and enterprise relationship management. With the global workplace as the context, it introduces the core concepts of project management, and critically examines related issues and practices. Among other topics, it explores how effective project management entails consistently communicating with internal and external stakeholders associated with various aspects of project, recruiting team members, managing the relationships with project managers and team members, and procuring the needed financial resources and materials. 3 credits
Managing Cost, Resources, and Vendors
Project management involves overseeing a portfolio of interrelated tasks that must be aligned with the enterprise’s strategic goals and operational processes to ensure successful and timely completion of the project. Essential preliminary tasks are identified, including the creation of budgets, realistic timelines, reporting procedures, and vendor arrangements. Utilizing a systems approach, this course examines effective approaches for (a) clearly scoping the project, (b) charting its components and processes, (c) identifying factors that can impact its progress, (d) obtaining the resources needed for success, (e) managing the project budget, and (f) managing vendors. 3 credits
Project Schedule, Quality Control, and Risk Management
Risk management, benchmarking and outcomes assessment are critical to successful project planning and progress measurement. This course focuses on understanding core quality management principles and approaches and how to manage risk. Central to the course is an understanding of the nature of risk and its impacts. The course applies a systems and collaborative management perspective to critically examine how to design and use the appropriate assessment strategies, tools, and processes throughout a project. It addresses how to integrate them as key components of the project structure, execute them, and use assessment findings to make effective corrections. 3 credits