Organizational Leadership (BAAS)
Competency-Based
Embark on a transformative journey to become the dynamic leader every industry craves! Elevate your career seamlessly alongside your current job through our engaging fully online program, where every seven-week course propels you toward innovation and success.
LEAD WITH CONFIDENCE
Become an effective and innovative leader with a competency-based program that prepares you for an impactful career in an increasingly technological and global society. Designed for working professionals, this program offers fully online coursework so you can plan your studies around your busy life. Receive credit for what you know and can do, then accelerate your degree completion and job promotion opportunities.
Is this Program a Good Fit for You?
Organizational leadership students are typically interested in:
- Solving workplace leadership challenges
- Promoting job satisfaction and productivity
- Cultivating effective leadership skills
- Developing strategic decision-making proficiency
- Fostering team collaboration strategies
See Yourself Succeed With a Degree in Organizational Leadership
Hands-on Training
Whether it's a full year in the classroom or practicum courses and internships, you will engage in practical, real-world learning experiences that build confidence and skill.
Accomplished Faculty
Enjoy small classes, guidance and mentorship with a world-class faculty who are respected researchers in their fields.
Career Readiness
Regardless of your chosen field, partake in excellence-driven programs that prepare you for the transformational challenges of a complex digital environment and global society through the promotion of instructional engagement, responsive research, quality service and active partnerships.
Pride Pathway
Earn Teacher Certification
Ready to teach the next generation and shape the future? Our Pride Pathway program offers a competency-based path to teaching that fits your busy life.
If you are a current ISD employee and do not currently hold a bachelor’s degree, this pathway is perfect for you. You will begin by completing your competency-based bachelor’s in organizational leadership. You will then obtain your teacher certification through our alternative certification program. This program can take approximately two years depending on your college and professional experience.
Terms
All competency-based programs in the College of Innovation and Design are offered in two seven-week terms per traditional semester with a break between each term.
2025
| Terms | Begin | End | |
| Spring 2025 | Spring 1 | 01/13/2025 | 02/28/2025 |
| Spring 2 | 03/17/2025 | 05/02/2025 | |
| May Mini 2025 | May Mini | 05/12/2025 | 06/27/2025 |
| Sum II 2025 | Sum 2 | 07/07/2025 | 08/22/2025 |
| Fall 2025 | Fall 1 | 09/02/2025 | 10/17/2025 |
| Fall 2 | 10/27/2025 | 12/12/2025 |
STUDENT SUPPORT
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
A degree in organizational leadership offers the opportunity to:
- Examine ethics in the workplace and the role organizational leaders play in fostering ethical behavior.
- Learn to communicate effectively, motivate teams, improve operational efficiency and solve problems.
- Discover issues related to organizational leadership, plus the characteristics and behaviors of leaders and the varying contexts under which they perform.
- Get a leg up in a wide range of fields such as business, government, technology and human resources.
Careers
Career Possibilities and Current Median Salaries
US DOL Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2022
Internship opportunities
Internship experience provides the foundation employers are seeking. Internships are offered as optional credit for this program and can be an important part of your educational experience. These are just a few of the companies that partner with Student Career Preparedness and offer opportunities for organizational leadership students.
What You Will Learn
You will acquire in-depth knowledge of leadership skills, including instruction in organizational planning, dynamics of leadership, finance, team building, conflict resolution and mediation, communication, and other managerial skills.
You will also develop practical workplace competencies that meet current and future challenges in a variety of fields through real-world coursework.
As a current working professional, you will be required to use problem-solving skills to analyze, evaluate and recommend an implementation plan addressing an organizational leadership issue. Your performance in this hands-on exercise features input from multiple stakeholders, including employers and faculty.
Courses to Prepare for Your Career
- Required courses include Issues in Organizational Leadership, Leadership Theory and a capstone course where you will apply workplace experience.
- General education courses and professional development electives are based on your chosen field.
Featured Courses
Course Delivery and Resources
Course Delivery and Resources Organizational Leadership (BAAS)
There are three components to the 120-credit-hour degree
- General Education/Core Curriculum (42 semester credit hours)
You have the opportunity to demonstrate mastery of general education competencies without needlessly sitting through introductory courses. - Professional Development Electives (48 semester credit hours)
You are able to demonstrate competency in a variety of related fields. - Upper Division Applied Coursework (30 semester credit hours)
You will build on and apply work-related skills in four mastery areas.
Through competency-based education, you begin each term by registering for up to two courses. When you complete all of your current courses before the end of a term, you have the opportunity to take and complete another course by the end of the term. You can accelerate an unlimited number of times in a given term. Using this method, you are able to shorten your time to degree completion. You are not allowed to add courses during the final week of the term.
Did you miss the registration window? Don’t worry! You have two available registration opportunities each semester! For specific dates, email our advising office at [email protected].
Competency Based CBE Cost
Program Costs
Earning a degree is more affordable than ever. Our competency-based programs offer quality education at an affordable price. These rates include all required course materials.
| Residency Status | Tuition Per Term |
|---|---|
In-State (Texas resident) | $1,000 |
Bordering County This includes bordering counties in Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico and Arkansas | $1,000 |
Neighboring state This incudes interior counties in Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico and Arkansas) | in-state + $30/hour |
Out of state (e.g., Florida) | $2,000 |
Employee Scholarship | $300 |
- Tuition exemption limited to state residents
- Students can only receive ONE exemption (example: you cannot stack senior citizen and active-duty law enforcement exemptions.)
Admission
Steps to Apply :: Competency-Based CBE
College is the next big step in your academic journey! Let’s connect! Complete a request for information to receive important updates!
Consider the field of study and degree program you want to pursue at East Texas A&M. Take some time to review our competency-based degree programs and learn more about how competency-based education works!
Our onboarding specialists are eager to help you learn about East Texas A&M and guide your academic journey! Once you have filled out a request for information, an onboarding specialist will contact you.
East Texas A&M is committed to making the transfer process as smooth as possible.
To meet automatic admission requirements as a transfer student, you must have:
- At least 12 transferable hours, excluding developmental coursework.
- A 2.0 or higher grade point average (GPA) on all transferable coursework.
Applicants who do not meet the standards for full admission may be considered through the multi-tiered admission review process.
Automatic admission to East Texas A&M is based on the Foundation High School Program with at least one endorsement. You are strongly recommended to complete one or more available endorsement(s) that include Algebra II or its equivalent and one science course from biology, chemistry or physics. Students applying for top 10% automatic admission must complete the foundation curriculum with a distinguished level of achievement.
Standards for full admission to East Texas A&M are based on the required high school curriculum (Foundation Plan). Entering freshmen must have successfully completed the following courses in high school:
- English Language Arts (4 credits)
- Mathematics (3 credits)
- Science (3 credits)
- Social Studies (3 credits)
- Language other than English (2 credits)
Any one of the following:
- Rank in the top 30% of graduating class or
- If submitting scores, use the East Texas A&M codes 4088 (ACT) and 6188 (SAT) from encoura.org or collegeboard.org.
Study and take as many competency-based courses as you like for just $1000 per term. Because these programs are fully online, you can plan your study schedule around the rest of your day to complete the coursework.
- Nursing (RN-to-BSN) applicants: use the undergraduate application.
- Alternative Teacher Certification applicants: use the graduate ApplyTexas application.
You may also apply for any of our programs through ApplyTexas.
Send your school transcript via our secure document upload or request that your official high school transcript and transcripts for any college credit you have completed be sent to [email protected].
If your institution is unable to submit a digital copy, hard copies may be mailed to:
East Texas A&M University
Attn: College of Innovation and Design
PO Box 3011
Commerce, Texas 75429-3011We will need official/original documents.
ACT or SAT scores are optional for admission. If submitting scores, use the East Texas A&M codes 4088 (ACT) and 6188 (SAT) from encoura.org or collegeboard.org.
Your myLEO username is your CWID and your default password is your date of birth beginning with the three-letter abbreviated month (MonDDYYYY). You may refer to our guide for first-time login instructions.
- Username: CWID
- Password: Date of Birth (MonDDYYYY)
- Within myLeo, check out the APPS tab for LeoMail, LeoPay and D2L Brightspace, where you will access your online classes, and more.
- Check out the Student Resources tab for student information, including Undergrad DegreeWorks, your interactive degree audit, class schedules, financial aid status and awards, and more.
When you sign in to myLEO, the Financial Agreement will pop up. You’ll need to read over the agreement, select the checkbox and select “Continue.”
If you missed it or accidentally closed the window, you can get the agreement to pop up again by following these steps.
- Sign in to myLEO.
- Go to the Student Resources Tab.
- Scroll to Student Information,
- Click on Registration Menu. If you have not already completed the Financial Responsibility, it will appear here.
If you are not a self-pay student, you may qualify for financial aid to help pay for your classes.
Apply for financial aid by submitting a FAFSA and sending it to school code 003565.
You do not have to complete the Texas Success Initiative (TSI) if you have met one of the following:
- Met minimum college readiness standard on the SAT or ACT
- Obtained the minimum required score(s) on the statewide high school STAAR EOCs Algebra II and English III exams (these are optional for high schools)
- Met a veteran or active military waiver (must meet specific requirements for each category)
- Received exemption based on earning a prior degree
- Received a transfer exemption (declaration by another institution)
- Completed prior college-level coursework
Students are responsible for providing proof of exemption and will be considered assessment required until documentation is provided of state exemption. For more information, please contact the Testing Center at [email protected].
To access your Undergrad DegreeWorks online degree plan:
- Log into myLEO.
- Select the Student Resources tab from the home screen.
- Scroll to Student Information
- Select Undergrad DegreeWorks.
What is Competency-Based Education?
What is Competency-Based Education
Competency-Based Education (CBE) posits that learning is best measured by students demonstrating what they know and can do rather than by the number of hours spent in a classroom. CBE is student-driven and self-paced, guided by individualized feedback from an instructor and advisor. CBE is also flexible, and offered fully online, so it works around the busy personal and professional lives of adult learners and working professionals.
Back to menuWe’re Here to Help
Frequently Asked Questions
How many hours should I take?
Students initially register for six hours (two courses per-term). You have the opportunity to accelerate into another course with the expectation that you will complete the coursework by the end of the term. You may continue to add courses, one at a time, through the 5th Friday of the term.
What is competency-based education?
Competency-Based Education (CBE) is based on the idea that learning is best measured by students demonstrating what they know and what they can do rather than by the number of hours spent in a classroom. CBE is student-driven and self-paced, guided by individualized feedback from an instructor and advisor. CBE is also flexible, offered 100% online, so it works around the busy personal and professional lives of adult learners and working professionals.
What is the BAAS in Organizational Leadership Program?
The BAAS in Organizational Leadership is a competency-based education program that prepares innovative leaders for employment in an increasingly technological and global society. This entire program is available online and is tailored specifically for adult learners. The degree program focuses on leadership skills, including instruction in organizational planning, dynamics of leadership, finance, team building, conflict resolution and mediation, communication, and other managerial skills that are applicable to all types of organizations including business, government, non-profits and education.
The BAAS in Organizational Leadership is an affordable way to earn a baccalaureate degree with a total of 120 semester credit hours. The competencies and courses are offered in seven-week terms so students will be able to accelerate their time to degree completion.
How long are the terms for competency-based programs?
May I receive credit for prior work experience and/or professional training?
There are several opportunities for you to demonstrate prior learning and earn college credit. You can receive credit for military service (ACE), work experience, professional training, licenses, certifications, and by exam through the College Level Exam Program ® (CLEP).
See “What is Competency Based Education” above.
Can I use my employer’s tuition reimbursement program?
The answer is determined on a case-by-case basis. Contact [email protected] to see if you can use your employer’s tuition reimbursement program.
Is there an application fee?
No, there is not an application fee. However, you will be charged a one-time $60 enrollment fee the first term.
When may I start my major courses?
You will be permitted to start your Applied Major courses only after all General Education and Professional Development Electives are complete.
If I retake a course, do I have to pay for it again?
The flat-rate tuition fee for each seven (7) week term is not waived for repeat courses.
Do my applied major courses need to be taken in any specific order?
Yes, you need to take the Applied Major courses in the order listed on the degree guide.
How much is the tuition for BAAS – Organizational Leadership?
Texas-Residents pay a flat-rate tuition fee of $1,000 per seven-week term regardless of how many courses you enroll in during the term. Tuition for general education/core curriculum courses and all professional development competencies also includes e-textbooks incorporated in the online competency modules.
Out-of-State Residents* pay a flat-rate tuition fee of $1,500 per seven-week term regardless of how many courses you enroll in during the term. Tuition for general education/core curriculum and all professional development competencies also includes e-textbooks that are incorporated in the online competency modules.
*East Texas A&M has been approved to offer educational programs to select states. Check to see if your state is on the State Authorization of Online Programs list.
May I use financial aid?
Yes. For financial aid information, please visit the Financial Aid website.
Do I need to come to campus for orientation?
Once you are accepted to the university you will contacted by [email protected] via your LEOmail with further instructions.
Contact Us
- College of Innovation and Design
- 903.468.3318
- [email protected]
- P.O. Box 3011
- Commerce, TX 75429-3011
