Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Organizational Leadership
Online
The Adler University Doctor of Philosophy in Organizational Leadership advances the study and practice of organizational psychology through research, analysis, and innovation, building expertise to evaluate theory, create knowledge, and apply evidence-based approaches that strengthen organizations locally and globally.
- 66 credits
- 2-year program, full-time study
- Part-time opportunities
- Asynchronous learning
- Dissertation advisors are experts and working in the field
- Ranked one of the county’s best online doctorates for leadership.
Admission Deadlines
| Term | Final |
|---|---|
| Fall II 2025 | 10/6/2025 |
| Spring I 2026 | 12/1/2025 |
| Summer I 2026 | 4/1/2026 |
| Fall I 2026 | 8/1/2026 |
Program overview
Across industries, organizations face unprecedented complexity shaped by globalization, technology, and shifting workforce expectations. Adler University’s Ph.D. in organizational leadership program positions graduates not just to respond to these challenges, but to generate new knowledge, influence policy, and guide systemic transformation.
Designed for experienced professionals, this doctorate emphasizes original inquiry, critical analysis, and evidence-based leadership, preparing graduates to drive innovation and shape the future of organizational systems.
Expert faculty bring both scholarly expertise and professional practice into the classroom, mentoring participants to connect advanced leadership theory with their own research interests.
Why choose the organizational leadership doctoral program at Adler?
- Adlerian perspective: Rooted in psychology and systemic thinking, the program emphasizes belonging, resilience, and leadership that strengthens entire organizational systems.
- Scholar–practitioner foundation: The program is built on Adler’s model that unites research with practice, preparing graduates to apply scholarship directly to organizational challenges.
- Mentorship model: Faculty serve as both scholars and practitioners, guiding candidates to align research with professional contexts and leadership goals.
- Transformational outcomes: Graduates lead not only in boardrooms and classrooms but also in shaping policy, influencing culture, and creating healthier organizations across sectors.
- Study anytime, anywhere: Asynchronous courses delivered fully online, with part-time options available.
- Recognized for excellence: Recognized by Intelligent.com as one of the country’s best online doctorates in organizational leadership.
The Path Ahead with an Adler degree
Adler’s Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Organizational Leadership qualifies students to choose a career that helps them grow in their field or allows them to move into other industries and roles.
Corporate Leadership + Consulting
Advise executive teams, guide organizational transformation, and design evidence-based strategies that strengthen leadership, culture, and performance as a:
– Senior Management Consultant
– Organizational Development Director
– Executive Coach
– Change Management Strategist
Academia + Research
Contribute to the field by advancing organizational psychology through teaching, publishing, and conducting original studies that shape workplace science and practice in jobs like:
– Department Chair
– Professor of Industrial and Organizational Psychology
– Research Scientist
– Institutional Administration
Workforce Strategy + Human Resources
Design and oversee systems that attract, develop, and retain talent, using advanced analytics and psychological principles to drive organizational outcomes in roles like:
• Chief Human Resources Officer (CHRO)
• Chief Talent Officer (CTO)
• Chief Learning Officer (CLO)
Government + Policy
Influence workplace policy, employee well-being, and organizational effectiveness in public and international sectors, applying psychological science to systemic challenges as a:
• Government Policy Advisor
• Federal Agency Organizational Psychologist
• Military or Defense Human Performance Specialist
• International Relations Manager
*Data is from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Admission requirements
Eligibility
Applicants to this program are required to have:
- A master’s degree, by the date of matriculation, in industrial and organizational psychology, psychology, business, or a related discipline. Applicants who did not graduate from Adler University’s Master of Arts in Industrial and Organizational Psychology or an equivalent program may be required to complete the equivalency requirements in addition to the doctoral curriculum. (See Program Requisites.)
- A cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 or better (on a 4.0 scale) in their master’s degree. Successful applicants typically have a grade point average of 3.25 or higher on a 4.0 scale for graduate-level coursework.
Application Requirements
- Applicants must submit the following materials for admission consideration:
- Completed application submitted via the online portal.
- Application fee.
- Resume or CV.
- Official transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate schools attended (U.S. and Canada). International transcripts must be evaluated by a transcript evaluation service.
- Two letters of recommendation from an individual who can speak to the applicant’s likelihood of success in a doctoral program.*
- A writing sample (e.g., a publication, report, or an essay or paper previously submitted as an assignment).
Approved applicants will be invited to complete an interview with faculty.
*Applicants who are graduates or current students, in good standing, from Adler University master’s degree programs may have one letter of recommendation, the writing sample, and/or interview waived.
Program Requisites
Applicants are expected to have adequate coursework in the areas listed below. Applicants who did not graduate from Adler University’s Master of Arts in Industrial and Organizational Psychology, or an equivalent program, will be assessed to determine whether they have adequate coursework in the following master’s-level course areas, with a letter grade of B or better.
- Leadership and Management Philosophies.
- Organizational Culture and Design.
- One graduate-level statistics course.
- One graduate-level research methods course.
How to Apply + Submit Transcripts
- Complete your application in Adler University’s online portal. The application, fee, Statement of Intent, resume/CV, and recommender details are submitted in the portal.
- Official transcripts must be sent directly from each issuing institution or approved service to the Office of Admissions prior to the application deadline. Do not upload official copies to the portal.
Unofficial transcripts may be accepted for any schools in which a degree was not received.
Adler University – Office of Admissions
17 N. Dearborn Street
Chicago, IL 60602
Official electronic transcripts should be sent to admissions@adler.edu.
Curriculum | Internships | practicums
Adler’s fully online Ph.D. in organizational leadership is a 66-credit, post-bachelor’s program. Following a scholar-practitioner approach, it blends advanced coursework with real-world applications, enabling students to translate learning into impact across their current and future careers.
Completion of the program includes the courses below, along with additional requirements outlined in the Adler University catalog.
CORE COURSES
Contemporary Perspectives in Leadership Theory
This course presents a comprehensive, integrative, and practical perspective on contemporary leadership theories that have emerged over the past several decades. Additionally, the course explores how individuals can build their leadership capabilities while acting with authenticity, integrity, and creativity.
Followership
The purpose of this course is to move away from leader-centered theory to more integrated theory that includes the leader’s relationship with and influence on followers. In doing so, this course will take into account not only those who exercise power, authority, and influence; but also those on whom power, authority, and influence are being exercised.
Advanced Group Dynamics
This course explores differentiated concepts of interpersonal behavior in small groups. Students will learn about research in the field of group dynamics as well as the applicability of that research to modern organizations.
Organizational Culture and Climate
This course examines how organizational culture and climate can be bolstered and transformed. Through comprehensive assessment and understanding of an organization’s current strengths and weaknesses, leaders can use culture to help attract and retain loyal and committed employees.
Advanced Leadership Communication Strategies
This course presents effective communication as an integral component of leadership strategy. A leader’s competence in this area will aid in developing a foundation for designing effective messages, both written and oral, from concept to delivery.
Ethical, Legal, and Professional Issues
This course will examine current and historically relevant ethical, legal, and professional issues in the field of I/O psychology. The course will examine both how I/O professionals can identify and react to ethical, legal, and professional concerns in organizations as well as how I/O professionals are to behave and interact with organizations themselves.
Leading Innovation
This course will explore how innovation involves developing a consensus in multi-stakeholder groups, managing organizational change or leading the development of an innovative product or service. Innovation requires leadership that has vision, the ability to inspire and empower others, and courageously make strategic decisions.
Advanced Research Methods and Design I + II: Qualitative Methods
This course focuses on qualitative research methods and provides students with hands-on experience to prepare them for the initial stages of the research process. The course provides in-depth analysis and discussion on various qualitative research methods and design approaches in terms of their pros and potential cons when exploring a variety of research questions.
Analyzing and Interpreting Research
The course will allow students to understand the process through which data becomes information, information becomes knowledge, and how knowledge can be exchanged and transferred among different stakeholders. Students will observe how different theoretical lenses, ethical and cultural values, and personal backgrounds can shape the interpretation of data and information.
Building Agility and Resilience
This course will examine the impact of resilient leadership on organizational sustainability. In particular, resilience will be explored on the individual, team and organizational level. Students will learn how to ensure their own health and productivity, as well as increase their accountability and adaptability.
ELECTIVES
Students will need a total of 9 elective credits.
Advanced Organizational Theory
This advanced course will use the tenets of organizational behavior and organizational theory to explore the factors that most influence successful business decisions and interactions.
Advanced Consulting Skills
This course focuses on effective consulting by presenting students with common and unique business challenges and exploring possible solutions. Students will be presented with multiple data points on organizational challenges and be asked to find solutions for these challenges with a mock client.
Assessment of Individual Differences
This course focuses on how professionals engage in psychological testing in organizations with a broad scope of assessments of individuals and groups.
Advanced Performance Appraisal
This course will analyze the impact of common performance management practices as well as new trends and approaches in assessing individual and group performance within organizations.
Operational Psychology
This course provides students with the opportunity to integrate socially responsible strategies with operational psychology in military environments. By focusing on the use of human factors in various military settings, students learn how to support and promote the behavioral health and welfare of service members and families, performance of individuals and teams, and success in military operations.
Psychological Resilience and Positive Psychology
This course explores how resiliency theory and positive psychology can be applied to the military community in an effort to minimize the long term impact of stress related to life in the military.
Consumer and Employee Attitudes
This course prepares students to conduct survey research in organizations to measure employee or consumer attitudes. Students will learn how to design a survey, evaluate the reliability and validity of a survey, utilize statistics to analyze the survey data, and interpret and present survey results to clients.
Coaching and Consulting
This course presents students with diverse strategies with relevance to the fields of coaching and consulting. Evidence-based coaching methods will be applied in a variety of contexts.
Training Theory
The course provides students with a thorough understanding of the role of a training and development practitioner. Students will be provided with an analysis of current best practices as they relate to adult learning, instructional design/ strategy, and program evaluation.
Advocacy Strategy and Tactics for Social Change
This course explores theories of change and impactful social movements as a means of preparing students to lead change processes. It examines the activities, contexts, challenges and ethics of community-based social change as they relate to organizations and institutional systems, work/task groups and individuals and the role of the community leaders in these processes.
Leading High Impact Teams
In this course, students will learn how to lead high performing teams that are collaborative, consistently learning, and able to achieve bottom line results. Specifically, students will learn best practices for composing a team and aligning individual and team goals.
Leadership Assessment and Feedback Coaching
This course introduces students to the principles of individual assessment and their role in leadership development. Frameworks for conceptualizing the assessment process, specific strategies for assessing individual personality, cognitive ability, and workplace relevant behaviors will be considered.
Entrepreneurship
This course introduces students to entrepreneurship and the development of the entrepreneurial mindset. Students will learn about the entrepreneurial process, skills required and the necessary resilience to meet their business goals.
Systems Thinking
Complex challenges and issues involve the interplay of a multitude of stakeholders, organizations and institutions. Students will be introduced to systems design, theory and methods to identify and design systemic interventions for social, policy, and business change.
Human Resources Management
This course examines everyday issues facing organizations such as attracting, selecting, and maintaining a productive workforce in today’s competitive operating environment. Further, other nuances such as training and development, compensation, and employee performance evaluation will be discussed.
Organizational Theory and Public Personnel Management
In this course, students learn human resource practices and styles of management in public organizations. Topics include sociological, economic, and political science theories of organizational behavior and management within the public sector; the values associated with the five general models of public personnel systems are considered within a historical context.
Public Management and Leadership
This course introduces the knowledge and skills related to strategic management and leadership in government and public services including the articulation and aligning of organizational goals in accordance with the mission.
Business and Government Policy
This course examines the relationship between business and government, the influence one has over the other; how governmental policies influence the decisions of corporations, businesses and industries and vice-versa, and the economic and development issues arising in an increasingly integrated global economy.
DISSERTATION
The course may be repeated multiple times for credit – a minimum of 12 credit hours are required.
Doctoral Dissertation
Course may be taken multiple times for credit. This course provides support and structure to the preparation and completion of the dissertation prospectus. Students will take this course to conduct research on a topic area or idea for the dissertation.
COMPREHENSIVE EXAM
The purpose of the exams is to assess student’s mastery of Organizational Leadership content delivered throughout the program, and to gauge student’s readiness for future doctoral work.
SOCIAL JUSTICE PRACTICUM
Your opportunity to create lasting change on local and global systems, almost from day 1.
The Social Justice Practicum (SJP) at Adler University is a first-year non-clinical, community-based experience that reflects Alfred Adler’s concept of social interest. The practicum places students with mission-driven organizations where they complete a minimum of 200 approved hours across two semesters, typically 8–10 hours per week. Alongside their placements, students participate in required workshops. Each practicum is evaluated through midterm and final supervisor reviews, student self-assessments, and feedback on the site and project, with grades of High Pass, Pass, Remediation, or Fail. The experience culminates in a campus-wide presentation of outcomes, assessed by multiple evaluators, offering students both applied training and the opportunity to contribute to meaningful community change.
“We want students to take away more than just being able to regurgitate theories on leader-follower dynamics or team formations, or systems thinking. We teach them to apply what they learn in different aspects of their lives so that they can become the leaders we want and need, and that can start from anywhere – anyone can lead from where they are.”
– Marianne Cabrera, Ph.D.
Program Director
Financing your degree
Use our tuition calculator to help you start to plan your budget. Financial aid from the government, scholarships, or part-time employment can help you more easily afford your degree.
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Still wondering?
Do you want to know more about Adler University before applying? Learn more about the University, explore programs, view admissions requirements, and review available scholarships.