Metropolitan School of Professional Studies

M.S.M. Program: Professional Communication Track

The M.S.M. track in Professional Communication focuses on developing an area that employers consistently list among a managers most important: Communication. The typical assumption here might be that the coursework in this track focuses on improving presentation skills, but it goes far beyond that. The Professional Communication track not only improves one's verbal and written communication skills, but also enhances skills and knowledge in interpersonal communication, organizational communication, and communication strategy. This track will help students see management and managerial communication through a whole new lens - and provide skills that will make them much more effective, knowledgeable, holistic, and strategic communicators.

The program consists of a total of 12 courses, or 36 semester credits, and requires approximately 18 - 24 months to complete. Students must earn at least a 'B' grade point average (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) - both overall and on final projects completed as part of the capstone course.

Core courses within the M.S.M. program include the following:

• Communicating Effectively as a Manager
• Managing People and Performance
• Managerial Decision-Making: Tools and Techniques
• Project Management
• Human Resource Management and Strategy
• Leadership Foundations
• Strategic Planning and Implementation
• Master's Capstone: Research, Synthesis, Applications

Students within the Professional Communication track also complete the following:

• Integrated Organizational Communication
• Public Relations: Managing External Relations
• Advanced Managerial Communication
• One additional course selected from:
• Human Resource Development and Training
• Labor-Management Relations
• Leading Organizational Change
• Developing Leadership Competencies
• Conflict Resolution

Schedule

Participants will typically take two courses per term, with each course meeting one evening per week, from 6:10 - 8:40 p.m., or from 6:35 - 9:05 p.m. Most students elect to complete the program as part of a cohort, although this is not required. The cohort model allows students to go through the program's core courses with the same group of colleagues. The benefits enjoyed from completing the program in this manner include:

• enhanced collegiality among the students
• student-colleagues serve as a ready back-up if you have to miss a class, providing notes and insights from the missed class meeting
• students become a strong professional network both during the program and afterward when you're facing new challenges
• personal friendships
• a more relaxed classroom dynamic that makes the learning experience more enjoyable
• familiarity among the faculty regarding which courses you have (or have not yet) completed within the program
• a fixed schedule for the duration of the program, which greatly enhances students' ability to schedule and accommodate personal and professional obligations
• confidence in knowing that the course you need each semester WILL be offered exactly when you expect/need it to be.

The following table provides a reasonable example of how the program is structured. Your schedule will resemble this, but may not be identical.

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