A new online bachelor’s degree in leadership from OSU Institute of Technology provides a postsecondary pathway in high demand for those who have previously completed an Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S).

OSUIT is now accepting applications for the Bachelor of Technology (B.T.) in Applied Technical Leadership (ATL) for the fall 2019 semester. Developed in direct collaboration with OSUIT’s industry partners, the new degree program is uniquely designed to address the needs of professionals working in technical industries who wish to grow and nurture their leadership abilities. The skills and knowledge obtained through the degree program provide opportunities for graduates to advance more quickly within their organizations and industries.

“OSUIT has offered baccalaureate degrees since 2004,” said Dr. Scott Newman, vice president of Academic Affairs. “However, the existing baccalaureate programs were designed for students completing the Associate in Applied Science in Information Technologies or Engineering Technologies. The B.T. in ATL was created for anyone who has completed an A.A.S. or higher.”

The degree is offered completely online to reduce student barriers to undertaking and completing the program. It allows employers to develop leaders from within their own organizations without compromising day-today contributions to operations and productivity.

“Now more than ever before, new employees need to be business-smart and industry-ready when they graduate from college,” said Tim Cronemeyer, station manager, AEP-TFS at AEP Transmission. “It’s rare to find a leader with both the practical knowledge derived from a robust technical education and the management expertise designed to optimize our employees’ distinctive technical backgrounds.”

As a large percentage of the technical workforce is nearing retirement age, the need for managers and supervisors to demonstrate a balance of strong leadership and solid technical skills has never been greater.

“Most OSUIT graduates find themselves with opportunities to move into leadership roles,” said Newman. “However, a number of employers prefer, and even require, individuals pursuing such opportunities to hold baccalaureate degrees.”

The Applied Technical Leadership program offers students opportunities to benefit from the broad diversity of their fellow students’ backgrounds and undertake projects pertinent to their employers, workforce sectors and current and future roles. The plan of study is designed to provide students with credit for any applicable general education coursework they have completed and up to 30 credit hours of technical or major coursework.

The comprehensive training provided with this degree is offered by field professionals – faculty members with real-world experience in technical enterprise leadership.

“We work very hard to employ faculty with significant, real-world experience in their chosen disciplines,” said Newman. “Very intentionally, all of the faculty involved with the ATL program were selected from across our diverse academic offerings to ensure students have opportunities to benefit from their diverse, rich backgrounds and expertise.”

Oklahoma’s industries depend on the next generation of trained technicians and technologists to step into leadership roles, and with the help of OSUIT’s ATL program, they can do just that.

The program will be offered in an accelerated format, provide an opportunity to earn credit for prior learning experience, incorporate coursework and projects directly related to industry, focus on preparation of the student for future leadership opportunities and will be delivered by faculty with real-world experience. All of these attributes were rated as “important” or “very important” by more than 93% of the students surveyed when OSUIT was exploring possible implementation of the ATL program.

The priority deadline for admissions into the program is May 1, 2019.

For more information about the Bachelor of Technology in Applied Technical Leadership or how to apply visit osuit.edu/ATL or call 918-293-4768.