Master’s Programme in Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability

Admission

Admission criteria
In the case of more qualified applicants than available positions for the current programme start, a selection is made. This is done in the following way:

METHOD 3 Master’s Programme in Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability

GENERAL

This method is intended to assess the applicant’s motivation and preconditions for studies at the programme ”Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability”.

SELECTION CRITERIA

• Curriculum Vitae
• An essay explaining the applicant’s interest in the programme, providing information about her or his relevant personal or professional experiences (maximum 2 500 words)
• 2 letters of reference (recommendations from two people who are familiar with the applicant’s ability and skills)
• Higher education grades

SPECIFICATION OF SELECTION CRITERIA

Ranking of the applicants will be based on the relative qualification level as regards:
• Academic results at prior higher education studies
• Relevance of degree (and of courses included) for scientifically based studies at Master’s level in strategic sustainable development
• Relevant professional experience
• Demonstrated interest in ”Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability” (e.g. through choice of work, voluntary work, other community services or in other way)

MAXIMUM MERIT RANKING

A maximum of 8 points will be given, based on the following criteria:
1. Academic results at prior higher education studies:
• 2 points: very good results (i.e. a significant number of courses with grades well above average – e.g. ’first class’ or ’pass with distinction’)
• 1 point: good results (i.e. a significant number of courses with grades above average – e.g. ’second class upper division’ or ’pass with credit’)
• 0 points: weak or sufficient results (i.e. a significant number of courses with average grades or under – e.g. ’second class lower division’ or ’pass’)
2. Relevance of degree:
• 2 points: degree in science and/or engineering with a significant number of courses in environment, sustainability, geoscience and/or socio-cultural studies or degree in economics with a significant number of courses in natural sciences, sustainability, engineering and/or socio-cultural studies
• 1 point: degree in social sciences or professional qualification with a significant number of courses in natural sciences or sustainability
• 0 points: degree in social sciences or professional qualification with few or no courses in natural sciences or sustainability
3. Relevant professional experience:
• 2 points: the equivalent of a total of 3 or more years’ work or experience from voluntary work in areas assessed as relevant to the programme ”Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability” by the programme admissions committee
• 1 point: the equivalent of a total of 1-3 years’ work or experience from voluntary work in areas assessed as relevant to the programme ”Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability” by the programme admissions committee
• 0 points: the equivalent of a total of less than 1 year’s work or experience from voluntary work in areas assessed as relevant to the programme ”Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability” by the programme admissions committee
4. Demonstrated interest in the programme ”Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability”
• 2 points: Manifests a clear interest in the programme and clearly describes how the relevant professional experiences or the personal experiences are or may be relevant to sustainability
• 1 point: Manifests an interest in the programme and describes how the relevant professional experience or personal experiences are or may be relevant to sustainability
• 0 points: Manifests no interest in the programme and does not describe how the relevant professional experience or the personal experiences are or may be relevant to sustainability.

WORKING METHOD

Applications that are accepted for examination based on the general admission requirements for the programme will be ranked according to the above by the programme admissions committee, consisting of teachers of the programme.

Read more about admission here


Qualification Awarded

On completion of the programme, students will be awarded the second cycle degree
Master of Science (60 credits).
Main field of study: Strategic Leadership towards Sustainability.
Degree in Swedish: Filosofie magisterexamen.
Huvudområde: Strategiskt ledarskap för hållbarhet.



Learning Outcome

Knowledge and understanding
On completion of the program the student will:

• demonstrate deepened knowledge about society’s sustainability challenges, be able to describe and characterize basic reasons for these and be able to explain and criticize responses to these challenges in academia, the business world and other parts of society.
• demonstrate deepened knowledge about methodology for strategic sustainable development that supports structured and coordinated cooperation between different disciplines, organizational units and sectors of society, including a principled definition of ecological and social sustainability and strategic guidelines for how an organization can contribute to society’s transition to sustainability in a way that is economically advantageous to the organization.
• demonstrate deepened knowledge about methodology for leadership in complexity, including systems thinking, organizational change, organizational learning, transformative change, dialogic organization development, organizational dynamics, mental models and facilitation of cooperation between different disciplines, organizational units and sectors of society.
• demonstrate deepened understanding of how the two central fields of the program (strategic sustainable development and leadership in complexity) can be integrated with each other and with supplementary fields, concepts, methods and tools as support of strategic leadership towards sustainability.
• demonstrate deepened methodology knowledge about research for strategic leadership towards sustainability, especially qualitative and design science methods, and be able to demonstrate broad insight into current research of that kind.

• demonstrate ability to integrate and apply the two central fields of the program (strategic sustainable development and leadership in complexity)for research and development work or other qualified activity, including being able to analyze and develop solutions and strategic plans and choose, combine and develop supplementary concepts, methods and tools.
• demonstrate ability to independently identify and formulate problems of relevance to strategic leadership towards sustainability and with support of the central methodology of the program for strategic sustainable development and leadership in complexity plan and with adequate methods from supplementary fields carry out qualified assignments within given timeframes in academia, the business world and other parts of society.
• demonstrate ability to orally and in writing in a way that is comprehensible to different groups describe and present the meaning of strategic leadership towards sustainability, argue for conclusions and engage other persons in work of change and organizational learning, facilitate and lead such work and reflect upon the personal leadership.

• demonstrate ability to make assessments of different solutions and strategic plans for how organizations can contribute to sustainable development, in view of relevant scientific, societal and ethical aspects, and consider ethical aspect of research and development work for sustainability and especially of design science research for strategic leadership towards sustainability.
• demonstrate insight into the possibilities and limitations of engineering and science as support of society’s transition to sustainability and how different stakeholders use science for their purposes, as for example in the discourse on climate changes.
• demonstrate ability to evaluate and critically relate to different theories, concepts, methods and tools in the field of sustainability, including the central methodology of the program for strategic sustainable development and leadership in complexity.
• demonstrate ability to, with support of the program’s central methodology for strategic sustainable development and leadership, identify needs of further knowledge.