Essay 1
Enrolling for a doctorate in education at Portland University provides an opportunity to expand knowledge and develop professionally. The program offers the opportunity to learn and put knowledge into the application for improving the society and inspiring other people. The choice to pursue the program is inspired by personal and professional goals geared to being a better person socially and professionally.
The main goal of pursuing the program is to be a professional leader in the field of education and education management. I firmly believe that great leaders are made, and opportunities such as a doctorate program provide a platform to nurture leadership. Developing leadership skills is crucial in advocating for change and working towards changing the environment. Most of the people I look upon in this field have pursued a doctorate where research has been the epitome of bringing change to the various positions they have occupied. The program will be crucial to achieving the goal of becoming a professional leader and helping other people to achieve their own goals.
The other goal is to teach organizational leadership and development at the university level. At my undergraduate level, I developed a passion for education and the various positions I occupied as an instructor inspired me to be an instructor at the university level. It is only through pursuing a doctorate that one can acquire the necessary qualifications to fit for the job. Teaching at the highest level will provide an opportunity to share my experience and inspire students to be future leaders. Teaching also offers numerous opportunities including developing a professional environment. Training learners in the field of leadership will impart relevant skills to be future professionals. The professional environment allows people to freely share ideas and develop courses of action that have the potential of changing the society.
Portland University has a unique doctorate program that makes it easy to achieve these goals. Among the area of specialization in the education program in organizational leadership and development. The specialization has various units that prepare learners to be organizational leaders and agents of change. The learning experiences and approaches used in teaching the course equips learners with relevant skills as well as enhancing experience. These goals match the doctorate program and enrolling in the program will ease the process of realizing the goals. The research-based approach additionally helps learners to develop problem-solving skills, which are vital in leadership. The doctorate program will ensure that I develop to be a leader who can take up a leadership position and leave the place better than I found it.
Essay 2
The program has different areas of professional interest that could be chosen for specialization. Organizational leadership and development is an area of interest that I will choose as a topic in my doctoral program. The growing need of leadership in almost all the sectors makes this interesting particular when it comes to educational leadership. Few people have pursued this area and enrolling for the discipline will provide numerous opportunities within the education sector. Leadership is a topic that is widely known but understanding the basics is still challenging to most people. The opportunity to study leadership at an organizational level that is directed towards development will provide vital skills that will be of great use for my future career (Bowen & Rudenstine, 2014).
Organizational leadership and development are of interest due to numerous reasons. The issue of leadership in the recent past has been used as an avenue of getting into positions with the aim of helping people through initiating structural changes. However, the intended goal of leadership has failed to achieve its primary goal due to issues of corruption and greed that has since leaders deviating from their roles. The reason why several leaders end up not pursuing their initial goals is due to lack of understanding of what leadership is all about and the role leaders need to play when they occupy such positions. This area of study provides a platform for learning fundamentals of leadership and its application to bring change that can be felt by all people (Carmeli, Gelbard & Reiter‐Palmon, 2013). Learning from past leaders who were successful in their leadership will provide vital skills and knowledge, which can be adopted into modern leadership. The area of interest covers the fundamentals of leadership while drawing attention to past leadership and current events with the aim of shaping the overall leadership abilities of learners.
This area of study equips learners with critical thinking skills that are vital in decision-making. The purpose of leadership is to provide solutions to challenges faced by followers. Developing solutions to problems requires some skills, which are learned in the area of study. The ability to think critically under different circumstances and focusing efforts towards designing viable solutions to the problem will be a transformation in leadership. Leaders who attend to the challenges faced by individuals develop a good relationship with the followers, which improves communication and collective role of decision-making. The area of study is designed to train learners on effective decision-making strategies b exposing them to real-life scenarios where they are required to use their critical thinking skills to solve problems. The fact that the course offers life skills that enhance leadership draws my interest towards the discipline (Day et al., 2014).
Studying organizational leadership and development provides an opportunity to inspire the future generation through exemplary leadership. The knowledge and skills gained from the discipline will be put to great use in my future leadership. I believe that I can be a model whom I can leave traces of good leadership, which can be emulated by future generations. This area will help me in achieving this goal of leadership, which has drawn my interest towards studying leadership. The ability to transform the society through servant leadership is the core principle of what will be learned in this area of study. Recent history has shown that individuals who pursue this discipline have been successful in their current leadership roles. The ability of this discipline to improve the leadership capabilities of an individual makes it interest to pursue leadership at the doctorate level (Lussier & Achua, 2015).
Doctorate level of education provides an avenue to engage in research that will change issues in the society. The society is full of challenges that are difficult to address due to the inexistent plan of tackling the challenges. The research in which I will engage will help address leadership issues where leaders can be more accountable for their actions. Despite the fact that leadership has existed throughout history, the various literature on how leadership can be used to change the society and improve the welfare of people has not been sufficient to bring the much-desired change. Organizational leadership will be the subject of my research where I will investigate the role institutions can play in shaping the society through leadership (Northouse, 2018).
The research will make a significant contribution to the profession by providing different strategies that can be enforced to make leaders accountable. The current leadership has since leaders neglecting the problems of the people by failing to put up relevant structures to address the problems. It is through this research that organizational leaders can be able to show an example which can be emulated by other leaders. The problem of leadership can be addressed at the institutional level where leaders practice good leadership that becomes envy for other leaders in different positions. The research will focus on past leadership, what was done wrong, what was done right and what can be improved to enhance leadership in the current society. The findings and recommendations could be implemented to give organizational leadership a different perception (Northouse, 2018).
The basis of research is to provide new solutions to current problems that cannot be addressed by prior methods. As the society continues to change, problems change which requires new solutions. The solutions can only be provided through leadership that is focused on finding solutions. Analyzing past literature on the problem, critically looking into the recommendation of other authors and relating them to the current situation will help to set the basis for finding solutions. Organizational leadership is concerned with the application of best practices that will improve the performance and benefits to the society. Leadership profession is not fully recognized since most leaders seek positions despite having no prior leadership experience and knowledge. By engaging in research, the profession will receive the limelight it deserves and commands respect from all the sections of the society (Carmeli, Gelbard & Reiter‐Palmon, 2013).
Organizational leadership is something that should be learned to maximize the potential of the organization. Through the research, individuals will see the sense of pursuing leadership education that will enable them to manage and lead different workforce in their businesses and public offices. The education sector will additionally appreciate the role of leadership in education particularly institutions of higher learning. These institutions have long been seen as easy to mage and control, but this is not the case. Individual occupying positions that command decision-making will see the need to enforce leadership in their organizations. It is through persuasive research that is evidence-based that all the stakeholders will be convinced of the value of leadership. Leadership is crucial for growth and being exposed to leadership education equips one with the best tools for transforming the society. The research in this area of study will provide findings that can be implemented at different levels to enhance the profession (Lussier & Achua, 2015).
Essay 3
The doctoral program is rigorous and requires full attention mainly on the key areas of learning. Adequate planning to accommodate enough time for the program is vital to get the best out of the organizational leadership and development doctorate program. Three approaches will be put into use to accommodate the demanding nature of the academic program.
Resigning or taking a leave from my current position to concentrate on doctorate program will be important. Balancing work and class activities can turn out to be a difficult task, which could hinder learning. In the initial year of study, I will dedicate all my full time to this program by spending the majority of the time at the university. By fully committing myself to the program, it will be easier to respond to the demands of the instructors and undertaken my studies on the final research topic. Full-time learning ensures that I am present at all times even if instructors request student meetings during any time of the day. By resigning and dedicating my time to studies, the demands of the program will be met with ease.
The other approach is to engage in other activities during the weekend leaving all the weekdays for learning activities. Weekends provide the perfect time to be at home with my family as well as engage in other errands that are important for my social life. The fact that balancing schoolwork with personal is quite a challenge, allocating time for each of these activities will ease the rigorous nature of doctorate program. Additionally, planning can help to avoid scenarios where private errands and activities affect learning programs. Making use of all the free days to attend to other issues can be of help in dedicating much time to class activities particularly research and discussions.
Establishing a clear communication plan with instructors is crucial in receiving timely updates in regards to class activities. Direct communication provides an engagement where we can plan when to meet instructors and when not to go to school. It is through effective communication that timelines can be observed, and all the demands of the program are achieved within the stipulated time. Sometimes instructors could miss coming to class, and if they communicate in time, it will provide an opportunity to use the time to engage in other activities. Communication can be of help in informing lecturers the periods when I am likely to miss class and offer solutions on how to compensate for the missed class.
References
Bowen, W. G., & Rudenstine, N. L. (2014). In Pursuit Of the Phd. Princeton University Press.
Carmeli, A., Gelbard, R., & Reiter‐Palmon, R. (2013). Leadership, Creative Problem‐Solving Capacity, and Creative Performance: The Importance of Knowledge Sharing. Human Resource Management, 52(1), 95-121.
Day, D. V., Fleenor, J. W., Atwater, L. E., Sturm, R. E., & Mckee, R. A. (2014). Advances in Leader and Leadership Development: A Review of 25 Years of Research and Theory. The Leadership Quarterly, 25(1), 63-82.
Lussier, R. N., & Achua, C. F. (2015). Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development. Nelson Education.
Northouse, P. G. (2018). Leadership: Theory and Practice. Sage Publications.
