Bachelor of Arts

BA in Liberal Studies, Leadership & Sustainable Business

Ethical business is worthy business.

Dynamic leadership is an essential element for success in today’s business environment. Leaders must be distinctive, able, and compelling in order to effectively implement changes that align with organizational and societal goals. AUS’s Leadership & Sustainable Business concentration emphasizes social responsibility, entrepreneurial innovation, environmental sustainability and financial resilience within a just global economy. By applying these equitable strategies you’ll be capable of navigating the complex changes that are shaping the way that we do business and lead our organizations. This degree is offered by AU Seattle.


Program Overview

This concentration prepares students for work in fields such as management, organizational development, human resources, training, business, social entrepreneurship, sustainable systems design, public policy, community development, and leadership in areas from education to health care and social services. Students completing this concentration also acquire the necessary prerequisites for successful graduate study in these fields. Leadership & Sustainable Business engages students in reflective inquiry into the nature of dynamic leadership and resilient organizational life, with a particular emphasis on facilitating systemic and participatory change in a quickly evolving, interconnected and multicultural world. Studies in this area emphasize an ethic of social responsibility and entrepreneurial innovation driving business decisions and functions, along with concern for environmental sustainability and financial resilience within a just global economy.

Customization is Key

In the BA in Liberal Studies program, each study plan is based on the student’s past experience, current needs and interests, and future goals. Students work in close collaboration with faculty advisors, instructors, and other students to shape their studies. Students build on earlier college work and on competencies learned at home, and at work, through independent reading and volunteer activities.

Degree Requirements

The Liberal Studies Bachelor’s degree requires 180 quarter credits, including a minimum of 60 upper-division credits, and a maximum of 120 lower-division credits. Graduation requirements include:

  • 7 liberal studies courses
  • an internship, or other in-the-world learning experience of the student’s choosing
  • at least 40 credits in the Leadership and Sustainable Business concentration
  • a senior capstone project

For detailed curriculum, degree requirements, and course descriptions, please visit the AUS catalog.

Example Coursework for Concentration Requirements

  • Far-From-Equilibrium: Systems Perspectives on Change
  • Intersectional Coaching
  • Narrating Change: Stories for Collective Action
  • Triple Bottom Line Accounting & Financial Management
  • Business Systems & Impacts
  • Ethics in Professional Settings

Sample Community-Based Learning Experiences

  • Raising awareness about multicultural issues in one’s work team/division
  • Doing market research for a café and bookstore
  • Assist a family-owned business to develop a human resources program
  • Internship based on a project management initiative at work

Sample Synthesis Projects

  • Developing and implementing a volunteer training workshop
  • Lead a change initiative at one’s workplace
  • Develop a business plan for a new environmental start-up
  • Development of a sustainability transition plan for one’s company
  • Development of a triple-bottom-line accounting system for a family business
  • Analysis of toxic waste disposal practices in a local medical facility & drafting a proposed set of waste reduction recommendations

Career Outlook

The Leadership & Sustainable Business concentration prepares students for work in fields such as:

  • Management
  • Organizational Development
  • Human Resources
  • Training
  • Business
  • Social Entrepreneurship
  • Sustainable Systems Design
  • Public Policy
  • Community Development
  • Leadership in an array of fields from education to healthcare and social services

Students completing this concentration also acquire the necessary prerequisites for successful graduate study in the above fields.

Admissions / Cost / Aid

 Admissions

How to Apply:

Antioch University Seattle offers a Bachelor of Arts degree in Liberal Studies through a degree completion program. All applicants to the BA program must have completed at least 36 quarter or 24 semester units to be eligible for admission. A combined minimum of one full-time year of college credit is required; however, AUS will transfer up to the equivalent of three full-time years (80 semester units/135 quarter units if at least 15 credits are upper division).

  1. Complete the online admissions application.
  2. Submit official transcripts from ALL colleges/universities you have attended to the Admissions Office. Transcript evaluations are required for all coursework completed outside of the U.S. or Canada (except Quebec). See Transcript Evaluation section on International Students webpage for details.
  3. Submit a short essay (two-three pages; approximately 500 words) that addresses why you would like to finish your bachelor’s degree at Antioch University Seattle.
  4. International Students have additional admission requirements. See International Students page for details.
Application Deadlines:

QuarterApplication Deadline*Start Dates
Spring March 15April 1
SummerJune 15July 1
Fall September 15 October 2
Winter December 15January 2
*Complete applications received after the Deadline date may be considered if space is still available in that quarter or will be reviewed for the next available term.
Applicants coming to AUS fulfill the minimum transfer requirement with:

  • College courses taken at a U.S. college or university (with a final grade of ‘C’ or better, or pass if taken as pass/no pass)
  • College Board Advanced Placement exams (a score of 3 or higher)
  • CLEP credit (a score of 50)
  • International coursework (university, college, upper-secondary/gymnasium) that is assessed to be equivalent to college credit earned at a regionally accredited U.S. college/university (with a final grade of ‘C’ or better, or pass if taken as pass/no pass) by an external transcript evaluation agency.

Antioch University Seattle Admissions Office 2400 Third Avenue, Suite 200 Seattle, WA 98121 [email protected] LEARN MORE ABOUT ADMISSION

Cost

Per quarter unit$535
View the Cost of Attendance Components
Full-time students typically enroll in 12 credits per quarter. Our students typically earn 10-25 credits for life experience/prior learning, up to a maximum of 45, and transfer in between 45-120 credits. It takes 180 credits total to graduate. Please note: Additional fees for all AUS programs may include (but are not necessarily limited to) charges for materials, late registration, enrollment maintenance, parking, graduation, transcripts, tuition payment plan, late payments, late registration, and returned checks. LEARN MORE ABOUT TUITION

Financial Aid

A majority of AUS students finance their education through some form of financial aid. You may not be sure which federal, state, public and private aid packages – such as loans, scholarships, and grants—are right for you. Our staff is here to help you, so you can focus on what’s most important: beginning your academic program at AUS. LEARN MORE ABOUT AID

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