RICHARDSON, Texas (June 8, 2005) – In September, The University of Texas at Dallas School of Management will begin offering a graduate-level program in executive and professional coaching that is the first university-based program of its kind in the nation to be offered via distance learning.
Enrolling students will have two options within the program’s curriculum. Under the first, they will be able to earn a professional certificate in executive and professional coaching by completing an in-depth coaching curriculum that includes a supervised coaching practicum. The practicum will exceed the educational requirements of the International Coach Federation. Students completing this option will be eligible to earn 12 graduate-level credit hours.
Dr. Robert Hicks
The program’s second option allows students to select specific learning modules for their own professional development and continuing education purposes.
Dr. Robert Hicks, director of the new program, explained that students in the classes will use advanced distance-learning technology that enables them to participate interactively with instructors and fellow students. Classes will be offered in the late afternoons, early evenings, or on Saturdays.
“Our program is designed to accommodate the schedules of busy professionals who are interested in either becoming certified as an executive and professional coach or who want to learn more about this fast-growing field,” said Hicks, who is an organizational psychologist as well as an executive coach.
“By offering our program via distance learning, we are able to make our classes available to people regardless of their geographic location. And our students will have the opportunity to learn how to increase their coaching efficiency by using the latest technologies.”
Dr. David Springate, associate dean for executive education at UTD, said the new executive and professional coaching program adds an important dimension to the school’s executive programs.
“Executive and professional coaching is a rapidly growing field in today’s business landscape. The most successful business people are those who have learned to maximize both their professional and their personal potentials, and they often access an executive coach to help them do so,” he said, noting that the school currently is providing executive coaching to students in several of its executive MBA programs.
Hicks said the UTD Executive and Professional Coaching Program is designed to exceed the standards of the International Coach Federation. The program also is a member of the Graduate Schools Alliance for Executive Coaching.
Registration information can be obtained on the program’s website at http://som.utdallas.edu/executive/coaching or by contacting Dr. Hicks at 972-883-5900 or coaching@utdallas.edu.
About The UTD School of Management
The School of Management is the largest of UTD’s seven schools, with an enrollment that has doubled over the last nine years to more than 4,400 students. The school’s new, 204,000-square-foot building — featuring classrooms with state-of-the-art audio and visual equipment, wireless connectivity, video-conferencing facilities, a computer lab, faculty offices, meeting rooms and an executive education center — opened in August 2003.
About UTD
The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor®, enrolls more than 14,000 students. The school’s freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores. The university offers a broad assortment of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs. For additional information about UTD, please visit the university’s web site at www.utdallas.edu.