MHRLR Curriculum
The Integral Role of Human Resources and Labor Relations to Business Success
Critical to one's professional success is learning to effectively lead and manage the most valuable and most complex resource of any organization, its human resources.
Paramount to achieving and sustaining competitive advantage, is the alignment of Human Resources and Labor Relations (HR and LR) strategies with business and operational strategies.
Working closely with our distinguished external Advisory Board, our curriculum is designed to provide students with the comprehensive knowledge and essential analytic business skills and acumen to become business leaders with expertise in HR and LR.
Emphasized within our curriculum, therefore, is a rich understanding of the integral role HR and LR plays in achieving business and organizational goals in an international environment.
A Flexible and Comprehensive Curriculum
The MSU Master of Human Resources & Labor Relations program is based on a 12-course, 36 credit-hour curriculum. To ensure graduates receive a comprehensive professional education, students take one or more courses across each of 8 core ‘knowledge areas.’ In addition to completing 5 required courses, students have the flexibility to develop expertise in selected subjects by choosing 7 elective courses. Described next are the 8 core knowledge areas comprising our master's degree, along with the courses included under each area.
For example, students can focus on Strategic Change and Leadership in HR by completing both courses under our Strategy and Firm Performance core knowledge area (HRLR 871 and HRLR 872), plus Leadership (HRLR 818) and Organizational Development & Planned Change (HRLR 816) courses listed under our Organizational Change Leadership core knowledge area.
Listed under each core knowledge area below are both required courses and elective courses.
| Courses Number | Courses Title | Credits |
|---|---|---|
| Human Resource Management | ||
| HRLR 820 | HR Practices & Decisions (Fall/Spring) - required | 3 |
| HRLR 821 | Talent Acquisition & Deployment (Summer) | 3 |
| HRLR 822 | Training & Development (Spring) | 3 |
| HRLR 825 | Compensation (Fall) | 3 |
| Strategy and Firm Performance | ||
| HRLR 871 | HR & Firm Performance (Spring) | 3 |
| HRLR 872 | HR Strategy (Fall/Spring) | 3 |
| International HR & LR | ||
| HRLR 854 | Comparative Employment Relations (HRLR 858/863, Spring) | 3 |
| HRLR 855 | International HR (HRLR 820, Fall) | 3 |
| HRLR 859 | Study Abroad to South Korea (contact instructor, Spring Break) | 3 |
| Organizational Change Leadership | ||
| HRLR 813 | Organizational Behavior for HR & LR (Fall/Spring) - required | 3 |
| HRLR 816 | Organizational Development & Change (HRLR 813, Spring) | 3 |
| HRLR 818 | Leadership (Fall) | 3 |
| HRLR 819 | Negotiations & Conflict Resolution (HRLR 813, Spring) | 3 |
| Workplace Law & Policy | ||
| HRLR 863 | Labor Law (Fall) | 3 |
| HRLR 868 | Employment Law (Fall/Spring) | 3 |
| Labor Relations | ||
| HRLR 858 | Collective Bargaining (Fall/Spring) - required | 3 |
| Analytical Skills for HR & LR | ||
| HRLR 809 | Economics of HR (Fall/Spring) - required | 3 |
| HRLR 832 | Quantitative Methods for HR Analyses (Fall/Spring) - required | 3 |
| HRLR 891 | HR Analytics (HRLR 832, Special Topics) | 3 |
| Independent Study in HR/LR or Approved non-HRLR Courses from offering department | ||
| HRLR 890 | Independent Study in HR/LR | 1-6 |
| CEP 864 | Career Counseling (Summer) * | 3 |
| EAD 861 | Adult Learning (Fall) * | 3 |
| EAD 864 | Adult Career Development (Spring) * | 3 |
| MGT 804 | International Management (Fall/Spring/Summer) * | 1-3 |
| MBA 816 | Managerial Communication Strategy & Tactics (Fall) * | 1.5 |
| MBA 817 | Designing and Delivering Impactful Business Presentations (Spring) * | 1.5 |
| ACC 822 | Information Systems Project Management (Fall/Spring) * | 1-3 |
* Completion of a minimum of 15 credits required to register for this course
** With approval from offering department