Elements of the College Experience That Foster Leadership Development

There is evidence in the literature (Komives, Lucas, & McMahon, 2007, Cavico & Mujtaba ,2010; NACE, 2010; Garvin and Datar, 2008) suggesting that employers expect that business school graduates who they consider for employment possess foundational leadership content knowledge combined with some application experience. This study was conducted to reveal the elements of a four-year business program's academic preparation that help first time job seekers meet employers' expectations for leadership abilities. These elements were revealed by examining the self-reported leadership behaviors of students along with faculty interviews at a four-year college in a northeastern state. The Student Leadership Practices Inventory (Kouzes & Posner, 2002), or S-LPI, along with additional interview questions, was administered to students enrolled in the final year of a traditional college program that leads to a Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration. Faculty members responsible for curriculum design and implementation in the same business program were interviewed with the intent of revealing the elements of the program intended to foster students' leadership development.