Program application deadlines are April 1 and November 1 and admission to the program
involves a few simple steps.
To be admitted to WCU’s online master’s degree program in human resources (HR), you
must have:
- Earned an undergraduate degree from a fully accredited university
- Maintained a 3.0 (B) GPA.
- You must also submit three letters of recommendation from individuals who can vouch
for your scholarly abilities and good work habits. Current or former job supervisors
and former professors are ideal references (recommendations from friends, colleagues
or former staff members are not sufficient). All official transcripts should be mailed
directly to the graduate school.
Prospective students with strong grade point averages and references may be allowed
to enter the program with "conditional status" and take up to two courses before GRE
scores are submitted.
TEMPORARILY, DUE TO COVID-19 AND THE UNAVAILABILITY OF TESTING, STUDENTS MAY BE ADMITTED
CONDITIONALLY WITH AN UG 3.0 AND THREE LETTERS OF PROFESSIONAL RECOMMENDATION. ADMITTED
APPLICANTS WILL HAVE ONE SEMESTER TO COMPLETE THE GRE.
Only applicants who have a cumulative undergraduate GPA of 3.25/4.0 or higher will
be considered for conditional admission, which allows them to take classes for one
semester while preparing for and taking the GRE. All others need to submit GRE scores
in order to have their application considered. Applicants who already have earned a graduate degree do not have to submit GRE scores.
If you took the old GRE, the MSHR program seeks applicants with a combined verbal and quantitative score
of 900 and an analytical writing score of 3.5. If you took the new revised GRE the
MSHR program seeks applicants with at least a score of 150 on the Verbal Reasoning,
a score of 141 on the Quantitative Reasoning and an analytical writing score of 3.5.
Please Note: International applicants must also take the TOEFL exam and complete additional forms. They should also contact WCU's International Programs & Services Office.
The MSHR program is a 36-credit hour program, in which the curriculum consists of
7 required courses that all students take and 5 elective courses, all 3 credit courses.
HR 602, HR 605, & HR 610 are taken at the beginning of the program; HR 670 and HR
671 have prerequisites of 18 credit hours and HR 670 must be taken before HR 671;
Students with more than 5 years of full-time human resources-related work experience
may substitute another WCU HR course for HR 671. HR 698 is usually taken during a
student's last semester in the program.
All courses have been designed to align with the MSHR program competency model; therefore, our courses develop competencies
within the program’s four Leadership Competency domains: 1) Relational HR Leadership;
2) Strategic HR Leadership; 3) Operational HR Leadership; and 4) Ethical & Socially
Responsible HR Leadership.
Required Core Courses
- HR 601: "Organization Acumen for HR Leaders"
- HR 602: "Human Resources Research & Evaluation Methods"
- HR 605: "Principles & Practice in Human Resources"
- HR 610: "Human Resource Development"
- HR 670: "HR Consulting"
- HR 671: "Advanced HR Consulting"
- HR 698: "Capstone Seminar in Human Resources”
Popular Electives Courses
- HR 613: "Coaching for Performance"
- HR 614: "Talent Acquisition and Retention"
- HR 615: "Organization Development"
- HR 660: "Talent Development"
- HR 662: "Total Rewards: Strategy and Plan Design"
- HR 665: "Responsible HR Leadership: The Regulatory Environment, Ethics, & Social Responsibility"
- HR 675: "Leadership in Human Resources"
- HR 693: "Selected Topics in Human Resources"
Course scheduling is subject to change. For a list of courses available each semester,
view our Course Availability page.
Tuition and fees vary year to year and program to program.
The Masters of Science in Human Resources is an online program. You can explore detailed information about tuition for online and distance programs HERE
The Master of Science in Human Resources (MSHR) program at Western Carolina University
prepares socially-responsible strategic human resources leaders to serve effectively
in diverse organizations including corporate, non-profit, and government settings.
Using an organizational values-based, and human development-focused perspective, our
faculty educates students from a variety of education and work experience backgrounds.
Our curriculum is based on strategic, operational, relational, and ethical and socially
responsible human resources competencies in addition to academic scholarship that
informs the field of human resources and comprises the foundation of the MSHR program.
It is our goal to cultivate the next generation of HR leaders who are organizational
change agents committed to the productive engagement and development of all organizational
members.
The MSHR Program Competency Model highlights the leadership emphasis of our program.
Therefore, our courses develop competencies within each of the MSHR Program’s four
Leadership Competency domains:
- Relational HR Leadership
- Strategic HR Leadership
- Operational HR Leadership
- Ethical & Socially Responsible HR Leadership.
See a visualization of Our Model Here
