Whether a student wants to become a CEO or an engineer, West Virginia Universitys new academic minor in leadership studies is a complement to almost any major, WVU officials say.

Beginning next semester, the minor, which blends classroom study in leadership theories and hands-on experience through a service learning project, will be offered through the Office of Academic Affairs.

Over the past few years, leadership studies has emerged as a hot discipline, Provost Gerald Lang said. The minor is multidisciplinary with courses from various academic areas balancing those taught by University leaders. Students will have significant exposure to leadership experiences, both academic and practical.

Weve been talking for a while about the importance of having some way to help prepare student leaders,Lang said.This is another way the University is trying to meet the needs of students so that they have the greatest potential for career success.

The leadership studies program has four major components: academic courses; experiential learning (serving in a campus leadership position such as a resident assistant or student government officer); co-curricular activities (attending leadership workshops, seminars and a speakersseries); and career planning (participating in internships and summer jobs and learning how to build a résumé).

Students must complete 18 credit hours to earn the minor. The curriculum includes three leadership core coursesamong them a capstone service learning classand three upper-division courses in two fields outside their major. A leadership version of University 101 and aReadings in Leadershipcourse are optional.

For their electives, students can choose from courses in business, engineering, communications, philosophy, political science and sociology.

Initially, instructors for the core courses will be Lang; Cheryl Torsney, associate provost for academic programs; and Larry Cote, associate provost for extension and public service.

Ashley Riley, a sophomore business and economics major from Morgantown, has taken three courses in leadership studies and plans to pursue a minor.

Leadership is a skill thats important to students no matter what their majors are,she said.Its going to get you ahead of the game, and given the competitive society we live in, students need every advantage.

Rileys favorite part of her leadership class last spring was a class exercise in civic engagement that challenged students to plan a meal at the Bartlett House, a homeless shelter serving Morgantown and surrounding areas.

We applied lessons we had learned about setting goals, communicating effectively and working together as a team,she said.

I have always been very involved in activities, but at a large university, it can be intimidating to be one student out of so many,she added.Taking these classes has encouraged me to refine my leadership skills and be just as active as I was in high school.

WVU Faculty Senate approved the leadership studies minor during its monthly meeting Monday (Nov. 14).