Certificate in Retail Leadership
The Certificate in Retail Leadership is a collaborative venture between the Goodwin College of Professional Studies and the Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design. Through this collaboration, we will produce professionals in the field of retail leadership by offering a certificate program to introduce and develop skills for individuals interested in the retailing industry.
Who Should Choose Retail Leadership?
Those who will benefit from this program are people working in the retailing industry without a bachelor’s degree or without formal education in the retail industry. People wishing to enter the retail industry also will find this certificate to be beneficial in assisting them to reach their career goals. In addition, evening
or online
students pursing a degree in Professional Studies or General Studies with a Minor in Business will find the certificate to be a fitting complement to their undergraduate studies, allowing them more flexibility in their future career options. Also, full-time day students pursuing a variety of majors such as Fashion Design and Business will find this certificate very attractive.
Course Requirements
Certificate in Retail Leadership 18.0-20.0 credits
Required Design & Merchandising (DSMR) courses 7.0
DSMR 231 Introduction to Retail Management 3.0
DSMR 232 Retail Merchandise Management 4.0
Electives (students will choose four of the following courses) 12.0-14.0 credits
CAT 302 Customer Service Theory and Practice 3.0
CRTV 301 Foundations in Creativity 3.0
MGMT 260 Introduction to Entrepreneurship 4.0
MKTG 301 Introduction to Marketing Management 4.0
PRST 212 Creative Studies in the WWW 3.0
PRST 330 Career and Professional Development 3.0
RETL 315 Power of Retail Brands 3.0
RETL 325 Applied In-Store Visual Strategy 3.0
RETL 400 Retail Leadership Capstone 3.0
Course Descriptions
DSMR 231 Introduction to Retail Management 3.0
Examines retail philosophies within a marketing context, including understanding of how consumer behavior, present and future, determines retailers' marketing strategies; knowledge of product mix and product assortment; and understanding of operating retail ventures in the global marketplace.
DSMR 232 Retail Merchandise Management 4.0
Provides a working knowledge of merchandise planning, flow, and distribution in the retail setting. Covers profitable merchandise and assortment planning and control in both conceptual and technical formats. Final project incorporates six-month financial, classification, and assortment planning.
CAT 302 Customer Service Theory and Practice 3.0
Customer Service Theory and Practice. This course focuses on the theory of customer service and the practices that "best in class" companies apply to differentiate themselves from the competition. The course includes practical information and activities designed to teach students how to respond to customers, resolve problems, and provide quality customer service
CRTV 301 Foundations in Creativity 3.0
This course provides a foundation in creativity including leading creativity theorists and their ideas, and introduction to creativity in many fields. Students will explore basic creative characteristics including originality, fluency, flexibility, elaboration, resistance to premature closure, and tolerance of ambiguity. Sets the foundation for acquiring tools and applying creativity.
MGMT 260 Introduction to Entrepreneurship 4.0
The course focuses on entrepreneurship as a generic activity, including start-ups and corporate entrepreneurship. It explores the opportunities and challenges faced by individuals starting up new ventures and the probable paths of career development for the students pursuing entrepreneurship.
MKTG 301 Introduction to Marketing Management 4.0
Provides a conceptual and applications-oriented framework for marketing decision-making in a dynamic environment. Emphasizes satisfying target customers and achieving organizational objectives through skillful blending of strategies in product development, pricing, promotion, and distribution. This is a writing intensive course.
PRST 212 Creative Studies in the WWW 3.0
This course prepares professionals with an understanding of the process of developing creative, functional Web sites. Concentrating on the creative flow if the design process, the course uses Adobe Dreamweaver as the medium for development. Students should possess a basic level of computer proficiency before taking this course.
PRST 330 Career and Professional Development 3.0
This course explores the literature of careers including preparation, organizational entry, orientation, nontraditional careers, and early, mid, and later career issues. The course provides students with opportunities for assessment of interests and capabilities, initiation and implementation of a personal development plan (PDP), and feedback on personal and career development.
RETL 315 Power of Retail Brands 3.0
This course provides an in-depth analysis of theoretical and applied branding techniques. Retail marketing, merchandising, and in-store brand representatives will be analyzed to recognize the detailing necessary to create a successful retail brand. Students will read branding studies to comprehend why the phenomena of branding has encompassed our consumer society.
RETL 325 Applied In-Store Visual Strategy 3.0
Provides students with an understanding of how retailers use visual display to gain retail market share. Students will examine various types of visual display and how this impacts the retail environment.
RETL 400 Retail Leadership Capstone 3.0
This course will provide students practical experience leading all aspects of a retail establishment. Topics covered include customer service, human resources, planogram/floorset, visual merchandising/display, sales and completing the sale, merchandising the store, quality of merchandise/product, leadership responsibilities, and future goals.
