Online Organizational Ethics and Compliance LL.M.

Organizational Ethics and Compliance programs at St. Thomas have expanded into online offerings. We offer both an MSL and LL.M. on the ground and in the cloud. The on-campus LL.M. and MSL degrees were launched in the fall of 2014. The online LL.M. was launched in January 2018, with the first cohort of the MSL degree launching fall of 2018.

Why did two successful on-campus programs decide to have online offerings?

‌Colleen Dorsey, program director, said the School of Law “felt that it was time to offer degrees in a format that might attract out of state students.” The St. Thomas School of Law has a very good reputation in the Twin Cities area and “we were interested in expanding the reach of the program and all St. Thomas has to offer on a more national basis.”

What role did STELAR play in launching the degrees?

‌The STELAR Center has been integrated into the development of the degree and course offerings. The STELAR Center supported the technical aspects of course development, online information sessions, course design, as well as general best practices in online pedagogy. According to Joel Nichols, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Law,  

‌‌“The STELAR team has been responsive, creative, and flexible in this process. Responsiveness is important both to make sure that the projects keep moving along, but also to ensure that new questions are given timely answers or changes in processes can happen quickly. Creativity has been important because we’re trying some new things in the online space and know what we want our students to learn and be able to do when they complete the program, but have needed partnering in ideas about how to get there sometimes. And flexibility is important along the way since things can seem like they change with a key part of a project quite quickly sometimes and we all have to be nimble on our feet about things!”

‌We are pleased to be partnering with professors from the Opus College of Business and the School of Law, as well as the Deans and Program Director to bring expertise in the area of Organizational Ethics and Compliance to a wider community.

Continuous improvement plays a big role in the design of the program. Early feedback indicates the courses are rigorous, engaging, and that the cohort model is creating a lively online community.

What does the future hold for online offerings in the School of Law?

Joel Nichols reports that the School of Law is seeking to provide more flexibility and greater access to courses within the JD program. There are several restrictions due to accreditation, but the School of Law is planning some experiments in summer 2018 with both synchronous and asynchronous courses.

Interested in Organizational Ethics and Compliance?

The University of St. Thomas is at the forefront of education in ethics and compliance, both on-campus and online. Learn more about our Programs in Organizational Ethics and Compliance, including events, at the St. Thomas website.

 

Thank you to Joel Nichols and Colleen Dorsey for sharing their story!