Course Descriptions

This calculus-based physics course covers the classical physics founded upon Newton’s Laws, and the conservation of energy and momentum. Applications of these principles treat topics such as the rotational dynamics of rigid bodies, Newton’s theory of gravity, oscillations, fluids and elasticity. The course includes weekly laboratory exercises.

This course is a continuation of University Physics I. University Physics II develops the physical principles of electricity and magnetism, DC electric circuits, electromagnetic radiation, interference phenomena, quantification, and quantum theory of the atom. The course makes extensive use of vector calculus.

For experienced project managers who want to take their expertise to the next level, project leadership is the next frontier. Project leadership is a skillset that addresses the complexities of project management that impact people, culture, and strategy. This session focuses on the essential skills of Project Leadership and addresses the PM’s role in supporting organizational strategy through projects; the PM’s responsibility for managing project climate by developing and supporting project teams; and techniques for enhancing relationships and communication which will develop the project manager’s influence over various project stakeholders.

Before projects are ever started a decision is made to proceed, but do these decisions always follow a logical process? Decisions to initiate projects can be driven by internal and/or external factors and can include influencers such as organizational mission, economic climate, customer service needs and business strategies, just to name a few. The challenge to project managers and their organizations is to develop and follow consistent, equitable and proven methodologies for making these project go/no-go decisions. Choosing the right decision criteria and employing appropriate decision making tools require an understanding of the overall context and implications of initiating projects, big, or small. This session will present the common project initiation considerations faced by organizations and discuss the application and issues surrounding them. Decision making criteria including strategy, risk, and benefits will be presented and proven financial analysis techniques will be reviewed. The workshop will conclude with participants placed into groups to implement the decision making criteria and tools using proposed project scenarios. Session is eligible for 6 PMI PDUs. Led by Melissa Rohland P.E. and Albert Sarvis PMP

Many organizations recognize the importance of being responsive to outside factors that push the organization to adapt, innovate and embrace change. The challenge can sometimes be how to get started and how to smoothly integrate changes into the organizational culture. Change can be disruptive and potentially challenging for employees to adapt to, but is essential for organizations to grow and remain relevant in the marketplace. Sometimes slow to take hold, organizational change will usually bring about a variety of new initiatives, which can often lead to very positive outcomes that motivate and reenergize employees. This session will introduce participants to the 8-step change management process established by John P Kotter, well known author and change expert. Participants will learn the importance of establishing urgency, creating a coalition and developing vision and strategy. They will examine techniques for communicating change, activating employees and generating short-term wins. Finally, the session explores consolidating gains to generate additional change, and how to anchor new approaches into the organizational culture.

Under any circumstances, the purchase of systems and services for your organization can be a complex undertaking, requiring a working knowledge of fundamental procurement and contract issues. In the next few years, with industries facing changes in business and technology drivers and scrambling to comply with the numerous and evolving legal requirements of doing business, having a working knowledge of procurement/ contract issues and concepts will become even more important. This session discusses some of the essential and proven tools necessary to competently deal with issues likely to arise in a typical vendor selection and contract negotiation. These same tools can be used to assist executives during even the thorniest of issues related to service purchases and implementations. Led by Buddy Gillespie.

Are you getting what you want and need from your negotiations? Are you losing, caving in, or giving away too much? Negotiations are an integral part of what we do daily not only in our work environment, but also in our personal lives. Knowing how to negotiate successfully will improve your interactions with customers, coworkers, and even family members. For many jobs, strong negotiating skills become a significant contributor to success. Informal negotiations occur in many settings, whether you are trying to satisfy a customer, acquire services or resources, or balance assignments and priorities, the ability to negotiate an acceptable outcome is a skill and an art.

The business case is a key document for defining projest goals, objectives and success criteria. This course provides project managers, business analysts, and team leaders with an understanding of the need for the business case, the basic elements of the business case, some key tools and techniques used in building the business case, and the importance of measuring actual results against those forecasted in the business case.

All negotiations involve two critical factors: the outcome and the relationship that exists between the negotiators. In an increasingly fast-paced and competitive marketplace, we can’t afford to jeopardize either. This course is based on the well-known collaborative model of negotiating behavior. This powerful program takes the fear out of negotiating, helping individuals to prepare for negotiations, find creative solutions to tough problems, work through personal style differences, and build relationships with negotiating partners. This session will give you the strategies and techniques to create a win/win situation in each of your negotiations.

Buildning an effective contract or solicitation is a key to project success. This course will help define the essential components of the contract that will set up porjects to fulfill their objectives. Contrct Management will also provide managers with skills and techniques to manage existing contracts more effectively. PMs may need to work within already set terms, conditions, and schedules. This course will provide tools to get more out of contracts that may be less than ideal. Contract management also includes infromation about closing a contract – making sure that everything is in place before the relationship ends and resources move on.

This multi-month course provides the City of Philadelphia’s project managers instruction on the critical competencies necessary to successfully lead organizational change when implementing strategic initiatives, and projects. The education program: Empowers project managers, program managers, IT leaders and IT managers with the business and interpersonal skills that are essential in leading and managing change; and Provides best practices and tools to lead and manage teams effectively; and support the organization’s leadership in successfully completing key objectives Upon completion, participants will receive a certificate of completion.

This course introduces the student to project management knowledge areas and processes used by project managers to successfully deliver their project on time, within budget and to the expectations of project stakeholders. The student works on real-world examples, problems and case studies as individuals and in groups. An emphasis is placed on hard and soft skills, and the tools and techniques used by project managers to initiate, plan, execute, monitor/control, and successfully close projects in typical project environments associated with waterfall and agile methodologies.

This course is designed to help the student prepare for a career in management, building on their technical and professional background and education. The field of business analysis is a fast-growing profession that offers a global certification. Business analysis is a key function on a project team that promotes understanding of what the customers want the project team to build for them; it is essential to project success. Through the use of real life project examples, the student gains expertise in planning, eliciting, writing, and managing customer requirements for IT and other types of projects.

Using real-life project examples and scenarios, the student will learn how to reduce negative risks exposure and understand opportunities uncertainty can provide in projects by using effective risk management practices such as risk planning, identification and control. The student will design a risk management plan and learn how to prepare a Risk Register. The student will also learn how to plan a procurement, understand different procurement methods and types of contracts, find a vendor, write a Request for Proposal and apply these concepts, tools and techniques to actual projects.

This course will focus on the production of core project management deliverables necessary to successfully navigate today’s complex projects with an introduction to current project management best practices. In this learning forum, the student will develop a project from the ground up. This is a comprehensive, semester-long project scoping, budgeting, scheduling and control course where practiced theory is the platform for learning. The course objective is to provide a practical hands-on learning experience that builds on the fundamentals established in PMGT 510-Principles of Project Management. The focus of this course is to demonstrate the applied project management artifacts to meet stakeholder expectations within the triple constraints of scope, schedule and cost while also exploring impacts to other key factors such as quality and risk.

The student will be introduced to how quality improvement techniques and quality management can be used to support organizational initiatives such as projects and operations. This includes quality planning, quality assurance and quality control. Statistical topics will also be discussed and linked to the Lean Six Sigma methodology to improve quality, productivity, and the competitive position. This course will also cover the relationship and overlap of project management and quality management using standards from the Project Management Institute and the International Standards Organization.

This course will provide the student with a solid understanding of emotional intelligence and its principles and how it can be developed in each project leader. The student will also learn and apply a variety of strategies to develop their own emotional intelligence and to enhance their own self-awareness and self-management, along with developing relationship management skills to create successful project outcomes. Throughout the course, the student will also gain an understanding of how to use emotional intelligence to create a positive team environment and learn techniques to develop an emotionally intelligent organization. Through this course, the student will learn best practices in developing their self-motivation and gain an understanding of how change can be created using emotional intelligence. The EQ I 2.0 Emotional Intelligence Assessment is offered as a component of this course providing the student with a unique insight into their current level of emotional intelligence skills.

This course provides to the student the features, benefits, and practices of using Agile Project Management with Scrum Methodology and that this approach differs from traditional project management at the project level and enterprise level.

This course provides the student with hands on experiential learning using Agile Scrum as a member of a team. The team develops a vision statement and user stories for a real application. The team then implements the product that is specified using Agile Scrum Framework and all the standard Agile Scrum ceremonies such as Product Backlog, Sprints, Sprint Planning, Release Planning, Daily Standups, Sprint Review, and Sprint Retrospectives. Team members play the actual roles of Product Owner, ScrumMaster, Developers, Testers, etc. The course produces an actual working viable product that can be demonstrated to stakeholders. The team consists of a mix of graduate students from Project Management, ISEM, Computer Science, Analytics, and Learning Technologies.

This course provides the student with a solid foundation of agile frameworks that have been scaled to the enterprise synchronizing alignment, collaboration, and delivery for large numbers of teams. One of the more popular enterprise agile frameworks called the Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe) will be studied and analyzed. This framework has been a proven framework for enterprises applying integrated principles and practices for Lean, Agile, Systems Thinking, and DevOps. In addition to SAFe, the course provides the student with an overview of other popular frameworks for scaling the enterprise, such as: The Disciplined Agile (DA), the Large-Scaled Scrum (LeSS), Nexus, Scrum@Scale, and Scrum of Scrum (SoS).

This level course provides the student with key strategies in agile lean product development that will help the student streamline new product development processes that will decrease time-to-market, reduce waste, enhance product quality, and fully integrate new product designs into a lean production environment. This course uses principles rooted in the iconic Toyota Production system.

This course provides the student with innovative practices that need to be followed in order to transform a company or organization from a traditional waterfall mindset to more of an Agile Lean mindset and culture. Agile Lean Change management (not the typical change management talked about in project management relative to scope, budget, etc.) is one method that is being used successfully in the industry to move organizations from a more traditional mindset to Agile Lean. A transformation to Agile Lean relies significantly on the leaders in the organizations to facilitate the change. In conjunction with this course, the student learns the responsibilities and techniques of the Agile Coach role, which has become a key role in the industry to facilitate change. The student will study the importance of leader standard work, visual management techniques, and methods for leading change. This course will also offer the student an opportunity to learn about and use various Lean tools and how to lead using these tools. The student will also gain insights into strategy deployment, leading Lean teams and sustaining a Lean transformation.

This course provides the student an overview of the types of Project Management Office (PMO) structures, the key elements of each, and the key aspects of how to initiate and sustain a business-centered and value-driven PMO.

Project Management Practicum is a second-year graduate course in applied learning with real-world community visibility and impact and is an exemplar of experiential learning at the graduate level. Students will work with local industry partners to assist in solving identified business problems using skills, techniques, and tools of the PM discipline. Opportunities may exist for follow-on internships and employment with industry partners. Students will have the opportunity to team with students from other HU graduate programs depending on the requirements of the identified business problem. This course is not eligible for repeat.

This course exposes the student and the participating project manager to the Project Management Body of Knowledge processes and standards, which prepares the student to take the PMP or CAPM certification exam. The student must take the PMP or CAPM exam and submit proof of a successful exam score. Student must be a current Project Management Institution (PMI) member.

This course allows the student to pursue an area of interest that is within the broad scope of project management. A faculty member supervises this study.

This course introduces the student to conversational aspects of the theories and concepts underlying quantum computers and how information can now be processed in ways previously impossible using traditional computing devices. The course acquaints the student with essential topics underlying the relevant physical, mathematical, and computer-sciences, necessary to navigate the technologies and problem-sets within quantum paradigm. Moreover, the technological, ideological, and social eco-systems engaged in quantum computing, past and present, are highlighted for the student. In this course the student will be introduced to practical aspects of quantum computing through limited hands-on experience with a quantum computer.

This course reorients the student to a different way of solving real-world modeling problems by using a quantum computer. This is a hands-on programming course which features programming and problem solving on various quantum computer platforms, involving multiple quantum programming languages and techniques. A survey of the quantum hardware options is undertaken, and some areas of current research are introduced.

This course introduces a wide range of scientific ideas, engineering techniques, and manufacturing technologies employed in harnessing quantum physics to create quantum devices; such as quantum clocks, computers, sensors, and the quantum internet. This is a topical-survey course that presents the terminology and basic principles underlying the theoretic and practical aspects of these devices. The student will be presented with the historical context and trajectory of important innovations and be brought up to date with the present state of these underlying technologies. At the conclusion of this course the student will be wholly conversant in the present challenges in the development of these devices, supported by a student-produced whitepaper, accompanied by the production of a video presentation.

The Business of Quantum Technologies, Research and Policies This course surveys the historic and present-day business, governmental and academic landscape of quantum technologies and the associated ecosystem of the industry. An in-depth analysis of the quantum ecosystem (industrial, governmental, and academic) will be conducted leading to formation of individualistic projections of the industry, including a survey of opportunities and pitfalls for players in the ecosystem. Moreover, the student will be guided in developing a personalized document consisting of a meaningful business plan or research proposal that describes their projected entry into the quantum technology ecosystem; this proposal will be enhanced by the student creating a video presentation to accompany their document.

This course focuses the student on the application of quantum computing on solving and simulating various natural, real-world problems that are impossible to solve using traditional computers. Several complex, but quantum-solved, algorithms will be explored in their raw and in their quantum-program-coded forms, e.g, RSA encryption-breaking and the traveling-salesman problem. Throughout the course, the student will be applying their quantum computer programming skills to modeling and solving complex problems that they conceive, code, and debug.

This course involves a deep-dive into a selection of technological topics according to the near-term urgencies in the advancement of the quantum information sciences. These topics will be explored in depth so the student cam recognize and understand the underlying issues, technological challenges and business opportunities brought about by the topic. In addition – under the professor’s guidance – each student will self-select an additional emerging topic for self-exploration, leading to a composition of a meaningful academic manuscript, whitepaper, or video presentation.

This course explores current issues facing the transportation industry by examining advanced and emerging science and technologies. New fuel sources and engineering materials and their future impact upon future design and construction of roads, rails, cars, and trains is explored. Geo-location systems and the feasibility for remore-controlled vehicles like delivery drones and self-driving cars is also explored.

This course improves the student’s opportunity for success in college-level work by teaching study habits in ten key areas: anxiety, attitude, concentration, information processing, motivation, selecting main ideas, self-testing, study aids, test strategies, and time management. Limited to the student on academic probation or financial aid appeal.

This course meets throughout the semester and offers the mentorship of a faculty member in the transition of a first-year or transfer student. The course focuses on daily life at the university: academic requirements and resources, professional etiquette, student activities, and civic engagement. This course is useful because the student will learn how to utilize campus technologies and it informs the student of the many opportunities provided through the Learning Advantage program.

This foundations course introduces adult students to the HU seminar experience. It is an accelerated and techical format of learning to provide skills in research, writing, oral presentation, time management, decision making, teamwork, and identifying personal, professional and academic strengths for continued success.