International College

Every day, more than 3 billion people around the world go to work. In a lifetime, the average person will spend at least 90,000 hours working.  Employees are every company’s greatest asset and they need to be healthy and secure in order to be motivated, engaged, and productive at work.

The global workplace wellness market is estimated by the Global Wellness Institute to be at $48.5 billion in 2020. Employers around the world are beginning to adopt a more holistic approach that encompasses company culture, hierarchy, leadership style, workflow, built environment, to improve morale, retention, and recruitment; and increase productivity and competitiveness.

The goal of the Workplace Wellness Microdegree is to develop students into extraordinary human resources. Specifically, the goals are to teach students how to become resilient to stress, improve students’ emotional intelligence and ability to perform at a peak level in the business world, and be able to teach others to experience those same modalities. 

Human resources management courses with a unique focal point on holistic well-being methods give students the opportunity to learn the practices and principles to maximize performance, actualize potential, and enhance workforce energy to become more mindful and sustainable business leaders of the future.

What students will learn

1. An action plan to improve and sustain resilience and well-being, including strategies to maintain energy and promote a sense of community among team members.
2. An understanding of the key techniques that balance professional productivity and personal health, such as sleep, good nutrition, and exercise.
3. The mental and emotional tools to improve wellness and foster a team culture through psychological safety.
4. Mindfulness Leadership strategies to identify and prevent burnout, and promote self and team well-being.
5. Create meaningful wellness programs based on convergence thinking and understanding of human values.

Course Requirements

1. Human Resource Management
2. Organizational Behavior*
3. International Management

*An equivalent course at another institution is acceptable, as long as the student has held a leadership position with the Workplace Wellness Research Society.

Practical Competency

The student should participate and document 20 hours of a wellness activity on or off-campus.  These activities include Yoga, Fitness, Soccer, Martial Arts, Pilates, and more.  This activity must be approved by Professor Kessler.   In addition, students should participate in the Workplace Wellness Research Society for at least one semester.

Adaptive Learning

Students should take The Science of Wellbeing Coursera course. 

** Other Coursera courses are available to study with the approval of Professor Kessler.

Final Requirements

The student can choose one of these tracks to finish the MD.

Track 1 Research Paper:  Submission of a Research Paper with guidance from Professor Kessler.

Track 2 Youtube Video: Students should create a Youtube video showing how lessons from these core courses, wellness activities, and Coursera knowledge will be integrated into the student’s future business life.  This video creation will be supervised by Professor Kessler.