PreDoctoral Leadership Development Academy (PLDA) — Call For Nominations - Office of Organizational Leadership Skip to main content

PreDoctoral Leadership Development Academy (PLDA) — Call For Nominations

We are pleased to announce that the nomination process is now open for participation in the 2021-2022 PreDoctoral Leadership Development Academy (PLDA).

The PLDA is a one-year program designed to provide selected doctoral students with an introduction to current practices and challenges in higher education, and knowledge of the organizational, analytic, communication, and personal competencies recognized as critical to effective leadership across multiple organizational settings. Through participation in this collaborative learning program, PLDA Fellows develop a deeper understanding of the challenges confronting higher education, foster engagement with university strategy, enhance their leadership competencies, and strengthen their network of colleagues from across Rutgers who demonstrate a shared interest in leadership development. Since the program’s inception in 2010, over 150 doctoral students representing over 50 academic departments have participated in the program.

The PLDA is one of several academic leadership development programs sponsored by the Rutgers Center for Organizational Leadership. The program is supported by the School of Graduate Studies, Office of University Strategy, Office of the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, School of Arts and Sciences–New Brunswick, and School of Communication and Information.

The PLDA is open to any Rutgers University doctoral student from Camden, Newark, New Brunswick, or Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences. The program will consist of both in-person and virtual sessions on Friday mornings from 9:00 to 11:00 a.m., and pending COVID-19 restrictions, all in-person sessions will be held in New Brunswick.

Students who wish to be considered for participation in the program will need to be nominated by a program director, department chair, dean, or vice-president. Nominations will be accepted from April 5 through April 30. The nominee will receive an email notification that they have been nominated and must submit their application and supporting materials by May 7. The nomination form can be found at https://ol.rutgers.edu/plda-20-21/. Decisions will be made in May 2021.

Questions about the program should be directed to christine.goldthwaite@rutgers.edu.