The University of Texas at Austin Offers Emotional Intelligence Certificate Program for Area Professionals

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The Professional Development Center at The University of Texas at Austin

Feb 11, 2014, 08:40 ET

AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 11, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- The Professional Development Center (UT PDC) at The University of Texas at Austin is proud to offer a professional certificate program that provides comprehensive instruction in the emerging field of emotional intelligence (EI). The Emotional Intelligence Certificate Program (EICP) is designed to help professionals better understand and develop self-awareness, as well as self-management and relationship management skills in the workplace. Comprised of five one-day courses that run from February through late April, participants assess their emotional intelligence competencies, identify EI strengths and challenges and learn new strategies for increasing personal achievement and improving emotional competencies in their team.

"Our Emotional Intelligence Certificate Program was designed to cultivate participants' Emotional Quotient, or EQ," said Liliya Spinazzola, director of UT PDC. "Through a highly interactive format that draws on multiple disciplines, participants will learn to look within and apply new strategies for increasing personal excellence that will ultimately unlock their potential to manage more effectively."

The curriculum features a cohort-style learning experience that supports and encourages sustainable behavior change in a group setting. The cohort environment provides students with hands-on, real-world practical instruction that helps cultivate a solid understanding of how to recognize and build emotional intelligence in themselves and others. A full description may be found online.

"Emotional Intelligence can be up to five times more powerful of a predictor of success at work than IQ alone," explained Dr. Rich Handley, EICP instructor. "Very few institutions of higher education focus on teaching any kind of EI skills to their students, so we feel like this is a unique learning opportunity that's not offered anywhere else."

The five one-day courses that make up the program are as follows:

"Evaluating Emotional Intelligence: Driving Success Through Perception, Reason and Understanding." The first course in the certificate program helps participants identify the skills that "raise the bar" in leadership effectiveness, and conduct practical exercises to increase productivity in all sectors. This workshop utilizes the acclaimed Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i).
"Maximizing Emotional Intelligence For Today's Strategic Leader." Attendees use the results of their Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i®) to build a comprehensive analysis of their overall Leadership Presence. The analysis helps attendees locate their areas of leadership "drag," their overall balance as a leader and areas that provide the most leverage for change. This course, along with the first course in the EICP, may also be applied toward achieving the Leadership Skills for Managers certificate.
"Harnessing the Power of Emotional Intelligence to unlock your potential." This course helps participants develop a customized improvement plan utilizing personal, one-on-one coaching to help identify habits that limit professional development. Participants learn helpful techniques to help break debilitating habits and improve emotional intelligence aptitude.
"Boosting Your Team's Emotional Intelligence for Maximum Performance." This course uncovers what research indicates about emotional intelligence in teams and how to achieve exceptional results.
"The 360 Leader – Emotional Intelligence in Leadership Capstone." Students examine the 360-degree emotional intelligence assessment utilizing the EQ360. It is meant as an outcome measure for progress and change since taking the self-assessment Emotional Quotient Inventory (EQ-i) as part of the first course in the Emotional Intelligence in Leadership series.