UA’s Human Resources Management Specialization Recognized by HR Authority

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. —The human resources management specialization at The University of Alabama’s Culverhouse College of Commerce gets a thumbs-up from the Society for Human Resources Management.

SHRM is the leading organization that sets the curriculum guidelines and templates by which higher education HR programs are measured.

The College announced today that the curriculum at Culverhouse was recognized as fully aligning with SHRM’s HR Curriculum Guidebook and Templates that are developed to define the minimum HR content areas that should be studied by HR students at the undergraduate and graduate levels

“This is great news for our human resources management specialization,” said Dr. Brian Gray, interim dean, Culverhouse College of Commerce. “This is a prestigious accomplishment by our faculty and is a testament to our rigorous curriculum.”

Throughout the world, 384 programs at 286 educational institutions are acknowledged by SHRM as being in alignment with its suggested guides and templates. The guidelines — created in 2006 and revalidated in 2010 and 2013 — are part of SHRM’s Academic Initiative to define HR education standards taught in university business schools and to help universities develop degree programs that follow these standards.

To assess alignment, SHRM carefully reviews every course to assure that the curriculum adequately addresses their curriculum guidelines. The Human Resources Management specialization requires students to take a six-course sequence covering all aspects of Human Resources Management.

Upon completion of the specialization, students are encouraged to take SHRM’s Assurance of Learning exam to demonstrate to employers their Human Resource Management knowledge. This past spring, 88 percent of the Culverhouse students who took the exam passed it. That percentage is well above the national average.

“Aligning our curriculum with SHRM’s guidelines demonstrates our commitment to ensuring that every Culverhouse student is prepared to have an immediate impact in his or her career,” said Dr. Jonathon Halbesleben, acting senior associate dean of Culverhouse and faculty member in the Human Resources Management specialization.

“Our students have risen to occasion with an extraordinary pass rate on the SHRM Assurance of Learning exam and by securing highly competitive jobs across the country at companies like Lockheed Martin, Raymond James, Dow Jones and Regions Bank.”

Find more information about the Human Resources Management specialization at Culverhouse.ua.edu/mgt, on Twitter @UAHRM and by joining Culverhouse’s Human Resources Institute LinkedIn group.