Curriculum

The Master of Human Relations is a degree program that consists of three curriculum areas:

• Elective courses that allow students to customize their degree and are taken by all students who enter the program.
• Core curriculum courses that provide a foundation in HR principles.
• Degree completion – As the final task of earning a master’s degree, students can choose to complete a thesis, a research project, or take six additional course hours with a comprehensive examination.

Degree Requirements

• 18 credit hours of core courses
• 18 credit hours of electives (9 must be HR courses)
• Thesis or Non-Thesis completion option

Core Courses - 18 hours required

• HR 5003 Theoretical Foundations of Human Relations
• HR 5013 Current Problems in Human Relations
• HR 5023 Research in Human Relations
• HR 5093 Introduction to Graduate Studies in Human Relations
• HR 5200 Internship (6 semester hours)

Electives - 18 hours required

All MHR students must take a minimum of 18 hours of elective credit. Nine of those hours must be Human Relations courses. Below are some of the Human Relations courses that serve as elective credit.

• HR 5033 Seminar in Leadership in Organizations
• HR 5043 Seminar in Organizational Change and Development
• HR 5063 Seminar in Strategies of Social Change
• HR 5073 Creative Problem-Solving
• HR 5083 Seminar in Group Dynamics
• HR 5100 Advanced Theories in Human Relations (variable titles)
• HR 5110 Advanced Seminar in Current Problems (variable titles)
• HR 5113 Seminar in Local Issues in Human Relations (variable titles)
• HR 5153 Human Emotions
• HR 5163 Seminar in Non-Verbal Behavior in Human Relations
• HR 5173 Seminar in Applied Interpersonal Dynamics
• HR 5183 Seminar in Issues in Human Relations Training
• HR 5193 Intervention and Practice in Training
• HR 5403 Psycho-Social Development
• HR 5413 Chemical Dependency
• HR 5423 Family Systems and Family Reconstruction
• HR 5433 Group Counseling in Human Relations
• HR 5443 Adolescent Issues in Human Relations of Human Relations
• HR 5453 Ethical Issues in Human Relations Counseling
• HR 5463 Counseling Skills in Human Relations
• HR 5473 Women and Mental Health
• HR 5613 Human Relations in Education

Internship

Six credit hours of internship in Human Relations are required of all students in the non-thesis option of the Master of Human Relations program. The internship is designed to give you practical experience in the application of HR theories, as well as provide service to your community. The internship may be paid or unpaid. The Internship Packet explains the details of what is required for your internship and also includes the forms you will need to submit before and during your internship. Each credit hour requires 75 clock hours of time, or a total of 450 clock hours of internship work.

You may choose to do your internship at more than one place, but you will need to submit a separate internship packet for each of these internships. You may also choose to do an internship during more than one semester. Many students believe that taking internships over two or more semesters is more practical than attempting to work all their internship hours into a single semester.

Your internship cannot begin until the semester following successful completion of 12 hours of Human Relations coursework, submission of all of the necessary forms contained in the internship packet, and approval by a faculty member. As you plan ahead for your internship, please allow time for the necessary preparation of your internship paperwork.

If you are a Norman or Tulsa student, you may choose an HR faculty member on your campus to be your internship advisor. 

Internship packet

Completion

The Comprehensive Examination (Comps):

This is the final examination for your MHR degree (unless you have chosen the thesis option, which is available only on Norman and Tulsa campuses).

There are two forms of the comprehensive examination:

Option 1 consists of two questions, with a choice in each of three categories: theory, research, and applications. Essays must be 10-12 pages in APA format. APA (American Psychological Association) style is the accepted standard for formatting written papers in the Department of Human Relations. All the papers you submit for your classes should follow this format, and the comprehensive examination requires APA style.

The official guide to the APA style is contained in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, and you may wish to buy your own copy to keep as a desk reference. The manual is available in most bookstores and all OU bookstores.

Students may choose an alternate comps option if the student meets the criteria until the instructions for the comps and questions are sent. Once the student has received Option 1 instructions and questions, they may not change the option.

Option 2 is a paper integrating your internship and coursework. The assignment is posted on the HR website. Note: FEMA certification is not allowed.

Thirty days are allowed to complete the exam and the exam is graded “Pass” or “Fail.”

If you do not pass the exam on the first attempt, you are allowed a second opportunity in a subsequent semester. You will still be required to enroll in at least two OU graduate credit hours in the semester in which the exam is retaken. Students have only two attempts for the comps, regardless of the options chosen, and a second failure will result in a permanent enrollment stop.

Before you take the comprehensive examination you must complete certain eligibility requirements:

• Your Program of Study form must be on file at the Department of Human Relations and the Graduate College by the specified deadline.
• Program of Study form must be current.
• You must successfully complete 75% of the coursework that counts towards your degree requirements.
• All of your core HR courses must be successfully completed.
• You must be enrolled in at least two OU graduate credit hours in the semester in which you take the exam.