Administrative professionals help an organization function at its best. To be at their most effective, they need a wide range of skills and strategies, from organizing and scheduling to managing conflict and communicating with a wide variety of audiences. The Drexel Administrative Professionals Certificate series offers courses to support administrative professionals in these areas.

The Next Big Idea Club

Administrative professionals are central to a smoothly running department or organization. The amazing thing is that they often anticipate needs and fill gaps that others never think about and that sometimes aren’t acknowledged as part of their jobs. This role goes far beyond the usual activities we often associate with administrative professionals, and into interpersonal, cross-functional and intra-team interactions. The Drexel Administrative Professionals Certificate: The Next Big Idea Club offers the courses listed below, and many others, to provide guidance on “essential skills” – those skills that link to how we interact with each other. The program will take approximately three hours to complete.

• Annie Murphy Paul on thinking Outside the Brain – Part I & Part II
• Ayelet Fishbach on Getting it Done
• Kate Murphy on the Science of Effective Listening
• Dr. Ethan Kross on Harnessing the Chatter in Our Minds for Good
• Steven Johnson on Farsighted Decisions

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Well-being & Belonging

Those who care for others sometimes don’t remember to take care of themselves. The Drexel Administrative Professional Certificate: Well-being & Belonging offers ideas for mental, emotional, physical and environmental well-being, as well as ways to connect with others. It includes the courses listed below, and many more to help administrative professionals care for themselves. It will take approximately three hours to complete.

• Alex Hutchinson: Rest Your Mind
• Ethan Kross: The Restorative Effects of Green Space
• Micro-Module Understanding and Developing Cultural Competence
• Micro-Module: 3 Desk Stretches to Instantly Improve Your Day
• Micro-Module: 10 Tech Tips to Boost Happiness

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Project Management for Success

Administrative professionals hold a unique position in an organization, in which they need to have a certain amount of expertise in many areas. Project management skills can support the success of an administrative professional and their team. Administrative Professionals Certificate: Project Management for Success includes the foundational courses listed below, and more, to help administrative professionals gain skill and confidence in project management. It will take approximately three hours to complete.

• Getting Started With Project Management
• Improving Your Project Management Skills
• Communication Strategies for Project Managers
• 5 Strategies for Managing Project Scope
• A Step-by-Step Guide to Problem Solving

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Project Management Leadership

Administrative professionals hold a unique position in an organization, in which they need to build advanced and nuanced skills in many areas. Project management skills can facilitate the success of an administrative professional and their team. Administrative Professionals Certificate: Project Management Leadership includes advanced insights in the courses listed below, and more, to help administrative professionals build on their expertise in project management. It will take approximately two and a half hours to complete.

• Mastering Project Management Frameworks
• Project Management Scheduling – Part I & II
• How to Work Effectively with Different Communication Styles
• Change Management for Project Managers
• Advanced Problem-Solving

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Mastering Meetings

If you have ever attended a meeting and thought, “What is the purpose of this meeting?”, “What am I supposed to do as a result of that meeting?”, or “That meeting could have been an email,” you’re not alone. Administrative professionals’ roles provide an opportunity to help make meetings more purposeful and productive. The Administrative Professionals Certificate: Mastering Meetings offers the courses listed below, and many more, providing tools and approaches to make meetings more productive and engaging.

• Micro-Module: Should We Cut Back on Meetings?
• Micro-Module: 5 Steps to an Effective Meeting
• Micro-Module: Conflict in Meetings
• Micro-Module: Meeting Agendas
• Micro-Module: Speaking Up in Meetings

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Empowering Through Mentorships

Finding a mentor and being a mentor are important facets of professional development. As an administrative professional, if you haven’t considered the importance of finding and being a mentor, the Administrative Professionals Certificate: Empowering Through Mentorships program includes the courses listed below, containing guidance and suggestions to help you with both. It will take approximately 90 minutes to complete.

• A Guide to Mentoring Others
• Find Your Mentors
• Fostering Fearless and Resilient Teams – Featuring Bestselling Author Mollie West Duffy – NBIC
• Mentoring in the Workplace
• Supercharging Your Career With the Help of a Mentor

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Networking & Your Career

When an administrative professional has a robust professional network, it makes their job easier. A professional network allows you to support others as they support you. Questions can be answered quickly, concerns can be alleviated, and feedback can be solicited, all from people you know and trust. The Administrative Professionals Certificate: Networking & Your Career program offers the courses listed below, and many more, to help you build your network – and your career. It will take approximately three and a half hours to complete.

• Developing and Maintaining a Professional Network
• Elena Botelho on the Secrets to Career Success – NBIC
• Micro-Module: Connecting With Coworkers
• How to Build Better Relationships in the Workplace
• Our Words Matter: Using Inclusive Language

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Time Management, Prioritization and Procrastination

For an administrative professional, being able to manage one’s own time and others’ time is a critical skill. When done successfully, effectively managing time builds confidence and trust. The Administrative Professionals Certificate: Time Management, Prioritization, and Procrastination program offers the courses below, and many more, containing tools and approaches to help you build skill in this important area. It will take approximately three and a half hours to complete.

• Scheduling 101: How to Prioritize Tasks and Avoid Procrastination
• Ayelet Fishbach on Getting it Done – NBIC
• Eat That Frog by Brian Tracy I Animated Book Summary
• Wendy Wood on Good Habits, Bad Habits – NBIC
• Escape Anxiety With a 5-Minute Grounding Practice

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Decision-making Skills

Effective decision-making is important for anyone; however, it’s essential for an administrative professional. What comes first? What’s most important? Who needs to be included? How do we make this decision? Administrative professionals are central to the situations in which these decisions must be made. Administrative Professionals Certificate: Decision Making Skills offers the courses listed below and more to help you build your capability and confidence in making decisions. It will take approximately two hours to complete.

• Micro-Module: Making Ethical Decisions
• Micro-Module: Decision Making Think Full-Spectrum
• Micro-Module: Decision Making Seek Out Diversity
• Micro-Module: Decisions Generate Other Options
• Micro-Module: Decision Making Scenario Plans & Premortems

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Staying Focused and Working Efficiently

Staying focused is essential for an administrative professional, but it’s often easier said than done. With so many things vying for attention, keeping focus where it belongs can be a challenge. The Administrative Professional Certificate: Staying Focused program offers the courses listed below and more, providing strategies and perspectives to make staying focused easier. It will take approximately two and a half hours to complete.

• How to Improve Your Focus at Work
• Micro-Module: Manage Your Stress & Increase Mental Focus
• Micro-Module: Healthy Habits to Stay Focused
• Alex Hutchinson: Rest Your Mind
• Top Tips for Working Efficiently

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Mastering Verbal Communication

While effective verbal communication is important for anyone, it’s an essential skill at the heart of an administrative professional’s role. It’s tempting to think verbal communication is all about what we say, but it’s about so much more. It’s about reading the room to understand how our message might be received, and about helping the other person feel safe and heard so our message doesn’t get lost in anxiety and misunderstanding. The Administrative Professionals Certificate: Mastering Verbal Communication program offers the courses listed below and more to help you extend your verbal communication skills with depth and nuance. It will take approximately two and a half hours to complete.

• Bo Seo on What Debate Teaches Us About Listening to Others - NBIC
• Listening to More Than Just Words
• Micro-Module: Speaking Up in Meetings
• Effective Feedback Strategies
• Micro-Modules: How to Have Inclusive Conversations
• Creating and Delivering Business Presentations

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Mastering Written Communication

While effective written communication is important for anyone, it’s an essential skill at the heart of an administrative professional’s role. An administrative assistant may be responsible for writing emails, sending meeting invitations, crafting agendas, editing newsletters, creating presentations and more. The Administrative Professionals Certificate: Mastering Written Communication program includes the courses listed below and more to help get the maximum impact and clarity from your written communications. It will take approximately two and a half hours to complete.

• Business Writing Fundamentals
• Build the Ultimate Presentation Deck
• Micro-Module: Guide to Accessible Writing
• Micro-Module: Write With Purpose
• Our Words Matter: Using Inclusive Language

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