Women's Leadership Development Certificate
A four-day residency program designed to help you lead authentically and advance with intention.
April 18–22, 2027 · The Inn at Villanova
Advancing women in leadership starts with creating more opportunities to lead.
Women have made significant gains in education and across the workforce, yet remain underrepresented in the leadership roles where consequential decisions are made. This program is designed to help change that by investing in those who are ready to expand where and how they lead, strengthen their individual leadership approach and advance with intention.
Created and led by the Anne Welsh McNulty Institute for Women’s Leadership in partnership with the College of Professional Studies, and hosted at The Inn at Villanova, the program brings that mission into a focused, holistic leadership development experience with continued support beyond the residency.
Define your individual authentic leadership approach
The Women's Leadership Development Certificate at Villanova University is designed for those who have built meaningful experience in their careers and are ready to be more deliberate about what comes next.
Over the course of the experience, you’ll step outside the pace of day-to-day work to explore your authentic leadership approach, clarify your direction and turn that insight into an individual leadership development plan grounded in your goals.
4 days on campus, supported before and after
The four-day, four-night residency is the center of a transformative leadership development experience that begins before you arrive and continues well after you leave. You'll identify where you want to grow, use the residency to deepen leadership skills, and continue putting that learning into practice with your peers for six months afterward.
Before Two online sessions Your cohort comes together online in mid-March and early April. The first session is an orientation and a chance to get to know the group. The second, Foundations of Strengths-based Leadership, begins the work of understanding what you bring as a leader. |
The Residency Four days at The Inn Step away from the pace of everyday work and into an environment designed for for focused transformative leadership development. Through faculty-led learning, conversations with women leaders and sustained work with your peers, you’ll examine current systems and gain tools to advance your leadership. |
After Put your leadership into practice Continue meeting in facilitated peer coaching groups for six months after the residency. You’ll bring real decisions and challenges back to the group, test what you’ve learned and keep moving your leadership plan from intention into action. |
Attend a virtual information session
Join us online to hear how the program works, meet the team and ask any questions before you apply. Each session covers the same materials, so you can choose the date that best fits your schedule.
Wednesday, December 9, 2026 12:00 p.m. ET |
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Wednesday, January 13, 2027 7:00 p.m. ET |
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Wednesday, February 17, 2027 12:00 p.m. ET |
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Not able to join us live? Reach out to an enrollment counselor.
What you’ll take away
You leave the program with more than new leadership knowledge. You leave with a clearer understanding of your authentic leadership approach, where you want to go next and a plan for advancing with intention.
You’ll be prepared to:
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Lead with greater self-awareness and make more intentional decisions about your own development. |
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Communicate and influence more effectively across teams, relationships and organizational structures. |
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Navigate change and complex leadership challenges with a more holistic understanding of the systems, relationships and dynamics around you. |
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Recognize how gender and identity shape leadership experiences and opportunities. |
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Support the growth of women and help create conditions where more women can lead. |
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Put your learning into action through an individual leadership development plan grounded in your goals and the leader you want to become. |
Upon completion, you’ll earn a Villanova certificate and 3.9 Continuing Education Units.
To complete the certificate:
Attend the full four-day residency |
Complete the online prework, assignments and activities |
Complete and present a personal leadership development plan |
“ My self-identity has changed in such a positive way. I feel more confident and energized to advocate on my behalf in situations where I would have previously kept quiet. The opportunity to spend the quality time in-residence with such a diverse and intelligent group of women made me look at my leadership style in a whole new way. Women's Leadership Development student
” |
Who the program is for
This program is designed for those who have already built meaningful experience and are ready to be more intentional about what comes next.
You may be preparing for greater responsibility, considering a shift in direction or looking for a stronger way to lead where you are now. What matters most is that you’re ready to step outside the pace of day-to-day work, take a closer look at your authentic leadership approach and make deliberate choices about how you want to advance.
For those whose leadership includes mentoring, managing or developing others, the program also offers a more holistic understanding of the barrieres women continue to face in leadership and how to create more opportunity within teams and organizations.
You’ll move through the experience with the same group from prework through six months of facilitated peer coaching, building relationships that support continued reflection, growth and intentional leadership beyond the residency.
Tuition
Tuition covers the full program cost: online prework, the four-day residency, four nights of accommodation and all meals at The Inn at Villanova, plus six months of facilitated peer coaching. Registration for this program closes March 1, 2027.
Program tuition |
$6,995 |
Early bird registration Register by February 1, 2027 and save $500 |
$6,495 |
Villanova alumni |
$6,295 |
Please note that a $250 deposit is required to hold your place in the program.
Scholarships
A limited number of partial scholarships are available. Email cps.info@villanova.edu to be considered.
Read more about financing your professional education
Group enrollment and corporate partnerships
Tuition savings are available for group enrollments and corporate partners. Email cps.info@villanova.edu or call 610-519-4300 for more information.
Inside the week
Each day builds on the one before it. You arrive in the afternoon on Sunday, April 18 and leave Thursday, April 22, with a Personalized Leadership Plan you have written and presented to your cohort.
Alongside the daily sessions, the week includes a panel discussion, a networking reception and guest speakers.
Sunday, April 18 Arrival and welcome dinner |
Monday, April 19 Exploring Your Unique Context |
Tuesday, April 20 Building Knowledge and Leadership Skills |
Wednesday, April 21 Designing Your Path |
Thursday, April 22 Personalized Leadership Plan presentations and closing lunch |
About the Institute
The Anne Welsh McNulty Institute for Women’s Leadership fosters women’s advancement through education, advocacy, community-building and the collaborative creation of new knowledge.
Learn more about the Institute for Women’s Leadership.
Other ways to work with the Institute
Ignite Change: Advance Your Leadership A one- or two-day program covering the foundations of our leadership development approach, customizable to an organization’s goals, with optional virtual planning support and facilitated peer coaching afterward. |
Speakers and workshops Institute experts speak and run workshops on navigating work, life and leadership; values-based leadership; communication and negotiation; and managing change. For either, contact Kena Sears, Director of Workforce Engagement at kena.sears@villanova.edu. |
Advance with intentionality.
Enrollment for the 2027 program closes March 1.
Questions?
Review the enrollment terms and conditions.