Master of Science in Human Resource Development

HRD is the performance improvement side of people operations. HRD professionals have expertise in diagnosing why performance is falling short, designing learning experiences and transforming organizations into learning eco-systems, scaling leadership development, and consulting on organizational change that closes the performance gap. The work is learning and development (L&D), talent development (TD), leadership development, performance improvement, people analytics, and organization development (OD). Graduates move into L&D, TD, OD, HR business partner, and consulting roles. Graduates with the HRD degree are prepared to excel as leaders of people and culture.

HRM focuses on how organizations hire, manage, reward, and retain their workforce. It covers recruitment, compensation and benefits, employee and labor relations, employment law, and HR systems. Career paths include HR generalist, HR manager, compensation and benefits manager, and HR business partner.

I/O psychology applies psychological theory and research to understand and improve behavior at work. Programs emphasize research methods, statistics, psychological measurement, and assessment. Career paths include assessment consultant, people analytics specialist, and organizational researcher.

A master’s in human resource development (HRD), prepares you to take on strategic roles in people operations and human capital management. It focuses on competencies needed to drive progress in people and culture through learning and development, talent development, leadership development, performance improvement, people analytics, and organization development. Barry’s MSHRD is a 36- credit MS that takes 15 months.

An MS in HRD prepares you to improve learning, leadership, and organizational performance, using workforce data to connect people strategies to business results. An MS in HR or HRM focuses on how organizations hire, manage, reward, and retain their workforce. It covers recruitment, compensation and benefits, employee and labor relations, employment law, and HR systems.

Choose HRM if you want to run the HR function: staffing, compensation, labor law, HR systems. Choose HRD if you want to diagnose and close performance gaps, design learning and leadership development, use workforce data to improve how people and organizations perform, and help organizations build successful Human+AI partnerships.

No. I/O psychology applies psychological theory and research to understand and improve behavior at work. Programs emphasize research methods, statistics, psychological measurement, and assessment. HRD focuses on diagnosing and closing performance gaps through learning and leadership development, people analytics, and organization development. Both fields include research and applied practice.

Yes. Barry University offers the MS in Human Resource Development on its Miami Shores campus with evening classes and live online for students who prefer not to commute. It is the only comprehensive HRD graduate program in South Florida.

Yes. Classes are offered live online in the evening, so you attend in real time with faculty and classmates rather than working through recordings alone.

Fifteen months. The program is 36 credits and is built for working professionals, with evening classes and a spring or fall start.

Tuition is $650 per credit, or $23,400 for the 36-credit program, excluding fees. Contact the Student Accounts Office for a current breakdown of required fees.

Graduates work as learning and development managers, talent development managers, organizational development consultants, HR business partners, people analytics specialists, performance consultants, and executive coaches. Senior paths include director and VP of learning and development, head of people and culture, and chief people officer.

An HRD professional finds out why an organization is not performing the way it needs to, then designs and implements the fix. That might be a leadership program, a redesigned onboarding process, a change initiative, an upskilling plan, or a restructuring. The discipline is defined by diagnosis before solution, and by measuring whether the solution worked.

No. Applicants come from HR, training, operations, education, healthcare, hospitality, and the military. You need a bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution, two references, a resume, and a statement of purpose of 500 to 750 words. The GRE is not required.

Yes. Barry University is accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges to award baccalaureate, master’s, specialist, and doctoral degrees.

The curriculum is aligned with SHRM and the Association for Talent Development (ATD), providing a foundation for SHRM-CP, APTD, and CPTD certification. Coaching coursework maps to the International Coaching Federation (ICF) competency framework. Each credential has its own exam and eligibility requirements. ATD certifications also require relevant professional experience.

Apply early to allow time for admission and any required immigration processing. Admission to Barry University does not guarantee a student visa. Review Barry’s international graduate admissions guidance for application requirements and next steps