--- - |2 The development of leaders and building of leadership capacity are central concerns of HRD research and practice, yet the large and high‐impact area of leadership education provided by U.S. universities to undergraduate students is missing from the domain literature. Over the past 20 years, leadership education has become a common feature at universities and colleges in the United States and is experiencing strong demand and institutional support. Leadership development operates in parallel to the traditional curriculum shaping the career trajectories of university graduates and adding to the talent pool of hiring organizations. This article outlines the status of university‐based leadership education in the United States, offers a critical assessment, and highlights areas in need of investigation and scholarship of relevance to HRD. - Human Resource Development Quarterly, EarlyView.