Studying MSc NGO Management online: my experience

Hi, I'm Mani. I started working at my first NGO when I was about 14 and have worked in this sector exclusively since then.

I've worked for very large international non-government organisations and very small bespoke or niche organisations. Alongside working for NGO’s, I’ve been a consultant and provide pro bono support to individuals or organisations working in my sector. I'm particularly passionate about working with those with lived experience such as myself in creating radical organisations that wish to spring huge shifts in the social fabric.

I first completed my postgraduate studies in law, much later than most in my 30s, and then completed another master’s in campaigning and social change. For several years I have watched the NGO management master’s at Centre for Charity Effectiveness (CCE) as a potential way to advance my career. Within the department that I work for in civil society there is very little opportunity for growth beyond the department lead and I had been searching for a way to break through the glass ceiling into a management role. I am an avid user of LinkedIn and one morning while already conducting the search for my next master’s I saw an invitation post by the course director, Justin Davis-Smith, for applicants, specifically to join the first online cohort of the Bayes NGO management master’s degree.

Navigating online study

I studied online quite simply because it had always been on my wish list in terms of further study, however the cost of travelling to and from central Europe to London once a month might have been prohibitive to some degree! However, besides the cost, the main worry for me is the environmental impact of travelling to London so often by air. Working in civil society I was acutely aware of all the issues around the impact of our work including climate change.

There is a particular flexibility associated with online study, but it’s important to note that online study is not for everybody. It requires a particular discipline. Having a good Internet connection and a good computer are also key elements of getting it right! It also requires a lot of concentration to be active and want to engage in an online discussion for a full Friday and a full Saturday after what might have been a very busy week at work.

The course staff have made a huge effort to adapt the technologies in embracing and making time for and space for the online learners to deliberately engage in the discussions and creatively use their technologies that are available. The one-to-one support from the course support staff and the course academics have  made the journey very smooth.

What is important for online study is to make that connection with a few of the colleagues in the classroom, finding out who they are, what makes them tick, what is their motivation for studying the course and what's happening in their daily lives. I have found in this course in particular the peer-to-peer learning and the sharing of resources  ideas, notes from the course and insights about running an organisation has all been super supported by my colleagues. I was always able to ask difficult questions, and it felt very collaborative.

The use of Action Learning, a dynamic approach to problem solving and social learning, allowed us to form ‘sets’ and work on real life opportunities and challenges which further supported this group aspect and collaborative approach.

Of course, these are people I've never met in real life so it has been really wonderful to get to know them and also I am really thankful for all of their willingness to engage via a computer screen!

The course content

Although the course content was incredibly complex, I found it to be a shift in how I understand both human behaviour and how people consume information from NGOs.  It made me rethink marketing as a core element of how civil society organisations undertake strategy development and align their organisation using marketing principles. I must also admit, it was also the most difficult essay I have ever written in any of the previous studies!

There is no element of this course that will not help anybody hoping to be part of the leadership team of a civil society organisation; it provides an incredibly detailed and broad analysis of the areas of running and delivering a charity in the current context.

I am currently in the process of founding another organisation and I am using all the elements of the course to help me understand and shape the new organisation.

At the start of the course, we were asked to detail a learning plan for ourselves and then at the end of the course we were asked to reflect on that learning plan. I found that I had met all of my goals and far exceeded them through the learning on the course. Many of the exercises, for example from the marketing course, I also replicated while doing the business case for my new organisation.

My advice to you…

I would highly recommend this course to anybody looking to advance their knowledge of NGO management are those looking to take up a C-Suite role in the coming years. It provides the necessary analysis of the breadth and depth.
It is an intense course of study. It will require time and energy on your part, but the reward is massive!

Getting to listen and learn from your peers from experts currently in the field and practitioners and probably some of the best academics in the world on NGO leadership and management.

Find out more about the Master’s in NGO Management.