NGO Management MSc | PGDip

Key information

Duration: 12 months (PgDip) 24 months (MSc)

Attendance mode: Part-time on campus, online by request

Location: Online

Start of programme: October 2025

Application deadline: Applications are open for 2025/26

Entry year: Showing course information for 2025

Develop the knowledge and skills of senior staff and trustees of NGOs and foundations

Overview

NGO Management MSc | PGDip Who is it for?

If your career aim is to secure or develop a leading position in an international non-governmental organisation (NGO), this course is ideally suited to your needs.

Academically rigorous and practically applied, the course is designed to help you develop a senior management career in international development, become a board member of an international NGO board, or work in a foundation funding work internationally.

The course is taught on campus, and applicants can request to attend fully online (synchronous via Zoom). This is restricted to those unable to travel to London whether for cost, visa, family - or work-related issues.

Accreditation

Accredited by the Nonprofit Academic Centers Council (NACC).

Why choose this course?

Shadowing a senior NGO manager in another organisation, develop a unique insight into their day to-day realities
This course is a unique blend of theoretical knowledge and practical learning applied to the international NGO Sector

Highly experienced teaching including both senior academics and experienced practitioners
Choose in person or online attendance when applying. A limited number of places for online attendance are available to those unable to travel to London.

Course objectives

You will focus on the rapidly evolving context of international development. You will explore the implication for NGOs of the trends shaping the sector. How is the role of civil society changing? What will be the impact of altering aid flows, increased funding for humanitarian and security work and shifting North-South relations? How are new digital technologies affecting the way NGOs work? What are the implications of the moves to greater collaboration and the increasing influence of the private sector in the development process?

The aim of the course is to enable you to develop your management, analytical and leadership skills so that you develop a rounded set of competencies that will enable you to flourish at the highest levels in global NGOs.

Teaching staff

The NGO Management course is under the direction of Dr Rick James and Beverly Jones.

Rick James has more than 25 years’ experience working with NGOs in Africa, Latin America and Europe. He has worked with INTRAC since its inception more than 20 years ago. He focuses on organisational change specialising in strategy and leadership development. He has consulted for more than 100 NGOs, faith-based organisations and official aid agencies, and has published over 50 articles and books. He has a PhD in NGO Management from City University and is a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Faculty of Management at Bayes.

Bev has over 30 years’ experience in international development and politics, working with
and within the civil society sector, with a strong focus on citizen-state engagement in its different forms, and more recently with governments and multi-lateral organisations

Accreditation details

The Charities Master's courses were accredited by the Nonprofit Academic Centers Council (NACC) in January 2019 as the only programme in Europe to be included in the first group reviewed. NACC Accreditation fosters third sector academic programmes worldwide.

Course content

The MSc course is taught on a part-time basis over a period of two years.

A limited number of applicants can apply to study synchronously online (via Zoom). This is restricted to those unable to travel to London whether for cost, visa, family- or work-related issues.

Students initially enrol on the Postgraduate Diploma with the specialist area of their choice, and confirm their intention to complete the MSc at the end of the first year.

As a student you will:

Develop your understanding of the strategic issues and organisational challenges facing NGO managers
Build relevant management and leadership skills, and analytical capabilities
Acquire insights into the different strategies and approaches commonly adopted by NGOs
Deepen your appreciation of the issues of managing change in NGOs
Gain access to a strong network and connections within the charity sector
Build your confidence as you pursue your career in the sector.

Course structure

Programme content is subject to change. We regularly review our module offering and amend to keep up to date and relevant.

Induction weeks

The Charities programme courses starting in October will have a final session for the in-person registration followed by an Induction Programme.

Learning and Understanding the Voluntary Sector
This module represents the starting point for you and the opportunity to learn about the process of learning and establishing plans for learning on the programme. It also offers a perspective on leading public/voluntary sector debates within an historical context, alongside a more enduring understanding of scholarly approaches to the understanding of developments and changes in the relationship between government and the voluntary sector.
People Management in the Voluntary Sector
This module provides an appreciation of key aspects of voluntary sector human resource issues, including the critical issue of volunteer management. The module critically examines the origins and meaning of HRM as well as contemporary debates in the field of strategic Human Resource Management, including recruitment and selection, the psychological contract and HRM at strategic and operational levels.
Marketing and Fundraising
This module aims to provide you with the concepts, underpinning knowledge, skills and techniques to plan and develop marketing and operations systems and enable students to analyse marketing needs, evaluate marketing plans, in the context of applying marketing concepts to their own organisation.
Charity Accounting and Finance
This module aims to provide you with an understanding of the specialist charity accounting framework grounded in trust law and fund accounting principles and issues of financial management.
Strategy, Diversity and Governance
This module aims to enable you to develop a broad knowledge and conceptual base in the field of strategy development, diversity and governance.
Shadowing
In this you will have the opportunity to spend 4-5 days shadowing a senior NGO manager or undertake a relevant fieldwork consultancy exercise with members of an NGO's senior management team.
NGO Management: Global context and strategic issues
This module aims to provide you with an understanding of the the key strategic issues facing the NGO sector and analyse the organisational challenges facing international NGOs.
NGO Management: Adaptive programming and leadership
This module aims to provide you with a critical appreciation of the practical realities of NGO management and the skills and competencies they need to work efficiently with different people in changing contexts.

Assessment methods

The Postgraduate Diploma consists of five compulsory modules that all students take and are common to all the five charity postgraduate courses. These c provide the essential underpinning of management skills for the compulsory specialist modules. Upon successful completion of the diploma you can continue to the MSc Programme.

The MSc requires completion of the Research Methods for Managers module. This is followed by either: a further six months of personal, supervised research and the presentation of a research-based dissertation. Or alternatively, you can opt to take a taught Masters which allows you to choose specialist modules from one of the other charities programmes.

Assessment methods

Course work

Term dates

October 2025 intake

Schedule	Date
Induction	02 October 2025
Learning and Understanding the Voluntary Sector	03 - 04 October 2025 (on campus teaching); 10 October 2025 (online teaching)
People Management in the Voluntary Sector	01 - 02 November 2025 (release of online material); 07 - 08 November 2025 (on campus teaching); 14 November 2025 (online teaching)
Marketing and Fundraising	06 - 07 December 2025 (release of online material); 12 - 13 December 2025 (on campus teaching; 09 January 2026 (online teaching)
Charity Accounting and Finance	06 - 07 February 2026; 06 March 2026
Strategy, Diversity and Governance	07 March 2026; 27 - 28 March 2026
NGO Management: Global context and strategic issues	08 - 09 May 2026; 05 June 2026
NGO Management: Adaptive programming and leadership	06 June 2026; 17 - 18 July 2026
Shadowing Exercise	Process to be completed by early August 2026
Course Review Day	04 September 2026

Term dates For students progressing from the Postgraduate Diploma Intake in 2024

Schedule	Date
Research Methods for Managers	17 - 18 January 2026 (release of online material); 23 - 24 Janaury 2026 (on campus teaching); 06 February 2026 (online teaching)
Dissertation or Taught Masters Option	Completion by mid-September 2026

Senior Lecturer Justin Davis-Smith giving a lecture on strategy and governance to postgraduate students in a classroom.

Careers

Experience of past students is that by completing the course increases their employability in the sector, and gives them greater flexibility as to career options. Past students have come from NGOs of all sizes, as well as foundations, business and the public sector. Their feedback has been very positive:

"I'm now better equipped to serve civil society and to strengthen its effectiveness in pursuit of an open society"
- Rozanne Nazir, Centre for Charity Effectiveness 2018

"I found the MSc in NGO Management to be extremely practical and valuable. The course gave an excellent overview of the issues facing charities that are working internationally … the quality of the teaching was high and the assignments relevant and stimulating. I highly recommend it."
- Matt Parker, Vice President, Kids Alive International, Chicago, USA

"Studying NGO Management at the Business School, and especially combining it with Finance, enabled me to make the step into a leadership role. The course provides the perfect combination of academic rigour, practical knowledge, and teachers and classmates with experience from across the sector."
- Meryl Davies, CEO, Habitat for Humanity Great Britain

"I cannot recommend more nor speak more highly of the Masters in NGO Management at the Business School. The quality, pace and depth of the teaching, learning and challenge was genuinely excellent. I was promoted within a few weeks of completing the course and 100% believe this would not have happened so quickly without the added value the Masters brought to me. The Masters itself, the professors and my fellow students gave me huge confidence and knowledge. Reflecting on it 12 months later, I feel that the main thing the course has given me is access – access to critical information, best practise approaches and most importantly individuals that will continue to help shape my learning and challenge my thinking throughout my career."
- Jennifer Coffey, Deputy Head of Partnership Development, Save the Children UK Global Programmes

Fees & funding

UK/Home/International fee

October 2025 entry

£7,620

PgDip

+ £4,410

An additional fee to convert to the Master’s degree*

Tuition fees are subject to annual change.

The fee for the Postgraduate Diploma is £7,620 for 2025/26 entry. A deposit of £400 is payable on acceptance of a place. For self-paying students, the balance is payable in two instalments, the first during the registration process September and the second at the end of January.

*The fee for those converting the Diploma to MSc is a further £4,410 for 2025/26 entry and is payable in one instalment at the beginning of the second year. The conversion fee for the following year of entry will be subject to an annual inflationary increase

Tuition fee increases

Where applicable, tuition fees for Bayes' programmes will be subject to inflationary increases in each year of study. Our policy for these increases is set out in our terms and conditions of study.

Scholarships & bursaries

Students sponsored by their employer will need to complete a form. We also recommend looking at the government PG loan for funding.

Scholarships

Eastside Primetimers Foundation Scholarships

We are delighted that the 50% funding of the course fees over the two-year part-time Master’s for two applicants for either the Charity Accounting and Finance, Charity Marketing and Fundraising, NGO Management and Voluntary Sector Management courses in the Charities programme is continuing.

Applicants need to have accepted an offer of a place on the course and will be consider on the basis of the scholarship application form.

Selection will be on the basis of academic/financial reasons, career plans/capacity-building in the UK sector and focussed on underrepresented groups.

The deadline: 24 July 2025, with confirmation of funding by early August.

Aziz Foundation scholarships

We are delighted that this opportunity is being made available for British Muslim students with an offer of a place on any of the five courses in the Charities Masters (again).

Direct applications to the Aziz Foundation for full fee funding for the two-year part-time Master’s.

Please see the Aziz Foundation applications page for further details.

Applications for students starting in October 2025 will open from January 2025.

View our scholarships and funding

Other funding opportunities

You may wish to look at the PG Loan option for funding.

View other funding options

Sponsorship

Students on the course who are sponsored by their employer will need to complete a sponsorship form as part of the application process. This can be completed for the Postgraduate Diploma or the MSc. An invoice for the full fees for the academic year will be sent to the employer in October for the Postgraduate Diploma. If the employer is a charity, they can request payment in two instalments by contacting the person named on the invoice. This arrangement allows the charity to spread the fees across two financial years.

View our sponsorship guidance

Entry requirements

In general we ask for a good first degree, normally an upper second-class honours degree from a British University or an equivalent qualification from a leading overseas institution; and three or more year’s relevant experience at a senior level.

In exceptional cases we will also accept those without a degree but with significant work experience. Provided you have more than three years relevant experience, two professional references are acceptable.

This course is aimed at those currently working in the sector, but also at people exploring a career shift into the international development sector and consultants looking to develop their expertise in the NGO sector.

English language requirements

If you have been studying in the UK for the last three years it is unlikely that you will have to take an English language test.

If you have studied in the UK at degree level for less than three years (e.g. 3+1, 2+1, 2+2, etc.) you will be required to provide the results of an approved English language test and possibly resit the test to meet our academic entry requirements.

Full list of approved English language tests/qualifications and minimum requirements.