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Humanitarian Practice MSc/PGDip/PGCert

Year of entry: 2025

Course length

Blended: Distance Learning 2-5 years (Part-time) & On Campus 2 weeks per year

On Campus: 12 months Full-time

Intake

Blended Intake: January & September

On Campus Intake: September

About the course

Our blended learning MSc in Humanitarian Practice is part of the Leadership Education Academic Partnership (LEAP) programme. A flexible course designed by humanitarians, for humanitarians, it allows professionals to study alongside working in the field.

The course is delivered jointly by the Humanitarian Conflict Response Institute (HCRI) at The University of Manchester and the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine (LSTM) in partnership with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF).

The course brings together the disciplines of epidemiology, history, politics, anthropology, development studies, international relations, public health, management and humanitarian medicine, as well as the expertise of academics and leading practitioners. Crossing traditional subject boundaries, it will enable you to reflect critically on issues arising from your own work, the wider humanitarian agenda and develop the skill set needed for contemporary humanitarian practitioners.

The course is blended, meaning there is a two week intensive teaching period each semester either online or in Manchester or Liverpool for the core modules. There are also options to undertake a mix of both online and on campus courses to build your academic credit.

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Course Units

History of Humanitarian Aid
Critical Approaches to Evidence
Research into Practice
Critical Approaches to Management of Humanitarian Operations

This course consists of taught units and a dissertation. The above are example course units based on 2024/25 options and are subject to change each year.

Ira Johnson

Liaison Officer, MSF Belgium in Sierra Leone

MSc Humanitarian Practice

"The course has given me a new mindset for humanitarian work. It has shown me that in the world of humanitarianism, one is not limited to a single approach. The Critical Approaches to Evidence module has been very beneficial to me. It has given me a second set of critical eyes to look for better analysis and conclusions. This module has taught me to approach situations with an open mind. In effect, it has taught me that not every piece of writing, or evidence, should be accepted as the status quo."