Nonprofit Management Students: Who They Are and Why They Enroll

Abstract

Graduate and certificate programs in nonprofit management education are a growing element in the professional preparation of nonprofit managers. At an aggregate level, we know the number and types of programs available for students interested in pursuing advanced degrees in nonprofit management, but we know little about the students who attend these programs and why they chose these programs. To learn more about who these students are and why they choose nonprofit management programs, a survey was conducted in spring and summer 2000 of nonprofit management students enrolled in graduate or certificate programs at six universities across the United States. Results describe the demographic profile of these students, the reasons they sought academic training, and the characteristics they considered important when choosing a nonprofit management education program.Accompanying the growth and development of nonprofit management as a recognized profession has been the parallel establishment of academic programs that serve the nonprofit sector. Nonprofit management education is a significant and expanding element of the professional development of nonprofit managers and leaders. Postbaccalaureate programs, including master's degree programs, certificate programs, and even doctoral concentrations in nonprofit management, are now found in many universities in the United States and in institutions of higher learning around the world.Working professionals who are seeking nonprofit management graduate or certificate programs can choose from educational opportunities in schools Note: This research was supported by the W. K. Kellogg Foundation. The authors would like to thank both the directors of programs at the six participating institutions for their time and interest and the three anonymous reviewers for their insightful and helpful comments and suggestions.

Needs assessment and curriculum mapping: Enhancing management skills of the nonprofit workforce

“…The gender difference of NMI participants (> 80 percent female) is higher than that in the national workforce composition, which is about 68 percent female for the nonprofit sector and 46 percent for the total U.S. workforce (Halpern, 2006). However, it is consistent with the findings of some other studies (Larson, 2002;Larson and Wilson, 2001;Wilson and Larson, 2002). Our analysis also shows that the majority of the respondents have already earned their bachelor' s (32 percent) or master' s degrees (34 percent), and some (7 percent) even have doctoral degrees.…”

HRM practices for human and social capital development: effects on innovation capabilities

“…Moreover, compensation and benefits to employees (rewards) help to attract and recruit highly skilled individuals (Guthrie, 2001). If the most skillful people enjoy high compensation, it will also be more likely that they may be retained by the firm and human capital is not eroded by employee turnover (Shaw et al, 2013;Wilson & Larson, 2002). In addition, extensive training is also necessary to keep knowledge and skills updated and to improve abilities for carrying out specific company tasks, along with flexibility in job assignments which provide employees with opportunities to learn and develop their skills.…”

International mappings of nonprofit management education: An analytical framework and the case of Sweden

“…body of research studying the emerging opportunities and challenges for this specific type of education (Dolch, Ernst, McClusky, Mirabella, and Sadow, 2007;Donnelly-Cox and McGee, 2007;Mirabella, 2007;Pospíšilová, 2012;Wilson and Larson, 2002). However, despite earlier efforts to conduct comparisons between national contexts (Mirabella and others, 2007;O'Neill and Fletcher, 1999), proper comparisons among countries around the world have proved difficult due to methodological issues, conceptual developments, and empirical focus.…”