Lauren Dodds spent four months volunteering in Ghana. She’s considering joining Carleton University’s international development MBA program once she finishes her undergraduate degree.
Aid agencies and businesses in Ottawa have welcomed a new MBA program in International Development Management, launched by Carleton University’s Sprott School of Business in September.
The MBA concentration will offer a combination of courses relating to global development, finance, accounting and management.
“There is definitely always a demand as far as having a multi-skilled person in development – people with business and management skills and people with technical skills,” says Jane Buchan, human resources director for overseas personnel at the Canadian Red Cross on Metcalfe Street. “We’ve always wanted people who can write and read budgets.”
The graduates will satisfy a growing demand within the international development community for employees who are able to crunch numbers, balance budgets and manage people, says Roland Thomas, assistant dean of MBA programs at Carleton University.
Members of the international development sector, who lead aid efforts and development initiatives, encouraged Carleton to create a program to fill that void, he says.
“Some very convincing people told us that it was very badly needed,” says Thomas. “People involved in running these projects are very dedicated people, highly motivated and altruistic, but they simply don’t have some of the necessary training.”
The need for business-savvy employees is a reality of running a successful organization, even one that is not-for-profit, says Chris Eaton, executive director of World University Service of Canada.
“I need greater financial literacy for all of my program managers,” Eaton says. “NGOs have to operate effectively as organizations, and they have to be built upon strong internal systems and a strong business model.”
The program can be completed in 16 months and includes an opportunity to intern with an international development organization, usually based in Canada.
Graduates will not only be attractive to NGOs, but also to various levels of governments and private sector businesses, Thomas says.
“Mining companies, for example, operating in developing countries are very interested in hiring our graduates,” Thomas says. “They have a moral and ethical reason for understanding how development affects countries and the population.”
Some of the core courses that will be offered include business and government in emerging economics, leadership, and national and domestic dimensions of development.
The program is a partnership among the Sprott School of Business, the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs and the School of Public Policy and Administration.
The joint venture represents the increasingly collaborative nature of universities and its likely there is going to be even more integration in the future, says Thomas.
“The idea of everybody operating in silos I think is very self-limiting."
The Ontario Council of Graduate Studies approved the program last July.
Once the school was given the go-ahead, it started advertising quietly to recently graduated alumni.
As a result of those efforts, seven students enrolled for the September 2010 start date.
Promotion has been stepped up since then, and now the school is trying to attract potential students from all across Canada.
Lauren Dodds, a Centretown resident and volunteer for Engineers Without Borders, says she’s interested in the program because her volunteer work has shown her how valuable leadership and management skills are.
This past summer, Dodds spent four months in Ghana participating in Engineers Without Borders’ Agriculture as a Business program.
She advised farmers in rural communities on issues such as market access and the profitability of certain crops.
She says NGOs need a good grasp on business since the countries they are working in often lack that structure.
“There’s definitely a high demand for it,” says Dodds. “And in a lot of developing countries, the governments seem to be lacking a lot of strong management at the levels closer to the field, so it’s something that’s really important to build up.”
Approximately 10 students are expected to enroll in the international development stream next September.
The Sprott MBA program, as a whole, accepts roughly 45 students in total each year.
The acceptance process is going to be very competitive, Thomas says. His advice to hopefuls is to apply as early as possible.