Lead with faith, innovation, a relational approach, and hard skills to make the world a better place. Nonprofit Leadership (M.A.)

Do you feel called to faithfully make the world a better place and to solve important problems? In this program, you will belong to a learning community committed to your Christian spiritual formation and your professional development. You will be equipped with professional “hard” skills to lead, launch, and grow nonprofit organizations to make a difference locally, nationally, and/or globally.

Credential Type

  • M.A.

Major Credits Required

  • 36

Duration

  • We have learning options to fit your life. Select between the following options:
    Part Time

Format

  • Hybrid
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1.5 Million U.S. Nonprofits

Employs 10% of U.S. workforce, including over 130,000 Christian nonprofits.

Local, National, Global

Prepared to serve wherever you are called.

Rooted Innovation

Ready to innovate with tools like design thinking a AI - and grounded in evidence-based practices, relational networks, nonprofit sector knowledge, and Christian faith formation.

Request Information

You can reach us anytime via graduate.admissions@wheaton.edu.

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Humanitarian and Disaster Leadership MA Cohort 23-24

Serving People in Their Time of Need Why Study Nonprofit Leadership at Wheaton?

The M.A. in Nonprofit Leadership prepares you to lead in a wide range of nonprofit fields so that you can make the world a better place with an approach that meets the needs of the moment in a rapidly changing world.

  • Spiritual Formation
    Christian faith integration, vocational discernment, and the cultivation of humble, character-driven leadership, grounding that will nourish and sustain you for the long run.
  • Hard Skills
    Strategy, financial management, fundraising, evaluation, operations, culture building, measure what matters, and crisis leadership.
  • Evidence-Based and Real-World Learning
    Research-driven frameworks, project-based and case studies, analytical rigor, and data-informed decision-making.
  • Future-Ready Skills
    AI-informed strategies, design thinking, adaptive leadership, and systems-level problem solving.
  • Relational Approach
    Respectful partnering, beneficiary/client focused, mentoring, cohort learning, and access to a global network of nonprofit and social impact leaders, partners, and alumni.

The program is designed for students looking to advance or to begin your career in diverse nonprofit fields with organizations of any size. It is housed within Wheaton’s School of Social and Natural Sciences and is interdisciplinary by design for a holistic approach to nonprofit leadership. The program can also prepare you for future doctoral studies.

Cutting Edge Nonprofit Research

Scholars and students grow close relationships and delve into high-level, impactful research together. Students collaborate with professors on projects that explore many aspects in nonprofit leadership, across disciplines.

Recent research and evaluations by the faculty team includes:

  • Theories of change for urban Chicago grassroots organizations
  • The positive impact of humble leadership in nonprofit leadership
  • Social determinants for volunteering in response to crises
  • Program effectiveness in a wide range of nonprofit settings
  • How practical theology shape and guide nonprofit interventions

Networks, Collaborators, and Curriculum Partners

As faculty teach and mentor you, they are in network with, learn from, and/or collaborate with organizations such as: the Nonprofit Academic Centers Council, Christian Community Development Association, Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action, Micah Global, Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration, Professionals in Christian Philanthropy, Lake Institute on Faith and Giving, Lilly Family School of Philanthropy, Praxis, ACCORD Network, National Christian Foundation, Global Trust Partners, International Society for Third-Sector Research, and more.

Colorful autumn leaves on the trees at Wheaton College
COMMUNICATION for Christ and His Kingdom

Faith and Learning at Wheaton

Our graduate programs are committed to an educational experience that cultivates faithful thinking and active witness for Christ and His Kingdom.

Christ at the Core: Liberal Arts at Wheaton

Our Curriculum

The M.A. in Nonprofit Leadership...

Please see the graduate course catalog for current requirements as well as the most up-to-date course numbers, titles, and descriptions.

Sample Courses

Your graduate coursework will include classes such as: 

  • NGO Leadership
  • Transformational Development
  • Disaster, Crisis & Trauma Intervention
  • Refugee & Forced Migration Issues
  • Organizing Emergency Humanitarian Assistance

 

Skills

  • Strategic Planning
  • Fundraising
  • AI for Nonprofits
  • Program Design, Management, and Evaluation
  • Nonprofit Leadership
  • Financial Management
  • Research
  • Innovation

Our Faculty Compassionate, Intelligent Faculty

Our faculty don’t just teach leadership—they study and practice it. You’ll learn from our award-winning faculty, who have founded and led nonprofits and social ventures, served on philanthropic and nonprofit boards, researched leadership in 20+ countries, raised millions of dollars in philanthropic support, published books and scholarly articles that help guide the nonprofit field, contributed to Forbes National Council, served on GoFundMe’s Compassion Leader Network, and are regularly cited or published in national outlets like Christianity Today, Washington Post, USA Today, and BBC News. They regularly speak, provide workshops, consult, and partner leading nonprofits that are local, national, and global.

Our faculty are deeply committed to helping students grow intellectually, as leaders, and in their faith–so you can grow in how you lead and serve others. 100% of Wheaton’s full-time faculty are committed followers of Christ.

Kent Annan Headshot

Kent Annan

Director of and Senior Lecturer in Humanitarian and Disaster Leadership
Jamie D. Aten, Ph.D. Headshot

Jamie D. Aten, Ph.D.

Blanchard Chair of Humanitarian Disaster Leadership; Executive Director of Humanitarian Disaster Institute; Professor of Humanitarian Disaster Leadership
Jamie Goodwin, Ph.D. Headshot

Jamie Goodwin, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor of Humanitarian and Disaster Leadership

Putting Learning into Practice Engage in Experiential Learning & Personal Development

Whether you're a residential or hybrid student, you'll participate in enriching real-world learning experiences that equip you to effectively serve others. You'll also make important personal and professional connections that will grow your community of like-minded, faithful scholars and practitioners. The learning and community will help propel your career in humanitarian leadership forward.

students volunteering at Feed My Starving Children

Internships & Crisis Simulations

In your crisis leadership capstone, you’ll put learning into action with multi-day simulation to activate self-understanding, leadership skills, and relational practices towards next steps in your career.  Faculty and staff provide valuable insights and advice on how you can also gain real-world experience through an internship in the U.S. or abroad with one of HDI’s partner organizations.

 

HDL Students at Accord Conference

Christ-Centered Kingdom Diversity

Learn with and from a diverse community. You’ll be enriched by perspectives from around the U.S. and the world. You’ll engage in critical discussion on issues of power asymmetries, localization, and mutual partnerships in the field of relief and development work. In addition to finding great friends and mentors, this will foster humble leadership, inclusion, openness as part of partnering in serving God’s diverse kingdom coming.

 

HDL Field Operations 2022 Dixon Valley

Alumni & Professional Connections

HDI students benefit from strong industry partnerships and a worldwide alumni base, for professional mentoring and career opportunities. Collaborative networks among HDI cohorts nourish one another during the program and for years to come. Our Chicagoland location and relationships with leaders worldwide put you within reach of diverse organizations and populations, and our annual lectures and conferences can expand your knowledge and network.

 

Success After Wheaton Careers in Nonprofit Leadership

The nonprofit sector is vibrant, growing, and contributes to helping people flourish and to the common good of society. Graduates will steward faith-driven leadership, high-level scholarship, and best practices for work in nonprofits and NGOs. Wheaton College alums serve in meaningful ways as leaders in nonprofits that serve locally, nationally, and globally.

Careers

Our program prepares you for a wide range of nonprofit career opportunities:

  • Social Services
  • Community Development
  • Healthcare
  • Arts
  • Philanthropy
  • Social Entrepreneurs
  • Environmental
  • Educational
  • Humanitarian
  • For faith-based or secular organizations
  • For local, national, or global nonprofits or NGOs

Who This Program Is For

Our program prepares you for your next step:

  • Current leaders seeking to advance organizational, financial, and strategic capability
  • Aspiring leaders called to make a difference through nonprofit roles
  • Program directors and managers moving into executive or cross-functional leadership
  • Fundraisers, operations leads, strategists, board members, and philanthropists ready to grow impact
  • Faith-driven changemakers launching or scaling social ventures, enterprises, and initiatives

Better Samaritan Podcast ArtThe Better Samaritan Podcast 

The Better Samaritan is a podcast with our faculty Kent Annan & Jamie Aten where we’re learning—along with you—how to more helpfully love our neighbors, from everyday acts of kindness to navigating complex humanitarian challenges facing the church and society. Join us as we interview experts with insight on learning to do good, better.

Listen on Apple Podcasts

 HDL Graduating Class at Commencement
Investing in You

Financial Wellness

The Wheaton College Graduate School Student Financial Services team can help you understand how much your graduate studies will cost and what financial aid options -- such as graduate assistantships, loans, payment plans, and scholarships -- may be available to you.

 

Financial Scenarios

Next Steps

Looking for a career in the making a difference in the world in the context of nonprofit organizations? The unique M.A. in Nonprofit Leadership at Wheaton College might be right for you in the hybrid format. Request more information or start your application today.

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