Careers and employability

There are many possibilities for graduates of the subject areas of disaster management, humanitarian response, and global health.

A photograph of volunteer students on a laptop in the company of local workers

The general and academic skills acquired on our courses are welcomed by a broad spectrum of employers, including:

international organisations such as the United Nations (UN) and the European Union (EU);
local and national government;
non-governmental organisations such as Save the Children, Médecins Sans Frontières, and Mines Advisory Group.

Please see our courses for more details about career opportunities.

Careers Guides

During the pandemic, I was involved in Zoom sessions helping refugees with their conversational English skills. I've really valued this experience and have enjoyed interacting with both the refugees and the other volunteers. During uncertain times it felt nice to feel like I can do something productive and help others.
Emily / Former undergraduate, HCRI

HCRI is committed to inspiring the next generation of humanitarian practitioners and researchers.

Our Careers Guide can help you decide which course to study and obtain the right career after graduation. We have also created the Greater Manchester Humanitarian Directory, to support students seeking work and volunteering in the region.

Studying at HCRI will give you a wealth of career options due to our multidisciplinary approach to our teaching, research and fieldwork, as well as our many third sector and government partnerships. Our community includes social scientists, medical students and humanitarian professionals who have gone into a wide range of roles.

Our alumni case studies and the Careers Service's Government, charity, international development, work and related areas page provide examples of career routes after your studies at HCRI.

Events

Every February/March, HCRI organises career events for students to hear from alumni working in the humanitarian sector, and begin thinking about their own career journeys.

Our events have included high-level speaker sessions, bespoke workshops, simulation exercises and careers fairs, plus supporting careers days organised by our student society.

Content from our 'Careers Afternoons' programme in 2024/25 is on the HCRI blog and for 2023 is also on the HCRI blog.