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 (see our NGO partners).

Course and programme specific information

Please see our individual course information for more details about career opportunities.

Careers Service, jobs and volunteering

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 at HCRI

The University of Manchester’s Careers Service advertises a wide range of part-time jobs, internships and employability schemes to help students with their career growth and CV building whilst studying. The Careers Service also provides support for alumni for up to two years after graduation, giving bespoke advice and connecting you with employers.

Volunteering is also a great way to gain work experience and contribute to society, with many roles advertised on through the The University of Manchester Volunteer Hub. Other opportunities include the University's Stellify Award and HCRI's undergradute Professional Exerperience Project module

Careers guides and events

The cover of the HCRI careers guide

HCRI is committed to inspiring the next generation of humanitarian practitioners and researchers. Our Careers Guide is dedicated to helping you decide which programmes to study and obtain the right career after you have completed your studies.

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 medical students and humanitarian professionals who have gone into a wide range of roles.

The alumni case studies and ‘Advice from the Top’ provides examples of career routes after your studies at HCR.

Every February, HCRI organises events to help students connect with employers, 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 and careers fairs.

Content from our 'Careers Afternoons' programmes in 2023 is on the HCRI blog.

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