On this page we have compiled a list of well-rated courses for development and aid professionals. The courses are taught by renowned universities around the world and by international NGOs. All courses are either entirely free or free to audit. For the courses that are free to audit, you can opt-in for a paid certificate for an extra fee that normally costs around $50 USD. If you cannot afford the fee, course providers offer financial aid for those who qualify. Unfortunately, for most course providers it can take several weeks to get approved for financial aid. Please note that we are affiliate partners of some of the course providers. This means we earn a small fee when you upgrade to a paid certificate. While this doesn’t cover our costs, it helps run this site and there is no difference in price for you. Occasionally you will actually get a discount. Thank you for supporting our site.
Strategic Planning & Policy
- Strategic Planning and Execution (University of Virgina)
- Strategic Planning for Public Libraries (University of Michigan)
- Essentials of Management and Strategic Planning (University of California, Irvine)
- Strategy Implementation (Copenhagen Business School)
- Managing Social and Human Capital (Wharton Online)
- Risk Management in Development Projects (Inter-American Development Bank)
Program Design
- Program Design & Evaluation for Health Systems Strengthening (Johns Hopkins University)
- Theory of Change for Development (Wits University)
- Financial Programming and Policies (IMF)
- Essentials of Program Strategy and Evaluation (Stanford University)
- Community Change in Public Health (Johns Hopkins University)
- Social Norms, Social Change (University of Pennsylvania + UNICEF)
- Social Norms, Social Change II (University of Pennsylvania + UNICEF)
- Introduction to Safeguarding in the International Aid Sector (Open University)
- Supply Chain Planning and Strategy (IESCA)
Monitoring & Evaluation
- Programme Management: A Monitoring and Evaluation Approach (University of Cape Town)
- Results-Based Project Management: Monitoring and Evaluation (Wits University)
- Impact Evaluation Methods with Applications in Low- and Middle-Income Countries (Georgetown University)
- Decolonising Evaluation (Wits University)
- Medical Technology and Evaluation (University of Minnesota)
- Evaluation of Digital Health Interventions (Imperial College London)
- Workplace Training: Training Evaluation and Measuring Effectiveness (ATC Training)
- Instructional Design Course Evaluation & Capstone Project (University of Maryland)
- Technology Evaluation for Global Development (MIT)
Research Design, Analysis, Methodology
- Foundations of Public Health Practice: The Public Health Toolkit (Johns Hopkins University)
- Quantitative Research (University of California)
- Quantitative Methods (University of Amsterdam)
- Quantitative Formal Modeling and Worst-Case Performance Analysis (EIT Digital)
- Quantitative and Qualitative Research for Beginners (NUS)
- Research for Impact (Oxfam)
- Population Health: Responsible Data Analysis (University Leiden)
- Power and Sample Size for Multilevel and Longitudinal Study Designs (University of Florida)
- Requirements Elicitation: Artifact and Stakeholder Analysis (University of Colorado)
Surveys & Statistics
- Household Surveys for Program Evaluation in LMICs (Johns Hopkins University)
- Questionnaire Design for Social Surveys (University of Maryland)
- Introduction to Statistics & Data Analysis in Public Health (Imperial College London)
- Gender Analytics: Gender Equity through Inclusive Design (University of Toronto)
- Statistics: Unlocking the World of Data (University of Edinburgh)
Participation
- Inclusive Teaching: Supporting All Students in the College Classroom (Columbia University)
- Democracy and Development: Perspectives from Africa (MIT)
- Introduction to Participatory Approaches in Public Health (Imperial College London)
- Applying Participatory Approaches in Public Health Settings (Imperial College London)
- Community Change in Public Health (Johns Hopkins University)
- Public Involvement in Research (Imperial College London)
- Community Engagement: Collaborating for Change (University of Michigan)
- Community Organizing for Social Justice (University of Michigan)
- Transforming Citizen Participation (University of Birmingham)
Capacity Building
- Project Management for Development (Inter-American Development Bank)
- Introduction to Project Management (University of Adelaide)
- Safeguarding in Collaborative Research and International Development: Contexts, Challenges, and Opportunities (University of Glasgow)
Financial Management
- From Poverty to Prosperity: Understanding Economic Development (Oxford University)
- Microeconomics (MIT)
- Public Financial Management (IMF)
- Project Finance: Funding Projects Successfully (Delft University)
- Financial Development and Financial Inclusion (International Monetary Fund)
- Understanding Poverty and Inequality (SDG Academy)
- Poverty & Population: How Demographics Shape Policy (Columbia University)
Information Technology
- Information Technology Foundations (Western Governors University)
- Technology Evaluation for Global Development (MIT)
- Health Information Technology Fundamentals (Johns Hopkins University)
- Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Accessibility (Georgia Tech University)
- Being a researcher in Information Science and Technology (Politecnico di Milano)
Fundraising
- Fundraising and Development (University of California, Davis)
- Annual Campaigns: Building a Case for Support (University of California, Davis)
- Major and Principal Gifts (University of California, Davis)
- Grant Writing and Crowdfunding for Public Libraries (University of Michigan)
- Planned Giving (University of California, Davis)
Health
- Application of Health Equity Research Methods for Practice and Policy (Johns Hopkins University)
- Fighting HIV with Antiretroviral Therapy: Implementing the Treat-All Approach (Columbia University)
- Anatomy of the Abdomen and Pelvis; a journey from basis to clinic (Leiden University)
- Childbirth: A Global Perspective (Emory University)
- Confronting Gender Based Violence: Global Lessons for Healthcare Workers (Johns Hopkins University)
- International Women’s Health and Human Rights (Stanford University)
- Identifying and Responding to Developmental Delay in Young Children (Stanford Online)
- Communicable Diseases Epidemiology, Intervention and Prevention (Imperial College London)
- Diabetes – a Global Challenge (University of Copenhagen)
- Ebola Virus Disease: An Evolving Epidemic (Emory University)
Climate
- Climate Change Education (Inter-American Development Bank)
- The Health Effects of Climate Change (Harvard University)
- Climate Action: Solutions for a Changing Planet (SDG Academy)
- Solar Resource Assessment in Desert Climates (Hamad Bin Khalifa University)
- Planning for Climate Change in African Cities (United Cities and Local Governments of Africa)
Human Rights
- Child Protection: Children’s Rights in Theory and Practice (Harvard University)
- International Women’s Health and Human Rights (Stanford University)
International Development
- What is International Development? (University of East Anglia)
- Management of International Development: Towards Agenda 2030 (Bocconi University)
- The Sustainable Development Goals – A global, transdisciplinary vision for the future (Copenhagen University)
- Beyond the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Addressing Sustainability and Development (University of Michigan)
- Why Does Media Matter for Development? (University of East Anglia)
- Driving business towards the Sustainable Development Goals (Erasmus University Rotterdam)
Humanitarian Aid, Response, Action
- Introduction to Humanitarian Aid (Deakin University)
- International Humanitarian Law in Theory and Practice (University Leiden)
- Humanitarian Response to Conflict and Disaster (Harvard University)
- Public Health in Humanitarian Crises – Part 1 (Johns Hopkins University)
- Protecting Children in Humanitarian Settings (Columbia University)
- Health in Complex Humanitarian Emergencies (Emory University)
- Protecting Children during COVID-19 and other Infectious Disease Outbreaks (The Alliance for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action)
- Non-Communicable Diseases in Humanitarian Settings (University of Copenhagen)
- Introduction to Public Health Engineering in Humanitarian Contexts (EPFL)
- Introduction to Humanitarian Logistics (Hanken School of Economics)
- Sustainable Development in Humanitarian Action (ICRC)
- Humanitarian Action, Response and Relief (Coventry University)
- International Charities in Humanitarian Crises (Hamad Bin Khalifa University)
International Organizations Management
- International Organizations Management (Geneva University)
- International Leadership and Organizational Behavior (Bocconi University)
- Strategic Innovation: Building and Sustaining Innovative Organizations (Illinois University)
- Introduction to the Nonprofit Sector, Nonprofit Organizations, Nonprofit Leadership and Governance (University at Buffalo)
- Healthcare Organizations and the Health System (Healthcare Organizations and the Health System)
- Leading Diverse Teams & Organizations (University of Michigan)
- Diversity and Inclusion in the Workplace (University of Pittsburgh)
Case Studies
- Development in Emerging Economies: The Case of China (Peking University)
- Democracy and Development: Perspectives from Africa (MIT)
- Housing Justice: A View from Indian Cities (Indian Institute for Human Settlements)
- In the footsteps of Zika… approaching the unknown (University of Geneva)
- Gender, Family, and Social Change in Contemporary South Korea (Yonsei University)
Gender Equality and Equity
- Gender and Labour in the Global South (University of Basel)
- Gender and Development (Deakin University)
- Gender and Intersectionality (University of Iceland)
- Confronting Gender Based Violence: Global Lessons for Healthcare Workers (Johns Hopkins University)
- Understanding Gender Equity (Catalyst)
- International Women’s Health and Human Rights (Stanford University)
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