Department of Public Administration

Master of Nonprofit Leadership Program Details

Leadership for the Common Good

Nonprofit and grassroots organizations bring people together around common causes. They provide a venue for people to respond to problems by coming together out of mutual caring, empowering collective action and initiating activities to “pick up the pieces” of society’s ills. They also provide a forum for people to come together to create and share art, preserve a shared culture and history, sustain open spaces, advance a profession, and rally communities for change. If there is an unmet need in the community, nonprofits provide space for people to come together to address it; that is its promise.

PSU’s Master of Nonprofit Leadership (MNL) is for those who believe in the power of collective action for meaningful social change. Be a part of the next generation of nonprofit leaders who work for the common good.

MNL Program Snapshot

54 Credits | Full-Time or Part-Time

A Curriculum Where You Learn By Doing
In the MNL curriculum, we marry the best of theory and practice so that you gain critical insights into nonprofit leadership and management and the skills to affect meaningful change. Your coursework will focus on four core areas:

  1. Foundations of the Nonprofit Sector and Nonprofit Leadership: Understand the role of the nonprofit sector and how to lead nonprofit and grassroots organizations for today’s complex world.
  2. Fundamentals of Nonprofit Management: Develop critical skills to manage a nonprofit or grassroots organization effectively, including board governance, financial management, fundraising and organizational behavior.
  3. Analytic Skills: Learn and apply best practices for evidence-based decision-making.
  4. Advocacy, Policymaking and Community Change: Explore avenues for nonprofit and grassroots organizations to create lasting and meaningful community and social change.

Beyond these core areas, you will enhance your knowledge and skill set with elective courses of your choosing and a community-based capstone project.

Why the Master of Nonprofit Leadership?

You’ll join a learning community of faculty and professionals who share your passion for leading meaningful social change and working for the common good.

Dedicated Faculty
PSU’s Department of Public Administration offers a faculty of dedicated professors and professional instructors who draw on the best of both theory and applied practice from the nonprofit and public sectors to help students lead for the common good.

Explore: Meet the Faculty

Hands-On Experience and Professional Connections
Portland State University’s motto is “Let knowledge serve the city.” The students and faculty in the MNL program are well positioned to meet that charge with a strong focus on community-engaged learning opportunities across the curriculum. In addition, PSU’s Nonprofit Institute harnesses the power of the university’s faculty and students to provide support for Oregon’s nonprofit sector.

Explore: The Nonprofit Institute 

More Bang for Your Buck
PSU’s MNL offers you a first rate graduate education at a fair price. Based on 2024/2025 in-state tuition estimates, you will pay $477 per credit hour (plus fees) for your classes. If you are attending the program part-time (6 credits per quarter for 3 quarters), that comes to approximately $10,416 per year. If you are attending the program full-time (9 credits per quarter for 3 quarters), you’ll pay approximately $14,883 in tuition per year. That may seem like a lot, but other similar programs in the Portland area cost two or three times as much in tuition each year.

Explore: Tuition & Fees

A City and University Committed to the Common Good
If you are seeking to work for the common good, then Portland is the place for you. Boasting a vibrant nonprofit and grassroots community, the City of Portland is home to more nonprofit organizations per capita than just about any other city as well as to nationally recognized nonprofit and philanthropic innovators. Portland State University has also been recognized numerous times for its dedication to pursuing the common good.

Explore: Rankings

MNL Program Overview
Your coursework will focus on four core areas of study, will be rounded out with electives, and will end in a capstone experience. Visit our Degree and Course Planning page for the full degree requirements.

Explore: Degree Information

MNL Competencies

  • Articulate and exemplify the ethics, values, responsibilities, obligations and social roles of a member of the nonprofit profession.
  • Identify and apply relevant theories and frameworks to the practice of nonprofit leadership, management and policy.  
  • Respond to and engage collaboratively with diverse local and global cultures and communities to address challenges in the public interest. 
  • Identify and engage with the key elements of the public policy process. 
  • Employ appropriate qualitative and quantitative techniques to investigate, monitor and manage resource use. 
  • Create and manage systems and processes to assess and improve organizational performance. 
  • Conceptualize, analyze, and develop creative and collaborative solutions to challenges in nonprofit leadership, management and policy. 
  • Assess challenges and explore solutions to advance cross-sectoral and inter-jurisdictional cooperation in nonprofit programs and services. 
  • Demonstrate verbal and written communication skills as a professional and through interpersonal interactions in groups and in society. ​​​​​​
  • Think critically and self-reflectively about emerging issues concerning nonprofit leadership, management and policy.