Don't have that master's? How strict foreign aid recruiters really are on academic requirements

Can strong professional experience compensate for the lack of an academic degree — or vice versa? When a job ad points to a master’s degree as a required qualification, how strict will the aid group really be? We hear these questions all the time from job seekers — and usually, the answer is: Employers make few to no exceptions when it comes to job seekers with a sub-par academic background. The topic also came up during our one-hour webinar, “How to succeed as a development consultant.” The webinar featured former human resource experts from DAI, one of the world’s largest development consultancies: Daniel Head, senior international recruiter at the company’s economic growth division, as well as Recruitment Manager Katie Levy and Associate Recruiter Sophie Montmey of DAI Europe. After the webinar, these expert recruiters answered several additional questions posed by webinar participants on academic qualifications. Here are their answers: Can a strong research or academic background (eg. a doctoral degree) compensate for less practical experience — if so, for what types of positions? Positions that are more research-based or that require a strong academic background are ones in which a higher degree than required could compensate for practical experience. It may be difficult to justify this, though, for more heavily field-based work where on-the-ground experience is essential. How does someone with 20 years of experience who has completed master’s coursework but not yet received the degree describe their education level? The degree level should be described as noted here: “MA coursework completed.” The 20 years of experience may or may not make up for an incomplete master’s degree. If a master’s degree or Master of Business Administration is required in the job ad, will that preclude someone with only a bachelor’s but excellent professional experience — if so, in which cases or for which donors? In some cases, professional experience can be substituted for academic qualifications; this not only depends on the donor but on the specific situation. The U.S. Agency for International Development, for instance, often requires a certain level of educational achievement, but sometimes they will allow this to be substituted by experience. Should research and evaluation work during a Ph.D. be listed in a resume under “education” and/or can it be listed under “experience” using the title “independent consultant” or “independent researcher”? Research that is conducted specifically as part of Ph.D. requirements/thesis should be listed under “education.” It would be appropriate to include any outside research/evaluation work conducted during the period of Ph.D. work as “experience.” Check out more career advice stories online, and subscribe to Doing Good to receive top international development career and recruitment news.