For more than 90 years, alumni from the Princeton School of Public and International Affairs (Princeton SPIA) have had meaningful careers in a multitude of industries, perhaps none more so than the federal government. But as government cuts reduce opportunities for a new group of civil servants, Princeton SPIA alumni have stepped up to offer everything from advice to job references for their fellow Tigers.

Three alumni with prominent careers in non-governmental organizations — Martin Eakes MPA-JD ’80, CEO of Self-Help/Center for Responsible Lending; Kate Grant MPA ’94, CEO of the Fistula Foundation; and Nicholas Grono MPP ’03, president and CEO of The Freedom Fund — came together to share why they chose to work for an NGO, how the lessons learned in a SPIA classroom translated to the real world, and offer guidance to future graduates seeking a similar career.

Princeton SPIA: Broadly, what interested you in working for an NGO? Was there a moment when you could see yourself pursuing a career in this field?

Kate Grant: I studied international development and wanted to pursue a career addressing global poverty. I went to Washington after graduation and worked on the Hill and then for USAID. While the U.S. government’s foreign aid programs achieve results, I found the slow-moving nature of a vast government bureaucracy was a bad fit for me. I hungered for the ability to make a difference more efficiently and effectively. The NGO sector offered that opportunity.   

Martin Eakes: I knew when I was a student at Princeton SPIA that I would start a nonprofit organization upon graduation. I grew up in an almost all-Black community on the southside of Greensboro, North Carolina, that battled racial segregation and poverty. I wanted to start a nonprofit that could bring economic ownership and opportunity to communities that had been left behind economically.

Nick Grono: I’ve always been keen to have a job that has a meaningful purpose, but it took me the first decade or so of my working life to make that happen. It was my time at Princeton SPIA that provided me with the knowledge, relationships, and motivation to make the full-time jump into the nonprofit world. So, there wasn’t an “aha moment” for me, so much as a steady progression towards an NGO career. I now lead a global human rights organization that works to drive a measurable reduction in modern slavery and human trafficking in high-prevalence countries around the world, and I’ve found a career with a truly meaningful purpose.

PS: How did Princeton SPIA prepare you, or alter your preparations, for this field after graduation?

NG: Princeton SPIA very directly contributed to my nonprofit career in that one of my MPP classmates introduced me to the person who would be instrumental in offering me my first nonprofit job, working at the International Crisis Group. And two of my Princeton professors provided references for that job. So, there was a very direct connection between SPIA and my entering the nonprofit world. My time at Princeton gave me a much broader perspective and deeper knowledge of the whole world of NGOs, including their work and impact. I had quite limited knowledge of the nonprofit space before Princeton, but the combination of the SPIA program and amazing colleagues in the MPP and MPA world ensured I was much better prepared than I would otherwise have been.

ME: Princeton SPIA permitted me to study applied economics more deeply. Both the language and concepts of statistics, multiple regression economic models, input-output analysis, and international development practice and history were extremely important for my engagement with policy leaders for the rest of my career. I remember one example where I was meeting with 20 lawyers for the nation’s largest banks to negotiate lending standards to govern abusive subprime mortgage loans leading up to the home loan foreclosure crisis starting in 2008. One of the attorneys blurted out in frustration: “This is not a fair negotiation, you understand the law and the business of mortgage loan securitization better than any of us!” I thought that was quite funny at the time. The standards that we negotiated were incorporated into anti-predatory lending laws in 20 states and eventually at the federal level in the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010.

KG: I arrived at SPIA with good intentions to address global poverty, but little knowledge of how to do so. I left with a deep understanding of why some countries thrive where others struggle, and the factors that drive poverty. I gained a vital perspective on how both public and private organizations contribute to alleviating global poverty. I also developed something invaluable and intangible: confidence that I had to tools to build an organization nearly from scratch. Creating something new is fraught with uncertainty; the constant potential for errors and failure could have paralyzed me. Instead, I’ve relied on the knowledge and the confidence I gained at SPIA to build Fistula Foundation from a scrappy start-up to the global leader in the treatment of childbirth injuries.

PS: Princeton SPIA’s graduates want to better their communities. What are some ways that a career with an NGO allows them to do so?

NG: The best and most effective NGOs put the community they serve at the center of their work.

ME: The beauty of community service through an NGO is that you can hold public-sector ideals and implement solutions using private-sector technical skills.

KG: NGOs can be directly responsive to the communities they are in business to serve. They have the potential to achieve results without the red tape that can hamper government programs.

NG: The work must be deeply informed by the priorities and knowledge of the community. So, working for an effective NGO — and there are many ineffective ones, just as there are many ineffective businesses — can be a powerful way to support communities. The types of NGO are as varied as the problems that need to be tackled — from homelessness, hunger, violence against vulnerable populations, climate, trafficking — you get the gist. And the roles in those NGOs are hugely varied too. I started my NGO career as director of research, and then added advocacy to my portfolio, and then I became chief operating officer, before taking the big step into my first CEO role.

PS: What have been some of your big “wins” in your current role?

NG: Where to start? I’ve been leading The Freedom Fund for 11 years. In that time, we’ve raised $250 million, which has enabled us to partner with and fund over 280 frontline, grassroots organizations, serving some of the most vulnerable people in the world. Together, we’ve helped bring over 33,000 people directly out of slavery and have ensured 300,000 fewer vulnerable people are trapped in extreme exploitation.

ME: My organization, Self-Help, has grown from a $77 bake sale to one of the larger Community Development Financial Institutions in the country. We learn what works by making loans to families, small businesses, and nonprofits.  We then take what we learn and advocate policy change that will multiply that impact many times over, both through Self-Help and through the Center for Responsible Lending. I was told by payday lenders that lend at 450% annual interest and by abusive subprime mortgage lenders in the mid-2000s that they considered me and my organization their worst enemies in the country.  I concluded that it was a badge of honor.

KG: I took over Fistula Foundation as the founding CEO in 2005. Over two decades, we’ve grown to be the largest supporter of the surgical treatment of childbirth injuries in the world, with over 100 partner hospitals in more than 30 countries in Africa and Asia.  We’ve increased our revenue by a factor of 10 and are providing 35 times as many surgeries, funding more surgeries in more places than any organization in the world, including USAID, even before its closure. We’ve treated over 100,000 women and counting, and have done this without taking a penny of U.S. government funding. Surgery truly gives a woman a new life and the potential to contribute again to her family and community. This was the kind of impact I was seeking when I left government.

PS: What advice do you have for Princeton SPIA students who might be interested in pursuing a career with an NGO?

ME: I tell people that I have the best job in America. I have had the chance to walk with literally thousands of individuals and parents who are creating better lives for their children and communities.

KG: But the NGO world is a good fit for some, but not for others. I would suggest, as a first step, setting up informational interviews with people who work for organizations whose mission you find compelling. This is a low-risk way to help gather information.

NG: If you find a well-run nonprofit to work for with a purpose that you believe in, you’re likely to have a truly meaningful career.

KG: I would also suggest trying to intern with organizations that you found appealing during those informational interviews.  It’s important to keep in mind, too, that there are vast differences between NGOs. One organization may be a poor fit for you, but another one could be a great fit.

NG: Nonprofits also need a wide range of expertise — from subject-matter expertise to a deep knowledge of measurement and evaluation, to financial experience, investigative experience, or experience in running things. I had no expertise in conflict when I started working at International Crisis Group, but I did know how to get things done, which was what the CEO was looking for when recruiting me. Understand that you’ll likely have to make sacrifices, particularly financial ones, if you choose a nonprofit career over a better remunerated corporate career. You’ll be trading extrinsic motivation, in the form of financial rewards, for intrinsic motivation, in the form of a career with purpose, which is a trade-off I’ve always been thankful I made coming out of Princeton.