A masters in business administration has been proven to help thousands of professionals advance their career chances and receive higher than average salaries. An MBA is a very useful qualification to have when starting a new business, as it teaches important managerial and administrative skills. A person doesn’t necessarily need an MBA to start a business, but it’s very useful in gaining opportunities for other types of careers.
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An MBA program focuses on the theoretical and practical knowledge of business training, and also teaches investment management. The industry calls for students to have a passion for business, and also prefers those with an interest in finance, human resources, marketing, and operation management. Here are the pros and cons of earning an MBA qualification to help you decide before you begin your studies.
Improved Personal Management and Development
An MBA is sure to earn you a decent starting salary working at a good firm, but the benefits to personal development are vast. Students interested in this degree will be expected to go out of their comfort zone to interact with people in business and exude confidence while doing so. An MBA offers a great way to improve these skills while developing time management disciplines that can be used outside of your career.
A big part of an MBA is learning managerial and administrative skills that will also assist in improving a person’s personal life by teaching various communication skills and management techniques.
Increased Business Credibility
Being a manager is all well and good, however, you cannot expect to receive the same level of respect unless you have a university degree to back it up. An MBA tells people that you know what you are doing, and most large organizations will require some sort of administrative degree. Studying for an MBA allows a person to build on their pre-existing business skills and learn new ones as they go. This can be great for entrepreneurs as well as those wanting a career in a social setting, such as managing a department in an office.
It’s important to remember that you shouldn’t study for an MBA unless you are sure you would work well as a manager and in business in general. This means working with teams of people and communicating with all departments to ensure smooth operations, from processing paperwork to managing employee deadlines.
Cost Implications
One of the only major downsides is that an MBA can be expensive in terms of tuition and housing, not to mention school supplies. The cost alone can turn any prospective student away. However, it is still worthwhile to look into. Even if the cost of earning your masters seems out of reach at the moment, you will thank yourself in the future because the earning potential is huge.
Entry-level business administrators can expect anywhere from $90,000 – $100,000 as an average salary in the US, so spending that money initially to study may be more worthwhile than you realize. Some MBA programs cost up to $70,000 per year, so be sure that you have chosen the right MBA specialism.
Career Prospects
Earning an MBA means that you are qualified to manage office procedures and administrative functions in a large corporation, yet this is about the only place that you can go with an MBA. Unless you can afford to specialize in finance or marketing, for example, people with an MBA must be sure that their future career goals are aligned to the MBA curriculum.
Studying for an MBA takes at least two years of full-time study, with a minimum of one-year practical experience. The time constraint can be another factor limiting one’s decision to study for an MBA and it requires complete dedication throughout those three years. A student will need to be disciplined and possibly move in with family so that they have support while they are studying.
Business Networking
As a person studies for an MBA, not only will they interact with students and professors, but many university programs also offer networking opportunities with other businesses where a person can build relationships. This is especially useful, as earning an MBA doesn’t necessarily mean that you will instantly get a management job at a good firm with a high salary. Oftentimes, students have to network and create business relationships to get into their field of expertise.
In business, it’s often not what you know, but who you know and how people view you as a person. Without strong managerial skills and a willingness to interact with people and business, an MBA is probably not right for you.
Highest Earners
Business administrator is among the highest-earning professions in the U.S with a minimum salary of $102,100 per year recorded in 2020. Apart from earning this type of wage, MBA students often report more job security because everyone needs an administrator. In many businesses, you will find that an MBA graduate will earn more than if they had just a regular masters, at almost twice the salary.
You Can Study Online
This option is great for anyone already in the working world that wants to expand their career options by gaining an MBA. For the lucky few, you won’t need to quit your job, and online studies are generally cheaper than other options. This brings another advantage in that you can switch careers once you have earned an MBA. Many people choose this option after being in the workforce for some time and realizing they can offer more to the company they work for.
Is an MBA online program worth it? Yes. One of the reasons that MBAs are highly sought-after is because a person can work in any industry or business as long as there is an administration department that needs managing. There will always be a position for a business administrator even when every business process is online and automated. There has to be someone at the top managing all of these processes to ensure the company still operates efficiently.
Specialization Opportunities
Most people who have earned an MBA won’t stop there. Some may choose to change careers and branch into healthcare, human resources, or supply management. Working in a managerial position with an MBA will allow you to have your pick of careers and is the foundation needed for any manager to succeed.
Even if you are fine to remain a manager, an MBA can help you to improve these job responsibilities, such as time and project management, by working with the same technology every day. Practice makes perfect and an MBA will give you the chance to find your area of specialty.
It Can Be Difficult to Achieve
With any degree of study, the effort you put in will produce the results you see, and the more you are dedicated to your studies, the easier it will be to earn that MBA you have been longing for. It’s not that earning an MBA is particularly difficult, but that there are a lot of assignments and internal projects that need to be completed over and above a thesis or dissertation.
An MBA is only as hard as you make it, and you need to understand that there is no hand-holding because you are being prepared for a career in business administration and management. The reason people consider an MBA difficult to achieve is that they don’t realize what topics will be taught. Classes will focus on economics, accounts and financial management, business law, marketing, and strategic management, which some people may not want to study. These are all extremely important topics that need to be taught in order for graduates to be able to successfully manage a business’s administrations.
No Age Limit
It is interesting to note that although the average age of students registering for an MBA is 27, there is no legal cut-off age to study for a master’s. People as old as 40 are enrolling because they have been in their industry for a long time and have come to realize how important qualifying with an MBA can be.
More than 10% of current students are working professionals with about seven years of experience in their industry and have decided to earn their master’s. One of the biggest requirements when a company employs an administrator is that they have the relevant experience. Students fresh out of school may not be awarded the same opportunities because most of the functions of an MBA are taught in-house under practical real-world scenarios.
An MBA can help you advance in your profession or find a high-paying job. However, the cost is usually only covered if the degree is from a top-tier business school and the desired job path is in the business world. An MBA does not ensure a successful career. As many former MBA students will confirm, the degree will land you your first decent job, but it is up to you to land your second. However, it is impossible to duplicate the benefits that an MBA may bring for persons who want to advance in their careers and achieve big job goals.
