MBA v/s Other Masters Degree

It is commonly known that the more educational qualifications you bring to the table, the more value you hold in the eyes of your employers. Although, your education is hardly a deciding factor in whether you get the job! Higher degrees help you gain a deeper professional expertise in whatever field you decide to take up as your career. An MBA and a Masters’ degree are both Master’s level post-graduate, but both differ with regards to eligibility, focus, and personal development.

By nature, a Masters degree is more specific in its approach, whereas an MBA is more general. For example, if you decide to take up a Masters in Mass Communication and your interests lie in the media, mass communication will help you delve deeper into news reporting, news production, media management, media ethics and more.

The MBA is a multi-subject degree that covers topics from finance and leadership to technology and marketing. An MBA degree, through its curriculum of multiple business disciplines, offers a broader view of business management. For that reason, the MBA degree is a better choice for those whose aspirations are in the field of general management, executive leadership, or entrepreneurship. However, prior work experience of at least 2 years is a must, in order to qualify for the MBA programs.

Running parallel to an MBA is a Business Masters, which is a highly specialised degree that dives deeply into one topic such as accounting, management, human resources, information technology, etc. You can also obtain a Masters’ degree in Finance here.

Your choice depends on where your interests lie, and partially on the Bachelor’s degree you have pursued. However, there are many students who have already obtained a Masters degree and then choose to go in for an MBA, which adds a lot more professional and personal value.

Students pursue a Masters degree to enhance their professional knowledge, but later opt for an MBA in order to transition into a management role. However, you can opt for a switch once you have gotten into whatever you decide to you. But this would also be at your own risk, considering age, need for employment, an urgency to earn income, etc.

The best part about both is that you can pursue both on a part-time basis, should you wish to. In a part-time degree, you attend classes only on weekends, which many working professionals tend to take up for its flexibility. However, in the case of an MBA, you might take longer to finish your degree than others. In a Masters, you can avail of a ‘correspondence’ option from a number of universities, where you’d only have to go to the university to give the exams or collect study material.

We’ve shortlisted a few colleges in India and the World, to help you decide where it is exactly that you would want to pursue these degrees –

Top Colleges in India for Masters (Science)

• Loyola College, Chennai
• Miranda House, Delhi
• Hansraj College, Delhi
• Fergusson College, Pune
• Madras Christian College, Chennai

Top Colleges in India for Masters (Arts)

• Lady Shri Ram College, Delhi
• Loyola College, Chennai
• Christ University, Bengaluru
• Xavier’s College, Mumbai
• Hansraj College, Delhi

Top Colleges Abroad for Masters (Science)

• Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
• Stanford University, USA
• University of California (Berkeley), USA
• University of Cambridge, USA
• Georgia Institute of Technology, USA

Top Colleges Abroad for Masters (Arts)

• University of Oxford, UK
• Harvard University, USA
• University of Camridge, USA
• University of California, Berkeley, USA
• Stanford University, USA

Top Colleges for MBA in India

• Indian Institute of Management, (IIM), Ahmedabad
• IIM, Calcutta
• IIM, Bangalore
• IIM, Lucknow
• IIM, Indore

Top Colleges for MBA Abroad

• Harvard University, USA
• INSEAD, Spain
• London Business School, UK
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
• University of Pennsylvania, USA.