Employers value the communication, problem-solving, leadership and strategic-thinking skills that Master of Business Administration (MBA) graduates bring to the job. But the proliferation of MBA concentrations can present a baffling array of choices.
On the one hand, a general MBA degree may be best suited for business professionals just entering the job market or competing for advancement to positions in which managerial and executive capability trumps technical expertise.
On the other hand, a concentrated MBA will be well suited for those who want to go into fields that require technical expertise, hope to pivot to such career roles, have specialized experience or seek a competitive advantage in the job market.
MBA grads average $20,000 a year more than people with undergraduate business degrees. Generally, according to the Harvard Business Review, the benefits of specialized and general MBAs provide graduates with the tools to:
- Future-ready their careers with advanced skills and capabilities
- Explore new industries
- Expand their professional networks to include peers (who are leaders of the future), faculty and alumni across the business spectrum
- Accelerate career advancement with higher salaries
Moreover, according to the Graduate Management Admissions Council, 91% of corporate recruiters plan to increase or maintain hiring for B-school graduates — a strong signal that advanced business talent is key to organizational expansion.
What Are the Advantages of a General MBA?
The online MBA program offered by Northern Kentucky University (NKU) focuses on the essentials of leadership roles in management, finances and accounting, marketing business, information systems, operations and the regulatory environment.
NKU’s general program also includes a deep dive into innovation processes, negotiation and conflict resolution and project and supply chain management. The program’s courses equip graduates with a strong foundation of essential knowledge and expertise that provides career-track and advancement options.
What Are the Advantages of a Specialized MBA?
The Northern Kentucky MBA program, accredited by The Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business, includes the general program’s essential courses and enables participants to customize the curriculum for senior management roles in many focus areas:
- Construction Management: Gain an advanced managerial view of construction, including projects and tools used in project control, risk identification and management approaches and various legal principles.
- Data Analytics: Understand and apply advanced methodologies to analyze data and produce solutions to complex business challenges.
- Finance: Understand investing strategies and security analysis, international financial management, and more.
- Global Supply Chain Management: Explore supply chain design, integration and sustainability, logistics and strategic sourcing/purchasing.
- Healthcare Administration: Study external factors facing the industry and organizational management tools.
- Healthcare Commercialization: Translate objective research into medical products, services and cost-effective procedures.
- Human Resource Management: Acquire expertise in talent acquisition through compensation, benefits, training and development.
- Innovation Through Competitive Intelligence: Develop insights into competitor research and use it to gain efficiencies, reduce risks and manage costs.
- Leadership: Build competence for managing change to build competitive advantages.
- Legal Studies: Understand the legal environment at the intersection of technology and law.
- Marketing: Evaluate the elements of effective marketing strategies for business decision-making.
- Social Entrepreneurship: Effect positive change in social, cultural and environmental issues.
“As a rule, students should choose an MBA specialization or concentration by considering their personal preferences, natural abilities, experience, and existing skills,” according to Max Feo, an attorney who blogs about graduate education programs.
An advanced business degree will prepare graduates for career advancements and improved professional skills, and a business degree with a focus area will equip graduates with the honed and specific abilities required for niche areas.
Learn more about Northern Kentucky University’s online MBA program with focus areas of study.
