Masters in Finance vs MBA Choice
So, you have got a background in business, but not sure whether to go for MBA or MSF? Masters in Finance vs MBA – both may propel you into a successful career. But it depends on your goals, background and on school rank. Let’s discuss in more details. Do not jump in just because shiny university prospect tells you so. Research hard facts and ignore marketing. Well, lets discuss MBA vs MS in Finance (aka MBA vs MSF) choices.
You kept asking from grads but see all of them debating about their field of interests. Choosing a subject for specialization is one of the most difficult tasks for a student.
If you want to further continue your study in finance or business you might have been directed to enroll yourself in Master of business administration (MBA). No doubt that either of these programs (MBA and MSF) provides quality education.
But it is important for you to know which program focus on which kind of study. This should be in the best interest of you since it is going to help you hunt the kind of job or career you’re looking for.
If you are looking for earning a degree in finance, markets, accounting, entrepreneurship, and management. You can go for MBA or MSF. Although both of these programs may help you get highly paid when it comes to pursuing a job, still it must be challenging for you to decide which program suits the best of your interests.
HINT: Please do not confuse MSF (masters in finance) with MSF (masters in forestry) More about master degrees from US government (auto-download pdf).
Stop worrying about your dilemma and start researching . This article is going to be all about MBA vs MSF, skills they offer, scope, jobs opportunity, and which one is the best for you.
Key features about Masters in Finance vs MBA
MBA is important for diverse business knowledge. MSF focuses specifically on Finance. MBA vs MS in Finance choice ultimately also lies in your natural abilities and preferences. There is not huge number of math in MBA – I know because I have one.
Math needed mostly in economics, finance and accounting classes. Zero math in management. Some math in marketing. Math really helps but not critical. In MS Finance math is probably way more important.
HINT: I suggest you learn math – take online course or whatever. It always helps in life.
MBA works better for professionals with experience who want to get into higher management positions in great variety of sectors – from human resources management to marketing to supply chain management. MSF may be preferred by those having only a bachelor’s degree in business, for example.
An MBA can get a job as a mid-level manager due to the experience while after an MSF a person may have to go for a basic level job.
MBA provides much more flexibility by offering executive MBA and part-time MBA which MSF lacks. But MSF is specific enough to offer better leverage in the field of finance.
HINT: Your background matters. Your skills matter. And college or program rank matters a lot for your first job after graduation. Your Masters in finance vs MBA choice analysis must account for these factors.
Understanding Masters in Business Administration (MBA)
Whether you are a fresh grad or already working in finance, you can earn an MBA degree. It offers a broad spectrum of business-related subjects and knowledge of the new business world.
MBA grads from better ranking business schools may be offered various jobs at banks, government agencies, and nonprofit startups in many companies.
Having an MBA degree you can easily get various jobs like:
Marketing manager
Business operations manager
Health services manager
Financial manager
Computer and information systems manager
Investment fund manager
Chief technology officer
And more…
Before applying to an MBA program one must have an undergraduate degree. The other important thing is the GMAT which is intended to assess certain skills of the applicant. It is required for most of the MBA programs. A large number of business institutions emphasize the GMAT test.
The MBA program is quite flexible. You can choose quite a few electives. It offers easiness for both the younger business students and for well-established professionals.
If you are seeking a promotion at your workplace, you can go for a part-time MBA program. Both full-time and part-time MBA programs are available, you can go for either of the two as per your convenience.
Part time-MBA
Part-time is a really good opportunity for you if you are already committed to a job. It also comes in two different forms. The Executive MBA (EMBA) is for an already established professional engaged in leadership or executive roles.
This program is also usually more expensive than the normal MBA and the people willing to earn this degree are usually in their mid-thirties.
The other option of a part-time MBA is well suited to those who cannot afford a full-time. It provides a lot of flexibility as one has to attend either an online class or can attend the class in the evening after work. Time taken to complete a part-time MBA program varies from two to five years.
Full-time MBA
Only if you could afford a full-time MBA program, go for this degree. You might be able to learn better than those who are studying and earning side by side.
While getting enrolled in this program the main con you have to care about is that you’re not going to make money for the next 18 to 36 months as the students of part-time MBA make.
This is called “opportunity cost” – you will learn about this in your economics class.
A full-time MBA will be advantageous for you if you are living near the campus. Even 90% of the scholarships come in the account of full-time MBA students.
Subjects/skills in MBA
Before pursuing a career in MBA you must have an idea that on what skills and subjects you’re going to get your hands on. Some of the skills you are going to get trained for are listed here:
Gather, interpret and create reports based on industry data
Manage difficult situations and people
Keep the company’s finances and operations healthy
Network and create connections or partnerships
Improve leadership and people management skills
Make tough calls at the right time.
Hire the best talent and fire underperformers.
Improve employee retention
Understanding Masters in Finance (MSF)
MSF or Masters in finance is a professional degree which takes 1 to 2 years to be completed. It is also offered as a non-thesis degree. This program will prepare you for a career in corporate finance, investment management, and investment banking.
Stock marketing analyzing, technical writings, and risk management are some other courses that you will learn during your enrollment in this program.
Finance studying although focuses specifically on finance-related topics but it also prepares you to perform tasks in everyday life. This degree focuses more on analysis, therefore, MSF helps you to make reasonable decisions in terms of financial matters. Math skills are a huge asset here.
While having a debate on MBA vs MSF we can clearly say that MSF focuses specifically on Finance whereas MBA is a diverse field.
In contrast to the MBA, a prospective student does not need to have previous experience for a shot to get hired. The only thing an applicant need is a bachelor’s degree. But career options initially are more limited.
The finance program focuses on major finance topics like mathematics, financial reporitng, analysis, marketing, valuation, etc. Major focusing skills of this program includes statistics, data analysis, computing, and decision making.
Career/scope in Finance
If you have earned a master’s degree in finance you can get a job easily in certain places like:
Financial Analyst
Accountant
Securities and Investment Banking Attorney (after completion of law school – tough call)
Financial planner
Investor relations associate
Budget analyst
Actuary
Having a degree in finance enables you to work on spreadsheets and other software that are used for processing data. Go for this degree if you love to work with numbers, financial data, stocks, and bonds.
MSF vs MBA - A debate
While debating on MSF vs MBA, the most important thing to keep in mind is that both these programs must provide you with a quality education. The difference lies in your interests.
MSF is a really specific field limited to finance, skills, and topics related to it, this degree provides a little focus on general management topics.
MBA on the other hand is a quite diversified field that offers a comprehensive understanding of business and skills to work on it.
The fact that an MBA grad without the specialization would not be able to go into depth about those topics studied in the program. For that, a student usually goes for MSF right after the MBA.
Some universities even offer a joint degree called an MBA with masters of finance. This helps a person gain in-depth knowledge about finance retaining the importance of the MBA.
MBA programs are more employee-friendly as they offer part-time MBA programs as well. These programs work best for the people who can’t financially afford a full-time MBA program.
With this facility, a student can complete his/her degree within two to five years. MBA allows you to carry both academic and professional activities side by side.
MSF on the other hand can be completed within a year but it doesn’t offer such part-time programs.
Your job and work experience also play a major role in deciding whether you should go for MSF or MBA. If you are already a professional with a demanding business job, you can simply go for a part-time MBA, this will help you get a better position in your career and lead you to promotions.
MSF usually can’t help in this matter. It is simply a master’s degree usually earned by fresh, younger graduates.
MSF vs MBA- which leads to success?
In conclusion to the whole story about MSF vs MBA, we found MSF is decent choice for basic entry-level students. After gaining this degree you’re going to get a job on a very basic level and it even makes sense since you’re not having the experience.
MBA, however, is a success in this regard as a person has struggled far before getting a degree and after earning the degree the person can be even recruited as a mid-level manager.
When talking about payment around the world, an MBA earns a handsome amount annually. MSFs also earn quite a lot but initially cannot make enough to be comparable with an MBA’s.
Masters in finance vs MBA – there is no clear winner because either program is suitable more for certain type of person.
Knowing about the advantages MBA has over an MSF, business schools are flooding with MBA applicants. However, awareness has lead people to go for the alternative and choose an MSF degree.
MBA or MSF which is the right choice for YOU?
After a good long debate, discussing requirements, scope, skills, and subjects you might be able to decide the right program for you. If not, look for what you demand from your future self, what are your interests, and what makes you feel like you were born to do this.
Even if you are still clueless you can go and find some help from a career counselor or from an admission representative. But, I would rather check the reality and search for opinions from graduates after they have been in the workforce for at least 2-4 years. If choosing MSF vs MBA do not forget that school ranking matters too!