The National Center for Education Statistics reports business degrees are one of the most popular degrees to obtain in the last few years. They claim over 360,000 people earned a business degree in their recent review. This is out of close to 2 million students who obtained a bachelor’s degree.
These numbers are even higher if you include associate and master level degrees obtained in business.
People are choosing a business degree because the advantages of having one far outweighs the disadvantages. For example, you can earn your business degree at your local college, through both online and on-campus formats. Or, a combination of both.
A business degree can open opportunities in the job market for general, broader job fields such as management, to specific business-related jobs like social media marketer.
With a business degree you also gain many useful skills that can be applied to a variety of tasks. It gives you a chance to network and interact with businesses and their leaders, a skill you will surely need even if you don’t choose a career specific to business.
Finally, a business degree is useful for many different career paths. Below are some of the top career paths chosen by those with a business degree.
Accountant
In business programs, you will learn how to implement financial skills that will allow you to work for a company, as their accountant or financial leader. Or, you may choose to sit for the Certified Public Accountants (CPA) test so you can help individuals and companies prepare and submit tax related documents.
With a business degree, you will be able to successfully handle tasks that involve balancing budgets, keeping general ledgers, and utilizing software related to accounting needs.
Marketing
Marketing is a huge industry today. There are many avenues where you can show off your marketing skills, from social media to radio and television. As a marketing professional, you will be able to create campaigns for individuals and companies who want to expand their business products or services.
When you study in a business degree program, you will learn how to effectively market using your creativity, and influence to grow the revenue of a business.
You may even choose to be an entrepreneur in the field of marketing, giving you the ability to set your own fees. The more successful campaigns you create, the higher you can ask for your services.
Entrepreneur Consultant
A business degree teaches you how to start your own business from the very beginning, including capital needed for start-up, to obtaining clients and reinvesting into your company for growth.
As an entrepreneur with a business degree, you can choose any field, especially as a consultant. You may have a business degree but also a love for computer technology. Combine the two and become a technology consultant for major firms.
Or, you may love the field of education. You can become a consultant to teachers and other educators, teaching them how to get the most financially and personally from their chosen educational field.
You may also want to focus only on finances, another great career path.
Finance
With a business degree, you can become a financial analyst, helping companies determine potential for growth. You can assess the needs of a company and create a plan of action for them to expand their products, services and of course, revenue.
Some corporations hire their own finance staff, while others work will work with you on a consultant basis.
Don’t think all business degree jobs are useful sitting at a desk or computer. There are many opportunities for business majors out in the field too.
Construction Manager
As a construction manager, you will be responsible for all aspects of a construction job, which can range from large commercial projects to smaller home projects.
You will be required to create a budget and implement plans that keep everyone within that budget. You will be responsible for hiring, and firing, sub-contractors to do various jobs.
The networking and leadership skills you gain in a business degree program will help you in the area of working with the many different types of workers on a job site, from general labor to owners of sub-contracting companies.
A business degree gives you the advantage of knowing how to set deadlines and meet them as well.
Additional Career Paths
Every single industry can benefit from someone who has a degree in business. You can even become a professor of business if your goal is to teach.
Additional career paths include becoming a sales person for major companies, like in the pharmaceutical field, which typically have high salaries and exciting perks. You may also choose to be a retail manager, mortgage adviser, environmental engineer or even a research in fields such technology, urban development, or forensic analysis.
If you can think of an area of interest, it is likely you can apply your business skills to it to form a successful career plan. Even doctors are considering business degrees.
A business degree offers you a jump on skills such as critical thinking, time management, project management, problem solving, data analysis and everything relevant to finances and leadership.
You may even find a degree in business motivates you to continue your education. Many students go on to acquire a master’s degree in Business, and some even obtain a Ph.D. in more specific fields such as those that require research and development.
To start your career in business, seek information from local colleges. They typically offer programs that allow you to get into the field quicker than traditional universities. They also offer many ways to obtain your degree, ways that meet the needs of your work and family schedules.
Online business degrees are available at local colleges, allowing you to set your own pace for earning your degree. You can choose to start with an associate degree program. Or, you can join the bachelor’s degree program, both of which will prepare you for employment in a wide range of business-related industries.
