Lets look at the differences between these two business degrees, to find out which one is better option for you.
Deciding the right career path is a major decision. It is very important to understand how your options align with your goals.
MBA and MS both degrees can offer a comprehensive business level education, however an MBA will provide an interdepartmental look at how businesses execute, while an MS will provide a deep understanding of one particular area of business.
The biggest difference between an MBA program and a MS program is who the program is designed for.
Typically, an MBA candidate will enter their program with a few years of work experience, while an MS student will enter their program with little or no experience working in business.
Let’s deep dive in to their differences & similarities:
MBA – Master of Business Administration Degree
An MBA is an post-graduate professional advanced degree which focus on high-level business leadership and managerial skills.
MBA Students learn the theory and application of business and management principles.
MBA covers many different coursework of business, including Finance, Account, Marketing, Sales, HR, IT, Management, and many more.
This focuses on offering students with technical, leadership, and managerial skills need to run an organization successfully.
MBA Students are often the ones managing a team of people and making decisions that affect an entire organization. This is a great option for someone with professional work experience looking for career advancement.
There are 3 various types of MBA programs – Full time, Part time, & executive MBA programs.
MS – Master of Science Degree
A MS degree is more specialized and offers students to focus completely on one particular specialized field or a subject. This is the main difference between an MBA and a MS degree.
While an MBA course aims to guide student as professionals having overall mastery over the various domains of business administration, a Master’s degree train the students skills related to a specific subject and they are usually 2 years full-time courses.
Most of the universities offer MS degree across 6 different fields i.e. MS in Economics, MS in Business Analytics, MS in Marketing, MS in Finance, MS in Supply Chain Management, and MS in Sport Management.
Since an MS is quite a academic and technical degree, popular career options include research. MS degree students can sometimes enroll for Ph.D. which may be the start of a rewarding teaching or research career.
MBA Benefits :
- Higher pay scale
The average income for an individual with an MBA program is much higher than a person with an MS program. You can expect to earn a lot when you have an MBA degree.
Some of the popular career choices for an individual with an MBA degree is management analyst, market research analyst, HR manager, top executive, business operations manager, and others.
Average salaries for MBA graduates in India is around Rs. 15 Lakhs yearly. (Range till Rs. 27 – 40 Lakhs as per the university, Course and company-to-company)
If you are IIM MBA Student the average salary would be around Rs. 35 Lakhs yearly. (Range till Rs. 55 Lakhs – 1 Cr as per the university, Course and company-to-company)
In 2-3 years, you cover the investment made with your MBA education for sure.
Average 2 years MBA costs at top business schools in India : MBA from most of the Top 10-20 Business schools in India will cost between Rs. 9 lakhs and Rs. 25+ Lakhs.
- Expand business network
By the time you complete your MBA course, You would have good networking opportunities when you interconnect with your classmates. You will be able to closely connect with the professors & also experienced people with more significant management skills. Apart from the industrial experience, you will have a good knowledge of the business environment as well.
- Entrepreneurship skills
If you are interested running your own business someday and don’t prefer to be on top managerial positions prefer to start on their own, So an MBA degree is the suitable degree for you. This will help you acquire business practices to start a new business or also to improve the existing business to grow.
- Career opportunities
Mostly, MBA graduates either look for entrepreneurial positions or else look for top level managerial positions in reputed company globally.
An MBA degree would give you the opportunities for top level administrative & managerial positions in company.
Over 60% of MBA graduates globally are senior managers or board of directors. This type of job profile not only provide a higher salary, but comes with more significant responsibilities also.
MS Benefits :
As observed, 22% of all jobs need a Masters degree by the end of the 2023 year.
In this competitive world, a masters degree will help to stand out and also remain as a valuable resource for an organization.
- Networking
Whether you take online courses or offline full time course, your classmates would come from a huge variety of backgrounds. You would get the chance to meet number of very successful professionals in their careers.
- Career growth
If you are looking for career advancement, a masters degree will help you to make a smooth transition to senior positions. Most of the organizations not only recognize the benefits of a masters degree but also encourage their employee to get one.
- Specific domain knowledge
A masters degree will help you to become more competitive in your field by focusing on a specific area of study. During MS, One of the most important things that you bring in is in-depth knowledge in a particular domain area. A MS degree with you shows, you are determined to enhance your industry experience & also become more competitive in a specific area of your field.
- Good earning potential
If it is a question about earning, a masters degree helps you to get the required increase in your salary remarkably. It is observed that on an average, This degree can help you get 13 Lakhs per year as fresher (Range till Rs. 19 – 34 Lakhs as per the university, Course and company-to-company).
- Learning
If you are interested for a path for long time learning, then MS degree will help you to write, research & analyze the required skill sets. You can be a good troubleshooter, problem solver & can handle complex project as you obtain a masters degree.
Differences between MBA and MS
Masters degree is a degree that provide advanced studies in a particular filed of science and an MBA degree is a degree that teaches students leadership & managerial skills.
In the following table we summarize the differences between an MBA and MS Degree:
| MBA | MS |
| Teaches a range of topics through out all business sectors, to have business leadership and management skills | Teaches one specific field of business in depth |
| 77% of applicants have at least 3 years of work experience | 76% of applicants have less than 3 years of work experience |
| Normally 2-3 years to complete, depending on the program | Normally 1-2 years to complete, depending on the program |
| 2-4 years of work experience preferred | Normally work experience is not mandatory |
| Employment Opportunities : Finance, Operations, Consulting, Investment Banking, Private Equity, etc. | Engineering, Computer Science, Math and Sciences |
MBA vs Master’s degree – Which one to choose?
While both these degrees are excellent choices for your career growth, each has their unique approach to career advancement. MS degree is designed for students who are looking for an advanced level degree before entering the job world. Therefore, you will hardly required work experience for getting in to a Master’s course.
This Master’s degree covers a huge range of field specializations, it provides applicants to expand on the skills & knowledge gained at the undergraduate level and become an proficient in a specific area of study.
An MBA is also a post graduate degree, it mainly focuses on business administration, and therefore, takes a more extensive and integrated approach towards the same. An MBA degree is ideal for applicants who are looking for growing their careers towards leadership or managerial centric roles in the organization. It focuses on helping applicants develop management & leadership skills required for executing the business.
MBA degrees highly value professional experience. Hence, if you have 1-2 years of work experience, your MBA experience will be very enriching. Since an MBA course curriculum covers multiple business course of study, it offers a broad and comprehensive view of business management and administration. That is why MBA program is suitable for those who aim to get into the domain of general management, entrepreneurship & executive leadership.
Reasons to attend an Overseas Education Fair
An overseas education fair gives students the opportunity to interact with universities globally and get the information related to admissions criteria, courses, campus life, post study work, scholarships and internships. Applicant can attend the many Overseas Education fair online or offline to meet top universities from the US, UK, Germany, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, Ireland, and other popular destinations to know about
Here is the list of top 10 government colleges for MBA in India :
- IIM Ahmedabad
- IIM Bangalore
- IIM Calcutta
- IIM Kozhikode
- IIT Delhi-DoMS
- IIM Indore
- IIM Lucknow
- IIT Kharagpur-VGSOM
- IIT Bombay-SJMSOM
- IIT Madras-DoMS
Here is the list of top 10 Private MBA Colleges in India :
- XLRI Xavier School of Management, Jamshedpur
- MDI Gurgaon
- NITIE, Mumbai
- SPJIMR, Mumbai
- Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune
- SVKM’s Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies
- Great Lakes Institute of Management, Chennai
- Indian Institute of Foreign Trade, Delhi
- International Management Institute, Delhi
- ICFAI Business School, Hyderabad
Here is the list of top colleges for MS in India :
- ALL INDIA INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL SCIENCES – [AIIMS], NEW DELHI
- POST GRADUATE INSTITUTE OF MEDICAL EDUCATION & RESEARCH – [PGIMER], CHANDIGARH
- SANTOSH UNIVERSITY, GHAZIABAD
- CHRISTIAN MEDICAL COLLEGE – [CMC], VELLORE
- BANARAS HINDU UNIVERSITY – [BHU], VARANASI
- KASTURBA MEDICAL COLLEGE – [KMC], MANIPAL
- JAWAHARLAL INSTITUTE OF POST GRADUATE MEDICAL EDUCATION AND RESEARCH – [JIPMER], PONDICHERRY
- KING GEORGE’S MEDICAL UNIVERSITY – [KGMU], LUCKNOW
- SRI RAMACHANDRA INSTITUTE OF HIGHER EDUCATION AND RESEARCH, CHENNAI
- ST JOHN’S MEDICAL COLLEGE, BANGALORE
- ALIGARH MUSLIM UNIVERSITY – [AMU], ALIGARH
- MAULANA AZAD MEDICAL COLLEGE – [MAMC], NEW DELHI
- JAMIA HAMDARD UNIVERSITY, NEW DELHI
- KASTURBA MEDICAL COLLEGE – [KMC], MANGALORE
- DR DY PATIL VIDYAPEETH – [DPU], PUNE
- SRM INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY – [SRMIST], CHENNAI
Wish this article helps clear your worries regarding MBA or Master’s degree and made easier to arrive at a solid decision. All the best!