The idea of breaking into a business career on sheer personality and will is appealing. After all, Steve Jobs, of the biggest mavericks the business world has ever seen, never finished college; Mark Zuckerberg dropped out and, even though he got a degree, Elon Musk preaches against it. Here’s the problem: they are notable because they’re the exception to the rule. For most of humanity, learning valuable skills in a college program is the surest way to success. Here are five ways that’s true.
- Increased Job Opportunities
Though there are a few positions in business and management that don’t require a degree — lodging managers, food service managers and agricultural managers, most notably — the vast majority do. the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics lists 24 broad occupational categories in management and 18 of them require a bachelor’s degree and a handful prefer or require a master’s, like a Master of Business Administration.
- Better Career Versatility
Degrees in business management teach a broad range of skills that apply to all sorts of careers in the field. And not just in management; these degree programs prepare students for jobs in diverse roles across fields like finance, manufacturing, insurance, consulting, administration, sales, publishing and even teaching.
- Higher Salaries
In 2017, those with a high school diploma made a median annual wage of $36,100. Graduates with a bachelor’s degree brought home double that, at $72,830 per year. Jobs you can get with just a bachelor’s degree in business management were among the highest-paying of any occupation. In fact, among business jobs you can get with a 4-year degree, many pay well over $100,000 a year including marketing managers ($132,230), financial managers ($125,080) and chief executives ($183,270).
- Soft Skills
In business school, you’ll learn to collect data, crunch numbers and pore over spreadsheets. These are all critical skills. However, there are more important ones you’ll learn that will carry you further in your business management career. Skills like communication, problem-solving, team-building and, most importantly, leadership, are stressed in these programs and they give you a chance to refine them before you hit the real world.
- Networking
The people you meet in your business program may change your life forever. Fellow students, advisors, professors and even business people from the local community — they will transform, shape you, teach you and perhaps even help you land that first big job.
Whether you want to manage a retail store, crunch numbers behind a desk, direct massive projects or be the CEO of an influential company, a business management degree is a critical step in the right direction.
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