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Go backDesigned for busy working professionals, this fully online MBA course is highly flexible and delivered with interactive, bite-sized content and personalised student support.
Go backGo backGo backGo backGo backGo backA Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree is one of the most versatile and impactful qualifications for professionals looking to accelerate their career or make a significant change.
Recognised globally and respected across all industries, the MBA is a credential that signals a commitment to professional growth and the capacity to succeed in senior roles. Employers value it for its indication of leadership potential and commercial acumen, while professionals use it to formalise experience and fill skill gaps through a trusted credential.
An MBA opens the door to a wide range of opportunities, from significant salary increases and career progression to changing industries and launching a business. Read below to learn more about MBA career opportunities and MBA salary outcomes.
An MBA is a powerful tool for shaping your future. It’s designed to support a range of career ambitions but what you achieve with an MBA ultimately depends on your goals. In addition to accelerating your career growth, the degree also offers many other valuable outcomes.
One of the most common motivations for enrolling in an MBA program is the increase in earning potential the degree offers.
Our 2024 Alumni Insights Report found that 73% of AIB MBA graduates experienced a salary increase since beginning their MBA. Graduates who completed their MBA between 2005 and 2024 reported an average salary increase of $42,000 since completing their degree – a powerful indicator of the long-term return on investment an MBA offers.
Learn more: Salary Expectations After an MBA
An MBA develops a broad mix of practical and interpersonal skills which form the foundation for long-term career growth and personal development. The program builds capability across key business functions while also strengthening soft skills such as communication, teamwork and critical thinking. Together, these abilities support career advancement and prepare graduates for leadership roles across diverse industries.
Beyond professional growth, these skills also support personal transformation, building confidence, resilience and a strategic mindset that helps you navigate challenges both in the workplace and in everyday life.
An MBA can be a valuable asset for professionals looking to shift into a new industry or job function. A 2022 GMAC Prospective Students Survey found that 42% of MBA students intended to change job functions, while 29% planned to switch industries after graduation.
As mentioned earlier, an MBA builds a wide range of skills in areas such as leadership, strategic-thinking, decision-making and communication. These types of skills are highly transferable and attractive to employers in any industry.
At AIB, career change is a common goal for students and alumni. In our recent webinar on preparing for a career pivot, AIB graduates shared how the MBA successfully supported their transitions by providing skills, knowledge and connections needed to pursue new career directions.
Regardless of what industry you’re in, building and maintaining relationships is essential to career growth. An active and engaged network can result in referrals, recommendations and increased visibility in your industry.
AIB students have access to a range of MBA networking opportunities that support these outcomes. Our alumni network includes more than 20,000 students and alumni across 100 countries, many of whom work in leading global brands and industries. This reach allows students to connect with a diverse and experienced group of industry professionals, expanding their business network on an international scale.
Completing an MBA can significantly improve your chances of being hired by leading employers. The degree is recognised globally as a mark of strategic insight, leadership capability and commercial acumen, making MBA graduates strong candidates for senior and executive roles.
The 2024 GMAC Corporate Recruiters Survey confirms this trend, showing that MBAs remain the most sought-after business degree with employers prioritising MBA talent in their hiring plans for 2024.
While it’s possible to start a business without a formal qualification, an MBA can give aspiring entrepreneurs a significant edge. The degree provides a comprehensive foundation across different business functions equipping graduates to confidently manage all aspects of a business from the ground up.
The value of building a network can’t be understated for anyone looking to launch a business either. Throughout an MBA, you’ll interact with a range of people, from academics to business leaders and peers. These connections could be future business partners, investors, advisors, customers or employees.
MBA graduates are highly sought-after candidates for many senior positions due to their broad knowledge of business management and leadership skills. Below are examples of common MBA graduate careers, along with the typical salary data from SEEK.
An MBA focuses on developing well-rounded senior business leaders. Completing an MBA is an effective pathway to traditional C-suite roles such as:
But as organisations grow and adapt in a fast-moving environment, MBA graduates are also seen as strong candidates for a wider range of C-level positions including:
Specialist Consultants play vital roles in growing and transforming many organisations, large and small. Leaders and executive teams will often rely on management consultants when they are struggling to resolve complex problems, need to achieve a new level of growth, make a strategic change or would benefit from an outside perspective.
Unsurprisingly, management consulting is an ideal career pathway for MBA graduates. The broad knowledge that students gain through the degree equips them well for this work, and makes them attractive candidates for big firms like McKinsey & Company, KPMG, Deloitte, PWC, Accenture and others.
For engineers looking to advance to a more senior leadership role, holding an MBA can be seen as a considerable asset, as well as preparing you for the additional responsibilities that a position like Head of Engineering will entail.
An MBA can be particularly valuable in fields like engineering, software development and technology. It is able to help graduates make connections between engineering challenges, finance and organisational challenges.
Similar career opportunities for MBA graduates include Head of Product and Vice President of Research and Development.
An MBA with a specialisation in finance equips graduates to master corporate finance, investments, markets and institutions, while deepening their understanding of the relationships between finance and all other business areas.
As well as creating pathways to senior finance roles within organisations, earning an MBA as a finance specialist can open up opportunities for graduates to move into investment banking.
Similar career opportunities for MBA graduates include Business Analyst, Research Analyst or Portfolio Manager.
Project managers are among the people who can benefit most from earning an MBA. Developing strategic, operational and holistic all-of-business acumen through studying an MBA gives graduates the tools required to make the leap from managing projects to managing programs and portfolios across an organisation.
Similar career opportunities for MBA graduates include Chief Risk Officer, Business Analyst and Management Consultant.
Operations management is an extremely broad and important responsibility within any business. It is concerned with maximising the business’s efficiency, and by necessity touches on many aspects of the business.
Successful Operations Managers need a firm understanding of costs and revenue, processes, logistics and supply chain, as well as possessing strong systems thinking skills. A Master of Business Administration – such as the AIB MBA in Logistics & Supply Chain Management – provides graduates with these skills and prepares them for leadership roles in operations.
Similar career opportunities for MBA graduates include Supply Chain Manager and Procurement Manager.
A holistic understanding of how a business operates is a valuable attribute for any leader in Human Resources to possess. An MBA is the ideal pathway for an HR professional to advance their career and become a vital strategic partner within their business.
Undertaking an MBA specialising in Human Resources can provide you with the tools to improve the people aspects of an organisation to maximise its performance.
While these are just some of the more popular goals for professionals considering studying an MBA, but completing the degree can create many more opportunities and there’s no limit to what you can gain from your MBA.
Get in touch today to talk to one of our Course Advisors about your career goals and how an AIB MBA can help you achieve them.
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