Which are the best courses to study abroad after 12th commerce?

Commerce remains a popular subject choice among many students despite the prevalence of engineering colleges. If you excel in your 10th grade, you're often encouraged to choose the science stream in your higher secondary education, assuming it will enhance your job prospects. Commerce is rarely appreciated, but it should be. Commerce students go on to become business leaders and entrepreneurs. But you must choose the best courses after 12th commerce to ensure your career is enjoyable and well-paying. 

How do I decide on the right course to pick after 12th commerce?

Choose the right courses after 12^th commerce so that you lay the foundation for a career that is as enjoyable as it is lucrative for you. Here are some factors to consider:

• Your aptitude: Choose a course for which you have natural flair and skill. For example, if you are good at languages and love interacting with people, language courses are perfect.
• The cost: Some courses are very expensive, and you might need a substantial loan to cover the costs.  Consider whether you can manage the debt before you choose such courses.
• The duration: If you have the option of doing a full-fledged 3- or 4-year study after 12^th grade, then degree programs are good choices. If you want to start working much sooner, then a short-term certification or diploma course suits you.
• The career opportunities: Research job opportunities for different courses that you have shortlisted. Find out the pay package and career growth in the line before you sign up for a course.

Which are some of the most popular courses picked by Indian students after 12th commerce?

Bachelor of Commerce (B.Com.)

Continuing to study commerce is great if you have a passion for finance, economics, statistics, accounts, and more. In India and abroad, some of the best-paying jobs are in the finance sector, and the career options are significant. This is one of the least risky career paths because demand for finance professionals continues to grow. 

The BCom degree spans three years, and you will be covering the basics of practising commerce in business, including: 

• Accountancy
• Business law
• Statistics 
• Business economics
• Marketing
• Information technology 
• Human resources 

A Bachelor of Commerce creates a good foundation for careers in finance and commerce, but also if you wish to broaden your horizons. After BCom, you can choose to:

• Specialize in an area of finance or economics (macroeconomics, international trade, taxation etc..)
• Transition into management with an MBA
• Do a master’s in Business Analytics or Business Studies
• Do Big Data courses 
• Complete certification in IT, economics, statistics etc.

Job Opportunities after BCom

Once you have completed your Bachelor of Commerce, the following job opportunities are open:

• Marketing/ sales executives
• Finance executive
• Accounts officer
• Financial consultant
• Tax consultant

Bachelor of Business Administration (BBA)

The Bachelor of Business Administration, or BBA, is a great preparation for an MBA abroad or a master’s degree in Finance, Business Studies or Business Analytics. This program, typically four years long, equips you with the grounding to enter the management and business administration arena. If you dream of setting up your own business, the BBA course is ideal. The coursework mainly covers:

• Accounting
• Finance
• Economics
• Management studies
• Sales and marketing

After BBA, you can either study abroad and complete a master’s degree or a certification course in the field of commerce, such as:

• Masters in Accounts and Finance
• Masters in Business Statistics
• Masters in Business Data Analysis
• Certificate in Business Law
• Certificate in International Business
• Certificate in Data Sciences
• Certification in Blockchain Technology

Job Opportunities after BBA

If you want to work right after your BBA, these roles may be open: 

• Marketing/digital marketing executive
• Management consultant
• Product manager
• Business executive

CA/CS

The Chartered Accountancy and Company Secretary pathways are two of the most sought-after courses after 12th Commerce. As a Chartered Accountant, you can play different roles in the financial side of businesses. You can also set up practice on your own as a consultant. Some of the career options open to you after the completion of CA are: 

• Management accountant
• Financial accountant
• Tax accountant
• Auditor
• Financial analyst 

A company secretary manages, and audits business tax returns, assesses the financial health of a company, and oversees compliance requirements. They also play a key role in strategic decision-making. As a Company Secretary, you have several lucrative career options: 

• Legal advisor
• Business Consultant
• Registrar
• MD
• Principal Secretary 
• Corporate planner
• Assistant to the Board of Directors

Note that the requirements for completing CA and CS abroad are different from those in India. Apart from clearing the professional qualification examinations, students must have a bachelor’s degree to become CAs. However, the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has signed MOUs with countries like Australia and Canada, facilitating the official recognition of your qualification in these countries.

Which are the other courses you can study abroad after 12th commerce?

Across the different education boards in India, higher secondary schools' Commerce group includes papers in Accounting, Business Studies, Economics, Business Math, English, and regional languages. This opens a whole world of undergraduate degree options for students.

Some of the best and most popular subjects you can study abroad after 12^th commerce are listed below. Please click on the links to access the list of universities offering courses in these subjects.

• Accounting
• Business Studies
• Business Administration
• Statistics
• Economics
• Finance
• Marketing
• Commerce

What courses beyond business can you pursue after 12th commerce?

If you intend to switch to a different stream, you can try the following:

Bachelor of Arts 

A Bachelor of Arts degree is one of the best courses after 12th commerce if you want to develop your critical analysis skills and research abilities. If you want to do a PhD abroad, this could be a good foundation too. The scope after a BA degree is extensive, letting you branch out into several fields. Professionals with BA degrees are welcomed in many niches, such as: 

• Healthcare and medical
• Business
• Hospitality
• Tourism
• Entertainment 
• Social services and public welfare
• Politics
• Academia

After your BA degree, you can study in India or abroad to pursue several specializations: 

• Psychology
• English
• Journalism 
• Humanities
• Arts
• History 

Job Opportunities after a BA

Depending on what line of work you prefer and/or what line of further study you have chosen, your job opportunities could be along these lines:

o Journalist

o Historian

o Content creator

o Art critic/ Artist

o Curator

o HR Executive

o Copywriter

Law (LLB)

If law is an area of interest, you can complete your Bachelor of Law or LLB after a Bachelor of Commerce following your 12^th standard. This is a three-year degree course, and you can do a BA LLB or BCom LLB course. You can practice law after passing the Bar exam. An LLB gives you a good understanding of the different laws of the land including:

• Drafting laws
• Judicial processes
• Banking/insurance law
• Constitutional law
• Civil law
• Criminal law
• International law
• Torts
• Taxation laws
• Labour/industrial laws
• Company law

Job Opportunities after LLB

After your LLB, you can continue in the same field with a Masters in Law or do a PhD, which will take you into a more academic, research-oriented line. An LLB qualifies you for the following job opportunities:

• Practicing lawyer
• Legal aide
• Legal advisor for a business or a non-profit organization
• Legal Consultant
• Academician

Bachelor of Journalism

A Bachelor of Journalism opens a very exciting and creatively satisfying career path. This is ideal for not just those with an interest in news reporting but also those who want to step into print or electronic media in other capacities, like editing. A Bachelor of Journalism is usually combined with mass communication coursework too, which makes you ready for a wider variety of job opportunities.

The main aspects covered in the course are:

• Foundational principles of journalism
• Ethics and professionalism
• Reporting
• Editing
• Journalism best practices
• Visual communication
• Media types
• Media industry foundation

After your journalism degree, you can specialize in growing fields like visual communications, social media marketing, and digital communications or hone your skills in corporate communications.

Job Opportunities after BJ/ Mass Communication

A whole host of job opportunities await you once you complete your journalism and mass communication degree:

• Reporter
• News anchor
• Editor
• Proofreader
• PR professional
• Advertising executive
• Content creator/copywriter
• Marketing executive/digital marketing executive
• Corporate communication executive 

Tourism and Hotel Management

A bachelor’s degree in tourism and hotel management could be one of the best courses after 12^th commerce if you love meeting new people, traveling, and rising to new challenges every day. A bachelor’s degree in hotel management and tourism helps you in any industry where there is a need to plan travel arrangements or to offer a great experience to travelers or in the food and beverage sector. Some of the things that are covered in this program are:

• Food production
• Food safety/hygiene
• Hotel management
• Business accounting
• Housekeeping
• Nutrition
• Front office operations
• Tourism operations
• Costing, economics

As you can see, the program also lays the foundation for setting up your own business.

Job Opportunities after a tourism and hotel management degree

Building on this bachelor’s degree with a certificate or pursuing a master’s degree with a specialization can fast-track your career growth. Some of the career choices you may have include:

• Hotel manager
• Tour operator
• Travel agent/ coordinator
• Food and beverage manager
• Food stylist
• Catering consultant
• Cruise ship manager
• Event manager
• Restaurant owner/ manager

Language courses and degrees

 

Language courses after your 12^th are a great idea if you have an affinity for languages. Choose the right courses based on the job opportunities available, your interest, and the quality of the language course that is accessible to you. You have the option to do a BA or Bachelor of Arts in a language of your choice. The popular choices are:

• BA French
• BA German
• BA Japanese
• BA in Mandarin/Chinese
• BA in Spanish

Join a language certification or diploma course to combine an interest in a specific industry with your flair for language. For example, if you are interested in the automobile industry, Germany is a good employment location, so you can join a German language course after completing your degree in automobile engineering.

Job Opportunities

Language courses are a gateway to several career options across many industries, including:

• Translator/Interpreter/Communications officer at embassies, multinational businesses, hotels, tourism operators, travel agencies.
• Editor/proofreader at publishing houses
• Content creator
• Foreign language teacher
• International sales
• Human resources executives at international businesses

Bachelor of Arts in Visual Communication and Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) are some other courses that you can try.

Which are the top countries to study abroad after 12th Commerce?

According to the QS World University Rankings by Subject 2023: Business and Management Studies, the top countries to study business and related courses abroad include:

• The USA
• The UK
• Australia

The USA has 25 universities among the top 100 institutions in the world for business and management studies. The UK has 13 institutions among the top 100, and Australia has 6.

Here are the top 10 universities in the world for studying business and management courses.

University	Country
Harvard University	United States
INSEAD	France
London Business School	United Kingdom
Stanford University	United States
Massachusetts Institute of Technology	United States
The University of Pennsylvania	United States
Bocconi University	Italy
The University of Cambridge	United Kingdom
The University of Oxford	United Kingdom
HEC Paris School of Management	France

Does institution ranking affect your choice of university and course? Check out our ranking pages to learn more about the top-ranking institutions in the world. 

What are the entry requirements for studying abroad after 12th commerce?

• Applicants need to have a good academic score in their Class XII exams with a minimum average score of 60% and above. Some institutions ask for 70% or more.
• An IELTS score of 5.5 is the basic English language requirement for business-related courses. However, some institutions and courses demand a higher score in IELTS.
• It is always advisable to check with the institution for more accurate information. You can also get in touch with our counsellors for up-to-date information on course entry requirements and tuition fees.
• Some universities, like the University of North Carolina Wilmington, ask for a minimum GPA of 2.5.
• Some institutions, like Stanley College, require candidates to be at least 18 years old.

Know about Foundation Programmes

Sometimes institutions will recommend students complete a Foundation/Pathways programme to enable them to improve their knowledge of the core subjects, English, Mathematics and Computing skills, before they join the degree programme. 

What is the cost of studying abroad after 12th commerce? 

Costs vary based on the duration of the programme and the country of study. Overall costs will range from INR 9 lakhs to INR 30 lakhs.

Can Indian students apply for scholarships to study abroad after 12th commerce?

Apart from scholarships offered by governments and organisations, universities themselves offer multiple scholarships for international students. Several of these scholarships do not require separate applications; you will be automatically considered for the scholarships upon submitting the course application. Most of these scholarships are offered as tuition fee waivers.

Let’s introduce you to some of the scholarships offered by universities abroad:

Scholarship	Details
International Student Academic Achievement Scholarship - Chiu School of Business	Offered by: Bow Valley College Value: INR 1,21,000+ Offered as a fee waiver
High Achievers Scholarship	Offered by Kaplan Business School Value: 30% of tuition fee Offered as a fee waiver
Commerce Undergraduate International Merit Scholarships	Offered by: The University of Melbourne Value: 50% of tuition fee Offered as a fee waiver
Developing Futures Scholarship	Offered by: Swansea University Value: INR 2,00000+ Offered as a fee waiver
Kent Business School Loyalty Award	Offered by: The University of Kent Value: 10% of tuition fee Offered as a fee waiver

Want to know about hundreds of other scholarships? Head to our site listing the universities offering scholarships. Pick the best one for you.