Top specialisations for an MBA degree

Choosing the right MBA specialisation is a critical decision that aligns your academic journey with your professional aspirations. With 94% of prospective students prioritizing career outcomes above all else, selecting a specialisation is key to developing the knowledge, expertise, and skills for career progression. This guide helps you discover some of the specialist areas you can pursue.

A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is considered to be the premier business degree. This master’s degree is a way for professionals and recent graduates to refine and deepen their knowledge to enhance their careers. An MBA can cover a significant range of skills, themes, topics and subject areas. That’s why it’s important to be aware of the specialisations you can pursue to best match your profile and ambition. We take you through the most popular MBA specialisations and qualifications you can take, including what you’ll study and the potential career paths available. 

MBA in General Management 

Due to it being such a varied topic, an MBA in General Management is usually one of the most popular. This course aims to teach students about the professional and personal requirements of managing a team, a business department, or a small company.  These courses may focus on, but are not limited to, personnel management, UX management, corporate strategies, and business law. 

With this degree under your belt, you will be a very suitable candidate for several managerial roles, including: 

• Business Development Manager

• Operations Manager

• Management Consultant

Discover why you may want to consider studying for an MBA in Ireland. 

MBA in Marketing Management 

An MBA degree that focuses on marketing is a multidisciplinary qualification that can be used across multiple industries. With an in-depth knowledge of the latest trends, practices and techniques the degree will equip you to take on senior management positions.  

With an MBA in marketing, you'll focus on the managerial aspect of all things marketing. This includes managing campaigns, teams, businesses, and brands.  Some of the types of modules you may study and cover, include:

• Strategic management 

• Global marketing 

• Data analytics

• Digital marketing 

• Corporate communications

• Finance

An MBA in marketing management even delves into things like public and customer relations. With this degree the roles you can confidently apply for include: 

• Brand Manager 

• Digital Marketing Director  

• Social Media Manager 

• Customer Success Manager 

The detailed education provided by an MBA in marketing will make you an asset in any business. As the marketing game constantly changes, being someone who understands its history and how it works can be the difference between helping a business to succeed and one that is struggling to keep up. 

Discover the top universities for an MBA. 

MBA in Finance 

If you’re an aspiring professional in the world of finance, then an MBA in finance is a way of progressing your career to a higher level. This is particularly true if you wish to move to senior management or board-level positions within a business. You’ll gain an understanding of themes and topics that influence the success of a business. You’ll gain skills in entrepreneurship, international business, sustainability and best practice. 

If you study an MBA in finance you’ll cover areas including:

• Corporate finance

• Project finance

• International financial management

Some of the potential careers you can pursue after graduating with an MBA in Finance include: 

• Corporate finance 

• International finance 

• Risk management 

MBA in Information Technology 

An MBA in Information Technology Management is a degree focusing on a specialist area that requires dynamic and agile practices. This qualification allows information technology professionals, managers and directors to expertly develop and lead projects, as well as manage assets and technology.  IT has become indispensable to modern businesses and their effective functioning. This means skills in the area remain in high demand. 

Some of the topics that you will focus on when studying for an MBA in IT Management are:

• Strategic management 

• Information management 

• Business and data analytics 

• Organisational behaviour 

• Project management 

• Enterprise management 

• Database management 

Information technology professionals are required across various industries and in different capacities.  IT teams have become crucial to many businesses. Countries like the UK and the USA have seen remote roles increase from around five per cent to over 25 per cent since the pandemic, and the need for IT support and management here is clear. There are quite a few careers in the IT field. Some of the roles and opportunities you could take up include:

• IT Manager 

• Project Manager 

• Website Manager 

• Programme manager 

• IT analyst

• Product manager/owner 

An MBA is a great option if you’re looking to build on the skills and knowledge acquired in your undergraduate degree and professional career. Studying for this master’s degree is a great way to enhance your CV when applying for a new role or progressing on your personal and professional development journey.