If you had a choice between an MSc in Management from Troy State University and an MBA from University of North Alabama which would you go for and why? What are some of the career choices that an MSc in Management might have that an MBA would not and vice versa? Right now I work in marketing. Once I get my masters I am hoping to stay in marketing and get a better position and salary or change careers and go into human resources. Thanks
I thought I had seen a couple DL MS HRM degrees but I can't seem to find them now. I'll keep looking and post them when I find them.
If the decision rests on degree recognition in a general sense you might consider the following. There is a business-related degree in pharmacy titled an MS Pharmacy Administration. It is structured much like an MBA, and perhaps even more demanding. I attended a conference at Eli Lilly, a leading pharmaceutical manaufacturer, a number of years ago and every Lilly representative there was ignorant of the degree or that it was structurally similar to the MBA. All their up-and-coming associates were encouraged to pursue an MBA. To date, as far as I know, this has not changed.
In the past I have thought about a MHRM, but I think an MSc in Management or an MBA with a human resources concentration would be better and more secure just in case a HR career dose not work out for me. Basically I just want to keep as many doors open as possible.
This doesn't answer your question about the two specific programs, however, why not just find a program that has a MBA in Management?
MSc in Management vs MBA If you are looking to keep as many doors as possible, the MBA may be the better bet. A MBA would have greater recognition than a MSc in Management. As well, the MBA is more of a generalist degree, which may facilitate a career change better. With a specialist MBA, you could get a general business education as well as specialist training to meet the requirements of a particular career path. Having said that, there are advantages to the MSc in Management. This degree may be better suited if you wanted to teach at the post-secondary level. As well, a MSc may differentiate you from the thousands of MBAs out there. In addition, the MSc may have similar coursework to the MBA. Just my two cents ... Michael Weedon
bo79, From another thread, it looks like you already made a decision, but I think another part of the Troy decision--and something I was wondering about--is that their MSM program offers four areas of concentration as follows: Area A: Human Resources Management Area B: Leadership & Organizational Effectiveness Area C: International Management Area D: Healthcare Management A and D seem very specific, and C may not be very applicable to many jobs, so I'm wondering if many people end up choosing B and how comprehensive and useful it or any of the concentrations are. Of course they may all share a common, general core, so perhaps that's where the general foundation would be learned. This is all more of a question than a statement on my part--I'm just sharing some initial impressions and would be interested in hearing from others who know specifics about Troy's programs. By the way, I had e-mailed a faculty member in the Troy Business department and was impressed with the response I got. He seemed committed to and supportive of the distance program (whereas with some schools it sometimes seems like the distance programs are "orphaned" from the rest of the institution).
