If you are interested in a business career but have trouble deciding between finance vs. business administration degrees, know that you are not alone. These two fields are closely related, and choosing one of them is often a challenge for students.
However, despite their similarities, there are also differences that you need to consider, such as the different career paths they prepare you for. In this article, we look at both finance and business administration degrees, comparing their curriculums, skills, job positions, as well as job outlook and salaries.
What Is a Business Administration Degree?
Starting from small companies to hospitals and large corporations, every organization needs business administration professionals to succeed. Business administration is a broad field that includes managing an organization or company's resources and people and ensuring that the business is run effectively.
A degree in business administration provides you with comprehensive knowledge of business practices and principles. The program focuses on various aspects of managing a business, preparing you for different roles within an organization. It equips you with a strong foundation in core business functions like accounting, marketing, human resources, finance, organizational behavior, etc.
A business administration degree program usually takes four years to complete.
What Can You Do With a Business Administration Degree?
One of the main benefits of a business administration degree is the job versatility that it prepares you for. As a business administration graduate, you can expect available job positions in numerous industries, including marketing, accounting, finance, logistics, human resources, sales, insurance, and many more.
Below we present three of the best job positions you can consider after pursuing a degree in business administration.
Human resources manager
Human resource (HR) managers are responsible for managing the administrative functions within an organization. They recruit, hire, and interview staff members, maintain department records and reports, participate in meetings, etc. Other duties you can expect as an HR manager include:
managing the daily functions of the department;
managing workplace safety initiatives;
communicating with staff about policy changes;
handling discipline according to company policy;
ensuring compliance with employment laws and regulations;
creating and revising job descriptions;
making sure job descriptions are up to date;
conducting salary surveys;
onboarding new staff members;
organizing and managing HR department activities.
Procurement officer
Procurement officers, also referred to as purchasing managers, are responsible for evaluating products and services. They work in various private and public organizations to create strategies for long-term supply purchases, negotiate contracts, assess suppliers, and check approved purchases quality and efficiency.
As a procurement officer, your duties may include:
supervising staff members of the purchasing department
researching and evaluating prospective suppliers
implementing the company's procurement policies and procedures.
ensuring legal compliance
maintaining purchase and pricing records.
preparing budgets, cost analyses, and reports
estimating and establishing purchase cost parameters and budgets
Business consultant
A business consultant is a person who provides professional guidance to business owners regarding their business. They analyze businesses, identify problems, and propose solutions and changes to help different organizations and companies achieve their goals. A business consultant is usually responsible for:
providing expertise in a specific market
hiring staff
training employees
firing staff
increasing sales
developing business plans
improving organizational efficiency
improving customer service
organizing business projects according to client requirements
meeting with clients
analyzing and interpreting data, etc.
What Is a Finance Degree?
Financial professionals are essential in helping businesses profit. This way, getting a finance degree usually paves the way for many lucrative job options.
A finance degree is a study program covering both technical and theoretical financial knowledge. It provides you with an understanding of economics, banking, accounting, management, and more. In addition, the degree equips you with the necessary skills to succeed in a variety of finance professions.
A bachelor's degree usually takes four years. Afterward, if you are interested in advancing your career, you can choose a master's degree in finance which typically lasts for two years.
What Can You Do With a Finance Degree?
Pursuing a finance degree usually comes with a broad scope of courses, preparing you for various financial career paths you can take. These include job positions in several areas such as financial planning, money managing, real estate, investment banking, commercial banking, etc. Read on to learn more about some of the most attractive financial positions you can consider.
Financial analyst
A financial analyst is responsible for making investment decisions for their company or clients. They collect and analyze financial data to create financial models for performance predictions and recommendations.
As a financial analyst, you can work in various settings, including banks, insurance companies, government agencies, financial planning institutions, etc. Your duties may include:
developing financial plans and reports
summarizing financial data into presentations and financial reports
establishing profit plans
exploring investment opportunities
staying up to date with new technologies
assessing stock performance
identifying trends in financial performance
communicating with C-suite executives, etc.
Commercial banker
A commercial banker, known differently as a business banker, is a business specialist who deals with different clients' financial necessities. Commercial bankers work in several financial institutions, including banks. When working in larger banks, they usually specialize in one area, such as a branch manager, loan officer, credit analyst, trust officer, etc.
Commercial bankers responsibilities generally depend on their specialization but may involve:
marketing the bank to attract new clients
advising customers on cash management services
researching and identifying potential buyers and sellers
analyzing credit conditions
connecting clients with lenders
managing corporate and government accounts
providing treasury management services
updating clients with current financial services
Chief financial officer
Chief financial officers (CFO) represent a senior executive role part of the so-called C-suite and are responsible for managing the financial processes within a company. They deal with various duties that include analyzing the economic state of the firm in order to detect financial weaknesses and strengths.
When working as a CFO, some other tasks would consist of:
directing the capital structure of the company
tracking cash flow
planning financial budgets
dealing with taxation issues
working with the board of directors
analyzing investment opportunities
identifying, investing, and capitalizing on the most efficient departments within the company
guiding the finance and accounting departments
Difference Between a Business Administration Degree and a Finance Degree
Except for the different job positions that these two degrees prepare you for, there are also significant differences in their program curriculums and the skills they equip you with. Read on to learn more about the differences between a business administration and a finance degree.
Curriculum
The main difference between business and finance degrees lies in how much is required. A finance program is known to be more focused on mathematics; meanwhile, for a business administration program, you may do fine with only some introductory algebra.
A business administration curriculum offers a broad understanding of many fields. It provides you with knowledge in management, marketing, organizational behavior, data analysis, and more. As a business administration student, you will likely have the opportunity to learn from real-world business scenarios and gain practical experience since most programs include internships and capstone projects.
In addition to the core courses, you will be able to choose an area of specialty, like entrepreneurship, general management, accounting, healthcare management, business law, project management, etc.
On the other hand, a degree in finance is more specialized than a business administration degree. It focuses on foundational math, strategic cost analysis, accounting, and management. As significant knowledge in mathematics is required, core math and economic classes include an introduction to economics for business, strategic cost analysis, and calculus. Moreover, you can choose to specialize in areas such as financial evaluation, corporate finance, behavioral finance, etc.
Some courses you can expect to study while getting a finance degree may include:
international finance,
international banking,
business communication,
business ethics,
management accounting,
econometrics,
financial reporting,
financial management,
macroeconomics,
IT for business.
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Skills
Both business administration and finance degrees equip you with various skills that are crucial in helping you succeed in your job. Many of them are similar; however, business administration programs focus more on interpersonal skills than finance programs.
Business administration degree programs equip you with strong analytical and decision-making skills for many managerial and administrative positions. In addition to interpersonal skills, you will also gain management skills, leadership, organizational, time-management, negotiation, and technology skills. When you study business administration, you will have numerous group projects which will help you develop communication, teamwork, and collaboration skills.
As a finance major, you need to understand that you'll have many situations where you must find solutions to different financial problems in your career. A finance degree program equips you with analytical thinking, accounting, and problem-solving skills. In addition, by pursuing a degree in finance, you will develop your IT skills, quantitative and statistical analysis skills, budgeting, financial management skills, etc.
Moreover, during your studies, you'll have different projects and presentations that will prepare you for your future career by sharpening your communication skills.
Job outlook and salaries
Due to their similarities, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics groups business and financial occupations together when predicting their job outlook. An 8% employment growth is expected between 2020 and 2030, adding around 750,800 new jobs. However, since you can choose from many fields for your career, there are different job outlooks to consider in business administration. For example, the estimated employment growth for marketing managers is 10%, for human resources managers is 9%, and for sales managers are 7%.
Meanwhile, when considering business vs. finance salaries, we can conclude that both fields offer lucrative career options. Reports show that the annual salary for business administration in the United States is $56,254 per year, whereas professionals in the finance field earn on average around $74,850 per year.
If we check the latest data for the average annual payments of the positions we mentioned before, the chief financial officer position tops the list with a salary of $167,168 annually. Next, we have the commercial banker position with a median salary of $84,286 per year, followed by human resources manager earning $81,185, business consultants $79,858, financial analyst $73,725, and last on our list, procurement officers making $67,081 annually.
Final Thoughts
If you're thinking of pursuing a bachelor's degree in business or finance, choose the one that fits your goals best. Both degrees are high in demand and offer competitive salaries. While a finance degree offers various finance-related career options, you can work in almost any industry with a degree in business administration.
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