Master of Business Administration (MBA) Degree Program in Leadership Overview
Majors Overview May 20, 2015Get information about Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) degree programs in Leadership and their education requirements, coursework, career choices, and wage outlook.
Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) Programs in Leadership
Those who want to develop interpersonal skills and business expertise necessary to perform effective management and leadership roles could benefit by enrolling in a Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) program with a leadership focus. These programs are devised to make students adept at facilitating cooperation or communication among employees. There is also an emphasis on establishing values for a strong corporate culture, developing organizational goals and emphasizing critical thinking skills. Some MBA degree programs in Leadership are extremely flexible in the design of their curricula, wherein students can personalize the coursework by consulting an advisor.
Graduates learn about making business decisions based on both quantitative and qualitative factors; they also learn how to gather information and analyze it carefully before acting. Students can take between one year (for accelerated programs) and two years (for programs that include mentorships) to complete these programs.
Education Requirements
Admission criteria typically require incoming students to hold a bachelor’s degree. While they don’t need an undergraduate degree in business, candidates are expected to have at least two years of career or business leadership experience before they apply. As in traditional MBA programs, some schools may expect students to submit GRE or GMAT scores.
Coursework
Coursework balances leadership-focused topic areas with business and management courses; the topics may relate to numerous fields such as communication studies, sociology and psychology, among others. Core coursework may cover subject areas such as:
•Accounting
•Decision making
•Statistics and quantitative research
•Operations management
•Marketing research and management
•Business ethics and law
•Leadership skills
•Economics
•Financial management
Career Choices
Interdisciplinary and broad-based in its character, a Leadership MBA trains graduates for supervisory and management positions across industries. Graduates may seek top management and executive positions in numerous industries, including private corporations, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies. They may choose from popular job titles such as:
•Vice president of operations
•General manager
•Director of human resources
•Chief executive officer
•Executive director
Wage Outlook
The executive nature of the positions entails a high wage outlook. In May 2012, chief executive officers brought in an average annual wage of $101,650. During May 2014, general and operations managers earned $117,200 on average per annum (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics).