Love it or hate it, but you can’t ignore it. The world revolves around finance. Growth, development, rising living standards, businesses, jobs to a country’s economy; all boils down to finance. Originally a part of economics, finance has become one of the most sought-after disciplines in the world.
It is no wonder then that people with an inherent interest in finance can consider a degree in finance to kickstart their professional journey in the exciting world of finance.
Why MBA in Finance?
Pursuing an MBA in finance can help you in different ways.
- You can get knowledge of the inner workings of economics, businesses and how to analyse financial data and use them to benefit an organization.
- Pursuing MBA from top colleges can help you get the necessary exposure to the industry veterans.
- You can develop leadership skills.
Job Prospects for MBA in Finance
A business faces many challenges. It needs to be ready to expand globally and ride on robust growth rates while struggling under economic slowdown and financial shortage. Thus, it will always need smart minds in finance to take the challenge and find innovative ways to help the business move forward.
MBA-Finance graduates are always in demand in the field of investment banking, asset management, venture capital, private equities, mutual fund houses, insurance firms, risk management and merchant banking.
Today, such graduates are also exploring the emerging fields of green energy, virtual financing, financial analytics, and the application of blockchain in finance.
Financial giants like Goldman Sachs, MorganStanley, JP Morgan Chase & Co., McKinsey & Co. and others regularly make a beeline to top MBA colleges in the USA to recruit students from the finance courses.
Top MBA Schools in the USA for Finance
- Wharton School of Business, University of Pennsylvania
Wharton School of Business regularly features among the top of the overall best B-schools in the USA. Additionally, the school has a reputation for offering one of the best finance courses in corporate finance and macroeconomics.
The Wharton MBA graduates regularly find employment in the field of asset management, hedge funds, investment banking and private equities.
[Read: How to Get into Wharton School of Business?]
- Booth School of Business, University of Chicago
The business school boasts an enviable faculty comprising the stalwarts of the finance world, including Nobel laureates like Eugene Fama and Lars Peter Hansen. The school has an upgraded course curriculum on corporate finance with a special focus on investment courses and financial risk.
In 2021, 35 per cent of the full-time MBA students went into the finance sector.
[READ: Getting into Booth School of Business]
- Leonard N. Stern School of Business, New York University
The business school has the geographical advantage of being located in New York City, in the proximity of the famed wall street, which houses some of the biggest global financial powerhouses. No wonder the college sometimes sends more than one-third of its batches to the financial industry.
The college’s finance department has over 70 full-time faculty members that comprise some of the eminent economists of our time, like Aswath Damodaran, the author of the bestselling book The Little Book on Valuation and many other finance books.
The finance specialization at Stern’s focuses on equity markets, future and options, valuation, behavioural finance, and bankruptcy.
[READ: How to Get an admit to Stern School of Business]
- Columbia Business School, Columbia University
A Manhattan-based university that is a stone’s throw from Wall Street, the college is regularly visited by recruiters from the banking and financial sectors. The Columbia Business School’s finance courses have elective courses in capital markets, real estate, and advanced corporate finance.
Many courses are taught by adjunct faculty who work in the financial sector. Besides, the college regularly organizes lectures from the world of business that include the likes of Warren Buffet and Bill Gates.
[READ: How to Get into Columbia Business School]
- Graduate School of Business, Stanford University
An integral part of the Magnificient 7 B-Schools in the USA, Stanford University, has been host to some of the most important research work in the field of finance. The Stanford grads are behind some of the most successful startups like Snapchat and Instagram.
[READ: How to Get into Stanford’s Graduate School of Business]
- Harvard Business School, Harvard University
With an exquisite history and strong brand, Harvard University is easily one of the world’s most recognized and respected educational institutes. The Harvard Business School offers a diverse range of elective subjects in its finance courses.
The business school has different clubs such as VCPE (Venture Capital and Private Equity) Club, HBS Finance Club, etc., that acts as a platform for students to mingle with industry experts and know what’s happening in the financial spaces.
[READ: How to Get into Harvard’s MBA Program]
- Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth College
One of the oldest B-schools to offer post-graduation courses in finance, Tuck School of Business has small class sizes, which it has managed to turn into one of its strengths.
The students often experience a tightly-knit community where they find it easy to blend it and express their ideas freely. Furthermore, the small number also benefits during the recruitment drive with the possibility of a greater pool of students being recruited in the participating companies.
[READ: How to Crack Dartmouth’s Tuck School of Business]
The college offers an optional certificate in finance in its MBA programme for students looking to make a career switch toward finances. Finance courses here emphasize developing a holistic foresight in finance related to financial opportunities, understanding the working of various financial institutions and other core financial skills.
The Sloan Grads managed to get an average salary of USD 1,45,00 even during the Pandemic-hit 2020.
[READ: How to Get into MIT Sloan MBA Program]
Choosing the Right School for MBA in Finance
The USA can be an obvious choice when it comes to choosing the right business school to pursue an MBA in Finance. While you may be overwhelmed by a lot of options available, you can narrow down your search based on some important factors like
- The Reputation of the School
The business school should have a good reputation for providing quality education in finance. You can refer to the annual b-school rankings published by reputed educational journals and websites for this purpose.
- Average Remuneration Offered
When we say remuneration, we mean the average percentage. There is little point in knowing the highest salary offered and at which college. Instead, focus on the average median salary offered an academic year. Check the records of the past 2 to 3 years to be sure..
- Industry Exposure
MBA-Finance is an industry-oriented course. Therefore, the management school you are considering must have deep connections and networks with the financial industry and the industry veterans. You can consider digging into the annual conferences and lectures organized by the colleges and the kind of guest lecturers they had in the post to get an idea.
Pursuing an MBA in finance from a top US university takes a lot of preparation as you will compete with some of the brightest international minds. Therefore, it is advisable to take professional help from experts who have prolonged experience in helping students to get into such colleges.
You may have to initially deal with a lot regarding arranging finances or adapting to a foreign environment for at least two years. However, you can continue reaping benefits for the rest of your life.
Remember, Uncle Sam has a great reputation for embracing determined individuals like you and changing their life forever.
