MBA Concentrations

As either a full-time or a working-professional student, you have the freedom to choose elective courses to customize your curriculum.  You can obtain a concentration in the areas listed below by taking three electives in these areas.  You can also choose elective courses from multiple disciplines and not declare a concentration -- it's up to you.

Areas of Concentration

Finance

• The study of finance involves determining what to invest in, how much to invest, where to obtain funds, and how capital markets work. You will be prepared for career opportunities managing the finances of industrial, commercial and marketing enterprises; insurance companies; government, hospitals and other not-for-profit service institutions.
  
  If your interest lies in the area of investment, you'll find career opportunities with investment banks, security dealers, brokerage firms, pension funds, insurance companies, and investment funds. Specialized finance careers are also available with financial intermediaries such as commercial banks, savings and loans, and investment banks.

Information Systems

• The information systems concentration involves the study of computer-based information systems in organizations. These systems provide information necessary for better analysis and more effective decision-making in organizational operations and management. This concentration can help prepare you for a career in a manufacturing or service organization, or with a consulting firm. Common entry-level positions include managers, systems consultants, systems analysts, and data information specialists.

International Business

• This concentration can help prepare you for the challenges of managing in a global economy. You will learn to examine organizations, markets and institutions from a multi-national perspective so that you'll understand how culture, economics, geography and politics impact a manager's role in markets that cross national boundaries. An international business concentration is an excellent choice if you are interested in a career with a large, multi-national corporation, or if the industry in which you would like to work is one that faces strong international competition.

Management

• The management area of concentration can help you develop a clear perspective of an entire organization's operations. It focuses on improving organizational effectiveness through the better management of people and systems. This concentration will help prepare you for a general management position in wide variety of industries and types of organizations. If your career is moving from technical work toward more management responsibilities, you might find a management concentration to be of particular value.

Marketing

• If you are interested in identifying and satisfying consumer needs, or communicating product benefits to a target group of customers, the marketing concentration could serve you very well. Both businesses and non-commercial institutions attempt to anticipate, manage, and satisfy demands for goods and services. In this concentration, you will learn ways to successfully conceive, promote, price and distribute such products and services. Students with a marketing concentration frequently go on to careers as brand or product managers, market researchers, account executives, market analysts, media planners, technical sales reps, and consultants.

Operations Management

• Operations management involves managing and directing the activities that contribute to an organization's role as a provider of goods and services. This includes designing efficient processes, as well as managing the firm's key resources, such as its people and technologies. Operations management also deals with quality, productivity, resource scheduling, and inventory control. Entry-level operations management positions typically include branch manager, systems analyst, consultant, project director, operations controller, and agency administrator.

Quantitative Analysis

• The quantitative analysis concentration will help prepare you to use quantitative skills such as mathematics, probability, statistics, and computer science to solve business problems. To help facilitate this, you will also develop a thorough understanding of the problems faced by, and the terminology used in, the various areas of modern business. Students with this concentration typically begin their careers in such positions as management scientists, operations research analysts, and systems analysts.

Commercial Real Estate

• Careers that open to you when you hold a Real Estate MBA include development, brokerage, leasing, mortgage lending, property management, construction finance, corporate real estate, and institutional investment. The focus of the graduate program includes general business skills such as financial analysis, market analysis, management accounting and quantitative analysis; specialized real estate knowledge in the areas of finance, investment valuation, development, market analysis, management, and negotiation; computer skills such as spreadsheets, data base analysis, graphical analysis, and geographic information systems; written and verbal communication; entrepreneurship; and international trends and perspectives.
• More information about a Real Estate MBA

Copyright ©2009 College of Business, University of Cincinnati