Many people are questioning the need for entrepreneurs to go to college. However, there are times when having a business or any finance degree not only gives you the expertise to do simple things such as organizing your marketing budget or setup up a basic business plan, but allows you to cut the cost by doing some of the job yourself. Let’s look at the four great college degree options for entrepreneurs who want to boost their education.
Entrepreneurship Bachelor’s Degree
An entrepreneurship Bachelor of Arts degree differs from a standard business degree in its practical nature. A business degree focuses on ROI calculations, business plans, quick ways to monetize products and business theory. An entrepreneurship degree focuses on more effectual reasoning like A/B marketing tests, bootstrapping, taxes and personnel management.
There are several reasons why a bachelor’s degree in entrepreneurship may not be the best choice. The first is the sheer novelty of this new degree, so it lacks the same level of respect in the workplace as a business degree. If you need to be working for someone else to earn experience in a field or save up before launching your first business, others are afraid to hire you because your degree by its nature suggests you’re going to leave to start your own business. These degrees are touted as networking opportunities, but you get this same benefit from earning an MBA.
Law
Law is an increasingly common degree for entrepreneurs for several reasons, the first of which is the oversupply of law school grads compared to the jobs available to them. The second reason you see so many law degree holders running businesses is that these are the people with the expertise to navigate the complex regulations that affect financial services companies and many other industries. While it would be ill advised to earn a law degree when you plan on going into business, many C-level personnel are selected because of their legal expertise.
An MBA
Is an online MBA worth it for an entrepreneur? An online MBA may be the only way someone working full time can earn an MBA, and the online credentials are considered as valid as those earned at brick and mortar schools. MBA career opportunities range from financial planning to international business to investment banking. If you have a bachelor’s degree in a non-business field like hospitality, nursing, engineering or education, an MBA gives you the theoretical knowledge necessary to handle a business. You may already know how to manage a team of nurses or a group of engineers, while an MBA teaches you how to market a home healthcare business and handle contracts as the head of an engineering consulting firm.
If you are planning on starting a business (or three), a degree in entrepreneurship is a potential starting place. A bachelor’s degree in business is a good route for working your way up to the head of a business and lets you remain marketable whether you work for yourself or others. If you have earned a degree in an industry like medicine, restaurant management, hospitality or another area, an MBA can be the bridge between day to day mid-level management and running the whole company.
