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Is a business management degree worth it?

Hi,
I am interested in studying a Business management degree at university however while conducting some research, I found that the degree has been relentlessly castigated and reduced to a degree that is ‘worthless’ and able to be taken by any ‘stupid’ individual. It is imperative to highlight that I want to study a reputable degree that will provide me with a great paying job abroad and in the UK. After reading copious comments rebuking this degree, I’m not very confident this degree with help me achieve my goals anymore and I am doubting it will give me a good paying job in the end. I would love to work abroad ( preferably in Dubai ) and I’m wondering if this degree will make finding a good paying job harder there. If anyone can provide me with some information on the career prospects and financial rewards that come with taking this degree, I will be grateful. I just find it odd that no one would dare to disrespect an individual taking a maths degree or a degree pertaining to a science but as soon as someone says they’re studying a business management degree, they’re dissed instantly. Thanks :smile:
Comparing business to STEM subjects lol.

Also, not a single person who's studied business in the whole world has gone on to be successful. Straight facts!
It's no better or worse than any other degree. I don't really buy into this concept of "STEM superiority" sometimes implied or outright espoused by people on here and elsewhere though, having studied a STEM degree and now studying non-STEM subjects. Those subjects aren't inherently better, harder, more interesting, more relevant or important for "society", or more "respectable" for graduate employers than any other traditionally academic degree.

However in my person opinion I think business type degrees are a bit pointless because you could just as well study a degree in some subject of particular interest otherwise and still be able to go into the same possible jobs. So if you had a deep interest in marine biology, history of art, anthropology, etc, but still want to work in "business" generally, you still can do so with a degree i those subject areas, and then you will have 3-4 very intellectually stimulating years at uni exploring some academic field that is of interest to you before going into the workforce.

So I would suggest pursuing a degree in something you have some particular interest in, even if you don't have any plans to continue with it professionally, personally. Of course bear in mind also the above is still largely pertaining to traditionally academic degree subjects. Note though that even this distinction is a bit arbitrary though, as arguably law and engineering (and business/management themselves) are "vocational" degrees, but they are also traditionally academic courses.

More applied or vocational courses may not always be perceived equally (whether fairly or not), so a degree in say, horticulture, might not be perceived as well as one in say, plant sciences (despite the relationships between the two areas and potential overlaps). Bear in mind also more vocational courses are usually designed to prepare you for, as the name suggests, a particular vocation, so they may not develop such a range of transferable skills as they are more focused on developing specific skills for a particular sector/role.
(edited 3 years ago)
Original post by artful_lounger
It's no better or worse than any other degree. I don't really buy into this concept of "STEM superiority" sometimes implied or outright espoused by people on here and elsewhere though, having studied a STEM degree and now studying non-STEM subjects. Those subjects aren't inherently better, harder, more interesting, more relevant or important for "society", or more "respectable" for graduate employers than any other traditionally academic degree.

However in my person opinion I think business type degrees are a bit pointless because you could just as well study a degree in some subject of particular interest otherwise and still be able to go into the same possible jobs. So if you had a deep interest in marine biology, history of art, anthropology, etc, but still want to work in "business" generally, you still can do so with a degree i those subject areas, and then you will have 3-4 very intellectually stimulating years at uni exploring some academic field that is of interest to you before going into the workforce.

So I would suggest pursuing a degree in something you have some particular interest in, even if you don't have any plans to continue with it professionally, personally. Of course bear in mind also the above is still largely pertaining to traditionally academic degree subjects. Note though that even this distinction is a bit arbitrary though, as arguably law and engineering (and business/management themselves) are "vocational" degrees, but they are also traditionally academic courses.

More applied or vocational courses may not always be perceived equally (whether fairly or not), so a degree in say, horticulture, might not be perceived as well as one in say, plant sciences (despite the relationships between the two areas and potential overlaps). Bear in mind also more vocational courses are usually designed to prepare you for, as the name suggests, a particular vocation, so they may not develop such a range of transferable skills as they are more focused on developing specific skills for a particular sector/role.

I thought a business management degree is designed to open many doors for you in terms of careers, hence you leave the degree with having developed copious transferable skills. I've heard that from a lot of people but I don't know how accurate their premise is. To be honest, I'm really not interested in studying my A-level subjects any further ( chemistry, biology and english literature). I'm also not really interested in a combination of those subjects and I have been interested in Business since year 11. I also agree with the stem superiority concept and only think narcissist believe in such a notion. In all honestly most careers, with the exception of some scientific and mathematical ones, don't really require a particular degree.
Original post by alg.xx
I thought a business management degree is designed to open many doors for you in terms of careers, hence you leave the degree with having developed copious transferable skills. I've heard that from a lot of people but I don't know how accurate their premise is. To be honest, I'm really not interested in studying my A-level subjects any further ( chemistry, biology and english literature). I'm also not really interested in a combination of those subjects and I have been interested in Business since year 11. I also agree with the stem superiority concept and only think narcissist believe in such a notion. In all honestly most careers, with the exception of some scientific and mathematical ones, don't really require a particular degree.


It doesn't provide any more or different transferable skills than any other degree programme. So if you are only interested in "business" then that degree is fine, but it's not going to be better than any other degree, be it in the humanities, social sciences, or STEM subejcts. My point is that in reality when you remove assumptions about it being better suited to going into "business" roles, there seems to be very little content from a business degree that I could believe people would genuinely be interested in if they didn't believe it was going to get them something. What little there might be in that vein is also represented in various ways in other degrees (e.g. aspects of economic theory in an economics degree; elements of human behaviour in organisations through a psychology degree; how demographics affect businesses in a geography degree; etc).

While it may just be me, I really don't think anyone studying a degree in business is doing it because they think it's fun and interesting, which is true (potentially) of many other degree subjects - and while that may not seem like an "important" thing to think about when applying to degrees, if you enjoy your degree subject and have a deep interest in it then you will probably find by virtue of being more motivated to do not only the minimal amount of work for the degree but to go above and beyond that, you will get better results and be in a better position to apply to grad schemes anyway.

I just find it hard to believe someone would willingly choose to study basic elements of accounting, marketing, management theories, etc, over really...almost anything else. If someone was interested in classical mythology they would probably find a classical civilisation degree more interesting, if they were interested in how Brexit came to be and what the implications are from the news they might enjoy a degree in politics, if they just like watching films and thinking about the themes and cinematography they might find a degree in film and/or media studies enjoyable. Almost any interest can be found developed academically in a degree programme, so I think it's worth exploring those possibilities to see if there is something that catches your eye otherwise - based on your own personal interests, not just what you've been doing at A-level, or what you are hoping to do afterwards.

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