The master of business administration, or MBA, is often considered the top degree in the business world, although PhDs in certain specialties are certainly available. No matter what industry you’re in, an MBA degree will be an enormous asset. Some companies will provide tuition assistance or reimbursement in exchange for your commitment to continue working for them after you earn your degree.

Because they prepare you for a promotion to management or executive positions and enable you to build an invaluable network through your classmates, MBA’s are a popular graduate degree.

Doctoral degrees in HR should be pursued by those who have identified a subject area that they would like to work on for multiple years, or those who enjoy statistics, psychometrics and research methodologies. Ph.D.’s in HRM take about five years, and include course work, internships or teaching assistantships, and a dissertation.

Doctoral degrees in Organizational Development or Organizational Behavior involve deep dives into organizational theory and scholarly research. Most OD/OB programs are split into two focus areas: micro-organizational topics such as decision-making, emotions, power and influence, and macro-organizational topics including culture, change, networks, etc. Many OD/OB Ph.D. programs offer the opportunity for interdisciplinary research with related programs such as business, psychology, and sociology.

In management, you must recognize the functions and inner-workings of an organization to help it run smoothly and effectively. This involves overseeing people in a department, or maybe even over multiple departments within a company. You need to learn how to organize, plan, control, and direct the firm’s resources to achieve the organization’s objectives.

A management major is designed to prepare you for a successful career focused on finding solutions to human problems in businesses, organizations, and communities. The philosophy emphasizes the importance of connecting academic knowledge and theories to personal and professional practice.

To earn a bachelor’s degree in business administration, students generally need to complete a “business core,” a term given to the group of classes every business administration student is required to complete. A degree is then rounded out with general education requirements (such as history, science, and English) and business electives. Most bachelor degree programs take four years to complete, though there are accelerated program options at many colleges and universities.

Associate degrees are also offered for business administration majors. Generally, an associate degree program lasts two years and is comprised of the business core and electives. This program does not include general education requirements

With a bachelor’s degree in human resources, graduates qualify for human resources leadership roles in private, public and nonprofit organizations. Students can also expect a human resources bachelor’s program to include core business training in areas such as accounting, finance, information technology and marketing. Additionally, most programs require an array of general education courses to meet various general studies distributions and also allow room for electives.