Business Administration
Are you interested in perfecting your communication and management skills? Do you enjoy working with others? Would you be interested in learning how to use available resources to increase efficiency and profit margins for a company? Do you have good presentation skills? Are you able to work under pressure? If you answered yes to these questions, a career in business administration may be exciting for you. Usually, pursuing your bachelor's degree in business administration requires a variety of core classes and advanced courses in your preferred field of specialization. Core courses include (but are not limited to): accounting, business ethics, business law, macroeconomics, microeconomics, marketing, microeconomics, organizational behavior, and operations management. After completing these courses, you can specialize in various subjects like: accounting, finance, international business, supply chain management, or human resources.
Common Career Paths:
Business Development Associate/Analyst
Rated as one of the best 100 jobs (number 45) by U.S. News, a career as a business development analyst/associate can be an exciting and lucrative opportunity. Great communication and presentation skills are essential for this job, and a business administration degree can provide you with the skills you need. Your job will entail attracting new customers to a specific market or industry in your locality/region. Some business development jobs are government based, as different local governments work to attract new commercial enterprises or entities to increase jobs and tax revenue. Business development jobs could also be found in private companies, looking for investors or shareholders in their companies. As an associate, you would be required to conduct research on the types of businesses you are trying to attract to your region. Some of the questions you would look at: What competitors are in the market? What are the needs of the locality? Are demands for particular products/services met? You would then have to generate sales pitches and presentations for potential clients. You will have to explain to them why it would be profitable for them to invest in a particular market or field. After conducting presentations, you will be required to follow up with clients. You must be familiar with marketing techniques and tools as well. According to Pay Scale, entry level business development analysts make anywhere from $33,000 to $51,000. After 10 to 19 years of experience, salary ranges increase. Mid-career salaries range from over $39,000 to a little over $68,000.
Financial Analyst
If you enjoyed your finance courses while pursuing your business administration degree, you may want to specialize in finance. Afterwards, you could pursue a career as a financial analyst. Financial analysts usually provide reports and analysis regarding client/employer yearly spending and available resources. Based on the amount of money and resources available, these analysts provide their employers with information to help operations run smoothly and profitably. Although a finance concentration is not mandatory to be a financial analyst, some educational background in finance is important. You will often be required to read financial audits and general statements in order to provide analysis and briefs to your employer. Based on the type of industry you work for, you may be required to research a particular industry and its finances. This could pertain to a competitor in the industry or a potential type of industry the employer plans to invest in. Accounting courses are also helpful in this field, as financial analysts are required to summarize audited financial statements and corollary data to analyze and forecast lending risks. Based on your experience and educational concentration, you will usually be required to specialize in one industry. You will have to understand the competition within the industry, available products, business practices, and economic trends affecting the industry. Experience and general knowledge of available financial software is also helpful. Because of the increasing use of technology and programming to generate data analysis, many business administration degree programs provide you courses on business systems and analysis. According to Pay Scale, entry level financial analysts usually earn anywhere from $38,927 to $51,225. With years of experience, salary levels increase. After 10-19 years of experience, the salary range is $51,954 to $73,311.
Bank Loan Underwriter
If you are interested in the banking industry, a career as an underwriter could be an interesting opportunity for you. Would you be interested in helping others while still protecting a company's assets? Can you make difficult decisions on the spot? Are you able to work well with others? Do you have strong communication and presentation skills? Do you work well with financial software and programs? If you answered yes to these questions, you will probably be a good real estate or banking underwriter. Banking underwriters decide whether or not banks should give loans based on evaluation of credit risk reports. By looking at various credit risk criteria such as: collateral, interest rate, loan structure, and fees, loan underwriters make recommendations to banks regarding risks involved for a particular loan. Many times, loans will be taken out for real estate purposes. In addition to being trained in finance and developing technologies, bank loan underwriters need to be trained in legal issues that could potentially affect lenders. Laws such as the Equal Opportunity Act, The Patriot Act, and The Fair Credit Reporting Act all pertain to lending compliance. In order to understand and present acquired data, you also need to be able to prepare financial spreadsheets and read them. Because banks make money primarily through lending, bank loan underwriters will have employment prospects for many years to come. This is because they are ingrained in lending process. In order to advance as an underwriter, many employers recommend getting MBA's after a few years of work experience. According to Pay Scale, entry level bank loan underwriters make anywhere from $29,900 to $37,765.
