MPA Vs MBA: Which is Your Choice?

Master’s degrees are frequently obtained to advance one’s career and salary potential by recent college graduates and seasoned professionals. A master’s program in business administration (MBA) or public administration (MPA) can help students acquire the skills necessary to forge that path.

But how can you tangibly contrast the advantages of these two degrees? We’ll explain what each degree offers, which jobs are the best matches, and why you might favor one degree over the other.

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What is An MPA?

The goal of an MPA degree is to equip the next generation of leaders with the specialized knowledge and abilities required to transform mission-driven organizations and deal with urgent societal issues. An MPA instills a thorough understanding of public affairs and nonprofit management and administration in order to accomplish this goal.

What is the Focus of An MPA Program’s Curriculum?

An MPA’s curriculum is specifically created to foster complex decision-making abilities, instill public service values, and broaden political system knowledge. Each institution has its own unique program and course focus.

There are three common types of MPA programs, each designed for a different career focus:

Political Science: The majority of programs emphasize the political system, governmental structures, and domestic and/or international relations with a political science focus. People who want to work in politics or international relations should enroll in this kind of program.
Policy Analysis: These courses tend to be more academic and research-oriented, instructing students in tasks like performing cost-benefit analyses to compare various public policies. People who want to work as academics or policy analysts, which is a specialized field, should get this degree.
Management and Leadership: These courses will equip students with the skills necessary to lead and oversee public institutions at all levels as well as nonprofit organizations. The best candidates for this degree are professionals hoping to advance to management or executive positions in the public or nonprofit sector.

What is An MBA?

The broad-based business curriculum of an MBA makes it one of the most adaptable advanced degrees. You can navigate change, create business opportunities, and establish a competitive advantage for your organization with the critical thinking and leadership skills you gain from an MBA.

What is the Focus of An MBA Program’s Curriculum?

You will learn the fundamentals of business management and leadership in an MBA program, with a focus on boosting an organization’s profitability. You can decide to become well-rounded in all facets of managing the finances and staff of a business or organization, or you can choose to specialize in a particular area of business.

Typical MBA curriculum includes courses in:

Accounting: Understanding complex accounting principles will help you manage and control an organization’s costs.
Finance: To evaluate the worth of a company and its investments, read and comprehend the corporate financial statements.
Human Resources: Manage the personnel in your company, including hiring, firing, and employee retention.
Marketing: Create pricing and promotion strategies for your products after analyzing consumer behavior.
Operations: Learn how to manage the business’ operational aspects, such as quality control, inventory management, and the supply chain, effectively.
Economics: Recognize how supply and demand affect your business and sector.
Leadership and Ethics: Create a vision, a strategy, and a plan for implementing it in a responsible manner for your organization.

Electives that let you explore more complex subjects in these and related fields complement the core subjects by supporting them. Check out How Many Credits Are Needed For MBA?

Things to Consider as You Make Your Decision

What can you expect from each of these programs, and which is best for you? Here are some things to think about when choosing.

Does Your Work Experience Match Up?

The types of candidates who apply to MPA and MBA programs differ.

While MPAs are more focused on the public sector, MBA students typically have a background in the private sector. While MBAs are more likely to have undergraduate degrees in business, economics, or engineering, MPA students are more likely to have a social science background. However, undergrads of all majors can succeed in MBA classes.

While those instructing MBA courses may be authorities in supply chain management and financial markets, MPA professors typically specialize in political science, public administration, or policy analysis.

There are a lot of exceptions, however; professors of subjects like economics, management, leadership, and human resources may teach both MPA and MBA programs, and you’ll find students pursuing an MBA from a wide range of professional backgrounds.

Is the Syllabus Right for You?

Due to their emphasis on management, MPAs and MBAs have some course content in common; however, due to the MBA’s less specialized structure, graduates may have more transferable skills.

Both programs will teach you management skills, organizational dynamics, and leadership. They will probably both have economics modules, though MBAs will go into more depth and move into financial markets and reporting, while MPAs will concentrate on economic analysis and its influence on policy.

While MBAs are more focused on maximizing cost-effectiveness and increasing profits, MPAs encourage students to make a social impact. Both of them focus on leadership while doing this.

An MBA will probably be a better choice if you are not sure that you want to pursue a career in the public sector because an MPA has a slightly narrower focus. Some MBA programs (including well-known ones like Harvard and Stanford) also offer specializations in subjects like public policy and nonprofit management.

What’s Your Intended Career Path?

Your career advancement and salary prospects can benefit from both the MBA and the MPA. Since there are fewer graduates competing for the same jobs, MPA graduates benefit from less competition, though MBAs typically earn more because they work primarily for for-profit organizations.

Some of the largest organizations in the world, such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Deloitte, are among the top 10 MBA employers. With average starting salaries of US$165,000 plus bonuses, the big three consulting firms McKinsey, Bain, and the Boston Consulting Group hire up to a third of the best MBA graduates.

The majority of MPA graduates work in government, typically beginning at the federal level with a salary between $45,000 and $65,000. They might also accept positions with similar pay in nonprofits and NGOs.

The price of tuition reflects the variations in salaries. While the top five MBA programs according to US News cost an average of US$150,756 each, the top five MPA programs cost an average of US$63,531.

Conclusion: Which is the Right One for You?

Both the master’s in public administration and the master’s in business administration provide a demanding educational environment and the chance for career advancement. You must choose which one might be the best fit because one is geared toward a corporate environment and the other is community-focused.

An MPA offers a more specialized curriculum and network for professionals who are certain they want to stay in the public administration or nonprofit sector for many years to come.

However, the MBA gives you more versatility because it is a generalist degree. The skills you’ll acquire through an MBA can be used for jobs in both for-profit and nonprofit organizations.