JANUARY 17, 2022 – After the military, many veterans consider their experiences too far removed from college to successfully transition back into formal education. However, there are actually more parallels between education and military enlistment than may initially seem apparent. Although military veterans haven’t been learning in a traditional atmosphere, there is still a tremendous amount of learning required in the military.
If you’re worried about moving back into education as a veteran, remind yourself that much of your learning skills were still sharpened, just in a different environment. Transitioning into education after the military is an invaluable experience, helping boost employability, and bringing new skills to your toolbox.
One of the most actively pursued majors for veterans is in general business, either focusing on business management or business administration. As these are flexible degrees, which can easily fit into a range of working roles after graduation, they’re fantastic for veterans to pursue. Considering that jobs in the business industry are expected to grow by 8% between 2020-2030, this is an opportune field to go into after the military.
In this article, we’ll be exploring both business management and business administration, looking at:
- What is business management
- What is business administration
- Key similarities
- Key differences
- Which is right for you
Let’s get right into it.
What is Business Management?
Business management is all about managing the teams that allow businesses to function. Once graduated, this is a human-centric role, with communication being a central skill for you to use on a daily basis.
Most commonly, someone who graduated from a business management course focuses on conflict resolution, using diplomacy to calm down interpersonal conflicts within the office. Many graduates go directly into human resources, as this requires a very comparable set of skills.
Within the course itself, business management touches on general aspects of running a business. From finance to strategy, this course covers everything you need to understand how businesses work. But, its core always lies in the human side of things, focusing on how people contribute to the daily progress of a business.
What is Business Administration?
Business administration, on the other hand, is a more strategic course. Typically, those that study business administration specialize in one of the processes that a business requires, like accountancy, technology, or operations management.
A business administration degree, just like one in business management, covers a general education on how a business is run. This includes delving into modules on economics, financial balancing, and human resources.
However, alongside these general modules, a major in business administration focuses on things like statistical analysis, delving further into the technical side of running a business. This specialization does come at a cost, being a slightly narrower degree than business management.
That said, specialization also leads to higher salaries, with those that focus on marketing, accounting, finance, or economics landing higher paychecks.
Key similarities between business management and business administration
The most notable similarities between these two paths of education are the basic modules that are covered in each. Both business management and business administration majors may need to complete a range of business-related modules. Core modules span over the general day-to-day running of a business, including introductory classes in finance, operations, sales, marketing, and human resources.
Alongside the content, the length of these degrees is also typically the same, both taking four full years.
Key differences between business management and business administration
After completing the basic modules, these two specialties then diverge, moving into educational areas that are different depending on which path you go down.
For business management, you’ll typically be focusing on the human aspect of business, including marketing, human relations, communications, and logistics. Studying business management can lead to a leadership position that focuses on managing other people. Instead of specializing in anything yourself, you’ll manage those in the office that did.
Typically, the skill of motivation and communication is at the heart of business management. This more general degree is broad and allows you to go into many different areas of business.
On the flip side, business administration is about fulfilling a certain role within the business. Depending on your interests, from finance to human resources, this can vary to be whatever you’d like. However, the key thing to take away is that by the end of your degree, you would likely have advanced knowledge in one area of business.
Due to this, salaries offered to you are normally higher. However, as it’s a more specific role, there may also be fewer job opportunities when compared to the more broad business management. After studying business administration, you’ll be looking to optimize one area of the business you’re in as much as possible.
To summarize:
- Business management is about humans; managing, motivating, and leading are core skills here.
- Business administration is about specialization; you aim to become an expert at a specific role in business.
Which is right for me?
As a veteran, you already have strong skills in teamwork, communication, and motivating others, which makes you an excellent candidate for both business administration and business management.
Deciding on following one of these two pathways can come down to which appeals more to you. If you’d prefer a more generalized degree, allowing you to fill in for many roles, then business management would make more sense. Alternatively, if you want to learn a great deal about one of your particular interests in business, then business administration is for you.
By drawing upon your experience in the military, you’ll be able to see which roles you’ve excelled in over the years. If these roles are more independent or if you have a particular interest in a part of business, like finance, then perhaps business administration would be right for you. If you’re more about working in a team and actively communicating with others, then business management could be a great fit.
Whichever one of these paths you follow, your military history makes you a perfect candidate.