A master's degree in business administration (MBA) is for individuals who wish to become a leader in business or industry, whether in marketing, finance, management, risk-planning, advising or ownership. MBAs are highly respected in the world of business, and the degree can garner a graduate an all-but-guaranteed climb up the corporate ladder and a six-figure salary. As such, degrees in this field are greatly coveted and program admission is highly competitive. Unlike most master's degree programs, MBA programs typically require applicants have real-life corporate and management experience as an admissions prerequisite. According to Education-Portal.com, MBA students will likely study communication, economics, organizational behavior, accounting, finance, marketing, strategy, operations management, information technology management, international business and government policy.
A master's degree in health administration (MHA) is for individuals seeking to work in government health administration, hospital administration, health care research and/or medical management. Holders of this degree often go on to become human resource administrators, health care advocates, health care consultants and chief financial officers of hospitals, medical clinics and nursing homes. The curriculum of some MHA programs requires students to complete a residency in a health care setting to garner real-life experience in health care administration before graduating. Students can expect to study health care accounting, human resources and management, human behaviors in organizations, economics in public sectors, hospital administration, the administration of mental health facilities and statistical methods for health services.
Master's degrees in public administration are geared toward individuals wishing to manage and supervise in the public sector. The degree often offers students a chance to focus on a particular specialty, such as policy administration and management, public service, arts management and nonprofit administration. Student coursework might include fund raising and marketing, legal aspects of nonprofits, urban policy, public finance and accounting, politics and administration, leadership and decision making, environmental politics, environmental law, and administration and the law.
A master's degree of administration in education is geared toward those who wish to lead and administer schools in K-12 and in higher education. Students can focus on specialties within the degree, such as specific areas of administration, higher education or business management. Students are required to complete an internship as a graduation prerequisite in order to garner practical experience. Classes include learning theories, principalship, supervision of instruction, emerging educational models and technologies, and program assessment and evaluation. Upon completion, students are qualified to be a school administrator, a principal, a superintendent or an academic director.