A business degree includes a number of beginning and advanced courses in the field of business. Students will take courses in human resources, accounting, investments, business organizations, law and ethics. In these courses, students learning how companies organize their businesses, how they invest to create capital, how to make decisions on hiring the right personnel for the job, legal issues in the business community and ethical situations they might encounter in the workforce. Many programs also give students the opportunity to complete an internship in an area that interests them most; this gives students their initial opportunity in the business world to make an impression just before graduation.
Many people who become successful in business get there because of good decision making along the way. While a business degree does not teach decision making skills, it gives students the resources and critical thinking abilities to make good decisions, whether those decisions surround investments, ethics, developing products or making deals with other companies or individuals. Good decision making can sometimes make or break a company, allow it to get an edge on the competition or sometimes bring it out of financial ruin.
A business degree gives graduates the opportunity use their skills and knowledge in networking events to meet other people in the business community, make contacts and develop partnerships in order to make their business stronger. Many business communities hold business mixers, luncheons and even dinners where people gather to talk about issues and concerns facing them in the business world. People pursuing a business degree obtain the knowledge and the communication skills necessary to talk about business issues, theories, struggles and problems necessary in conversation.
Choosing to earn a master's degree in business administration (an MBA) is a step many people take once they receive their bachelor's degree and enter the workforce. The MBA teaches students many advanced-level courses and focuses on leadership skills needed for executives. Many who want to specialize as stock brokers, investment bankers and entrepreneurs also choose the MBA as a way to receive additional and specialized education about succeeding in those fields. While many business schools offer an MBA, acceptance into the nation's top programs is difficult.