MBA or Masters degree is the uncertainty faced by every graduate who wishes to pursue a masters degree. To answer this question, there are several things you need to know. In today's competitive market, higher education is one of the most important determinants of a successful career. Having an MBA or master's degree not only increases your professional value but also qualifies you for senior-level job roles. Check out this MBA vs Master’s degree article to know which one is better for you, how to choose, difference, fees, etc. This article will help the graduates to clear their doubts about an MBA vs Master’s degree which is better.
After the CAT exam, prepare for WAT, GD, and PI rounds at shortlisted colleges, apply to other B-schools (XAT, SNAP, CMAT), and keep your documents ready, as selection depends on your score, profile, and interview.
Ready to pursue an advanced business degree but not sure which option is right for you? Here, we will help students understand the differences between MBA vs specialised master's degrees.
A Master of Business Administration (MBA) is a general, multidisciplinary, postgraduate level degree. It is versatile as it covers various areas of business, including finance, marketing, accounting, human resources, management, information technology, sales, and more.
As a result, MBA focuses on providing students with the technical, managerial, and leadership skills needed to successfully run an organisation. Generally, there are three different types of MBA programmes: full-time, part-time, and executive MBA programmes.
What is a Master’s degree?
A master's degree is a master's degree that focuses on imparting mastery over a specific field/ subject. This is the primary difference between a Master’s and MBA programme. While an MBA curriculum aims to train candidates as professionals with overall proficiency in various domains of business administration, a master's degree allows students to acquire skills related to a specific subject.
MBA programmes focus on a broad range of business concepts, giving students an advanced but comprehensive look at business processes. On the other hand, specialized business master's programmes usually provide an in-depth look at a specific area of study. The table below explains the MBA vs Masters degree cost and MBA vs Masters degree salary.
MBA Programme
Master’s Degree
Prepares students for business leadership roles
Can be specific or general, but usually covers only one subject area in business
Usually continued after three years or more of employment
Usually followed after less than three years of employment
Can be pursued full-time, part-time, or online
Can be pursued full-time, part-time, or online
Duration: 2 years
Duration:1 to 3 years
Total fee for MBA: 20K to 40L
Total fee for Masters: 5L to 46L
Average salary for MBA: 7-12 LPA
Average salary for Master’s: 3-15 LPA
The total fees for MBA and Master's degrees may vary based on the universities/institutions and the average salary may also vary depending on the organization.
While both MBA and master's degrees are great choices for career development, each takes a unique approach to career advancement. Master's degree programmes are designed for people who wish to obtain an advanced degree before entering the job market. Hence, candidates don't need any work experience to enroll in a postgraduate course.
Since a master's degree covers a wide range of individual specializations, it allows aspirants to expand on the knowledge and skills acquired at the UG level and become trained professionals in a specific field. The course syllabus aims to facilitate the development of technical and analytical skills.
While an MBA is a postgraduate degree, as the name suggests, it focuses only on business administration and, therefore, takes a more holistic approach to it. An MBA degree is ideal for candidates who want to advance their careers towards managerial or leadership-focused roles in industry.
Unlike master's degrees, MBA degrees value professional experience more. So, if you have one to two years of work experience, your MBA experience will be much richer. Since an MBA curriculum covers many business disciplines, it provides a broad and comprehensive view of business administration and management.
This is why the MBA programme is best suited for those aiming to enter entrepreneurship, executive leadership, and general management.
5 Things to keep in mind while deciding an MBA or Master’s
Before opting for MBA and Masters courses, students should keep a few things in mind.
Background
Method of teaching: Lectures or experiential learning?
Diversity of profiles and backgrounds: Where do you fit?
Career outcomes: Where do I see myself in the medium term?
Costs and financing
BIMTECH PGDM Admissions 2026
AACSB Accredited | Highest CTC: 22 LPA | Last Date: 31st December 2025
The results for the CAT 2025 entrance, which is conducted on November 30, 2025, were declared on December 22, 2025. Candidates can download and see their results on the official IIM CAT website. On the website, click on the "CAT 2025 Result/Scorecard" link to download the result by entering the required details.
The link to the website where you can check the published result is attached herewith. The result will be out soon. You can also check the cutoffs on the website of Careers360.
CAT does not restrict eligibility based on stream. Candidates from commerce, arts, science, engineering or any other background can appear for CAT and apply to MBA programmes offered by IIMs and other top B-schools.
The basic eligibility criteria for CAT are:
You must hold a bachelor’s degree in any discipline from a recognised university with at least 50 percent marks (45 percent for SC, ST and PwD categories). Final-year graduation students are also eligible to apply.
Being a commerce graduate can actually be an advantage in areas such as accounting, finance, economics and business studies, especially during MBA coursework in finance, marketing and operations.
After qualifying CAT, admission depends on multiple factors including CAT percentile, academic background, work experience (if any), performance in GD, WAT and personal interview rounds. Many IIMs and B-schools follow a diverse academic background policy, which means non-engineering candidates, including commerce graduates, often receive additional weightage.
Apart from IIMs, several reputed institutes such as FMS Delhi, SPJIMR Mumbai, MDI Gurgaon, IMT Ghaziabad, and many state and private universities also accept CAT scores for MBA admissions.
So, as a commerce graduate, you are fully eligible to appear for CAT and pursue an MBA, provided you meet the minimum academic requirements and perform well in the selection process.
If you want, I can also help you with realistic CAT percentile targets based on your academic profile or suggest suitable MBA colleges.
With a CAT 2025 raw score of 84 and strong sectionals, your expected percentile may fail in the high 98 range , depending on scaling. Your excellent academics and 2 years of work experience strengthen your profile .IIM Lucknow calls are possible but competitive for EWS engineers , while FMS Delhi looks mainly at CAT score and VARC , so you have a reasonable chance there . Final calls depend on cutoffs and composite score.
For a raw score of 56 in CAT 2025 Slot 3, your expected overall percentile is likely to be in the range of the 90th-95th percentile. The exact percentile can vary slightly on the final normalization process and the process and performance of all test-takers. In this
article
you'll find more about the CAT result.
A career as Marketing Director is also known as a marketing expert who is responsible for the overall marketing aspect of the company. He or she oversees plans and develops the company's budget. The marketing Director collaborates with the business team to plan and develop the marketing and branding strategies for the company's products or services.
A Business Development Executive identifies and pursues new business opportunities to drive company growth. They generate leads, build client relationships, develop sales strategies, and analyse market trends. Collaborating with internal teams, they aim to meet sales targets. With experience, they can advance to managerial roles, playing a key role in expanding the company’s market presence and revenue.
Content Marketing Specialists are also known as Content Specialists. They are responsible for crafting content, editing and developing it to meet the requirements of digital marketing campaigns. To ensure that the material created is consistent with the overall aims of a digital marketing campaign, content marketing specialists work closely with SEO and digital marketing professionals.
A Sales Manager leads a sales team to meet targets, formulates strategies, analyses performance, and monitors market trends. They typically hold a degree in management or related fields, with an MBA offering added value. The role often demands over 40 hours a week. Strong leadership, planning, and analytical skills are essential for success in this career.
A marketing manager is a person who oversees a company or product marketing. He or she can be in charge of multiple programmes or goods or can be in charge of one product. He or she is enthusiastic, organised, and very diligent in meeting financial constraints. He or she works with other team members to produce advertising campaigns and decides if a new product or service is marketable.
A Marketing manager plans and executes marketing initiatives to create demand for goods and services and increase consumer awareness of them. A marketing manager prevents unauthorised statements and informs the public that the business is doing everything to investigate and fix the line of products. Students can pursue an MBA in Marketing Management courses to become marketing managers.
An SEO Analyst is a web professional who is proficient in the implementation of SEO strategies to target more keywords to improve the reach of the content on search engines. He or she provides support to acquire the goals and success of the client’s campaigns.
Digital marketing is growing, diverse, and is covering a wide variety of career paths. Each job function aids in the development of effective digital marketing strategies and techniques. The aims and objectives of the individuals who opt for a career as a digital marketing executive are similar to those of a marketing professional: to build brand awareness, promote company services or products, and increase conversions. Individuals who opt for a career as Digital Marketing Executives, unlike traditional marketing companies, communicate effectively through suitable technology platforms.
Individuals who opt for a career as a business analyst look at how a company operates. He or she conducts research and analyses data to improve his or her knowledge about the company. This is required so that an individual can suggest the company strategies for improving their operations and processes.
In a business analyst job role a lot of analysis is done, things are learned from past mistakes and the successful strategies are enhanced further. A business analyst goes through real-world data in order to provide the most feasible solutions to an organisation. Students can pursue Business Analytics to become Business Analysts.
2 Jobs Available
Never miss CAT update
Get timely CAT updates directly to your inbox. Stay informed!
