5 Things People Think About Your Business Degree

By Julia Dunn on October 4, 2015

This article is brought to you by Kaplan, the leader in test prep for over 90 standardized tests, including the GRE, GMAT, LSAT, and MCAT.

Considering a business major? Already got your degree? Wondering how you come across to other people when you talk about your course of study with family or friends?

Image Via Pixabay.com

Either way, there are a lot of misconceptions and distorted beliefs people have about business degrees and the types of students who pursue them–here are five common thoughts people have when you announce you’ve gone the business route.

1. “You must not really know what you want to do with your life.”

There is a common misconception that students who go into business fields do so because they aren’t sure what they want to do post-college.

While it is true that business degrees are very applicable to numerous career paths, do not write off every business major as unsure or indecisive.

As a business major, you learn skills such as marketing, how to create finance and accounting systems, and how to understand and apply various laws. You also become especially well-versed in software programs like Excel, allowing you to create spreadsheets and organized documents that will serve you no matter where you work or what you do.

These skills can prepare you to enter several careers that may or may not be directly related to business itself.

2. “Have fun living the rest of your life in a cubicle!”

Business degrees are too often associated with monotonous, uninteresting cubicle jobs, and we see this all over the media–especially in movies and TV shows. However, business degrees open many more doors than just one to a stuffy office job!

If you know what you’re interested in, business degrees can be quite versatile in a number of careers involving non-profit work, teaching, hospital administration, pre-law, and many others. Business degrees provide a strong foundation for entering professional environments such as these ones, allowing you some freedom when choosing a career with your degree. You likely will not end up in a cubicle unless you really want to (I know some people that actually do want a cubicle job!)

3. “So you want to start your own business, right?”

While some business majors do get their degree with the intention of making lots of money as a CEO (a large chunk of business majors do in fact want to see their dream business materialize), not all business majors get their degree for this reason.

Some students are more interested in doing marketing for an existing business, working on a company’s finances, or something entirely different. Business majors cover a wide scope of subjects that can be applied to the health field, or even government and political spectra. Studying business does not mean you have to start your own business, so don’t stress out if you are at a loss for innovative new products or services.

4. “Get ready for lots of competition.”

Business is an extremely popular major, which does mean there will be more students competing for opportunities after graduation at the same time you are looking for your first full-time job.

This should be enough motivation to work hard in your courses and take advantage of any internships or entry-level type jobs that will give you an edge over other grads entering the real world along with you. Competition isn’t always a horrible thing!

5. “You probably don’t even like business–you’re just in it for the money.”

People with business degrees seem to either make millions, or the very opposite of that. It would be inaccurate to say that if you major in business, you’re going to walk straight out of college and into ABC’s “Shark Tank” with billions of dollars and counting.

Not all business majors sail through life with a high salary right away, so it’ll require some perseverance to score the big bucks (and probably advanced degrees on top of your Bachelor’s).

Oftentimes, budding entrepreneurs face severe financial difficulty early in their career; this is especially true if they’re pouring funds into starting their own business with the high hope that it will take off, and that their net profit will repay the huge loans they’ve had to take out just to get started.

Business majors face growing underemployment in the current job market, according to a report published by Payscale.com. If financial security is what you seek from your business degree, it is in your best interest to pursue advanced degrees from top-ranked programs.

There are definite pluses and minuses as far as being a business major, just as there are pluses and minuses with any major. People might tell you that you’ll have a rough time in the job market or that you’re wasting your time studying business, but it is up to you whether or not these notions hold true for your specific circumstance.

Stereotypes and myths harass students in any major, and business degrees are not exempt from judgment. Work hard, and your business degree will serve you well.

Image Via Pixabay.com

Learn more about Kaplan’s test prep options and start building the confidence you need for Test Day.

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