After MBA: Which Course Is Best for Accounting and Finance Professionals

Congratulations on earning your master of business administration degree. Your MBA program would have taught you very specific business management skills and equipped you with frameworks you can use to grow a company and make business decisions.

If you’re now wondering what to do after MBA, how about getting into another program.  People say learning is a lifelong process, further studies make sense. You do have to answer this question: After MBA, which course is best?

We can help you decide. Here are three suggestions on what to study after MBA.

ACCA Course

The ACCA course can be an excellent follow-up to an MBA. ACCA means Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, a global body of professional accountants with presence in 180 countries. Registering for this accounting and finance course is your gateway to earning the ACCA professional designation and the right to add ACCA as a suffix to your name on your LinkedIn profile, business card, and resume.

After MBA: Why ACCA?

ACCA is a globally recognized qualification for accounting professionals. It is demonstrable and verifiable proof that you have the requisite foundational, strategic, and advanced accounting knowledge and skills to perform accounting functions and fill relevant accounting roles in any industry, public or private, anywhere in the world. It also indicates on-the-job expertise, as ACCA professionals must have at least 36 months of relevant work experience.

There’s also the fact that taking up ACCA post-MBA is a logical choice, especially if you want to become a business consultant. Maybe your goal is to become a financial controller or director in your company.

ACCA is a practical follow-up post-MBA qualification. Depending on your MBA focus, your master’s degree may lead to exam exemptions.

CFA Course

CFA means Chartered Financial Analyst, a professional qualification for investment management professionals. With an MBA and a CFA, you can manage your own brokerage and investment fund, help public and private organizations make investment decisions, or become your current employer’s in-house investment strategist. This is why the CFA course is a good option after an MBA.

The CFA, awarded and administered by the CFA Institute, is considered the gold standard of credentials among investment professionals. It is a mark of distinction, offering instant confirmation that you studied the required modules, passed the exams that tested your knowledge, and have the work experience that allowed you to practice what you learned.

After MBA: Why CFA?

CFA is a good path if you want to specialize in investments, particularly investment management, analysis, and consulting. A CFA and an MBA after your name emphasize that you have specialized investment knowledge and skills. With a CFA and an MBA, you’d be in high demand in the job market, particularly for positions that require investment industry know-how.

CFA is definitely an excellent next step after an MBA if you’re working in a startup that plans to grow quickly and exponentially and go public soon. Your specialized investment industry knowledge should come in handy when preparing valuations and pitches for funding rounds and leading up to the startup’s initial public offering (IPO).

CFA also makes sense if you obtained a specialized MBA. Perhaps your MBA focused on accounting or entrepreneurship. If you want to broaden your horizons, ensure you also have more than rudimentary investment knowledge and training, it makes sense to earn a CFA after obtaining an MBA.

Certified Internal Auditor

CIA is an established and widely acknowledged professional internal audit designation offered by the Institute of Internal Auditors. It stands for Certified Internal Auditor, and this title indicates you are proficient and knowledgeable in internal audit functions.

After MBA: Why CIA?

Taking up a CIA course is a logical next step after obtaining an MBA if you wish to specialize in internal auditing. That has, of course, been covered in your MBA program, but having a CIA after your name is an efficient and effective way to enhance your internal audit credentials.

Do you want to focus on risk management or work in control, governance and compliance? The CIA course makes even more sense after an MBA (what to study).

Finally, if you go into the CIA program armed with an MBA degree, you can enjoy an expedited CIA program exit. With a master’s degree like an MBA, you need only one year of experience in internal audit, risk management, quality assurance, external audit, and other related functions to complete the CIA program’s work experience requirement.

After MBA, Which Course Is Best?

The question: After MBA, what to study next? The answer: Enroll in a finance training course.

ACCA, CFA, and CIA are three of the most logical options. Take an ACCA course if you wish to specialize in accounting. Alternatively, register for the CFA program to reinforce and deepen your knowledge in the investment industry. You may also enroll in a CIA course and get the CIA designation that would allow you to specialize in audit, control, governance, and compliance.

Alternatively, you can take up a function-related corporate finance course. Examples include risk management methods, valuation methodologies in mergers and acquisitions, etc.

Phoenix Financial Training is a financial training provider in the United Arab Emirates. We offer review plans for the CFA qualification exams and an ACCA accounting and finance course in Dubai. We even provide online financial training on corporate finance courses that can supplement your MBA. Contact us to learn more.