Difference between MBA, Masters in Finance (MF), CFA® Program and FRM

Now the world is going digital. This increase in online tools, services, and various platforms has led to a high jump in material available on-the-line. Since you’ve come to our page, you are probably a student, wondering how to succeed in life via their studies. For people like you, we have found an incredible sea of data online to help you with your goals – be it essay writing service reviews, tips on creating a top admissions essay, tricks for better academic writing. But in this article, we would like to focus on something different.

In particular, we are going to deal with the field of finances. As you are probably aware, many people pursuing a finance degree get encouraged to pursue a Master of Business Administration or MBA. But nowadays, a new star is emerging on the horizon – the Master of Finance, or MF.

MBA covers markets, finance, accounting, management, and entrepreneurship. On the other hand, MF has a more focused curriculum.

Well, yes, but those differences alone cannot tell you a lot about which one to pursue. That is why we are delving into the details to show you various data on those Master programs so that you can choose with more info on the table.

MBA

An MBA program can give you many opportunities when it comes to going up on the corporate ladder. Here you will learn plenty of business classes. Such include statistics, communications, entrepreneurship, management, accounting, and economics. MBA programs give you a great start if you wish to be part of a financial institution like a government agency, banks, NPOS, start-ups, etc. If you wish to partake in such, you need to have a good undergraduate GPA and a high score on GMAT.

MBA programs are available both part-time and full-time.

Part-time ones are two different kinds. The first is the Executive MBA which is aimed at students who have been working in the field for some time. But those programs are quite expensive. The other one is for employees that are working full-time but are not in a leadership position. Here the classes are on the weekends or in the evenings.

MBAs can prove to be costly. But graduates can expect to earn good salaries after graduation.

Master of Finance (MF)

MF can be quite a good option for people who wish to focus more on finance or a closely related field. It includes investments, quantitative finance, financial theory, markets, mathematics, financial reporting, analysis, and valuation. Usually, here you don’t need work experience.

MF has a shorter study course – a year full-time.

Master of Finance trains students to work in risk management, trading, or investments.

With MF, you will learn specific skills. This may lead to your resume being more attractive to employers who are searching for experts.

Here the price of studying varies. It is usually lower than the MBA, though.

For MF, you will need an extensive prerequisite in mathematics.

The CFA® Program

If you wish to go into investments, you may want to consider taking the CFA Program (Chartered Financial Analyst® Program). To get that certification, you will need to be competent in many areas, like ethics, accounting, securities analysis, and money management. The program consists of three exams, each of which can be taken 6 months after successfully passing the previous exam.

Tips for the CFA Exams

• Focus on the material that gets tested the most.
• Develop a quality study plan in advance; follow one at least six months before the exam. It is vital to manage your time well and try to make the most out of it. Minimize the distractions and focus on the work that needs to get done.
• Try to pay more attention to the concepts. Yes, math is important, but what matters more is the conceptual level.
• Take a prep course. This can help you a lot and even more if you find it hard to study on your own.
• Practice, practice, practice.
• Give yourself some breaks.

Before or after registering for the exam, you may also buy aou may also buy before registering to the exam a question bank, mock exams, video lessons, and study notes for the Level I CFA exam (offered by AnalystPrep) here: https://analystprep.com/shop/cfa-level-1-learn-practice-package/

The FRM Program

On the other hand, the FRM (Financial Risk Manager) designation gives you high specialization, focused more on the risk management part. At the same time, CFA program covers a broader field of studies, such as investment and financial analysis. FRM covers quantitative analysis, financial markets and products, foundations of risk management, valuation and risk models, liquidity and treasury, current issues, credit risk, market risk, operational risk, risk management in investment management. It has two parts which you can take in the same exam cycle.

Tips for FRM Exams

• Commit fully to studying for the test. See all the learning objectives and make a plan. Study all the subjects, don’t skip on topics. Allow yourself enough time to study and practice.
• Make yourself a study plan. Structure it from the very beginning, and you will find it easier to deal with the pressure.
• Prepare your resources, make sure you have all you need to get ready for the test.
• When you find what areas are weak for you, don’t neglect them, but work on them to make them stronger.
• Make sure you have some time to rest before the exam.
• Watch out for the timing of the exam, it can quickly fly away.

Before or after registering for the exam, you may also buy a question bank, mock exams, video lessons, and study notes for both parts of the FRM exams here: https://analystprep.com/shop/unlimited-package-for-frm-part-i-part-ii/

Conclusion

There are plenty of things to consider when planning whether to endorse an MBA or MF. We tried to give you the big picture here with some side tips to help you prep for some of the most important exams you can take in this career.

Make sure you sort out what are your priorities before deciding. See whether you’d like a more focused study or a broader one.

We advise you to make a list of plusses and negatives and take a good look at them. Consider how you feel about each career path and what do you plan on achieving. Those are the things you need to think about when you are deciding on MBA vs. MF.

Laura Fields is an educational writer who is fond of creating resources for students all over the world. Such are the reviews on writepaperforme and other essay services reviews. She gives her best to providing useful information for each and every student out there.