Best-paying MBAs and the ones to pick if you are looking to work in Technology, Finance or Professional Services


The considerable cost of MBAs has prospective students wondering how much they are likely to earn and will a MBA degree open doors to a dream career? In search for the answers, we have analysed data from over 2,000 MBA holders working in Europe to find out which MBAs are most likely to lead to careers such as Finance, Technology and Professional services and crucially, which degrees command the highest salaries.



Best MBAs for Technology

UniversityMedian SalaryMedian Bonus% of graduates working in Technology
Cambridge University - Judge Business School£95,000£20,00020%
INSEAD£90,000£17,00011%
London Business School£80,000£10,00013%
IESE£78,000£10,00011%
HEC Paris£74,000£9,00016%

Cambridge sees the majority of its MBA graduates pursue a technological career path (20%) than any other university. With a salary of £95,000 and a bonus of £20,000, they are also the best paid in the technology sector.


La French Technology touch? With two business schools featuring in the top five, French business schools could well be capitalising on their cultural leanings for technology and engineering by providing their graduates with strong technical foundations which encourages them to follow the technology path.



Best MBAs for Finance

UniversityMedian SalaryMedian Bonus% of graduates working in Finance
Cambridge University - Judge Business School£110,000£34,00048%
University of St. Gallen£106,000£14,00070%
INSEAD£100,000£30,00036%
London Business School£100,000£40,00036%
Warwick University Business School£100,000£15,00027%

Want to pay off your MBA quickly? Pick Finance

Salaries and bonuses for MBA graduates in Finance exceed by an average of £30,000 than those paid in technology or consulting.

Finance experts in Switzerland

While not necessarily nabbing the top paying jobs, as Cambridge MBAs graduates do, an MBA from St. Gallen is a sound option for those wishing to work in Finance: 70% of its MBA graduates end up working in financial services, most likely helped by the popularity of finance as a career in Switzerland.



Best MBAs for Professional Services (Consulting & Audit)

UniversityMedian SalaryMedian Bonus% of graduate working in Consulting
London Business School£85,000£5,00020%
INSEAD£82,000£11,00016%
Imperial College London - Tanaka Business School£79,000£8,00023%
Oxford University -  Said Business School£71,000£3,00018%
IESE£66,000£5,00018%

Three leaders

MBA holder from LBS, Imperial and INSEAD seem to be apt at obtaining the top paying jobs in the Consulting industry with total compensation ranging from £87,000 to £93,000.

Tanaka alumni, popular but less successful?

While Imperial College's Tanaka Business School is slightly ahead in terms of the proportion of graduates being sent to consultancy and accountancy firms, they earn less than graduates from business schools in the top three, inferring that MBA holders from Tanaka might be appreciated for their technical skills but may not obtain the politically challenging best paying jobs.

Can Consulting keep attracting MBA talent?

Once one of the obvious career path for MBA graduates, consulting now has to compete with the glamour and excitement offered by technology firms and startups while not being able to pay as well as the financial sector.

The Ultimate Safe Investment:

For those unsure as to what post-MBA career to pick, aim for LBS or INSEAD. These two business schools are the only ones to appear in the top five for each industry, a token of a how well-regarded they are across all sectors.

It's not what you know...

Opting for an MBA course is often a choice which springs from a desire to change the course of one's career. Being part of a well-regarded alumni network is as important as outstanding teaching in order to open as many doors as possible upon graduation and allows alumni to switch from banking to technology, or accounting to entrepreneurship. With the advent of continuous education, we will be watching closely to see if MBA degrees remain a good investment.

 

Emolument provides bonus and salary statistics based on data submitted directly by professionals like you. It is free, anonymous, and already a trusted tool for thousands of professionals worldwide. Are you paid enough? Click here to find out now.


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