If you’re considering studying business, you’re not alone! Business degrees are one of the most popular courses that are pursued at universities, and for good reason. With a lot of courses providing a broad spectrum of modules rather than hone in on specifics, you can get a broader understanding of how firms work across countless industries. This is also highly useful, as a lot of the time the skills taught are highly in demand by employers, benefiting those in particular looking for placements and graduate schemes. From finance to marketing to management and consulting, a business degree opens doors to limitless opportunities with room to explore many careers.
On the other hand, such a broad spectrum of possibilities can lead to a feeling of becoming overwhelmed and being unsure of which path to follow. Should you work towards a master’s or chartered qualifications, or dive into digital marketing or even create your own start-up? Hopefully, this article breaks down the many career options into something more manageable and helps you to see how far a business degree could take you.
But first, why is a business degree so valuable?
Unlike most degrees, business tends to be quite flexible and adaptable instead of leading directly into one profession. One key strength includes being able to learn and gain a foundation of knowledge in a variety of areas. For example, economics, accounting, marketing, management, and organisational behaviour. Alongside this, you’ll also develop a highly transferable skillset that is incredibly desired by employers. Some key skills that you could include in a skills-based CV that you might pick up throughout your degree include:
- Leadership and teamwork abilities: Acquired through group presentations and projects.
- Analytical and problem-solving skills: Gained from case study analysis and data interpretation.
- Communication skills: Both verbal and written forms can be developed through presentations and assignments are crucial to any workplace.
- Commercial awareness: Developing an understanding of how industries and markets operate and what makes them successful, something that employers look for in candidates, which makes them stand out.
Along with many other skills that are extremely useful and make you appear highly employable. You are also likely to come across these skills as keywords listed in job descriptions, and knowing what skills you possess and including them in your CV and cover letters is bound to make you stand out. To give yourself the best chance, try practicing some psychometric tests on your uni’s career portals or free sites.
Management and leadership roles
One of the most common routes for business students is a role in management, and many companies offer a trainee management graduate scheme. Throughout this role, you will be responsible for many different departments, typically rotating through the firm to gain a broad overview of how the business operates. Often, these management schemes are a great way to fast-track into a leadership role within the business after a couple of years as well!
Other types of management you could come across include project management and business operations management, where you will be in charge of many processes and ensuring everything runs smoothly. This could also include streamlining processes, managing teams, as well as coordinating deadlines. For those individuals who enjoy problem-solving and leading people, these leadership positions might be. perfect fit!
Finance and accounting
Finance remains one of the most popular industries to enter for business graduates, with lucrative salaries and opportunities for further education. Roles such as accounting, tax, auditing, and financial analysts, just to name a few, allow for any detail-oriented individual to thrive. Regular tasks in these jobs might involve creating forecasts, using spreadsheets like Excel, and advising businesses or individuals on investments.
For those interested in pursuing accounting, you’ll typically need to acquire extra qualifications such as ACCA, ACA, or CIMA. If you are lucky, sometimes organisations hiring for Junior or Graduate roles even offer study support alongside working. For those interested in pursuing tax might find firms that offer a dual charter for ACA/CTA, which is a bonus qualification!
Finally, for those interested in a high-salary job with a fast-paced environment, investment banking is also a lucrative job prospect within the finance industry. However, these roles are generally quite competitive and difficult, requiring a lot of specialised knowledge in software and the market.
Marketing and advertising
For those who are more creative, the marketing industry might be more appealing. There are also opportunities as a marketing executive to work on social media campaigns and manage a brand’s social media. These are more upcoming roles that are becoming highly sought after by organisations who are now realising the large untapped potential in the Gen Z and e-commerce market. Not to mention, these roles are very important in creating and maintaining the identity and reputation of a firm.
Other areas within marketing include digital marketing specialists, such as roles in SEO, content creation, paid advertising, and PR. Businesses recently have had an increased focus on their online presence, with plenty of growth potential. Not to mention, this form of marketing is relatively cheap compared to other forms of marketing. Partnering with influencers and sourcing UGC (user-generated content) will be part of the daily responsibilities in this role!
Human resources (HR)
Business degrees also tend to lead to a job in human resources, where people skills are absolutely critical! As an HR assistant, typical job responsibilities will include supporting job recruitment, training, and employee relations. A lot of the time will be spent dealing with complaints, so be prepared to carry out some customer service too! From here, career progressions could lead you to HR management or specialising further. For example, focusing on talent acquisition and achieving a senior position, or leaning more towards employee learning and development.
Overall, HR roles are perfect for individuals who enjoy working with a multitude of people across several departments, as well as problem-solving and ensuring the workplace runs smoothly, effectively, and fairly.
Consulting
Think of this as a full-time profession, being an agony aunt. If you enjoy constant strategic thinking, problem-solving, and challenges, then this might be the profession for you! As a business or management consultant, you are tasked to work with a variety of organisations to solve unique problems, improve efficiencies, and develop business strategies. Daily responsibilities will also involve analysing large amounts of data, detailing recommendations, and working on a multitude of large projects.
Entrepreneurship and start-ups
However, not all graduates want to work for someone else! With a wealth of knowledge, you can’t be blamed for wanting to take the leap and start up your own company, which many people do. Whether it’s launching a new app, setting up your own online shop, or creating innovative solutions to common problems. However, it’s worth noting that the entrepreneurial route, although rewarding, is highly challenging. Even if you don’t want to be a sole founder, taking on a position as co-founder or working in a start-up can just be as exciting and every bit as challenging! These small businesses highly value recent graduates for their flexibility and adaptability with such a broad skillset. This also provides a brilliant opportunity to take on a diverse set of responsibilities early in your career, which you can take away later on.
Less obvious career options
Supply chain and logistics
Supply chain management is an overlooked career for most students. With every product and service having a complex network of suppliers, warehouses, and transport routes, there is no shortage of jobs. Here, you will focus on ensuring goods are moved efficiently between manufacturers and warehouses to customers. There are also a variety of jobs in this industry, such as logistics coordinator, to procurement manager. You could even venture into working with global suppliers, practicing networking, and having exposure to international relations.
Real estate and property development
You might have the preconception that the only careers in the property industry relate to selling houses; however, there’s so much more! Jobs such as commercial property management, real estate investment analysis, or even move consultancy. These jobs often combine a variety of skills like finance, negotiation, and strategic thinking, which is perfect for those who also enjoy working with a network of clients.
Non-profit and charity management
Working in the non-profit sector is also a great option. Individuals who want to make a positive impact can help to develop strategies or manage budgets to ensure charities maximise their funding. You could even work as a fundraising manager or programme coordinator, and move into more senior positions to shape an organisation’s long-term vision.
Tips for deciding your path
Well, with so many options, how do you decide what job you want to pick? You could start by reflecting on where your strengths lie and what your interests are. Do you enjoy working with numbers, being creative, or something about leading teams?
Secondly, take advantage of career fairs, networking events, and alumni connections to explore all opportunities available to you. Internships, placement years, and spring weeks are invaluable for trying out different roles and testing the waters before fully devoting yourself to any career.
Finally, remember that even after a degree, education might not stop there! Some paths, particularly finance, may require further education or professional qualifications. So don’t feel rushed to launch straight into a job; think of your degree as a stepping stone to help you get to where you want to be.
If, after reading all of this and you think you’re ready to start applying for some graduate jobs, check out this article on the best way to find a graduate job!
FAQs on Careers With a Business Degree
Graduates can enter roles such as marketing executive, management consultant, project manager, HR officer, financial analyst, sales manager, or operations coordinator. A business degree is highly versatile and applies across many industries.
Management consulting, investment banking, corporate finance, and senior marketing or product management roles often offer high starting salaries and strong long-term earning potential for business graduates.
Yes. Business degrees teach core skills in management, marketing, finance, and entrepreneurship, which are valuable when launching a startup. Many universities also offer incubators, mentorship, and networking for student entrepreneurs.
Business graduates can apply for schemes in retail management, finance, consulting, HR, sales, logistics, and marketing. Large employers like Deloitte, PwC, Unilever, and Barclays run structured graduate programmes for business-focused roles.
Not always. Many graduates build strong careers with just an undergraduate degree, especially if they gain internships or graduate schemes. However, some pursue an MBA or master’s later to access senior leadership roles or specialised fields.