A Master in Management Studies or MMS, is an entirely different pursuit than MBA. For most people that aren’t really well versed in the details of it, on the surface level, the two degrees seem the same but that’s far from reality. MMS course in India is designed for freshers. People that are right out of grad school and are looking to expand their knowledge of management studies or looking to switch domains into management studies.
MMS has opened up a new cluster of opportunities for a career in the management domain, expanding upon the groundwork laid down by MBA. The career prospects after MMS is vast as it has spawned more job profiles and increased demand for a management student.
The main student base of MMS is considerably young and with the average experience of the people that were employed prior to their enrollment into the course and the overall eligibility and pre-requisites for the course are remarkably lower when compared to MBA. One of the most important reasons for MMS’s rapid notoriety in recent years is the fact that it costs about half the tuition fee of MBA while being offered from equally established B-Schools.
It is a different approach to management studies given the oversaturation of MBA and the declining job openings for the same. While MBA (if not done from a top tier pedigree college) only makes sense as a seasoned employed professional, MMS provides an opportunity for jumping into the management domain from the get-go. A platform to jump-start a career in management without the gut-wrenching years of experience to be gathered.
With that said, here’s a closer look into what might be the next step after MMS.
The average experience of these graduates ranges from low to none at all, and as a consequence, the profiles offered to them are fresher profiles with modest starting incomes. The difference in course matter and outcomes also places MMS and MBAs in different leagues and the employers are well aware of the same. While this is a downside of the degree to some extent, it is also equally true that the entry-level nature of jobs available directly results in more easily obtainable positions in budding businesses and an overall bulk of job availability when compared to the more refined special roles offered to MBAs. Based on choices of streams and B-schools, the choices available for a graduate vary greatly in our country.
In an MMS degree, the choice of specialization ranges from Marketing, Entrepreneurship, Analytics, Strategy, Finance and Development.
These specializations directly translate to positions like a Management Trainee, Postgraduate Research Fellow, Financial Services Analyst. Operations and Logistics Management, Sales and Marketing and even Finance is in the ballpark too. Human Resources management doesn’t seem to be actively hiring MMS. Other Supervisory positions are occupied by MMSs though, and paired with their exposure to different cultures and international markets- makes them suitable candidates for MNCs.
A lot of engineering and sciences program students are making the jump to management in the recent years as not only is it a welcoming domain the career path is much more stable and the knowledge gained during the rigorous courses of applied sciences can further be polished with added personality development and cultural awareness from an MMS degree.
The career progression for MMS is well-paced and in the span of five years to a decade, they can progress to the position of Business Development Manager, Marketing Manager, Manager of Analytics and even the prestigious Managing Director profile. Assuming the fresher beings work as a management trainee at 24 years of age- then in three to five years they can achieve the position of Junior Analyst, another three will land them at Senior Analyst and realistically they might reach the position of a Managing Director or CEO in ten to fifteen years with steady progress.
Let’s talk numbers here, the starting salaries in India start from five to eight lakhs per annum and after five years of experience jumps to fifteen lakhs and between ten to nineteen years an MMS graduate can make thirty-five lakhs per annum.
So, with the economy in a pinch and the availability of high paying jobs scarce there’s uncertainty in the future. Yet, the young people looking to make a career out of management studies can place good faith into an MMS degree. It might not be as lavish or polished as an MBA but it certainly has its advantages over it.
