masters in international business vs mba

Last Updated on December 14, 2022

The Master of Business Administration (MBA) is one of the most popular master’s degrees in America. The MBA has a number of options to specialize in and can be very beneficial for those who aspire to be successful in top management positions. This post will help you decide if you are better off going to a traditional Master of Business Administration degree program or choosing an online Masters in International business.

You may find it hard to access the right information on the internet, so we are here to help you in the following article, providing the best and updated information on masters in international business vs mba, mba international business syllabus. Read on to learn more. We at infolearners .com have all the information that you need about mib vs mba salary. Read on to learn more.

Insights 3 significant differences between the International MBA and Master  of International Business programs | FIU Business

masters in international business vs mba

There are several advanced degree programs available for graduate students interested in pursuing a career in international business, so it’s helpful to understand the finely nuanced differences between the degree types.

The basic difference between the master’s degree in international business (the Master in International Management, or MIM) and an MBA is that the master’s degree in international business programs are highly specialized and will allow you to focus almost exclusively on issues related to international business, while an MBA offers a skill set that can be transferred to other areas of business.Featured Master’s ProgramsSponsored Content

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About the Master’s in International Business

The Master in International Management (MIM) places an emphasis on management with a cross-cultural perspective, and includes language and culture classes. The master’s degree in international business also includes language and culture curriculum, but the emphasis is on international business practices.

About the MBA in International Business

In contrast, an international business MBA program will help you develop a general set of management skills in addition to specific multinational knowledge. There are advantages to each: a master’s program will enable you to delve into international issues in greater depth; an MBA program will allow you to develop a set of skills that can be transferred to other areas. While both a master’s degree and an MBA will prepare you to hold international business management positions, an MBA may also qualify you to hold management positions in other fields, should you become interested in a different career.

MBA programs in international business focus mainly on topics like international governmental policies, international financial services, cross-cultural management, unique customs and attitudes, and other factors that affect multinational operations management.

What You Can Do With a Master’s in International Business

With a master’s degree in international business, you will be prepared for a number of career options, both overseas and in the U.S. The following are just some of the possible positions you can have with an MIM or MBA in international business:

  • International Marketing Director
  • Financial Controller
  • Multinational Manager
  • Business Development Director
  • International Trade and Customs Manager
  • International Foreign Policy Advisor

MBA vs MIB (Master of International Business)

ISB vs IIM: Which is betterTo an untrained eye, both the Master in Business Administration (MBA) and the Master in International Business (MIB) are management programs with similar outcome. After all, what is International Business but business as usual in a foreign dialect.

The trained eye, however, has learnt to distinguish the two with a gap wide enough to fit a room. While it is true that there are many common flavours that they share between them, there are a healthy number of differences as well.

These differences are inherent to their nature and needs to be understood before one decides one over the other. Let us explore them.

MBA needs no introduction. In India, you find lakhs of young graduates, especially the engineering kind, with a terminally overwhelmed look of having spent nights cramming for the CAT exam for MBA admissions.

The more globally ambitious kind, however, can choose to either opt for a work experience or look into graduate school options with a business specialization.

MIB is one such option (Specialized Masters Programs). So, what do students learn in MIB?

It helps to prepare its students to conduct business in a global context.

– What are the expectations of foreign markets and how do they behave?
– What happens to business interests faced with international politics and economy?
– What do companies have to do to conduct business in a foreign soil?
– How do changing foreign economies affect businesses and its international strategies?

…and more

If you are in the position of deciding between sticking around to get into the MBA program or charging ahead with an MIB, now, this article may help you reach a decision. We have gathered information regarding the basic differences between the two degrees so you can decide which one fits your bill the most.
 

MIB or MBA: Which is better for you?

Work Experience

Much like in the MBA, applicants can have any educational background. The minimum requirement is an undergraduate degree, with a decent GPA. Additionally, most international MBA programs expect at least four to five years of work experience. What does this mean?

The MIB degree is more academic in nature than the professional MBA degree (Read Masters in Management – Requirements, costs, salaries, etc).

Though, a lot of business schools have designed a curriculum that incorporates practical training as a part of the MIB training, it is not as integral as in MBA.

Owing to all the variety of real world work experience MBA students bring to the classroom, the peer experience becomes an added and necessary enrichment.

It also means that MIB class profiles comprise younger students compared to MBA classes where students are typically inching closer to 30 or above.

Younger class profiles mean less worldly experience, fresh out of school, less connected, yet vibrant young students.

In MBA, you get students from various backgrounds, with their own branches of professional networks, and years spent tasting the world outside the academic environment.
 

Courses and Curriculum

Usually faculty members in the business schools share the courses between the two degrees. Although, professors with more industry experience focus on MBA courses.

There is an overlap of courses, with MIB’s courses aligned along the global business content. The actual difference usually becomes apparent in the way the subjects are instructed.

In MBA, the job experience brings about a peer engagement which is not as crucial in MIB.

Also, the level of understanding among MBA students is expected to be of a higher level as compared to MIB. Hence, MBA courses, on the same (similar) subject matter tends to be more advanced.

Quantitative training is also usually a core part of MIB training, given its affinity to academic research.

In MBA, quantitative training is usually determined by the choice of the specialization. For instance, Finance MBA grads are more adept at quantitative methods as compared to say Human Resource majors.

Typical courses in MIB are (from Leeds Business School MIB Program):
 

Globalization and InnovationInternational Strategic ManagementControversies in International BusinessCross Cultural Management
International Business TheoryQuantitative Methods for International BusinessProfessional Skills for International BusinessInternational Trade Environment
Foreign Market Entry StrategyManaging Global Logistics and Supply ChainsGlobal Economic Coordination and GovernanceInternational Business Finance

…and similar courses with a taste of business in the global environment.
 
Typical MBA courses are related to MBA specialisations in Marketing, Human Resources, Finance, Information Systems, Consulting, Entrepreneurship, Operations Management, etc.

Tuition fees and other ancillary costs of getting an MIB and MBA are comparable. Although, it really depends on where you seek to attend the programs.

Duration of studies are also similar with most programs ranging between 12 months, or more, in MIB. European MBAs generally tend to stretch over a similar timeline.

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mba international business syllabus

MBA International Business Syllabus deals with subjects that teaches students about various topics on international trade and business. MBA International Business Syllabus is 2 years duration spread over 4 semesters. MBA International Business Subjects are Service Marketing and Customer Relationship Management, Cross-Cultural Consumer and Industrial Buyer Behavior, International Trade Practices, Procedures, and Documentation, Global Strategic Management, International Financial Management, International Advertising and Brand Management, International Supply Chain Management & Logistics, International Human Resource Management.

Check out the latest MBA International Business Syllabus breakdown tabulated below: 

First Year Syllabus
Semester ISemester II
General ManagementMarketing Management
Accounting for ManagersInternational Trade and Policy Framework
Economics for ManagersOperation Research for Business Decision
Legal Framework of BusinessInternational Business Environment
Entrepreneurship and New Venture PlanningCorporate Finance
Corporate Governance and Social Responsibility of BusinessInternational Financial System
Business Statistics and Research MethodologyInternet Security and Cyber Laws
Second Year Syllabus
Semester IIISemester IV
International MarketingInternational Marketing Research
Service Marketing and Customer Relationship ManagementCross-Cultural Consumer and Industrial Buyer Behavior
International Trade Practices, Procedures, and DocumentationGlobal Strategic Management
International Financial ManagementInternational Advertising and Brand Management
International Supply Chain Management & LogisticsInternational Human Resource Management
Foreign Language for Business – 1Foreign Language for Business – 2
Training ReportProject Report

The year Wise breakdown of the MBA International Business syllabus in mentioned in the sections below: 

First Year

Semester ISemester II
General ManagementMarketing Management
Accounting for ManagersInternational Trade and Policy Framework
Economics for ManagersOperation Research for Business Decision
Legal Framework of BusinessInternational Business Environment
Entrepreneurship and New Venture PlanningCorporate Finance
Corporate Governance and Social Responsibility of BusinessInternational Financial System
Business Statistics and Research MethodologyInternet Security and Cyber Laws

Second Year

Semester IIISemester IV
International MarketingInternational Marketing Research
Service Marketing and Customer Relationship ManagementCross-Cultural Consumer and Industrial Buyer Behavior
International Trade Practices, Procedures, and DocumentationGlobal Strategic Management
International Financial ManagementInternational Advertising and Brand Management
International Supply Chain Management & LogisticsInternational Human Resource Management
Foreign Language for Business – 1Foreign Language for Business – 2
Training ReportProject Report

See Also:

PhD after MBAMBA After MBBS
MBA PlacementsMBA vs CA

Semester Wise MBA International Business Syllabus

Check out the detailed latest Syllabus of MBA International Business tabulated below in the semester Wise breakdown: 

First Sem

General ManagementEntrepreneurship and New Venture Planning
Accounting for ManagersCorporate Governance and Social Responsibility of Business
Economics for ManagersBusiness Statistics and Research Methodology

Second Sem

Marketing ManagementInternational Business Environment
International Trade and Policy FrameworkInternational Financial System
Operation Research for Business DecisionInternet Security and Cyber Laws

Third Sem

International MarketingInternational Financial Management
Service Marketing and Customer Relationship ManagementInternational Supply Chain Management & Logistics
International Trade Practices, Procedures, and DocumentationForeign Language for Business – 1

Fourth Sem

International Marketing ResearchInternational Advertising and Brand Management
Cross-Cultural Consumer and Industrial Buyer BehaviorInternational Human Resource Management
Global Strategic ManagementForeign Language for Business – 2

mib vs mba salary

MIB prepares its students to enter the work market through its training in sustaining businesses in foreign markets through research and strategic management. According to a report published by Burning Glass Labor Insight, nearly 60% of employers prefer advanced graduate degree in international relations roles.

Multinational organizations, with overseas offices, have a preference for individuals who have the necessary education to work across borders in a range of markets. They serve in roles such as business analysts, country managers, product managers, trading specialists, buyers, economists, and policy analysts, among others.

Some of these roles, after MIB, are also very lucrative, with salaries ranging from the healthy side of $80,000 to some even over $120,000, with a lot of promise of growth within the organizations. Overall job growth in these sectors are estimated in the neighbourhood of 10% in the next decade.

In addition to a promising career, MIB also offers its graduates the opportunity to explore advanced research into international business. The academic nature of the degree brings about the possibility of further higher education. Thus, a PhD degree is a natural progression of many MIB grads.

MBA programs usually only focus their energy in gearing up future managers who actively handle business decisions in organizations.

Lucrative placement opportunities are available to all the candidates pursuing MIB to build their careers in International Business management programs.

Types of companies that recruit MBAs in International Business are mentioned below as follows :

It is not true  that only International Job profiles are offered to MBA in International Business. Since MBA IB covers all core courses of MBA such as  Marketing, Finance and HR, they are employed for  regular MBA Jobs, same as a typical B-school.

International Job profiles are offered to MBA IB , as the name suggests.Some of the top recruiters are mentioned as follows-

  • Top Indian Companies like the TATAs and Aditya Birla Group which have global footprints  are always on the lookout for managers to manage overseas operations .
  • Global Companies & MNCs, those who recruit Indian MBAs for their domestic and international operations.
  • Export and Trading Houses in India that deal specifically in International Trade.

Some of the popular jobs of MIB degree holders are mentioned below with their average salary packages.

Job PositionJob DescriptionAnnual Annual Salary
Business Development ManagerBusiness Development Manager is responsible to identify sales leads and pitch goods or services to new customers and maintain a decent working relationship with new customers.INR 5,00,000 – 6,00,000
International Business DeveloperA Business Developer is responsible to increase a company’s profits by attracting new clients and by enhancing the speed of existing customers.INR 8,00,000 – 9,00,000
Business Development SpecialistBusiness Development Specialists are in charge of developing effective business plans for their organization.INR 3,00,000 to 4,00,000
Business Development ExecutiveBusiness Development Executive is responsible to assist their organizations to acquire new clients and sell extra products or services to existing ones.INR 2,00,000 to 3,00,000
Master's in International Business vs International Business MBA

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