It’s not all boardrooms and Wall Street with an MBA degree — MBA grads can launch surprising careers in places they might not expect, from entertainment and sports to science and roles in social impact startups.
“People generally think of finance, banking, consulting or corporate strategy. But an MBA is really a powerful accelerator for a wide range of career paths,” says Melody Jones, founder and president of Vantage Point MBA Admissions Consulting.
Some unexpected paths include media and entertainment — such as streaming partnerships and music operations — climate and sustainability, sports management, EdTech and “entrepreneurship through acquisition, where MBAs buy and scale existing small businesses,” Jones says.
Strong analytical skills, an ability to break down complex problems to their root cause and the ability to lead diverse teams “are especially valuable in unconventional or emerging fields,” Jones says.
Here are seven industries with roles where MBA graduates can make their mark in an unconventional way.
Arts, Entertainment and Sports
MBAs can apply their management, finance and strategy skills across creative and cultural organizations, from film and TV production to professional sports and museums. This may be particularly attractive to students who enter B-school with relevant experience.
“Business schools are graduating students with much more diverse pre-MBA backgrounds than in the past, including experience in the nontraditional fields,” Jones says.
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MBA grads are equipped to oversee budgets, operations, staffing and growth to keep projects and institutions running efficiently. They can also help advance an organization’s artistic, athletic or cultural missions.
“When those graduates combine their domain knowledge with the MBA’s formal education in leadership, finance, strategy and operations, they become especially attractive to employers in those sectors,” Jones says.
Health and Science
MBAs working in hospital and health care administration, biotech or research programs, or the nonprofit sector can apply their business and management skills to operations, staffing, strategy and funding, experts say. In these roles, MBAs can help organizations improve patient care or support scientific progress.
“My team and I have noticed a growing interest in health care-related careers,” Jones says. “That includes not just health care consulting or pharma, but roles in health systems, digital health, biotech and health care operations.”
According to Jones, Vantage Point MBA’s clients have expressed interest in opportunities ranging from managing a DaVita Dialysis Center, as part of the DaVita Redwoods Program, to building partnerships for an EdTech platform that trains nurses.
Tech and Creative Fields
MBAs can pursue work as video game product managers, design or UX program managers, or business managers in the esports or creator economy. In these roles, they can help lead product roadmaps to developing partnerships and sponsorships, experts say.
“The general management and leadership skills that MBA programs teach can be invaluable in almost any setting,” says Lisa Cummings, MBA admissions counselor at Stratus Admissions Counseling. “Increasingly, even nontraditional fields are being run like business out of necessity. They need to make money to survive.”
[Read: Hot Jobs for MBA Graduates.]
MBAs are also seeking out smaller companies compared with the larger, well-known ones, since the bigger firms are doing most of the recent layoffs, says Rebecca Cook, executive director for Kelley Career Services at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business.
“The mid- and smaller-size companies will be hiring less in terms of overall numbers, but they are often still hiring,” Cook says.
Sustainability and Environment
Some MBAs move into climate- and sustainability-focused roles, helping organizations set environmental goals, manage recycling and waste-reduction efforts, and increase their impact, experts say.
“In a competitive global economy, every field is a business and to be competitive, many can benefit from being run like one at some level,” Cummings says. “Strategy, forecasting, economics, marketing and accounting are more critical than ever to nontraditional fields, so an employee with an MBA can add real value and critical perspective.”
Startups and Emerging Niches
Experts say MBA roles are also emerging in areas like space-industry operations, food tech, and AI governance, where graduates help young companies scale, manage risk and grow responsibly.
Roles that use analytical skills and AI knowledge are especially growing, Cook says.
“Today’s environment is also looking for data analytics skills and particularly AI skills, specifically how to take the information provided by AI and make strategic decisions from it,” Cook says. “These skills are going to be relevant for any industry and any function as companies work to figure out how to best leverage AI for their businesses.”
For example, in AI startups, MBAs often work in roles that help translate technical innovation into viable products and businesses.
“Perhaps due to the uncertainty of the markets over the last few years, I see more students looking to start their own ventures immediately post-MBA, whereas in past years they may have opted to work in more traditional roles right out of school for a few years to gain experience,” Cummings says.
[Read: MBA Jobs With Better Hours That Still Pay Well]
Government and Public Policy
MBAs in this area often work in city innovation and economic development, policy roles with a business focus, or data and performance management in the public sector, experts say.
“More often than not, I have worked with MBA candidates who eventually intend to go into politics or government after working for a few years in more traditional roles post-MBA,” Cummings says. MBAs may hold roles within city, state or federal agencies and work in transportation, housing or public health programs.
“Softer skills such as leadership and negotiation, combined with a solid management core skill set, are very useful in political and government roles,” Cummings says.
Lifestyle and Travel
Experts say common roles can include working with luxury brands, art and cultural organizations, hospitality and resorts, travel and tourism companies, and theme parks. Within these industries, MBA skills can be useful for management, strategy, operations, revenue growth, customer experience and market expansion.
“I think you have organizations who are operating at greater scale and under more financial pressure than ever before,” Jones says.
With budgets to manage, stakeholders to answer to and long-term sustainability to consider, “the general management skill set that a top MBA provides has become increasingly valuable beyond traditional post-MBA roles,” Jones says.
If you’re seeking a nontraditional role, you should enter your MBA program planning to “self-direct your recruiting process, and to be prepared for how much initiative that requires,” Jones says.
Expect a slower timeline than consulting or banking, since nontraditional roles rarely follow on-campus recruiting cycles, Jones says.
“Candidates need to be willing to do a lot of their own research and comfortable reaching out to strangers for advice,” Cummings adds.
Students can join professional clubs to build community and share experiences, which can be “a great way to get a sense of what those jobs involve while building a valuable skill set,” Cummings says. Searching for a business school? Get our complete rankings of Best Business Schools.
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Surprising Jobs for MBA Graduates originally appeared on usnews.com
