Many students applying to an MIS (Management of Information Systems) or the Engineering Management program ask us if the programs are equivalent to an MBA. Our answer to that is a point blank ‘NO’. The MIS or EM programs are neither equivalent to, nor are they substitutes to the MBA.

Often the term ‘management’ misleads students to believe that the MIS and EM programs are synonymous to an MBA. Unfortunately that’s not the case. In the US, an MBA is typically designed for a mature audience (students with prior work experience). The objective of a MBA program is to expose students with all areas of management such as accounting, finance, marketing, strategy, operations, technology, and give them a fair understanding of the functioning of various business and industry sectors. Students may then opt to specialize in specific areas of interest. The MIS and EM programs on the other hand, are designed to equip students with skills specific to the IT and the engineering industry respectively. While many MIS and EM programs require students to take up few basic courses in areas of management, they do not offer a wide spectrum of management related courses as an MBA does. Nor are these programs designed to give students a bird’s eye view of various industry domains.

A master’s program in MIS, as well as in EM, is designed in a way to prepare students for careers in the IT and engineering domains respectively. They are not research oriented, but rather techno-functional in nature where the focus is on concepts prevalent in the industry. For instance, in any MIS program, a significant amount of courses would be related to technology which would include a fair amount of programming as well. The remaining courses would cover concepts related to managing of information technology. Same is the case with an EM program, except that courses offered in an EM program are not confined to information technology, but would encompass a wide range of technologies and processes used across the engineering sector.

So in conclusion, do not opt for an MIS or EM program assuming that they are substitutes to an MBA; the MIS or EM programs are not equivalent to an MBA. These programs will not offer you careers equivalent to those of an MBA graduate. In all probability, few years ahead in your career, when you feel the need for career advancement, you will choose to pursue an MBA – even if you hold a master’s degree in MIS or EM.

PS: A degree in Financial Engineering (FE) is also NOT equivalent to an MBA degree with specialization in finance.