Which degree would help me get a better job: MBA concentrating in Finance or Master in Quantitative Finance

Which degree would help me get a better job: MBA concentrating in Finance or Master in Quantitative Finance?
I am currently a junior and getting a BS in Accounting. I want to go in Finance for my masters either MBA or in Quantitative Finance. Which degree would help me find a higher paying job?
Higher Education (University +) - 3 Answers

Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1
Either will, so long as it is at a top school. If not then it just isn't worth the money. If a top school was a given, then it depends on if you want to go in to corporate finance/investment banking, or quant trading/hedge funds. The MBA will be better for investment banking, and the quant finance masters will be better for hedge funds, algorithmic trading, etc.


2
Good answer by Tangent. for more information about the MBA degree, see the Official MBA Guide. It's a comprehensive free public service with more than 2,000 MBA programs listed worldwide. It allows you to search for programs by location (US, Europe, Far East, etc.), by concentration (finance, marketing, aviation management, health management, accounting, etc.), by type of program (full-time, distance learning, part-time, executive, and accelerated), and by listing your own criteria and preferences to get a list of universities that satisfy your needs. Schools report their accreditation status, tuition cost, number of students, class sizes, program length, and a lot of other data. Schools provide data on entrance requirements, program costs, program characteristics, joint degrees, and much more. You can use the Guide to contact schools of your choice, examine their data, visit their web site, and send them pre applications. You can see lists of top 40 schools ranked by starting salaries of graduates, GMAT scores, and other criteria.


3
In my opinion an MBA is the best all around choice, as long as it is from a top school. Tangent is correct in that either degree is good if it is froma top school, and that a MS in Quant Finance from a top school is a good way into a hedge fund. Hedge funds tend to hire lots of very quantitative types from a variety of intense academic backgrpounds, physicists, engineers, mathematics etc. That said, there are definitely tons of MBAs working at hedge funds. And outside of hedge funds, MBAs are definitely in higher demand. Few are the job descriptions that specfically ask for an MS whereas many ask for an MBA. Additionally, large, well-paying companies have dedicated, very visible and well-organized recruiting programs at top MBA schools (think GE, Pepsi, Kraft, P&G, Goldman Sachs, Citi, Morgan Stanley, JPM, BofA, Barclays, McKinsey, Bain, Microsoft, Google, etc etc). As MS programs tend to be much smaller, the economies of scale aren´t there to invest so much time in looking for this talent. That isn't to say that that MS folks aren't valued, but you will never have a nearly full-time GE/McKinsey/Citi HR rep on campus at an MS program as I did at my MBA program. Thus, my opinion is that an MBA program is the best and most probable route to a better job of the two choices you give.