SNHU MBA Concentrations: The 17 Options and How They Change the Degree

Every SNHU MBA student takes a common core. SNHU's program page lists courses such as MBA 530 Leading People and Organizations, MBA 540 Organizational Strategy in a Global Environment, MBA 580 Innovation and Strategy for High-Performance Organizations, MBA 620 Measuring Success in an Organization, MBA 645 Optimizing Brands, MBA 687 Leading Organizational Change and MBA 699 Strategic Opportunity Management, the capstone, along with graduate financial reporting courses.

The core is built around applied, scenario-based work: strategic analyses, scorecards, brand plans, change plans and a capstone proposal for a real or realistic organization.

A concentration replaces or adds courses within that structure, focusing part of the degree on one field while keeping the core's broad management foundation.

SNHU's online MBA page lists seventeen concentrations: Accounting, Business Analytics, Engineering Management, Entrepreneurship, Finance, Healthcare Management, Human Resources, Information Technology Management, International Business, Leadership, Marketing, Music Business, Operations and Supply Chain Management, Project Management, Public Administration, Sport Management, and Sustainability and Environmental Compliance.

Each concentration is described as three courses of in-depth coverage in its subject.

The list spans traditional business functions, such as finance, marketing and HR, technical fields, such as analytics and IT management, and sector-specific paths, such as healthcare, public administration, music and sport. That range is one reason the SNHU MBA attracts students from very different backgrounds, from nurses and engineers to military officers and small business owners.

The standard SNHU MBA is 30 credits. According to SNHU's program page, students who hold a non-business bachelor's degree and add a concentration could need 33 to 36 credits, because some concentration courses may add to the core rather than replace part of it.

That difference matters for planning. An extra one or two courses adds one or two 10-week terms at a one-course pace, or a single term at two courses per term, along with the tuition for those courses.

Students with business undergraduate degrees often fit a concentration within 30 credits. Those with degrees in nursing, engineering, psychology or other fields should check with admissions or an advisor how their background affects the total.

It also helps to confirm the concentration before the first term. Switching later is often possible, but courses already taken may not count toward the new concentration, which can add a term.

The best concentration usually follows the job a student wants next, not the one they have now. A nurse manager aiming for hospital administration might choose Healthcare Management; an engineer moving into management might choose Engineering Management or Project Management; a veteran heading into logistics might choose Operations and Supply Chain Management.

Another approach is to fill a gap. A marketer who finds numbers intimidating might choose Business Analytics or Finance to become more credible in budget discussions; a technical specialist moving into leadership might choose Leadership or Human Resources.

Some students choose no concentration at all. The general MBA keeps the degree at its shortest and broadest, which suits those who want management credentials without specializing.

Concentrations vary in the kind of work they demand. Quantitative concentrations, such as Accounting, Finance and Business Analytics, involve spreadsheets, models and calculations, often with statistical software. Writing-heavy concentrations, such as Leadership, Human Resources and Public Administration, involve more papers, policy analyses and plans. Project-based concentrations, such as Project Management and Entrepreneurship, involve schedules, business plans and pitches.

Knowing that mix helps with pacing. A student who finds quantitative work slow might take concentration courses one at a time; one comfortable with numbers might pair a finance course with a writing-focused core course.

The capstone, MBA 699, often draws on the concentration, so choosing a concentration early also shapes what the final project can be about.

A concentration signals focus to employers and can help a resume stand out for roles in that field. It also builds a portfolio: a healthcare management student finishes with analyses of health organizations, a finance student with models and valuations, a project management student with plans and schedules.

Some concentrations connect to professional certifications. Project Management coursework covers material related to PMI's frameworks, Human Resources to SHRM's body of knowledge and Accounting to topics on professional exams, though each certification has its own requirements and exams that must be completed separately.

For students already in a field, the concentration may matter less than the MBA itself. For those changing fields, it can be the most important choice in the program.

At two courses per term, the 30-credit MBA can be completed in about a year. Adding a concentration that raises the total to 33 or 36 credits adds a term at that pace. At one course per term, the program takes about two years, plus any added concentration courses.

Planning the sequence helps. Core courses that set up later work, such as strategy and financial reporting, are worth taking early. Concentration courses can then build on them, and the capstone comes last, drawing on everything.

Students using employer tuition benefits should check annual caps and grade requirements, since the extra concentration courses may fall into a different benefit year.

Concentration courses often sit furthest from a student's experience, which is exactly why they were chosen. A nurse taking finance or an engineer taking marketing may find those courses the hardest in the program.

When MBA courses are handed over here, each is matched to a specialist from that field: finance courses to finance professionals, analytics courses to analysts, healthcare management courses to health administrators and so on. Core courses go to executives and consultants with matching experience.

One organization can carry through the core, the concentration and the capstone, so the final proposal draws on graded work from earlier courses. You read every file and submit it yourself from your own account.