What You Should Know About This Degree
Being a leader or entrepreneur requires specific aptitudes and qualities. People in these roles must be confident, creative, disciplined, and motivated. They must make tough decisions, collaborate with others, and work hard. While a small business management course can help develop these skills, reflect on your own innate qualities and whether you fit this profile.
Starting your own business can be exciting and rewarding, but there are also many risks involved. In a small business management course, you will learn how to minimize and cope with those risks. You may also have the opportunity to develop your business plan in a supportive environment.
Applying the skills and theories you learn in a real-world setting is a key component of small business and entrepreneurial education. Even if the coursework for a program can be fully completed online, there may be optional or required experiential learning components, such as an internship. This training is valuable, and you should seek out a program that allows you to fit this experience into your schedule.
If you are considering an associate’s degree with the intention of transferring to another school to finish a bachelor’s, be sure to select a college with regional accreditation. Credits from regionally accredited institutions are more transferable and widely recognized than those from nationally accredited schools.
What’s Next?
Here are some questions to ask when researching Small Business Management programs:
- How are online courses delivered? Online courses can be delivered asynchronously or synchronously. In asynchronous courses, students access lessons and assignments on their own schedules and work fairly independently. In synchronous programs, you must attend virtual classes at set times.
- Do you need financial aid? A certificate program is a fast, convenient way to obtain an education in small business management, but keep in mind that certificate programs are not eligible for any kind of federal financial aid. If you will need this kind of financial support to pay for your tuition, you may want to consider an associate’s degree, which is eligible for federal student aid.
Be sure to review the program’s requirements for admission and their application deadlines. Requirements and deadlines vary from program to program, so having this information organized will keep your applications on track.
Besides federal student loans and grants, you can research other types of support including institutional and private scholarships, assistantships, and tuition benefits if you are currently employed.