Choosing a program to purse to for higher studies is a dilemma that most students face nowadays and it is quite natural to have that feeling of doubt or confusion. For those students who wants to aim for a career in accounting or finance in general, CA and MBA are two courses or educational programs that are both popular among students and practically ensures that you will have a solid career platform. While there are plenty of perks that each of these courses can offer, there are certain aspects that separates these two programs. Five of those most notable differentiations are mentioned below and it can help those students who are on the ropes when it comes to deciding which of these career paths should they opt for.

1. Eligibility: Let’s clear the most noticeable thing fist, the eligibility of students who can pursue CA and MBA are the same yet different. Well taking MBA first, students that have completed their under-graduate courses with a minimum 50 percentage marks. This 50 percent will come down to 45 percent for those students who are from SC/ST or PWD category. With that said, this is just the first part of the admission criteria. Students should also appear in the any MBA entrance tests. Getting into top MBA institutions in India will also need the students to perform well in these tests as well as other interviews and all which will be conducted by those institutions.

One aspect that makes MBA an attractive program is the fact that the whole world of professional career options that it offers

Now looking at the eligibility criteria for students to enrol in CA courses- Students that have qualified 12^th can apply for CA CPT exams. Apart from this, those graduate or post graduate students who have secured a minimum of 55 percent can directly register for the CA intermediate exams. That means that they don’t have to clear the CPT exams to qualify for CA intermediate.

2: Career Development Options: One aspect that makes MBA an attractive program is the fact that the whole world of professional career options that it offers. An MBA graduate depending upon their specialization as an entire gamut of professional career options that are available and accessible for them. On the contrary, when it comes to CA, this is not the case. Two of the commonly seen career options for CA professionals are 1) working for a company dealing with their audits or 2) start their own CA firm after becoming a certified CA.

3. Monetary Aspect: This is one of the most important aim for any professional and as students a lucrative career option is what most aspires to achieve. Both MBA and CA can offer jobs that are well paid. The major difference is the fact that if you clear all the different levels of CA exams and become a certified CA, then that itself can get you into jobs with companies that are well paying. You can also start your own CA firm which can also fetch you good money. Whereas in the case of MBA graduates, things aren’t this simple and your academic performance coupled with the reputation of the college you past out from can have a major say in defining the beginning stages of your career.

4. Course Fees: For MBA education, the course fees can be all over the place depending on the country and the college you are opting to pursue your education. So, if you are performing well academically and has not got the adequate finance to get into a college of your liking then use different scholarship options that will help you to ease the financial burden of your MBA education. For CA, the total exam fees are much more affordable but keep in mind that if you are choosing a top-notch CA institute that can help you in your preparation to get the best possible results.

5. Exam Structure: Exams for MBA are similar to most other postgraduate courses. For CA, there are three stages that students need to clear and that included CA foundation exam which was formerly known as CPT, then the students are required to clear the CA intermediate exam which is followed by a three-year articleship training. Then the final CA exam is the last step that students need to clear to become a ICAI certified CA.

MBA and CA are two academic streams that have allowed a plethora of students to build successful professional careers and we hope that these above-mentioned points will help you to make a better-informed decision when it comes to choosing one of these above-mentioned programs.