This is archival data. This system was retired as of August 21, 2023 and the information on this page has not been updated since then. For current information, visit catalogs.umn.edu.
Requirements for this program are current for
Fall 2024
Length of program in credits:
32
This program requires summer semesters for timely completion.
Degree: Master of Science
Along with the program-specific requirements listed below, please read the
General Information section of
this
website for requirements that apply to all major fields.
The one-year, 32-credit MS degree in supply chain management will provide students with an end-to-end view of supply chain and will develop both their strategic and analytical capabilities needed to manage supply chains. The hallmarks of this MS degree will include leadership development as a programmatic theme, global immersion, corporate social responsibility and the flexibility to focus on supply chain management in specific industry sectors that are foundational to the economy of the State of Minnesota such as health care and medical devices, food and agribusiness, and retail.
Accreditation
This program is accredited by AACSB International. The M.S. in Supply Chain Management is STEM designated.
Program Delivery
via classroom (the majority of instruction is face-to-face)
Prerequisites for Admission
Applicants must have a bachelor's degree from an accredited college or university.
Other requirements to be completed before admission:
A minimum of 3 years of full-time professional work experience is required (internships not included) at the time of application submission.
Special Application Requirements:
Applicants must submit all application materials through the University's admissions system. Application materials include:
- Online application & application fee.
- Transcripts from all colleges/universities previously attended. Non-English transcripts must be accompanied by an English translation.
- For international students, an acceptable score on the Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) International Language Testing System (IELTS).
- Two letters of recommendations need to be submitted through the online application.
- A personal statement (750 words / 2 pages maximum) answering the following questions: (1) Briefly describe your short-term and long-term career goals. Why are you choosing to pursue an MS SCM program at this time in your career, and what are you hoping to accomplish by doing so? (2) Why are you interested in pursuing an MS SCM program at the Carlson School of Management? (3) What do you feel makes you a strong candidate for the program? How will you contribute to the MS SCM program overall?
- Applicants must submit a current resume that includes job responsibilities and accomplishments in the online application.
- Academic Performance Statement (500 words/1 page) - required for applicants with one or more of the following on their academic records: (1)Cumulative GPA below 3.0 on a 4.0 scale (or equivalent), (2)Academic probation or dismissal, (3)Significant or notable declines in academic performance, (4)Any other academic weaknesses or concerns. Reflect on your prior academic performance and make a case for why you are now prepared for the rigor of graduate level work.
- Applicants may choose to submit an essay to comment on any item(s) in their application they consider worthy of further explanation.
- Admissions interview (by invitation only).
- Video essay.
For admissions details, please visit https://carlsonschool.umn.edu/degrees/master-science-in-supply-chain-management/adm
International applicants must submit score(s) from one of the following tests:
For an online application or for more information about graduate education admissions, see the
General Information section of this
website.
Program Requirements
Plan C: Plan C requires
32
major credits and
up to
credits outside the
major.
There is no final exam.
A capstone project is required.
Capstone Project:Bring all of the knowledge, skills, and tools developed in the MS SCM program to bear on an impactful global supply chain project for an external client. The objective for this course is to teach critical thinking and analysis skills in a global operations context. Students will conduct a fact-based analysis of a global supply chain issue for an external client. This course increases student understanding of the strategic nature of decision making in the supply chain field, and allows students to apply such thinking to the design and improvement of global supply chain networks. The course emphasizes critical thinking, communication, teamwork, and client management skills. Students will conduct primary and secondary research in order to develop a set of meaningful recommendations for a client on a global supply chain issue.
This program may not be completed with a minor.
Use of 4xxx courses towards program requirements is not permitted.
A minimum GPA of 2.80
is required for students to remain in good standing.
One Stop for tuition, course registration, financial aid, academic calendars, and more
SCO 6048 - Logistics and Transportation
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall
Manufactured products often travel across multiple countries and multiple states, using multiple modes of transportation, and channels of distribution before reaching final customers. Along the way, these products are processed at a variety of inventory transfer points, and reconfigured and combined with other products with the goal of arriving intact without damage in the right quantity, at the right place and right time. This course provides the knowledge, skills, and tools for understanding these core elements of logistics and transportation systems. Students will gain an understanding of the dynamics of key logistics and transportation decisions, including the design of distribution networks, choice of transportation modes and routes, location and configuration of distribution centers, and management of last mile logistics. Students will explore how these decisions are made by leading companies and what influence these decisions have on the performance dimensions of flexibility, speed, reliability, accessibility, and cost. Operations research techniques will be used to analyze, compare, and optimize these decisions. Throughout the course, students will be exposed to best practices and gain an appreciation for the challenges that typical companies face in managing their logistics and transportation network, including how to innovate in light of competitive pressures and external shocks.
SCO 6098 - Operations Excellence via Lean Thinking
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall
This course introduces the concepts and theory of quality control, philosophical foundations of lean thinking, and technical concepts related to flow and pull, and tools such as value stream mapping, A3, and 5S. Students learn to identify, measure, and eliminate non-value added activities; process capability analysis; statistical process control; and acceptance sampling from extended value chains in manufacturing and service settings through hands-on exercises.
SCO 6185 - Statistics
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall
This course introduces quantitative and business statistics concepts for managerial decision making and problem solving. The course first focuses on the nature of statistical studies and the differences between observational and experimental studies. Methods for producing data, including sampling techniques, process monitoring, and designed experiments will be discussed. Students learn graphical and numerical methods for descriptive statistics. Foundations for statistical inference are covered, including basic probability, discrete and continuous probability distributions, and sampling distributions of statistics. Students then learn how to apply the two basic inferential methods of statistics, statistical estimation, and tests of statistical hypotheses. These methods are used to make inferences about population parameters including means, proportions, and standard deviations. The students also learn to identify sample size requirements.
SCO 6191 - Big Data Analytics in Supply Chains
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall
With the advancement of digital technologies and networking capabilities, firms are actively engaged in capturing ?big? data related to their supply chains. Firms recognize the immense potential in mining big data for improving the quality and timeliness of decisions, and becoming proactive in sensing and responding to external and internal signals of threats and opportunities. The course develops the capability to analyze and interpret structured and unstructured data that is fundamental to managing supply. The data analytics methods covered in the course include statistical methods (e.g., multivariate regression, logistics regression, GLMM, LASSO), machine learning methods (e.g., support vector machine, ensemble methods ? random forest, gradient boosting model) and optimization methods (e.g., deterministic and stochastic methods). Through a combination of operations analysis case studies and hands-on exercises, students learn (i) various facets of data analytics: data access, data aggregation, data analysis and data visualization; (ii) appropriateness and inappropriateness of big data analytic methods; and (iii) big data based predictive analytics. The final course project involves designing and testing of prototype systems in supply chain and operations settings of companies.
SCO 6285 - Managing Supply Chain Operations
Credits:
4.0
[max 4.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall
This course serves as an introduction to the program, providing an overview of the fundamental concepts of supply chain and operations management. The course is taught as a cohort experience with opportunities to interact outside the classroom. Supply chain professionals from a variety of industries are featured throughout to highlight how the concepts apply in different contexts. Students learn methods and models for evaluating and improving end-to-end processes and gain an understanding of the operational challenges inherent in managing global supply chains. The course takes a strategic and cross-functional view of supply chains in both product and service based industries.
SCO 6045 - Strategic Sourcing
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Spring
Procurement and supply management has become increasingly visible in a world where supply is a major determinant of organizational success. Supply chain performance influences not only operational and financial risks but also reputational risk. Although this course explores cost containment and supply process improvement methods, it also pushes into revenue enhancement. The job of the supply manager today goes way beyond the scope of value and efficiency to the search for competitive advantage through the supply network. In addition to organizing the supply function for strategic advantage, the course explores strategic sourcing, supplier selection and evaluation techniques, supplier development methods, global sourcing techniques, as well as legal and ethical challenges. High-performance supply managers live for the challenges associated with building and maintaining a high-performance supply chain.
SCO 6072 - Managing Technologies in the Supply Chain
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Spring
Course prepares students to develop capabilities for (i) making well-informed technology choice decisions; (ii) effectively managing the development and implementation of technologies; and (iii) collaboratively engaging in crisis management and problem solving during technology development and implementation. The central question around which the course is organized is: How can existing and emerging technologies (e.g., IoT, automation, artificial intelligence, 3D printing, block chains) and the related process and people issues be managed to design and sustain reliable, responsive, resilient, and responsible supply chains? Analytic methods covered in the course to inform decisions related to the development and implementation of technologies include statistical methods (e.g., multivariate regression, time-series analysis, hazard models), risk analysis methods (e.g., decision trees) and predictive analytic methods (e.g., random forest). Through a combination of operations analysis case studies and hands-on exercises, students learn to evaluate the potential upside and downside risks of existing and emerging technologies. The final course project involves designing and testing of prototype systems for evaluating the development and implementation in supply chain and operations settings of companies.
SCO 6094 - Responsible Supply Chain Management
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Spring
Companies around the world are facing increasing pressure to perform well on the triple bottom line—People, Planet, and Profit—and responsible supply chain management is often a cornerstone of the CSR strategy for many companies. This course looks at how and why responsible supply chain management could be a powerful strategy to enhance a company’s triple bottom line. The course focuses on the social and environmental aspects of managing supply chain operations. Particular emphasis is placed on human rights, health and safety, and environmental issues faced by supply chain managers and the linkage to the firm’s supply chain strategy.
SCO 6192 - Supply Chain Finance
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Spring
Managing the financial flows and capital is just as important as managing the physical flow of goods and services. This course focuses on the underlying link between supply chain performance and the financial systems within an organization. Students learn concepts and tools related to supply chain costing, valuation, and projecting cash flow and capital requirements. The course looks at issues including tax and trade credits, and students develop an understanding of how financial considerations influence and inform a firm’s supply chain strategy.
SCO 6085 - Sales, Inventory, and Operations Planning
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Spring & Summer
Sales, Inventory, and Operations Planning (SI&OP) is an important business process for any firm and can provide significant payoffs through achieving a balance between supply and demand. Using analytical tools and field data, SI&OP links a company?s strategic goals at the high level with its production at the tactical level while coordinating different business elements including manufacturing, finance, operations, sales, marketing, HR, etc. The output of an SI&OP process serves as guidance for various production functions such as the master production schedule (MPS) as well as material requirements planning. SI&OP focuses on getting the big picture right via balancing demand and supply at the product family level.
This 2-credit course is designed (1) to provide an overview of the entire SI&OP process, (2) to introduce the crucial inputs (i.e., forecasting and inventory management) to SI&OP, (3) to explain how the output of SI&OP (i.e., aggregate plan) is used as a guidance for planning production and material procurement, and (4) to expose students to several analytical tools used for the SI&OP process. To achieve these goals, the course covers a range of topics including forecasting, inventory management, aggregate planning, master production scheduling, and material requirements planning.
SCO 6292 - Global Operations Capstone
Credits:
4.0
[max 4.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Summer
This course will examine, compare and contrast business models that work globally, and require a careful design of processes and supply chains to deliver the capabilities necessary to create a competitive advantage. This course helps students understand the strategic nature of decision making in operations, and allows them to apply such thinking to the design and improvement of global supply chain networks that span both developed and developing economies. The course contains an essential experiential component. Students will work with companies, either locally in Minnesota or across the world, on real world supply chain applications.
SCO 6291 - Leadership Development
Credits:
0.0
-2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall, Spring & Summer
Carefully designed lectures, exercises and assignments are positioned through the year to assess and develop leadership skills personalized to each student at three levels: (i) how to lead self: leveraging current strengths, (ii) how to lead others: teamwork, collaboration, motivation, and feedback, and (iii) how to lead organizations: operating in complex global work environments. Substantively, the course is committed to creating an intellectual context that is now viewed as central to developing supply chain leaders. Specifically, the course provides opportunities for raising environmental, social and political awareness; learning about social media and related communications technologies and channels; and interacting with non-commercial organizations such as government and NGOs.
APEC 5831 - Food and Agribusiness Marketplace
Credits:
2.0
-3.0
[max 3.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F or Aud
Typically offered:
Every Spring
This is a graduate student survey course of the industrial organization and current policy issues in the food and agribusiness marketplace. It represents a collaboration between the College of Food, Agricultural, and Natural Resource Sciences and the Carlson School of Management. The course uses short readings and speakers. A comprehensive look at all of the sectors in the food and agribusiness value chain is described. Topics include food policies (Farm Bills, food stamps, food labeling, and similar topics); environmental policies (water, invasive species, agriculture production and similar topics); and industrial organization issues (marketing and production contracts, overview of firm strategic orientation, distribution and similar topics). Readings, guest speakers, and presentations are used.
prereq: graduate student
MGMT 6004 - Negotiation Strategies
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall, Spring & Summer
At its core, negotiation is the art and science of getting what you want in a world of innumerable interests, possibilities, and standards of fairness---a world in which we must often compete or cooperate with others to do anything from picking a restaurant to transforming markets. The objective of this course is to equip students with a simple, ready-to-use framework from which we can prepare for and engage in negotiations. Topics include interest-based bargaining, psychological biases, multiparty negotiations, and hard tactics. Regular cases and exercises reinforce our negotiation framework and provide students a safe forum to thoughtfully reflect on their experiences and improve.
prereq: MBA or Mgmt Sci MBA student
MGMT 6084 - Management of Teams
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Course Equivalencies:
HRIR 6484/Mgmt 6084
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall, Spring & Summer
Factors that influence performance and well-being of groups in organizations. Group dynamics, norms, culture, structure, leadership, decision-making, and problem-solving. Managing dynamics, learning, performance, and creativity of groups. Intergroup relations, incentives, and effect of environment.
SCO 6041 - Project Management
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Every Fall & Spring
Companies in a wide-range of industries (such as agri-business, aerospace, construction, manufacturing, and medical technology) use Project Management for New Product Development, implementing strategic initiatives, and other business objectives. In the course of your career, those in business, government, and even non-profit organizations will spend a significant amount of their professional career either participating in, or leading projects. While every project is by definition unique in scope, some concepts and tools are considered industry best practices and are internationally recognized via the certification programs of the Project Management Institute. The course will focus on scheduling and critical path analysis, time management, cost estimating, resource utilization, and risk management. Specific tools will include Earned Value Management and the quantitative techniques for estimating schedule risk. The latter will include estimating task durations and the probabilities for project completion by specific time periods. The course will conclude an introduction of Agile Methodologies and Scrum.
SCO 6091 - Process Improvement Methods
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Course Equivalencies:
OMS 6059/SCO 6059/SCO 6091
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Periodic Spring
This course introduces the tools and problem solving techniques for process improvement. While organized around the DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve, and Control) terms used in Six Sigma, the class will also include concepts from Root Cause Analysis and Lean Thinking. While our focus is on implementing process improvements from a manager?s perspective, numerous technical tools to identify and implement process improvements, plus the quantitative methods used to identify capacity capabilities, utilization rates, and bottlenecks will be presented through a series of problems and practical exercises. In addition, the course will consider broader aspects of process improvement that includes an understanding organizational change, the importance of Change Management, and aligning process improvements with strategy.
SCO 6092 - Supply Chain Risk and Security
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Periodic Spring
This course covers the organizational and behavioral aspects of managing quality, risk, and security within and across organizations. It covers various frameworks such as ISO 28000 (security) as a starting point. It covers various organizational issues such as managing organizational culture and navigating across national boundaries to address quality, risk, and security issues. It draws on various management theories to understand how to manage quality, risk, security, and disruptions across the supply chain. The course draws on examples from a variety of industries and government.
SCO 6093 - Negotiations in Supply Chain
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Periodic Spring
Negotiation is the art and science of securing agreements between two or more interdependent parties. Managing supply chains often requires extensive negotiations related to pricing, joint problem solving and collaboration. This course (i) helps students understand the theory and processes of negotiation as it is practiced in supply chains, (ii) highlight the components of an effective negotiation, and (iii) help students analyze their own behavior in negotiations. The course is largely experiential, providing an opportunity to develop skills by participating in supply chain negotiation exercises and integrating experiences with the principles presented in the assigned readings and class discussions.
SCO 6095 - Supply Chain Management in the Food and Agribusiness Sector
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Periodic Spring
The food and agribusiness supply chain is complex. It spans input companies, farmers, traders, food companies, and retailers. The goal of this supply chain is to provide access to affordable food, feed, fiber, and fuel in a sustainable manner. The course covers topics relevant to achieving this goal such as supply management, production management, and demand management to consumers. Issues such as diversity of production and demand, bulkiness of produce, perishability, seasonality, and complexity of supply chains of food and agricultural products will be addressed.
SCO 6096 - Supply Chain Management in the Health Care and Medical Devices Sector
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Periodic Spring
The motivation for developing this course is the widespread and growing recognition of the need to design and sustain reliable, responsive, resilient, and responsible supply chains to enable the delivery of high quality, high volume, and affordable physical and mental health care equitably in both developed and developing countries.
The course advances an end-to-end, supply chain?centric view of the health care and medical devices sector ? i.e., linking the development of care to the delivery of care: ?from bench to bed.? The course highlights the interdependencies between organizations on the upstream (e.g., medical devices, pharma, and biotech firms) and downstream (e.g., hospitals and clinics) of the healthcare supply chain.
Topics addressed include: managing supply chain risks with rapid growth in adverse events and recalls related to medical devices and drugs; and reducing the disparities in health care delivery in underserved communities around the world. Implications of scientific and technological advancements ? specifically, precision medicine, surgical robots, mobile & wearable devices, telemedicine and IoT (Internet of Technology) ? for designing and sustaining health care supply chains will be a theme that will run through the entire course.
We will closely follow the developments related to COVID-19 pandemic throughout the duration of the course. In every class session, we will make a concerted effort to explore the topic of the session and its relevance to understanding and addressing COVID-19 related issues at the local, state, national and global levels -- e.g., understanding the roles of the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), Center for Disease Control (CDC), Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the World Health Organization (WHO).
SCO 6097 - Supply Chain Management in the Retail Sector
Credits:
2.0
[max 2.0]
Grading Basis:
A-F only
Typically offered:
Periodic Spring
This course reviews how the retail sector has evolved over the years and the significance of supply chain management in the retail sector. The course examines the various functional components of retail supply chain management, and focuses on analysis and metrics required to effectively manage a retail supply chain. The students learn the “language" of retailing and acquire the fundamental skills needed to effectively analyze the performance of retail supply chains. Cases are discussed to illustrate how customers are becoming more exacting and demanding ever-increasing levels of service; and how retailers are responding by increasing product variety, becoming more price competitive, striving towards higher service levels, and utilizing advances in computing capabilities, information technologies, and retail analytics to improve their supply chain efficiency.
