Last year, the Neeley School of Business at Texas Christian University added a Master of Science in Supply Chain Management program at the request of several of the school’s sponsoring organizations. The combined evening and online program is designed to help professionals earn a first-class specialized graduate degree in supply chain management without leaving their careers. “We found that a lot of students working on their MBA at Neeley were focusing on supply chain, so we saw a demand for a deeper dive beyond more than just three to four courses as part of their MBA studies,” said Ann Bluntzer, director of specialized graduate programs at the Neeley School of Business. The 30-hour program can be completed in either a year or two years, she said, depending on how the students structure their time.
“The Masters of Science degree is a little bit of a different animal,” said Morgan Swink, executive director of the Supply and Value Chain Center at the Neeley School. “It’s aimed at working professionals already in a supply chain job or anticipating moving into that job. The average work experience is about 10 years. There are a lot of people in jobs like accounting or health care, a lot of supply chain professionals are in jobs and never had a class on supply chain management and they need some credentialed training and help their advancement to put that degree by their name.” Swink said TCU’s supply chain school is big on offering a global perspective and that’s no different in the new program. “There is a global trip required for the class,” he said. “This year, the first year students are going to Singapore, Vietnam and Hong Kong.” www.neeley.tcu.edu
– Robert Francis
rfrancis@bizpress.net