Gartner Inc. announced this month that the supply chain management program (SCM) at the Martin J. Whitman School of Management is one of the top 20 in the country, granting a #17 ranking to the graduate program and a #20 ranking to the undergraduate program.
Gartner’s biennial North American Supply Chain University Program Survey evaluates the curricula, experiential content and public reputations of accredited, campus-based supply chain programs in the U.S. and Canada. Fifty-one institutions participated in the undergraduate report, “Survey Analysis: Top 25 North American Supply Chain Undergraduate University Programs, 2016” and 44 took part in the graduate report, “Survey Analysis: Top 25 North American Supply Chain Graduate University Programs, 2016,” which according to Gartner are intended to support corporate recruiting efforts in the SCM discipline.
The Whitman School is home to the nation’s first SCM program. A specialization in traffic and transportation was first offered in 1919, when the School of Management was founded. Currently, the SCM program offers rigorous Ph.D., M.B.A., M.S. and B.S. degrees, as well as executive education. Whitman’s award-winning SCM faculty is renowned for teaching, research and outreach partnerships.
“While classroom instruction is the foundation of our SCM program, experiential learning is where skills are enhanced and even tested,” says Burak Kazaz, Steven R. Becker Professor of Supply Chain Management. “Students have an abundance of opportunities to listen, learn and engage through internships, competitions, corporate visits, projects prepared for corporate partners, seminars and networking events.”
In addition, Whitman offers and supports a number of student groups and organizations that provide opportunities for learning, engagement and networking. Among those is the Council for Supply Chain Management Professionals Syracuse University Roundtable. Through various field trips and guest speakers, the club provides the opportunity to see supply chain management in action as well as learn more about current events and issues affecting the field.
The Whitman School houses several centers dedicated to advancements and excellence in SCM. The H.H. Franklin Center for Supply Chain Management and its advisory board brings together Whitman students, faculty, alumni and active supply chain professionals to share research and advancements in the industry. The Robert H. Brethen Operations Management Institute supports Whitman students and faculty with funding for scholarships and research. The Brethen Institute also supports Syracuse University’s chapter of APICS, an international professional society representing manufacturing, service and resource management professionals, providing students and professionals with varied networking opportunities. Whitman supports students in their pursuit of APICS certification to further bolster their marketability.
“Major corporations, such as Amazon, BAE, BASF, IBM and Pratt & Whitney, look to Whitman for their company’s future supply chain leaders,” says Professor Kazaz.
