Your Education as a Minnesota Supply Chain Manager

A logistician or supply chain manager (SCM) oversees the pathways of products from start to finish, from supplier to consumer. This process of a product’s lifetime is called the supply chain. A SCM might be involved in the coordination of product design, production, marketing and sales. Some logisticians specialize in just one part of the supply chain, requiring special education and experience.

Logisticians need people skills. You need to have excellent communication skills to become a logistician, as an important part of the job is establishing relationships with company administrative staff. You also need to be a good listener, so you can understand the needs of your clients and offer services that meet those needs.

SCMs typically work in an office setting, but they might visit on-site locations where production or sales occur. Their workload can be quite demanding, requiring 40 or more hours of work per week. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 25 percent of logisticians work in the manufacturing industry, while 20 percent work for the federal government and 17 percent work with professional, scientific and technical services.

Get Started with a Bachelor’s Degree

At minimum, you should receive your bachelor’s degree in supply chain management or a related business field so that you can compete in the job market. School options for Minnesota supply chain bachelor’s degrees include:

Minnesota State University, Moorhead. This school’s Global Supply Chain Management major focuses on industry, education and the application of skills. The curriculum includes a Microsoft Dynamics Customer Relationship Management (CRM) Certificate, Lean-Quality Management Certificate and The Dale Carnegie Class. Internships are also available to students.
University of Minnesota. The Carlson School of Business at U of M offers a Supply Chain and Operations Management major. The degree focuses on both organizational and inter-organizational points of view. Students are also able to take one semester abroad.

Getting Your Master’s Degree in SCM

If you’re already working in supply chain management and want to advance your bachelor’s degree to something more, a master’s degree might be the next step for you. Check out these master’s degree programs in supply chain management that are available to Minnesota students:

University of Minnesota, Carlson School of Business. The Master of Science in Supply Chain Managementat U of M is a rigorous one-year program. Each class is a cohort that works together from the start of the program to the finish. Requirements for admission include a bachelor’s degree from an accredited school, a minimum of three years’ experience on the job and a GMAT or GRE score.
Rutgers University (Online). With few on-campus master’s degree options available, Minnesota students might want to turn to an online program like this one. Tuition is currently less than $19,000 per year, and the SCM degree can be completed 100 percent online. There are 30 credit hours or 10 courses to be completed. Rutgers prides itself on diversity and offers its students access to Rutgers Business School career development resources.

Alternate Training Options in Logistics

When you’re not yet sure if a career in logistics is right for you, or if you want to get started in the field quickly, you might consider earning just an associate’s degree or certificate in SCM. These schools have you covered:

Saint Paul College. Earn a certificate or an Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree in Supply Chain Management. The certificate is transferrable to the degree as credit. While the certificate option is not meant to help students gain entry-level work, it can be viewed as an add-on to the associate’s degree, showing further experience to employers. Classes are available online, in-person and hybrid.
Rasmussen College. Rasmussen’s online program in Supply Chain and Logistics Management is a bachelor’s degree completion program to be taken after earning an associate’s degree in a similar field. The 18-month program prepares students to take the APICS CSCP exam. Rasmussen is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission (HLC).

Is Certification Required for Logisticians?

In many cases, certification in supply chain management isn’t required. However, when employers do seek employees with certification, it’s usually issued by APICS, the national organization that oversees SCM. Logisticians can earn four different credentials from APICS, all of which can be earned through testing.

APICS will soon become the Association for Supply Chain Management (ACSM), which will take over future national certification of SCMs.

Minnesota Income and Job Projections

Minnesota logisticians made slightly less than the national median logistician income in 2017, with a median income of $33.49 per hour reported in Minnesota, compared to the national median of $35.86 per hour. By the year 2026, the Projections Managing Partnership predicts a 9.6 percent growth rate in Minnesota logistician employment compared to the national predicted growth rate of 7 percent.

Working as a Logistician in Minnesota

The highest number of logisticians by far worked in the Minneapolis-St. Paul (Twin Cities) area in 2017. In this area, they made a median income of $33.98 per hour. According to the BLS, the employment rate per 1,000 jobs was also highest in the Twin Cities.

The highest paid logisticians in the state, however, worked in the southwest Minnesota nonmetropolitan area, making a median salary of $34.95 per hour, or $72,700 annually.

No matter where you live, this career field is experiencing standard job growth across the country and paying well above minimum wage. If you’re looking for a direction to steer your business career, start checking out bachelor’s degree options in supply chain management.