MBA Vs MSc in Supply Chain management
15 Feb 16
The hidden jewel – Supply Chain Management
In a recent independent survey done by Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC) with alumni of various graduate business schools, the results were an eye opener. Our Master’s in Supply Chain Management (MSCM) program comfortably outperformed MBA programs. We compared the quantitative results between the 10-month MSCM offered by Malaysia Institute for Supply Chain Innovation (MISI) and 2-year MBA programs offered by business schools around Asia.
The study reveals 96% of former students of MSCM program at MISI strongly agree or agree that this program was financially rewarding while only 71% of former students of MBA programs strongly agree or agree for the same question. This could be due to the shortage of supply chain talent in the market. A study by University of Tennessee (U.S.A) shows that 90% of CEOs interviewed, believe they should do more to attract supply chain talent. Another study by Penn State University shows that demand for supply chain professionals exceeds supply by a ratio of 6 to 1. The U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics forecasted that between 2010 and 2020, the number of available jobs in supply chain would grow by 26%, an average growth that is nearly twice as fast as 14% of all occupations.
The GMAC study further reveals that looking back, MSCM alumni are happy that they chose this field of study. 95% of MISI alumni strongly agree or agree that the program increased their earning capacity while only 74% of alumni from MBA programs felt similarly.
86% of MISI alumni strongly agree or agree that their job satisfaction has improved after completing the MSCM program in contrast to only 65% of MBA program alumni having increased job satisfaction. More than 80% of supply chain alumni compared to 69% of MBA alumni found that the overall value of this program was ‘Excellent or Outstanding’.
The results from this study reinforce our internal surveys. For the past three years, MISI has produced graduates who go through rigorous and practical training in applying mathematics and statistical techniques in optimizing ever more complex supply chain networks in addition to learning leadership and organizational management skills. Such expertise is rare in the industry and not many programs are able to produce graduates with these skills.
MISI is part of the MIT Global SCALE network, the top ranked graduate program in Supply Chain Management in the world.