Online Graduate Certificate in Supply Chain Management

The Graduate Certificate in Supply Chain Management is a three-semester (one year), 12 credit online professional development program focused on building  competence across the foundations of supply chain management. In this program, students attain new skill sets to help them manage and enhance the value of today's complex supply chains.

The three-course Certificate program  is offered entirely online, providing students the flexibility of learning from their homes or offices on their own time while forging connections with supply chain peers around the world.  Each course is 13-14 weeks in duration.  The course calendar approximates the University's resident instruction Fall, Spring, and Summer semesters:

In addition to connections formed with peers in each course, students also build relationships with expert supply chain faculty within the Department of Supply Chain and Information Systems. In 2009 and 2011, AMR Research (now Gartner) identified the Department as the top ranked supply chain program in the U.S. in terms of industry value, program depth and program scope. In 2005, the Department was ranked the number one national program by Supply Chain Management Review based upon surveys of both practitioners and academics. In addition, Supply Chain and Information Systems at Penn State is consistently ranked among the top programs by the general business media, such as U.S. News and World Report and Business Week.

The Certificate program courses are also part of the first year of study in the Master of Professional Studies in Supply Chain Management degree program. Students interested in furthering their supply chain education beyond the certificate may apply to the master’s degree program either while taking the certificate courses or after completing the certificate. If accepted to the master’s program, certificate students will receive full credit toward the master's degree credit requirements for all certificate courses they have completed with at least a letter grade of B, provided they enroll in the master’s program within five years of completing the certificate.
Master’s Degree Program Application Requirements

Prerequisites

For admission to the Graduate School, U.S. applicants must have received  a baccalaureate degree from a regionally accredited institution earned under residence and credit conditions substantially equivalent to those required by Penn State (Penn State is accredited by the Middle State Association of Colleges and Schools). International applicants must have a tertiary (postsecondary) degree that is deemed comparable to a four-year U.S. bachelor's degree to apply for admission. This degree must be from an officially recognized degree-granting institution in the country in which it operates

The Certificate program curriculum is designed for working supply chain management professionals. Accordingly, successful applicants will ideally have, before the start of their first semester, at least two years' post baccalaureate work experience in supply chain management or a closely allied field.

To assure a smooth transition to the Certificate program curriculum, prospective students should have Microsoft Office Excel skills, knowledge of business statistics, and an understanding of basic accounting and microeconomic terms and principles. Prospective students who need to develop or improve Microsoft Office Excel skills, business statistics (quantitative methods), and/or financial accounting skills may benefit from the self-paced, individual eLearning courses offered by Harvard Business School Publishing. You can register for any or all four courses, and receive a substantial discount, by doing the following:

1. Turn off all pop-up blockers.
2. Go to Harvard eLearning Courses to register for a course.
3. Click on "Sign up here" link found under New Users.
4. Fill out the required information, including Organization ID 00053166, to be properly associated with your course. You may create a username and password of your choice.
5. Click "Find" to see what's available in your Learning Catalog.
6. Select "Register".
7. Click "Confirm." You will then be prompted for payment.
8. Proceed with payment and click "Complete Registration." Your registration is now complete and your course should appear on your enrollments.

If you experience technical difficulty, please contact Harvard's Technical Support Group via phone at 1-800-810-8858 (outside the U.S. and Canada, 1-617-783-7700) or email at techhelp@hbsp.harvard.edu.  Their business hours are: Monday - Friday, 8am - 8pm ET.

Prospective students may also gain prerequisite skill and knowledge by taking appropriate course work at local colleges or universities or online via Penn State's World Campus.

Application Process and Deadlines

Applicants for the Graduate Certificate in Supply Chain Management should complete and submit all the items listed in the Application Checklist given below. Students applying to the Certificate program must be admitted by both the Certificate program office and the Graduate School at Penn State. The Graduate School will notify the applicant whether or not they meet the Graduate School’s baccalaureate degree requirement (please see Prerequisites above).

Please note however, that acceptance to the Graduate School is not the same as acceptance to the Certificate program. Separate correspondence will be sent from the Certificate program office indicating whether or not an applicant has been accepted to the Certificate program.

For Fall 2014 applicants, the deadline for all application checklist materials (please see below) is June 16, 2014. Application materials received after June 16, 2014 cannot be assured full consideration for fall 2014 admission.

Please note, we have ONE intake every year in the fall semester ONLY.

Application Checklist

• A complete Application for the Certificate in Supply Chain Management (including $65 application fee).
  This application is to be submitted electronically, following the instructions in the application form.
• A short, one to two page resume.
  The resume may be submitted by email to Tami Barnes at tbarnes@psu.edu. Please use the following format for the subject line of the email: “Resume for the Certificate Program – your last name, your first name”. The resume may also be sent by surface mail to the following address: 
  
  Tami Barnes
  Department of Supply Chain & Information Systems
  Smeal College of Business
  489A, Business Building
  University Park, PA 16802
• Two official transcripts for each institution previously attended.
  Official transcripts can be obtained from the university you attended and mailed directly to the above address. We recommend you request to be notified when the transcripts are sent.
• English proficiency: The language of instruction at Penn State is English.
  All international applicants must take and submit scores for the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or the IELTS (International English Language Testing System), with the exceptions noted below.  Please see the information on registering for exams and for reporting scores.
  
  The minimum acceptable score for the TOEFL is 550 for paper-based test, 213 for the computer-based test, or a total score of 80 with a 19 on the speaking section for the Internet-based test (iBT). The minimum composite score for the IELTS is 6.5.
  
  International applicants are exempt from the TOEFL/IELTS requirement who have received a baccalaureate or a master's degree from a college/university/institution in any of the following: Australia, Belize, British Caribbean and British West Indies, Canada (except Quebec), England, Guyana, Republic of Ireland, Liberia, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Scotland, the United States, and Wales.