Responding to the demand for specialized degrees in supply chain engineering, the Georgia Institute of Technology plans to offer a one-year graduate program in the field starting August 2011.

While the school offers a number of degree programs related to logistics and has the Supply Chain & Logistics Institute which supports research and education in designing logistical processes, there was a need for a specific engineering program, said Harvey Donaldson, associate chair of industry and international programs at Georgia Tech’s H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering, or ISyE.

“There is an international market for young people to study supply chain engineering,” Mr. Donaldson told GlobalAtlanta in a phone interview on the demand for these engineers around the world.

He added that while many supply chain programs prepare students for more managerial positions, this program would focus on more specific aspects of logistics such as designing and engineering supply chain networks to move goods.

Mr. Donaldson said that supply chain engineers must be prepared for the increasing complexity of networks that move supplies and materials not only around the country but around the world. He added that the field is becoming more complex as information systems and data are moved around the globe, instead of only physical goods.

In order to prepare students for these challenges, the course work will offer lectures from supply chain experts and professionals and will offer students the opportunity to work with different companies to apply and test their academic knowledge.

The master of science in supply chain engineering is set to have 40 to 50 students in the first year taught by faculty members from ISyE, including Donald Ratliff, executive director of the Supply Chain & Logistics Institute and co-founder of CAP Logistics which specializes in supply chain logistics and develops software to make the process more efficient.

While the program is unique, said Mr. Donaldson, there are a few similar programs in schools throughout the country including Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Ohio State University.

For more information on the Georgia Tech degree, visit http://www.scl.gatech.edu.

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