Supply Chain Specialty Moves to 13th in U.S. News Survey

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The U.S. News & World Report’s annual college guide has rated the supply chain management and logistics specialty in the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas in a tie for 13^th place among all undergraduate business schools and in a tie with Indiana University at Bloomington (Kelly) for ninth place among all public universities.

In U.S. News last year, the Walton College supply chain management and logistics specialty was ranked in a tie for 19^th place overall and 14^th among all public universities.

“We are very excited this year to have moved up six places overall and four places among public institutions in the U.S. News & World Report’s rankings of supply chain management and logistics programs,” said Tom Jensen, Wal-Mart Lecturer in Retailing and chair of the Walton College department of marketing and logistics. “It is a great honor and recognition for our faculty who have developed the programs and taught the students - and to our students who have performed in the classroom and on the job. Our academic programs have grown in both quantity and quality over the past few years. We are especially pleased that some of the top 10 programs, for example, Michigan State University, Ohio State University and University of Tennessee, have some of our past doctoral students as faculty in supply chain management and logistics at their institutions.”

Jim Crowell, director of the Walton College Supply Chain Management Research Center, said: “This move up is great news for us as the center has played a role in achieving that ranking. The research center connects us with transportation and logistics organizations in some of the nation’s largest corporations. Its board of directors is comprised of 50 key logistics executives from 25 national and international companies. This support enables us to greatly enhance the quality of our undergraduate and graduate programs in transportation and logistics.”

Jensen added: “Our Supply Chain Management Research Center has also been a big asset in our growth. The center’s board of directors has helped us build improved educational programs for our students and better prepare them for tomorrow’s job market. These relationships have also created research opportunities for our business faculty that in turn benefit the member companies.”

The Supply Chain Management Research Center has cosponsored FedEx Freight International Graduate Logistics Case competition for the past four years, which has enabled Walton College faculty and students to connect with logistics academics from around the world.

Other top-rated universities with supply chain management and logistics specialties include: Michigan State University (Broad), Arizona State University (Carey), Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Sloan); The Ohio State University (Fisher), The Pennsylvania State University (Smeal), Carnegie Mellon University; and University of Maryland, College Park (Smith).