Supply Chain Management Student Frequently Asked Questions

The Minnesota Employment and Economic Development website offers the most up-to-date cost of living calculator. There are many other useful tools online for calculating cost of living in Minneapolis/St. Paul. Note that these are just estimates and cost of living will vary depending on your lifestyle choices and situation.

Graduate students at the University of Minnesota have a variety of housing options, including on-campus and off-campus accommodations. Most of our students choose to pursue housing off-campus. Visit the Housing & Residential Life website to learn more about on-campus graduate student housing. Please note that on-campus graduate student housing is quite a bit more difficult to acquire than off-campus housing.

Yes! This program is specifically designed for working professionals, with courses held in the weekday evenings, select Saturdays, and online. Most if not all students will likely be working full-time while completing this program.

Students admitted to the Master of Science in Supply Chain Management program will receive communications around program orientation and any related workshops or events. No other preparation is necessary. 

While not common among our students, and not something we can guarantee, students (including international) are welcome to reach out to UMN faculty research groups of interest for a possible Research Assistant position. It will depend on the student's interests and capabilities, compared to the needs and capacity of the faculty member's research programs. It is also possible to take elective courses (2 total) in other UMN departments, for guaranteed interaction with faculty outside of the SCO department.

We have also had international students working as Teaching Assistants in the SCO department, and all students do have access to paid work opportunities on campus (outside of the SCO department) to earn money while studying. International students do not need to activate CPT in order to work in student paid positions on the UMN campus.

You can view the Master of Science in Supply Chain Management class profile on our website.

Students in the MS SCM program are welcome to join any of Carlson's clubs and organizations, a full list of which can be found here.

This answer varies and will likely depend on each individual student experience.

• The cohort model is a big component of this and several other graduate programs at the Carlson School. Many students cite this as the best and most rewarding aspect of the program.
• Starting from day one, leadership development is at the core of the program. Leadership sessions are incorporated throughout the yearlong program, empowering students to assess themselves at the start, identify strengths, create a personalized development plan, and measure growth.
• The experiential learning component, in this case through the Global Operations Strategy capstone, is a unique opportunity to gain real-world experience in business analytics and apply the skills you’ve learned throughout the program.
• Lastly, our Carlson Business Career Center (CBCC) has an excellent history with coaching students around career goals, helping students pivot their careers, and providing invaluable support throughout the job search process.