N.C. A&T Supply Chain Management Programs Earn First National Ranking

EAST GREENSBORO, N.C. (July 28, 2020) – The supply chain programs in the Willie A. Deese College of Business and Economics at North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University have achieved their first national rankings.

Leading global research firm Gartner placed N.C. A&T’s MBA with supply chain management concentration at No. 19 and its B.S. in supply chain management at No. 21 on its Top 25 for 2020 lists. The rankings reflect excellence in industry value, program scope and program size.

A&T is the only public historically Black college or university on either list. While it joins N.C. State on the MBA list, it is the only North Carolina institution on the undergraduate list.

“This first-ever ranking recognizes the extraordinary work and excellence of our faculty, staff, students and alumni,” said Joseph R. Huscroft Jr., Ph.D., chair of the Department of Marketing and Supply Chain Management and associate professor of supply chain management. “This recognition directly helps our students as they look for internships and full-time placements to start their careers.”

The Deese College offers a B.S. degree in supply chain management which boasts 100% placement for students with employers within 90 days of graduation, with most receiving multiple employment offers before graduation.

The MBA with supply chain management concentration provides graduates with the state-of-the-art knowledge they need to design, manage, analyze and update entire supply chain systems or various components within them. It is designed for professionals in transportation, logistics, manufacturing, insurance, food processing, hospitality, retailing, and government regulatory and transportation agencies.

“This recognition by Gartner is a direct result of our corporate partners investing in our supply chain management students,” said Huscroft. “We are fortunate to be surrounded by professionals who provide our students with mentorship, experiences and professional development opportunities that equip them for successful careers in supply chain management.”

“The increasingly global economy, where the components of a finished product may be manufactured in one part of the world and assembled in another, has created a huge demand for supply chain management operations and strategy expertise in nearly every industry,” said Eric M. Gladney, Ph.D., Deese College assistant dean and MBA program director. “Our undergraduate and MBA students are ready to fill that demand.”

Gartner releases its top 25 lists of supply chain management programs every two years. For its 2020 lists, it analyzed 67 universities in the U.S. and Canada, including 35 MBA programs and 59 undergraduate programs, using corporate input and programmatic results.

To participate, universities must offer a four-year undergraduate degree, MBA with supply chain concentration or M.S. in supply chain management, all including “supply chain” in the degree; an on-campus or hybrid of on-campus and online model; have one completed year of data to share for each program; and be willing to complete a large, detailed request for information.

“Greensboro and the Triad region have become a growth spot in the industry with several superb supply chain companies located in the region,” said Huscroft. “It’s critical that we continue to do our part to add to that excellence.”