Project-Based learning shifts the classroom into the real world

Historically, there are a couple of historical paths forward for supply chain leaders. Some entered the workforce and through hard work, advanced up the leadership chain. Others may have graduated college, maybe even obtain a master’s degree, and started their careers in management, shortening that career trajectory.

However, the college route may not have traditionally included practical experience. That real-world component of learning, though, is gaining traction at many institutions. One of those is Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI). The school’s history in offering project-based learning goes back nearly 50 years, but like others, it is incorporating the teaching philosophy into its supply chain curriculum.

According to Joseph Sarkis, professor of management in The Business School at WPI, the incorporation of project-based learning into its graduate program is an extension of WPI’s history in the technique. Every undergraduate the university must complete two project-based courses. At the undergraduate level, one of those courses must be in the student’s discipline while the other must be a cross-discipline course. In the Master’s in Operations and Supply Chain Analytics program, the class is called Supply Chain Project Consulting class. It serves as the capstone to the master’s program.

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