Industrial Engineering Students' Perceptions of the Logistics and Supply Chain Industry

A shortage of logistics and supply chain talent is a significant and growing problem in the industry. However, little research has been done to study why industrial engineering (IE) students are not entering the field in sufficient numbers. This paper addresses several questions to begin to close that knowledge gap. First, what are undergraduate IE students’ awareness of and interest in the logistics and supply chain industry? Second, what are IE students’ desired job attributes? Finally, are there differences between IE students’ responses to these questions and those of business students that would suggest a need to market to IE students differently? Data is collected from more than 1,500 undergraduate industrial engineering and business students throughout the state of Georgia. Analysis is presented for various demographics, including gender, age, and ethnicity.