Master's Degree Programme
| About the programme Language: English (See language requirements) | Place of study: Aarhus | Commencement: August / September (no winter intake) |
By joining the Operations and Supply Chain Analytics (OSCA) programme, you will learn how to address complex problems and make more effective decisions based on data, more completed consideration of available options, and careful predictions of outcomes and estimates of risk within the field of Operations and Supply Chain Management (OSCM).
OSCM is about planning and controlling the activities of a company as well as coordination between companies, in order to secure that the right product is delivered in the right quantities, to the right customer, at the right time, and at the right price. OSCM is one of most critical factors in the long-term success of a business. The OSCM decisions involve sourcing, materials management, and operations planning, distribution and logistics planning, sales and demand forecasting, and order fulfillment, etc. A business with an efficient and effective operations and supply chain may significantly reduce all of the operating expenses, which contributes to a greater profit. Analytics helps realise business objectives by analysing data to create predictive models for forecasting and optimising business processes for enhanced performance. The successful applications of OSCA drive business innovation and help companies to stay competitive in real businesses.
The OSCA programme aims at providing you with theoretical foundation, quantitative and analytical skills, and hand-on experience to challenge and solve the sophisticated OSCM problems. As an Operations and Supply Chain Analyst, you need insight into digital tools for analytics to be able to handle and transform diverse pieces of information and data, and then model and solve problems.
The programme provides you with an in-depth knowledge about:
The programme prepares you for managerial and consulting roles within the OSCM and provides you with analytical skills that enable you to appraise, systematically structure, and analyse the possible solutions to complex problems in operations and supply chains, so that right decisions can be made. The teaching format of the programme encourages student participation. An internship and Master’s thesis will provide you with self-management and communication skills.
Operations managers and supply chain managers with analytical skills remain the most in-demand jobs for both profitable and non-profitable organisations. As one of the most important business functions, OSCM also naturally creates rich opportunities for a student job, internship, Master’s thesis, and future career.
In this section you can learn more about the admission requirements relevant to the master's degree programme in Operations and Supply Chain Analytics. Depending on your educational background and your qualifications, there are different ways to meet the admission requirements:
This section is relevant for you, if you have:
The two sections listed below are relevant only for students with a bachelor's degree from a Danish institution:
Below you will also be able to learn more about language requirements and find out whether or not this master's degree programme has a limited intake.
If you have an international educational background, you must meet both the general admission requirement and the specific admission requirements:
You must have a bachelor's degree or equivalent that is comparable to a Danish bachelor's degree in both level and duration (180 ECTS).
For more information about how your bachelor's degree is assessed, please see the national database.
If you meet the general admission requirement, the university will continue on to assess whether or not you meet the specific admission requirements.
You can be admitted to the master's programme if the university assesses that your education has a level, scope, and content that corresponds to the academic requirements specified below.
| Subject area | Number of ECTS |
Methods The following subject areas must be covered:
| 15 |
| Marketing | 7,5 |
Finance | 7,5 |
| Accounting | 7,5 |
| Organisation and leadership theory | 7,5 |
| Microeconomics | 5 |
| Operations management | 5 |
| Additional ECTS points within the abovementioned areas | 25 |
| Bachelor’s project | 10 |
| Total | 90 |
| Applicants with a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Commercial Law (HA (jur.)) with commencement of study September 2014 or later from Aarhus University must have passed a total of 10 ECTS within the business economics subjects below: |
|
Certain Professional Bachelor's degrees or similar covering specific subject areas from other Danish institutions have been determined to fullfill the admission requirements to this master's degree programme:
| Required subject areas – Professional Bachelor’s degree in Financial Management and Service from Business Academy Aarhus |
Industry specialisation in Accounting (“Programme specialisation subject A – external accounts” and “Study programme subject B – strategic accounting”) With the following electives:
|
Industry specialisation in Finansielle forretninger (this industry specialisation is only offered in Danish) With the following electives:
|
| Required subject areas - AP degree in Marketing Management in combination with a Professional Bachelor’s degree in International Sales and Marketing from Business Academy Aarhus | Number of ECTS |
| BSS module (including Methods 5 ECTS, Finance 5 ECTS, and Operations Management 5 ECTS) |
For applicants who hold one of the abovementioned professional bachelor's degrees from another business academy, it will be assessed whether the electives correspond to abovementioned electives.
For applicants who hold another professional bachelor's degree, the degree will be assessed according to the requirements described in the section “International and other qualifications”.
We cannot assess in advance whether your specific degree will meet the above requirements. Therefore, we recommend that you apply for the programme if you believe that you meet the academic requirements. In this regard, it is a good idea to compare your degree with the programmes that provide direct admission.
The following Bachelor's degree programme(s) from Aarhus University entitles you to an offer of admission to the Master's degree programme in Operations and Supply Chain Analytics:
Bachelor's degree programme in Economics and Business Administration (HA)
Please note that you must apply for admission to the Master's degree programme within three years of completing your Bachelor's degree programme.
Learn more about Legal right of admission.
Certain Bachelor's degree programmes from Aarhus University and various other Danish Universities have been determined to meet the admission requirements to this Master's degree programme in Operations and Supply Chain Analytics:
* With a diploma older than 2010, your Bachelor’s degree will be assessed according to the specific admission requirements described under the section: “International and other qualifications”.
You must fill in this appendix and upload it to the application portal. The appendix helps the Admission Board to assess your application.
Download appendix
This master's degree programme has a limited intake.
Because of the limited intake all qualified applicants will be prioritised according to a set of selection critieria (see below).
Meeting the admission requirements does not automatically ensure your offer of admission. Only if you have a specific bachelor's degree from Aarhus University with a so-called 'legal right of admission' will you be guarenteed an offer of admission to this master's degree programme.
If there are more qualified applicants than available student places, the selection will be based on the following criteria (each criterion counts for 1/3):
Grades from the qualifying degree
Grades achieved in relevant subject fields:
Operations management
Methods
Please note that grades achieved after the application deadline are not included in the grade point average (GPA).
Relevant subject fields (measured in ECTS). In this assessment, ECTS credits that are a part of the admission requirements described under “International and other qualifications” are not included *.
Operations management
Methods
* The relevant subject fields are evaluated based on the following point system: 1 point per additional ECTS within the relevant field. You can earn a maximum of 15 points in this criterion. Example: If you have 10 ECTS in a relevant field where the requirement is 7.5 ECTS, you will receive 2.5 points .
In order to be admitted to this programme you must meet the university's english language requirements.
Students with bachelor's degree from Aarhus University with a so-called 'Legal right of admission' are exempt from the English language requirement.
Unfortunately, Aarhus University is not able to assess your qualifications beforehand. In order for your qualifications to be assessed you must apply for admission. To learn more, please go to Assessment of your qualifications.
Below is an outline of the course:
The study programme consists of two semesters in the first year which cover the compulsory courses in the programme specialisation and two semesters in the last year which are reserved for the student's own specialisation.
In the first semester you follow the prerequisite courses that form the methodological and academic basis for the further study programme.
In the second semester you follow the specialisation courses of the programme.
In the third semester you can choose elective courses within your areas of interest. The courses can either be taken at Aarhus BSS during the semester, at the Summer University or at one of our more than 300 partner universities abroad. You can also participate in project-based internship programmes either in Denmark or abroad.
The fourth semester is devoted to the final thesis. You may choose the topic of the thesis freely and so get a chance to concentrate on and specialise in a specific field of interest. The thesis may be written in collaboration with another student or it may be the result of your individual effort.
Contact Sune Lauth Gadegaard (sgadegaard@econ.au.dk) if you have questions about the track or the individual courses.
AARHUS BSS
Aarhus BSS (School of Business and Social Sciences) is one of Aarhus University’s four faculties. With approximately 13,000 full-time students, several thousand part-time students, more than two hundred PhD students and nearly six hundred faculty members, Aarhus BSS ranks among the largest business schools in Europe and is Denmark’s biggest business and social sciences unit at university level. Building on its broad academic base, it encompasses both traditional business and social science disciplines. Aarhus BSS holds the distinguished AACSB, AMBA and EQUIS accreditations and is thus a triple-crown business school.
LEARNING IN AN INTERNATIONAL CONTEXT
At Aarhus BSS, we conduct research and teaching at the highest academic level. We are dedicated to imparting to our students exactly the knowledge, skills, and experience that are in demand – the skills that are essential for engaging in professional business activities in a global marketplace.
Our broad scope enables us to attract researchers, lecturers, and students from all over the world. With their help, we have built an international environment in which academic and cultural views are exchanged, experiences gathered, and friendships formed.
Our students are encouraged to take a semester abroad at one of Aarhus BSS’s approximately three hundred partner universities around the world. Studying abroad is an excellent opportunity for you to expand your horizon academically, culturally and personally, and for you to acquire valuable international experience and qualifications that are in high demand in companies and organisations everywhere.
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This programme is modified from our previous MSc. in Logistics and Supply Chain Management. The graduates from the previous programme are working for many Danish and International companies. Our alumni appreciate the focus of the programme on both strategic OSCM and various analytical tools.
"The programme gave me the necessary theoretical knowledge to advice companies how to improve their Supply Chain Planning. Being introduced to the analytical tools made it possible for me to get a relevant student job and contribute to the real company. The quantitative and qualitative methods are well balanced, and the skills could be put into practice from day 1 in my first real job."
Mike Weisbjerg, Partner, Implement Consulting Group. 2015 Graduate
“I can talk both as a former student and as an employer of current and previous students, and I believe the OSCA programme gives the students a terrific foundation for their initial steps of their professional carrier. It is the pragmatic thinking of Operations and Supply Chains that benefits the students the most. It seems to be easier for the students to comprehend workflows and processes, which is, massively, important regardless of the carrier is being in Supply Chain, Management Consulting or Commercial Departments. That mixed with the skills and knowledge of Visual Basic, R, or other computing methods really gives the full package for the employers, when considering new bright talents.”
Carl Martin Munkholm, Supply Chain Manager, Salling Group, 2017 Graduate
"The programme helped me to build a deep end-to-end understanding on supply chain, meanwhile, to be equipped with analytical mindset and a variety of handful tools. Joining the programme will give you the opportunity to influence and design supply chains under the future challenges: pandemic, sustainability, digitisation, etc."
Li Ma, Senior manager in Sales and Operations Planning, Lego, 2013 Graduate
The chart shows the five most common types of work for graduates 1-2 years after finishing their degree. The data is derived from a survey made by Epinion for the Ministry of Higher Education and Science and Aarhus University in 2020.
In the OSCA programme, you will be equipped with the necessary concepts, methods, and tools to support the decision-making processes. The specialisation in OSCA continues to focus on giving you applicable quantitative analysis and data-driven decision-making skills and competencies to establish a career within the field of OSCM.
With the digitalisation of supply chains and arrival of big data era, the job market for students in Operations and Supply Chain Analysis is fast growing. You may start under the supervision of experienced colleagues and rapidly progress to managerial and executive roles.
The first jobs our students often get after graduation are, for instance:
Later, they move to more strategic roles as:
With the background of OSCM, it provides a good opportunity to reach the executive jobs:
In general, AU’s holistic, analytical approach to OSCM allows our graduates to be versatile in their future careers and to find success across a variety of business sectors.
In addition, the student union, SULO, organises a variety of events to help you establish a network. SULO provides you a network for both your study and future career development within the field of OSCM. The alumni frequently share the job and relevant event information in the network.
We want to help our students find successful careers. Students can always contact our Career Services at AU for advice and assistance with getting onto the Danish labour market.
