UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Sungjin Ryu, a graduate student pursuing a master of supply chain management, was awarded the Professional Master’s Excellence Award for his culminating experience in supply chain management.
The Professional Master’s Excellence Award recognizes individual student excellence within any graduate program based on the student’s breadth of experience, performance and professional projects or work.
Ryu was acknowledged for his academic performance and a project, which involved the development of a supply chain system for electric automotive materials and batteries.
“When you look at the automotive industry, the era of the electric vehicle is coming up faster than we expected,” Ryu said. “The demand for the base materials for developing these vehicles is skyrocketing.”
Ryu was able to develop this project as a sales and supply chain manager at POSCO America, a South Korean-based steel manufacturer.
While working for POSCO America, Ryu recognized the importance of supply chain management after the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. While he had some supply chain knowledge from his job, Ryu wanted to pursue a supply chain graduate degree to further develop his abilities.
“I learned my work by experience, but I assumed there were a lot of moves I could improve by applying the academic knowledge to my practical work,” Ryu said.
After learning about Penn State’s online professional graduate programs, Ryu enrolled in Smeal’s Master of Supply Chain Management program through Penn State World Campus.
“It was highly ranked, and Penn State has a really great alumni network that helps each other,” Ryu said.
Through his studies, Ryu said he has been able to share his practical work experience with his classmates through case studies and discussion forums, while also learning from other students’ experiences.
“My experience has helped me better understand what I was learning in class,” Ryu said.
David Huff, clinical professor of supply chain management and faculty director of the Master of Supply Chain Management program, was highly impressed with Ryu’s experience during his time in Huff’s Operations Management and Demand Fulfillment course.
“He was one of the very top students in the class,” Huff said. “A lot of that came through the work that he submitted, especially for our discussion forums and reflection papers.”
Huff said one of the highlights of the Master of Supply Chain Management program is the “vast experience” that people have coming into the program.
“Students get together in teams and discussion forums and talk about different concepts and principles, in which they share through the language of their experience,” Huff said. “Sungjin consistently made high-quality posts that attracted the attention of others.”
After receiving the award, Ryu said it was a great honor.
“As an international student, it gave me a lot of confidence to work in the United States,” Ryu said. “I [believe I] can contribute to the automotive industry in the United States.”
Huff said he was impressed by Ryu’s experience and work inside and outside of the program.
“He’s had a very successful career,” Huff said. “His deep experience makes his contributions worth noting for the younger students that are early in their careers.”
As he has continued his graduate studies, Ryu has explored ways to improve POSCO America’s supply chain management system.
With two more courses to complete until graduation, Ryu said he is “excited to explore the next adventure” as he looks to specialize in his career in supply chain management.