Operations Management (OM) is one of the most important components of running a business. OM, in its most basic definition, is the creation of value through converting inputs to outputs. Our program teaches principle functions as they relate to managing people, processes and efficiencies.

All organizations perform three core functions, not just for production, but for an organization’s survival. These are:

• Marketing – which creates demand
• Operations / Production– which creates the product or service
• Finance – which tracks the health of the organization and keeps the lights on.

OM is one of the three main functions of an organization and is integral to all other business functions. Central topics are determining what goods and services to offer, quality management, designing processes and facilities to effectively create products, how to manage a workforce, supply chain management, inventory management, scheduling and building reliability into processes.

MSOM graduates work as Project Managers, Operations Managers, Supply Chain Managers, Operations Researchers, Purchasing or Materials Managers, and so much more! Many of our students already work full-time and report gaining a promotion in their current career or obtaining a new job as a result of this degree. The great thing about this degree is the flexibility that allows you to tailor elective courses to fit your own personal career goals.

Online courses are conducted in Blackboard, the University's online learning platform, and include video lectures, group projects, discussion boards, quizzes, etc. Most courses will also include a midterm exam and a final exam, and all online exams are proctored using ProctorU. Courses are offered in eight-week sessions offered five times a year. Live courses are also available on our Fayetteville campus and remote locations.

Graduate students can transfer up to six graduate credit hours to the MSOM program (two classes). In order to transfer, the courses would have to be an exact match in that they covered the exact same material learning objectives as the course you are requesting transfer credit for. Refer to the Course Descriptions page and Transfer Credit Requirements for more information.

There are 4 prerequisite courses required for the MSOM program:

• OMGT 4313 – Law & Ethics
• OMGT 4323 – Industrial Cost Analysis
• OMGT 4333 – Applied Statistics
• OMGT 4853 – Intro to Decision Support Tools

When you apply to the program, the department will review your undergraduate coursework to see if you’ve already taken a class that would count for one of the prerequisite courses. You will be notified of the prerequisite required for you at the time of your admission. For example, if you took a Business Law course as an undergraduate, your OMGT 4313 prerequisite would likely be waived and your admission letter would not list it as a requirement.

If you are a University of Arkansas Undergraduate or Graduate student not currently pursuing the MSOM degree and you would like to enroll in an OMGT class, please email Lisa Milligan at lmilliga@uark.edu.

The cost for one 3-credit-hour class would be:

$1061.64 ($303.88 per credit hour tuition + the $150 online course fee) – price does not include textbooks.

The entire cost of the ten graduate classes required for our program (tuition and fees) would be $10,616.40. This price does not include textbook costs or the cost for the prerequisite courses. The cost of 14 classes would be $14,862.96. If you are admitted and take 4 prerequisites, this would be the number you might expect to pay for tuition and fees.

• To be admitted, you must have a conferred bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited institution (any major) with a 2.5 GPA or higher (either cumulative GPA or the last 60 credit hours).
• You do NOT need to have the prerequisite courses completed to be admitted, but you must complete them early in the program.

Refer to our Application Process page for complete information.

Refer to the Application Process page.

After you decide in what term you would like to begin classes, submit your online application. The Graduate School must have a prospective student's entire application package, including official transcripts and GRE/GMAT scores (if needed) by the application deadline. Refer to the Application Process page for deadlines. If you are in the last semester of your undergraduate degree, you can apply and be accepted to the MSOM program. You will need to submit a final transcript after you graduate, showing that your undergraduate degree was conferred in order to move forward in the program.

The address for submitting transcripts can be found in the Application Process page. Electronically submitted transcripts are preferred. These can be sent to gradinfo@uark.edu. If you are a recent University of Arkansas, Fayetteville graduate, you will not be required to send in transcripts.

After fulfilling the prerequisites, the MSOM program can be completed in about one calendar year (5 sessions), but you have up to six years to complete the degree. After finishing the prerequisites, if you take two graduate classes each session, you’ll finish in one year. If you take one graduate class each session, you would finish in two years.

If you are only enrolled in one class, you must complete the official withdrawal instead of dropping a class. Refer to the UAConnect Site for official withdrawal instructions.

If you do not take classes for an entire fall or spring semester, you will need to reapply for admission to the graduate school.

These functions are all done in UAConnect. Visit the student help portal for instructions.

If you have any questions regarding enrollment changes and how your financial aid could be affected, please contact the Financial Aid Office at 479-575-3806. It is the student's responsibility to know the rules regarding enrollment and financial aid. Undergraduate prerequisite courses may not count toward graduate enrollment for financial aid.

Registering for the comprehensive exam requires you to first apply for the exam, upload your exam materials through Blackboard (video & PowerPoint), then schedule your exam after the department has accepted your submission. Exam dates are given on a first come, first served basis. Exam dates are open for one semester at a time. Visit the Comprehensive Examination page for more information.

Visit the Comprehensive Examination page for resources to help you prepare for the examination. We have created an informative video, handouts, and sample PowerPoint presentation (available through Blackboard) to assist you.

Refer to the Registrar's Applying to Graduate page for instructions.

You should apply for graduation as soon as you know when you plan to graduate. Commencement ceremonies are held in the fall and spring semesters. Summer graduates will participate in the December commencement ceremony. Email your advisor if you have questions.

• Spring Graduation Application Deadline: March 1st
• Summer Graduation Application Deadline: July 1st
• Fall Graduation Application Deadline: October 1st

Yes - students can participate in Commencement if they will complete the last course in the following term.

Yes - visit the Registrar's Commencement page for details.

Contact your instructor immediately. Be sure to let your instructor and/or advisor know if there are problems.

Click the hold to view what’s needed to remove it, and contact your advisor if you have questions.

Refer to the Departmental Directory.

Required textbooks are listed on the Textbooks page.

Yes. Refer to the Textbook page.

Yes. Textbooks must be in-hand by the student on the first day of class. When ordering textbooks online, allow time for delivery well in advance of the start date. Independent sellers may not guarantee on-time delivery, and remaining without a textbook in accelerated classes for even a few days can cause students to fall significantly behind in their coursework.

No. These editions are not supported by the instructors. These books usually exclude sections, chapters and chapter problems. You must order the correct textbook with the exact ISBN. See the Textbooks page for more details.

Yes. Any reasonably modern computer (made in the past three years) running Windows or Mac OS X, with a camera and broadband Internet connection should be sufficient for coursework. We recommend:

• Modern PC or Mac with a minimum 2.0GHz Intel Core processor
• Windows 10 or Mac OS X 10.11 (or higher)
• 8 GB RAM
• 250 GB Hard Disk
• Camera and Headphones

Additionally, you will need Microsoft Office 365 / Office Professional 2016. We recommend Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox or Safari for web browsers.

ProctorU is used for test proctoring. Review the requirements on the ProctorU Equipment Requirements page and to test your equipment.

Go to elms.engr.uark.edu and login with your UARK login credentials.

• Click "Software" in the middle menu bar
• Click "Project Professional 2016"
• Click "View Key" and copy the key to your clipboard
• Click "Download" to download Project to your PC.
• Open the downloaded file and run "setup"

• Use Citrix to connect to an engineering lab on campus - Watch the video
• Use the UARK virtual desktop remote software - More information

Further assistance is available from University IT Services at 479-575-2905

Refer to the Course Schedule page for classes offered this academic year.