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Studies & Degrees in Logistics Management

Logistics management is the planning and control of how goods, and the information that travels with them, move from suppliers to customers. It covers purchasing, transport, warehousing, inventory and distribution, and it is closely tied to supply chain management, which looks at the whole chain of companies behind a product. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics describes logisticians as the people who analyse and coordinate an organisation's supply chain, the system that moves a product from supplier to consumer, across the product's entire life cycle from design to disposal.

Students learn how transport modes and contracts work, how to plan stock and run a warehouse, how to buy and negotiate with suppliers, and how to use data and software to plan routes and forecast demand. Programmes are usually taught in business schools, so accounting, economics and management are part of the course. International trade, customs and a working level of English matter in most jobs.

Qualifications and levels

  • Vocational training. In Spain, the Técnico Superior en Transporte y Logística is a higher vocational qualification (grado superior) of 2,000 hours in the Comercio y Marketing family. It prepares students to plan, organise, manage and sell transport and logistics services.
  • Bachelor's degree. Official bachelor's degrees (grados) in Spain have 240 ECTS credits. The Grado en Transporte y Logística of the Universidad Camilo José Cela (UCJC) is an official four-year, 240 ECTS programme taught in Spanish on campus in Madrid, with 16 ECTS of external work placements. In Argentina, the Licenciatura en Logística of the Universidad Nacional de Tres de Febrero (UNTREF) lasts four years and has 168 credits; students receive the intermediate diploma of Técnico en Logística after 108 credits. In the United States logistics is often a specialisation inside a business degree, as at the Fisher College of Business of The Ohio State University.
  • Master's degree. Official master's degrees in Spain have 60, 90 or 120 ECTS credits. The Máster universitario en Dirección Logística of the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) is an official 60 ECTS degree, taught fully online in Spanish or Catalan. UOC advertises a total price below €2,900, at publicly regulated rates. In the United Kingdom, London Metropolitan University presents an MSc in Logistics and Supply Chain Management with entry in January 2027; the university states that the course is subject to validation and will be accredited by the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT).
  • Professional certificates. Certification is not compulsory, but according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics it demonstrates professional competence. In the UK, work-based qualifications are available through the CILT.

Business schools also sell their own master's programmes and short courses in logistics. Ask each school what recognition its qualification has before enrolling.

Where to study

SpainExchange lists 12 active schools for logistics management. Five are in Spain and two in the United States; the United Kingdom, Denmark, China, Argentina and Ireland have one each.

  • Spain: UCJC in the Madrid region, which teaches both the bachelor's degree and the vocational Transporte y Logística course, the latter on campus or online; UOC, online from Barcelona; and the business schools EFEM in Madrid, Escuela Internacional de Gerencia (EIG) in Granada and UIBS in Barcelona.
  • United States: The Ohio State University, where the logistics management specialisation covers transportation, inventory planning, warehousing, purchasing and logistics strategy, and the University of Minnesota.
  • Other countries: London Metropolitan University, VIA University College in Denmark, Technological University Dublin, UNTREF in Argentina and Donghua University in Shanghai.

Teaching is in Spanish at UCJC and UNTREF, in Spanish or Catalan at UOC, and in English at the British, Irish and US universities. Check the language of each programme elsewhere.

Careers

Graduates work as logistics or supply chain analysts, transport planners, warehouse and distribution managers, purchasing officers and freight forwarders. Employers include manufacturers, retailers, e-commerce firms, logistics operators, ports and airports, and public bodies. The Spanish vocational qualification lists jobs such as logistics operator, warehouse manager, freight forwarder and transport agent.

In the United States, the Bureau of Labor Statistics counted 255,100 logistician jobs in 2025 and projects employment to grow 18 percent from 2025 to 2035, much faster than the average for all occupations, with about 26,600 openings a year. The UK National Careers Service notes that trainee management posts in the supply chain are open to graduates of most subjects, and that people also start in junior roles and progress through training.

Frequently asked questions

Is logistics management the same as supply chain management?

They overlap. Logistics focuses on moving and storing goods; supply chain management also covers purchasing, production planning and the relationships between the companies in the chain. Many degrees carry both names.

Do I need a degree to work in logistics?

Not always. The Bureau of Labor Statistics says logisticians typically need a bachelor's degree, although less education may be sufficient for some jobs. In Spain, the 2,000-hour grado superior in Transporte y Logística is a vocational route.

How long does it take to study logistics?

A bachelor's degree takes four years at UCJC in Spain and at UNTREF in Argentina. An official master's degree in Spain has at least 60 ECTS credits, as at UOC.

Can I study logistics online?

Yes. The UOC master's degree in Dirección Logística is fully online, and UCJC offers its vocational Transporte y Logística course on campus or online.