Most people know MSU for its size, basketball teams and parties. But in the professional world, three programs distinguish themselves as some of the best in the nation — dietetics, supply chain management and packaging.
These majors rise to the top because of their histories and reputations.
In some academic circles, MSU is as good as it gets.
Dietetics
As America's waistline expands, dietetics has become an important tool for educating society about fad diets, obesity and eating disorders.
"It has been termed the toxic environment," said Linda Summers, academic adviser to MSU's dietetics program. "Food has been pushed at us by advertisements on the TV and by a fast food restaurant every block.
"People are recognizing how damaging that is to us and they would like to do something about it."
The dietetics program is the largest in the nation. It places 98 percent of its graduates in internship programs the first time around. In 1998, the Gourman Report ranked the program second in the nation.
As it developed, the degree was geared toward home economics. Today, it is a cutting-edge mix of social sciences, basic sciences and clinical practices that look at food, nutrition and health, said Lorraine Weatherspoon, a dietetics program director. "You can be a social worker in a clinical environment," she said. "You try to work with diseases and teach people about medical problems."
Summers attributes a lot of the program's success to the university backbone that supports it.
"MSU is a research institution," she said. "Our students have multiple opportunities to obtain (faculty) research."
Students who graduate from the program and complete an internship become certified as registered dietitians.
The major covers three basic areas of dietetics — medical nutrition therapy, clinical applications and food service.
"We also focus on prevention — how to stay well and maintain their health — not just people who are sick, which I think is a misconception," Weatherspoon said.
Dietetics senior Anna Krzak said she was apprehensive at first about the food service part of her major. She went into dietetics for the clinical work, not to plan meals.
But while preparing a birthday-themed lunch in the Holden Hall cafeteria, for her food service management class, Krzak said she enjoyed the experience.
"It was a lot of fun to implement that type of creativity," she said. "It's a good experience for anyone who goes through it."
Supply Chain Management
A DVD player sitting on Best Buy's shelf went through a lot of steps and a lot of people to get it there.
Those steps and people are the basis of supply chain management — an MSU program ranked second in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.
The program combines resourcing, manufacturing and distribution.
Supply chain management is about getting creative with problem solving, said Robert Nason, chairman of the marketing and supply chain management department.
"They firefight," he said. "What happens when there is a dock strike, what happens if there is a terrorist attack, what happens when inclement weather occurs, what happens if a truck is in an accident?"
The program also competitively places students in internships and jobs, allowing them to take their classroom knowledge into the real world.
Supply chain management senior Michael Jones said he is able to apply class knowledge directly into internship situations.
"MSU's program connects students with recruiters and companies really well, as well as with other supply chain students," he said.
In the 1950s, MSU was ahead of the game. Before the idea of supply chain management went mainstream, faculty members were looking into the field and how it affects businesses.
"It didn't become an industry hot topic until the 1990s," Nason said. "People were building these areas because they were interested in them."
MSU combined the different supply chain areas together in 1996 in a way that no other university had done by then, Nason said.
And the program continues to lead the industry.
IBM partnered with MSU to create a lab for curriculum development. Only four other universities in the world have this IBM technology, said Fred Rodammer, director of MSU's IBM On-Demand Supply Chain Center, which was launched by IBM in 2003.
"It is a renown sponsor that is coaching us for the recruiter hiring needs and adapting curriculum for the right supply chain infusion," said Rodammer, a professor of practice in supply chain management.
Coming into the university, Nason said, students studying supply chain management don't realize how good their major is.
"In a sense, this is a gem," he said. "You could pay for it at MIT or Stanford, but you can get it at MSU."
Packaging
The importance of packaging is visible everywhere, especially the grocery store.
"I ask people, 'What do you buy that isn't in a package?'" said Sara Risch, director of MSU's School of Packaging.
"You walk down a grocery aisle and someone developed all these products, but without the package, you can't deliver them."
MSU is home to the oldest university packaging program in the United States and it's the only school that offers a bachelor's degree, master's degree and Ph.D. in the subject.
And students are confident in their education.
"I know talking with people in the industry that having a degree from Michigan State is really looked highly upon," said Lindsay Cardinal, a packaging senior.
Packaging opens the door to a variety of jobs, said MSU alumna Cimberly Hickerson, who works in sales for the Lansmont Corp. in Lansing.
"It's a very unique program that allows people to get a little bit of engineering experience or go into marketing or go into sales," she said.
The program receives steady university funding which contributes to solid faculty, new equipment and innovative research, said Harold Hughes, a packaging professor.
"It is the top," he said. "There isn't any real debate about that."
And the packaging major appeals to students because the job market looks good, Hughes said.
"We are placing the vast majority of our students in good-paying jobs," he said. "As long as we are making products, we are going to have those in packages."
