Students willing to forgo the beach for the classroom this summer will have several options for learning more about supply chain management. Several universities are offering intensive supply chain-related courses through their extension programs. Here's a look at some of the offerings:

• The MIT Professional Institute in Cambridge, Mass., will offer a pair of consecutive two-day programs. The first, New Approaches to Optimizing Inventories, takes place July 17 and 18. Aimed at inventory and supply chain managers and analysts, the course will address strategic, tactical and operational issues in inventory management and includes case studies of successful operations. It will be followed on July 19 and 20 by Demand-Driven Supply Chain Management, a class that will examine supply chain optimization models and engineering marketing models that support demand-driven supply chain management. The tuition for each program is $1,250. For more information, visit http://mit.edu/mitpep/pi.
• The University of Tennessee's Center for Executive Education offers two courses during the week of July 24 as part of its Integrated Supply Chain Management Certification Program. The first course is Supply Chain Management Strategy, described as a strategic overview of supply chain challenges and opportunities involving organizational value chains, logistics service quality, negotiation strategies, globalization and relationship management. It will be followed by Demand Management in the Supply Chain, which gives students an understanding of how the demand side of an enterprise (sales, marketing, and downstream channel partners) interfaces with its supply side (operations, logistics, purchasing and upstream supply partners). Each course runs for two and a half days. The fee for each is $2,950, which includes meals and lodging. (Discounts are available to members of the Council of Supply Chain Management Professionals.) For information, visit http://thecenter.utk.edu.
• From Aug. 28 to Sept. 1, Penn State's Smeal College of Business offers Essentials of Supply Chain Management, part of its Managing Effective Supply Chains series. This course, which is intended for managers new to supply chain processes, provides a definition of supply chain management and a look at supply chain strategies. It will also examines the role of partnerships, information technology and supply chain metrics. For more information, visit www.smeal.psu.edu/psep.