Figure out how products get from a factory to a shelf, and how to do it cheaper and faster.
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Programs in the fields this career usually comes through. Each has its own page: what it takes to get in, the courses you need and what it costs.
The median pay is about $61,000 a year. Across everyone in the job it runs from about $45,000 at the lower end to about $93,000 at the upper end. The source is listed under Sources at the end of this page.
2 to 4 years after high school, on the usual route.
$6,000 to $56,000 all in for tuition, fees, exams and kit. Living costs are not counted.
No. There is no licence to hold, though many employers still ask for training or a certificate.
Limited demand nationally, from government outlook data. Demand varies by region, so check your area.
Or read the whole thing here
What you earn and what it costs to get there.
Median
$61,000
Lower end
$45,000
Upper end
$93,000
Job Bank pools this job with production and logistics coordinators, under the title Supply Chain Coordinator. Its national median is $29.49 an hour, about $61,000 a year at 40 hours a week. The low is $21.63 and the high is $44.79 an hour: the bottom and top of the range for everyone in the group.
$34.61 an hour in Alberta
The highest provincial median on Job Bank, about $72,000 a year at 40 hours a week
Newfoundland and Labrador is next at $33.88. Manitoba is lowest at $25.76. Moving into a planning or management role is the usual jump toward the top of the range.
Roughly, all in
$6,000 to $56,000
Tuition, fees, exams and kit. Not rent, food or travel
The low end is a two year college diploma, which is the cheapest and most common way in. The high end is a four year business degree, sometimes with a one year graduate certificate on top, for example about 8,300 dollars in fees at Conestoga for 2026 to 2027. The SCMP (Supply Chain Management Professional) designation costs several thousand dollars in modules and workshops, but employers usually pay for it once you are hired, so it is not added here. Pick one route rather than stacking them.
About $6,000 for a diploma to $56,000 for a degree plus a certificate. The diploma route is the cheapest way in. Many employers pay for the designation once you are hired.
Salaried with health and dental
Standard at manufacturers and large retailers.
Pension or matched savings
Common at big companies, hospitals and government.
Bonus tied to cost savings
Some companies pay a bonus when your changes cut shipping or inventory costs.
Hybrid work
Analysis can be done from home a few days a week. Site visits still happen.
The exact path from high school to qualified.
A diploma or degree, then learn the real job on the job.
High school diploma
Grade 12
Math and business courses matter most. Get comfortable with spreadsheets early.
College diploma or university degree
2 to 4 years
A 2-year business or supply chain diploma is enough for many coordinator jobs. A 4-year business, commerce or engineering degree opens analyst roles at bigger companies.
Co-op or first job
During or right after school
Start as a logistics coordinator, inventory clerk or purchasing assistant. Co-op terms during school are the easiest way in.
Analyst role
1 to 3 years
After 1 to 3 years you move into forecasting, inventory analysis or planning.
Designation (optional)
2 to 4 years, part time
The SCMP (Supply Chain Management Professional) from Supply Chain Canada needs 8 modules, 6 workshops and at least 3 years of work experience.
Math and data management
Forecasting is statistics.
Business studies
How companies buy, make and sell things.
Computer studies
Spreadsheets, databases and a bit of coding.
English
You write reports and argue for changes.
Anyone can work as a supply chain analyst. No licence is needed. The SCMP (Supply Chain Management Professional) designation is voluntary but recognized across Canada, and some senior job postings ask for it. Job Bank lists the occupation as not regulated anywhere in Canada, and says employers usually ask for a business or supply chain program of under two years.
Quebec has a 3 year college program built for logistics work, and a bachelor's after CEGEP (public college) takes 3 years instead of 4.
Finish Secondary V
Age 16 or 17
Keep your math strong. Commerce degrees ask for college calculus or linear algebra.
Logistics DEC (Diploma of College Studies)
3 years
Gestion des opérations et de la chaîne logistique (operations and supply chain management, 410.A1): 3 years, with purchasing, inventory, warehousing and transport. Offered at 7 French-language colleges.
Or a pre-university DEC
2 years
A 2 year program such as Social Science (300.A1) or Science, with the math courses commerce degrees ask for.
Bachelor's degree
3 years
Concordia's BComm (Bachelor of Commerce) in Supply Chain Operations Management is 90 credits, 3 years after CEGEP, in English, with optional paid co-op terms of 12 to 16 weeks.
Coordinator, then analyst
Varies
Logistics coordinator, inventory or purchasing jobs first, then forecasting and planning.
Cégep de Trois-Rivières and the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières run a combined route: the logistics DEC (Diploma of College Studies) followed by a business bachelor's with a logistics path. You earn two diplomas in 4 years instead of 6, and the college part includes a 150 hour internship.
Things you don't need, but that help.
SCMP (Supply Chain Management Professional)
Canada's main supply chain designation. Needs 3 years of experience and a final case exam.
CPIM (Certified in Planning and Inventory Management) or CSCP (Certified Supply Chain Professional)
Global certifications from the US supply chain association. Common in manufacturing.
Data skills
Power BI (a Microsoft dashboard tool), SQL (the language for querying databases) and Python turn a coordinator into an analyst.
ERP (enterprise resource planning) software
Experience with the big inventory systems companies run on is worth a lot on a resume.
Co-op program
Pick a school that has one. Most first jobs come from a co-op term.
A warehouse or retail job in high school
You will understand what the numbers on your screen actually mean.
Forklift or WHMIS (workplace hazardous materials) certificate
Cheap, and useful for site visits.
French
Helps with Quebec-based manufacturers and federal jobs.
Day to day, pros and cons, where you'd work.
Morning: check overnight shipments, flag anything late, update the inventory dashboard. Midday: a meeting with purchasing and production about a part that keeps running out. Afternoon: build a forecast for next quarter in a spreadsheet, then write up a proposal to move stock from one warehouse to another. When something breaks, like a port strike or a snowstorm, the day becomes phone calls and rerouting trucks.
The good
The hard parts
Things people don't tell you.
The Ambassador Bridge between Windsor and Detroit carried about $390 million in trade every day in 2021, according to Transport Canada.
When protesters blocked the Ambassador Bridge from February 7, 2022, parts stopped arriving. Within days Ford ran its Oakville and Windsor plants at reduced capacity, Toyota idled Cambridge and Woodstock, and Honda briefly halted Alliston.
The SCMP (Supply Chain Management Professional) program ends with a Leadership Residency and a final exam built on a case study. You need an overall grade of 60% to earn the letters.
Every list is built from the same numbers shown above, so you can see where this career sits next to the others.
People and operations first, then the rest of the field. See every career in business and money.
Last checked October 2026. Pay figures are typical full-time annual amounts in Canadian dollars, based on Government of Canada Job Bank wage data and published salary grids. They vary by province, employer and experience. Tuition is for domestic students. How every figure on this site is sourced and checked.
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