Logistician Career Assessment
Planning how goods move from start to finish
Welcome
Logisticians plan and watch over the whole path a product takes: how it is bought, stored, shipped, and delivered. When something breaks in that chain, they fix it.
This is a small job in North Dakota — about 290 people — but it is growing fast. You will explore what the work is really like and whether it fits you.
This takes about 15 minutes.
What is a Logistician?
Logistics means moving and storing things so they arrive where they are needed, on time, without waste. A logistician studies the whole chain: suppliers, warehouses, trucks, rail, and customers. They use software to track shipments and inventory, and they build plans that save money or time. Some work for the military, some for trucking and rail companies, some inside a factory or hospital.
The Reality: This is almost never a first job, and it is almost never trained for cold. Most logisticians got there from inside the industry. They drove a truck, ran a warehouse, dispatched loads, worked a rail yard, did military supply, or managed inventory — and then they moved up into planning the whole chain. North Dakota also has very few of these jobs: about 290 statewide and roughly 30 openings a year. Plan on entering through dispatch, warehouse, or inventory work, or on relocating. If you served in a military supply, transportation, or motor pool job, that experience counts here more than almost any classroom.
Your Responsibilities:
- Plan how products move from supplier to customer
- Track shipments and fix delays before they spread
- Watch inventory levels so you do not run out or overstock
- Compare truck, rail, and air options on cost and time
- Build and read reports on cost, delivery time, and waste
- Work with suppliers, carriers, and warehouse staff
- Use logistics software to see the whole chain at once
- Suggest changes that cut cost or shorten delivery time
You see the whole route, not just one leg of it.
A Day in the Life
7:30 AM — Check the overnight dashboard. Two loads are behind schedule.
8:00 AM — Call the carrier and reroute one load through Fargo.
9:30 AM — Review inventory counts. One part is running low at two sites.
11:00 AM — Meet with the warehouse lead about how pallets are being staged.
12:00 PM — Lunch.
12:45 PM — Build a cost comparison: rail versus truck for a regular shipment.
2:30 PM — Update the delivery plan for next month and send it to the team.
4:30 PM — Write a short report on last month's late deliveries and why.
Desk and screen work, broken up by phone calls and trips out to the dock.
Training in North Dakota
Most postings ask for a bachelor's degree, but real supply chain experience is the bigger door. There is no license for this job. Employers hire on a mix of degree and industry time, and many logisticians hold an associate degree plus years in transportation, warehousing, or military supply. If you are already in the industry, a two-year degree finished at night plus a supply chain certificate is often enough. If you are starting fresh, plan on a bachelor's degree and an entry job in dispatch or inventory while you study.
Training Pathways:
- Move up from inside the industry (2 to 6 years): Take a dispatch, warehouse, inventory, or shipping and receiving job. Learn the software and the routes. Add a two-year business degree or an ASCM certificate at night. This is the most common real path.
- Four-year degree (4 years): A supply chain management or business degree. This is what most job ads ask for and what opens corporate and government jobs.
- Military supply or transportation background: Time in a military supply, transportation, or motor pool role is direct experience. Pair it with a degree finished online and you are a strong candidate.
Where to Train in North Dakota:
- North Dakota State University (Fargo) — Supply Chain Management Major, B.S., minimum 120 credits, with 93 credits in the major. Required courses include Transportation & Distribution, Managing Inventory and Materials, Procurement & Sourcing, and Production & Operations Management — catalog.ndsu.edu
- North Dakota State University (Fargo) — a graduate Transportation and Logistics / Supply Chain Management master's program for people who already hold a bachelor's degree — catalog.ndsu.edu and ndsu.edu
- University of North Dakota (Grand Forks) — Operations & Supply Chain Management, B.B.A., 120 credits, 4 years, on campus or online. UND names logistics manager, supply chain analyst, and warehouse manager among the jobs it prepares you for. There is also an Operations & Supply Chain Management minor — und.edu
- North Dakota State College of Science (Wahpeton and Fargo) — Business Management, AAS (Administration and Finance), 61 credits, face-to-face or with some classes online. A practical two-year start you can transfer later — catalog.ndscs.edu
- Bismarck State College (Bismarck) — Management, AAS, 60 to 61 credits, 2 years, including Project Management and an internship — catalog.bismarckstate.edu
Before You Start: High school diploma or GED. You need to be comfortable with numbers, percentages, and spreadsheets, and you need to read a map and a schedule without getting lost in them. Strong computer skills matter because everything runs through software.
Tip: Start with financial aid, scholarships, and any help an employer offers — that is where the money starts. After that, ask a career counselor or Job Service North Dakota whether WIOA or other programs can help with what is left over, like training, tools, work boots, or exam fees. What can be paid for depends on the program and on your own situation, so ask before you sign up rather than after. Registered apprenticeships let you earn a paycheck while you learn — see jobsnd.com/job-seeker/apprenticeships for ND programs.
Certification & Licensing
No license is required. ASCM certificates are the ones employers in this field recognize. ASCM (the Association for Supply Chain Management, formerly APICS) issues the main logistics and supply chain credentials. ISM covers the buying side.
Credentials You Might Get:
- CLTD (ASCM) — Certified in Logistics, Transportation and Distribution. This is the one built for this job. Nine study areas: Logistics Overview and Strategy, Logistics Network Design, Sustainability and Reverse Logistics, Capacity Planning and Demand Management, Order Management, Inventory Management, Warehouse Management, Transportation, and Global Logistics. ASCM's page lists no prerequisites to sit for the exam. The designation is maintained every five years (ascm.org)
- CPIM (ASCM) — Certified in Planning and Inventory Management. Two exams covering demand management, supply planning, execution, inventory management, scheduling, and distribution. You must pass both parts within three years of each other, and maintain it every five years (ascm.org)
- CSCP (ASCM) — Certified Supply Chain Professional. The broadest of the three. One exam, 150 questions, 3.5 hours, scored 200 to 350 with 300 to pass. ASCM suggests about 100 hours of study and does not list eligibility rules on its page, so ask them directly (ascm.org)
- CPSM (ISM) — Certified Professional in Supply Management, for people whose work leans toward buying and supplier management. You need 3 years of professional supply management experience with a bachelor's degree, or 5 years without a degree, plus three exams. Renewed every three years with 60 continuing education hours (ismworld.org)
- A commercial driver's license or forklift and warehouse safety cards — not logistician credentials, but they help you get the entry job that leads here
The Exams: ASCM exams are computer-based multiple choice. CSCP is one 150-question exam in 3.5 hours. CPIM is split into two parts you must pass within three years of each other. ASCM does not publish a degree or experience bar for CPIM or CLTD, which makes them reachable while you are still in an entry job.
Cost: ASCM sells study material and exams together, so expect over a thousand dollars for a CLTD, CPIM, or CSCP package. ASCM lists the CLTD Learning System at $1,195 to $1,245 and CSCP self-study at about $1,900 for nonmembers. Prices change — check ascm.org. Some employers pay for these, and a career counselor may be able to help.
Keeping It Current: CLTD and CPIM are maintained every five years by filing a maintenance application. CPSM renews every three years with 60 continuing education hours.
Salary & Job Outlook
North Dakota Logistician Pay (May 2025):
- Starting out (bottom 10–25%): $26.98–$29.85/hour ($56,120–$62,080/year)
- Middle (median — half earn more, half earn less): $35.00/hour ($72,800/year)
- Experienced (top 25–10%): $41.34–$48.96/hour ($85,990–$101,830/year)
What that means: The middle North Dakota logistician earns about $35.00 an hour, or about $72,800 a year. That is well below the national middle of $39.58. The gap widens at the top: North Dakota's top tenth is about $48.96 an hour, while the national top tenth is about $64.02. That is because the biggest logistics jobs sit at large corporate hubs, and North Dakota has few of them. Treat these numbers with extra care for one more reason: only about 290 people in the whole state hold this job, so a small sample is moving these figures. This is salaried office work, so overtime pay is not usually part of it.
Jobs in North Dakota: About 290 people do this work in ND today. By 2034, that should be about 340 (about 18% growth). Expect about 30 job openings every year in ND from growth and people retiring or changing jobs. Across the U.S., the change is about 17% growth — much faster than average.
Outlook: Growing fast in percentage terms but small in raw numbers. North Dakota expects about 30 openings a year. That is a strong growth rate on a very small base, so be realistic: you may wait for an opening, or you may need to be willing to move.
Who Hires in ND: Trucking and freight companies, railroads, farm and grain co-ops, oil and gas service companies, manufacturers, large retailers and distributors, hospitals, the North Dakota National Guard and military installations, and federal agencies.
Work Setting: An office, often attached to a warehouse, terminal, or plant. Mostly indoors at a desk with several screens. You will walk out to the dock or yard regularly, and some jobs include travel to other sites.
Physical Demands: Low to moderate. Mostly sitting and typing, with walking out to the warehouse or dock. Some jobs mean cold dock areas in winter. A good chair, a headset, and screen magnification or reading software are common requests.
Sources: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, North Dakota, May 2025 (SOC 13-1081); North Dakota and U.S. long-term employment projections 2024–2034, via O*NET OnLine. Numbers are rounded.
Where This Leads
Path 1: Dispatcher or Inventory Clerk — A common way in. You learn the routes and the software.
Path 2: Warehouse or Shipping Lead — Run one piece of the chain well.
Path 3: Logistics Analyst — Study the numbers and find the waste.
Path 4: Logistician — Plan the whole chain, not one leg.
Path 5: Logistics or Distribution Manager — Supervise staff and budgets.
Path 6: Supply Chain Manager — Oversee buying, inventory, and shipping together.
The Real Talk
What's Great:
- Fastest-growing job in this group
- Military supply experience counts directly
- Real problem-solving every day
- Skills transfer to any industry
- Pay above many office jobs
- You see how the whole business works
What's Hard:
- Very few jobs in North Dakota
- Almost never an entry-level job
- ND pay is below the national middle
- Delays and shortages become your emergency
- Most postings want a bachelor's degree
- You may have to move for the right job
Be Honest: Are you willing to spend two to six years in dispatch, warehouse, or inventory work first? Can you accept that North Dakota has only about 30 openings a year in this job? Can you keep a clear head when a shipment fails and everyone is calling you?