An analysis of training requirements and competencies for the Naval Acquisition Systems Engineering workforce

Abstract

This research provides an analysis of the training required by the Defense Acquisition University (DAU) for Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) certification in the Systems Planning, Research, Development, and Engineering (SPRDE) Systems Engineering (SE) career field. This training curriculum was compared and contrasted with the actual knowledge, skills and abilities needed to perform as a proficient naval acquisition systems engineer as determined by the Naval Postgraduate School SE Competency Model, as well as to DAUs own SPRDE Competency Model. Learning objectives were also compared to overarching course objectives to determine the consistency of the curriculum itself. It was found that a large gap in training exists. Only 27 percent of the KSAs needed by naval acquisition systems engineers are addressed in the SPRDE training curriculum and the SPRDE-SE curriculum does not accurately reflect the 29 competencies identified in the DAU SPRDE Competency Model. Less than half of the course objectives were consistently supported by associated learning objectives suggesting a weakness in the curriculum. Proper training of this highly specialized workforce is imperative to assure successful acquisition programs. The DAU SPRDE curriculum provides DAWIA certification and some foundation but more must be done to provide comprehensive training.