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Other name | DAU |
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Established | October 22, 1991 |
Parent institution | US Federal Government, Department of Defense |
Accreditation | COE, IAECT, ACE |
Budget | $220 Million |
President | James P. Woolsey |
Vice-president | Frank L. Kelley |
Location | , U.S. |
Website | www |
The Defense Acquisition University (DAU) is a corporate university of the United States Department of Defense offering "acquisition, technology, and logistics" (AT&L) training to military and Federal civilian staff and Federal contractors. [1] DAU is headquartered in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and is accredited by the American Council on Education (ACE), International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET) and the Council on Occupational Education (COE). [2]
The University Charter was created in October 1991 by Department of Defense (DoD) Directive 5000.57. Originally a loose consortium of existing training commands, DAU worked to standardize the training courses and establish mechanisms that allowed for centralized management of training funds for the DoD workforce.
In the late 1990s, the consortium arrangement was replaced by a centralized structure, more like that of a corporate university. By 2014, DAU had grown to the point of graduating 181,970 students. [3]
DAU was headed by a Commandant until the year 2000 when it became a civilian institution, and since then the chief executive position has the title "President." DAU's Commandants and Presidents have included William L. Vincent (1991–1993), Claude M. Bolton (1993–1996), Richard A. Black (1996–1997), Leonard Vincent (1997–1999), Frank J. Anderson (1999–2010), Katrina McFarland (2011–2012), and James P. Woolsey (2013–present). [4]
DAU is headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and serves the approximately 160,000 members of the defense acquisition workforce. DAU also has several other locations across the United States as well an online presence. These locations include: [5]
Applicants must have a current affiliation with the United States government in order to attend training courses offered by DAU. The United States Military Services and the DoD have internal registration and quotas for DAU instructor-led courses, while the Federal Acquisition Institute (FAI) accepts applications and registers most non-DoD students.
U.S. Federal employees and defense contractors may attend DAU courses at no cost when space is available, and may enroll in DAU's Defense acquisition credential learning pathways, and in online courses. DAU charges tuition only to certain foreign students. [12]
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The Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) requires Defense Acquisition Workforce members to be certified for the positions they hold. DAU offers training courses for all Defense Acquisition Workforce members in 7 functional areas and at three certification levels. [13]
Functional Areas:
The American Council on Education (ACE) assigns ACE credits to various DAU courses. DAU coursework can apply toward college and university degrees and certificates at some partner institutions. [14]
The Defense Acquisition Guidebook (DAG) is a text developed to aid in the understanding and implementation of United States Department of Defense Acquisition practices under the DoD Directive 5000 series. This text, also available in web-accessed electronic format and web-structured HTML basis (see https://aaf.dau.edu/guidebooks/) provides insight to a life cycle view and functional roles within the lifecycle of acquisitions. [15]
In 2002 the DOD 5000.2-R became the Interim Defense Acquisition Guidebook. [16]
DAU instructors are available to consult and assist acquisition organizations in the design and review of processes and internal training when they are not teaching. They can also provide workshops and specific topic instruction in areas of interest or concern tailored to a specific organization.
In July 2011 a hacking incident occurred affecting DAU's Web-based training site. This incident occurred on a vendor's network that provided the learning management system's underlying source code [17] and inhibited access to online courses for almost two months. While DAU was not hacked, U.S. Cyber Command (U.S. CYBERCOM) evaluated the risk level to DAU's system based on the incident that occurred on the vendor's network, and temporarily suspended online training courses to secure the system and protect students' personal information.
Software Engineering Institute (SEI) is a federally funded research and development center in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1984, the institute is now sponsored by the United States Department of Defense and the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, and administrated by Carnegie Mellon University. The activities of the institute cover cybersecurity, software assurance, software engineering and acquisition, and component capabilities critical to the United States Department of Defense.
The National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA) is a combat support agency within the United States Department of Defense whose primary mission is collecting, analyzing, and distributing geospatial intelligence (GEOINT) in support of national security. Initially known as the National Imagery and Mapping Agency (NIMA) from 1996 to 2003, it is a member of the United States Intelligence Community.
A risk management plan is a document that a project manager prepares to foresee risks, estimate impacts, and define responses to risks. It also contains a risk assessment matrix. According to the Project Management Institute, a risk management plan is a "component of the project, program, or portfolio management plan that describes how risk management activities will be structured and performed".
The Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA) is both a defense agency and a combat support agency within the United States Department of Defense (DoD) for countering weapons of mass destruction and supporting the nuclear enterprise. Its stated mission is to provide "cross-cutting solutions to enable the Department of Defense, the United States Government, and international partners to Deter strategic attack against the United States and its allies; Prevent, reduce, and counter WMD and emerging threats; and Prevail against WMD-armed adversaries in crisis and conflict." DTRA is headquartered in Fort Belvoir, Virginia. The DTRA mission, organization and management, responsibilities and functions, relationships, authorities, and administration are defined in DoD Directive 5105.62, Defense Threat Reduction Agency (DTRA).
The Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA) is an agency of the United States federal government reporting to the Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment. It is responsible for administering contracts for the Department of Defense (DoD) and other authorized federal agencies. Its headquarters is located at Fort Gregg-Adams, Virginia. DCMA also administers Foreign Military Sales contracts.
The Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) is a combat support agency in the United States Department of Defense (DoD). The agency is staffed by over 26,000 civilian and military personnel throughout the world. Located in 48 states and 28 countries, DLA provides supplies to the military services and supports their acquisition of weapons, fuel, repair parts, and other materials. The agency also disposes of excess or unusable equipment through various programs.
Washington Headquarters Services (WHS) is a Department of Defense (DoD) Field Activity, created on October 1, 1977, to provide administrative and management support to multiple DoD components and military departments in the National Capital Region and beyond.
A Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) is a business communications liaison between the United States government and a private contractor. The COTR is normally a federal or state employee who is responsible for recommending actions and expenditures for both standard delivery orders and task orders, and those that fall outside of the normal business practices of its supporting contractors and sub-contractors. Most COTRs have experience in the technical area that is critical to the success of translating government requirements into technical requirements that can be included in government acquisition documents for potential contractor to bid and execute that work. A COTR must be designated by a Contracting Officer (CO). The CO has the actual authority to enter into, administer, and/or terminate contracts and make related determinations and findings. Other terms for COTR include Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) and Project Officer (PO). The terminology may be agency specific.
The Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (DAWIA) is a United States law that requires the Department of Defense to establish education and training standards, requirements, and courses for the civilian and military workforce. It was initially enacted by Public Law 101-510 on November 5, 1990. It has been subsequently modified by amendments to the USC Title 10 Chapter 87.
In 1963, the U.S. Department of Defense established a designation system for rockets and guided missiles jointly used by all the United States armed services. It superseded the separate designation systems the Air Force and Navy had for designating US guided missiles and drones, but also a short-lived interim USAF system for guided missiles and rockets.
The Under Secretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment, or USD (A&S), is the Principal Staff Assistant (PSA) and advisor to the Secretary of Defense for all matters relating to acquisition and sustainment in the Department of Defense. This includes the DoD Acquisition System; system design and development; production; logistics and distribution; installation maintenance, management, and resilience; military construction; procurement of goods and services; material readiness; maintenance; environment and energy resilience ; utilities; business management modernization; International Armaments Cooperation, Cooperative Acquisition and International Agreements, Promoting exportability of military components to allies and partners; nuclear, chemical and biological defense programs; and nuclear command, control, and communications.
The Alexander T. Augusta Military Medical Center is a United States Department of Defense medical facility located on Fort Belvoir, Virginia, outside of Washington D.C. In conjunction with Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, the hospital provides the Military Health System medical capabilities of the National Capital Region Medical Directorate, a joint unit providing comprehensive care to members of the United States Armed Forces located in the capital area, and their families.
Performance-based logistics (PBL), also known as performance-based life-cycle product support, is a defense acquisition strategy for cost-effective weapon system support which has been adopted in particular by the United States Department of Defense. Rather than contracting for the acquisition of parts or services, DoD contracts to secure outcomes or results. Under PBL, the product support manager identifies product support integrator(s) (PSI) to deliver performance outcomes as defined by performance metric(s) for a system or product. The integrator often commits to this performance level at a lower cost, or increased performance at costs similar to those previously achieved under a non-PBL or transactional portfolio of product support arrangements for goods and services.
Military acquisition or defense acquisition is the "bureaucratic management and procurement process", dealing with a nation's investments in the technologies, programs, and product support necessary to achieve its national security strategy and support its armed forces. Its objective is to acquire products that satisfy specified needs and provide measurable improvement to mission capability at a fair and reasonable price.
The Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center (DC3) is designated as a Federal Cyber Center by National Security Presidential Directive 54/Homeland Security Presidential Directive 23, as a Department of Defense (DoD) Center Of Excellence for Digital and Multimedia (D/MM) forensics by DoD Directive 5505.13E, and serves as the operational focal point for the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) Cybersecurity program. DC3 operates as a Field Operating Agency (FOA) under the Inspector General of the Department of the Air Force.
Claude Milburn Bolton Jr. was a United States Air Force major general who served also as United States Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology from 2002 to 2008.
The U.S. Army Acquisition Support Center (USAASC) is part of the Office of the Assistant Secretary of the Army for Acquisition, Logistics, and Technology. USAASC is headquartered at Fort Belvoir, Va.
Technology readiness levels (TRLs) are a method for estimating the maturity of technologies during the acquisition phase of a program. TRLs enable consistent and uniform discussions of technical maturity across different types of technology. TRL is determined during a technology readiness assessment (TRA) that examines program concepts, technology requirements, and demonstrated technology capabilities. TRLs are based on a scale from 1 to 9 with 9 being the most mature technology.
The United States Army Acquisition Corps (AAC) is the officer / NCO corps of the United States Army Acquisition Workforce (AAW), a branch which includes civilians, officers, and NCOs. The Acquisition Corps is composed of army officers who serve in acquisition, a specialized form of product development, fielding, and support and Noncommissioned Officers who specialize in Contracting, Level I Program Management and Purchasing. These officers begin their careers in the other branches of the army for eight years, after which they may elect the Acquisition branch as their career as assistant program managers (APMs), program managers (PMs), and program executive officers (PEOs). The Noncommissioned Officers (NCOs) are reclassified in the Army Acquisition NCO Corps after serving 7-10 years in their respective enlisted career management fields, and serve primarily in the Army Acquisition Career Management Field - 51 and (MOS) 51C. 4% percentage of the Army Acquisition Officers serve among the 40,000 members of the army acquisition workforce, 6% in MOS 51C - Acquisition, Logistics and Technology Contracting Noncommissioned Officer, and the remainder 90% percentage consist largely of Department of the Army civilians.
Human Systems Integration (HSI) is an interdisciplinary managerial and technical approach to developing and sustaining systems which focuses on the interfaces between humans and modern technical systems. The objective of HSI is to provide equal weight to human, hardware, and software elements of system design throughout systems engineering and lifecycle logistics management activities across the lifecycle of a system. The end goal of HSI is to optimize total system performance and minimize total ownership costs. The field of HSI integrates work from multiple human centered domains of study include training, manpower, personnel, human factors engineering, safety, occupational health, survivability and habitability.