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Click on a Frequently Asked Question below to view the corresponding answer.
What is DAWIA?
What are the Position Categories in the DAWIA Workforce?
Who is the "DACM"?
What are Functional Boards?
What are my training requirements?
Acquisition Positions-What are Acquisition Positions?
How do I know if I meet Certification Qualifications?
What is the Defense Acquisition University?
What is the Acquisition Corps?
Q: What is DAWIA?
A: "DAWIA" is an acronym for the 1990 Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act (Title 10 U.S.C. 1701-1764). DAWIA's purpose is to improve the effectiveness of the military and civilian acquisition workforce through enhanced education, training and career development and thereby improve the acquisition process. DAWIA requires the DOD to establish formal career paths for those people who want to pursue careers in acquisition. DOD has accomplished this by dividing acquisition positions into position categories and establishing a formal certification process. If you hold a designated acquisition position, DOD's certification standards apply to you. There may also be DAWIA legal qualification requirements that apply to you.
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Q: What are the Position Categories in the DAWIA Workforce?
A: The acquisition position categories are Program Management; Communications-Computer Systems; Contracting (including Construction); Purchasing; Industrial Property Management; Systems Planning, Research, Development and Engineering; Test and Evaluation; Manufacturing and Production; Quality Assurance; Acquisition Logistics; Business, Cost Estimating, and Financial Management; Program Management Oversight; and Education, Training and Career Development. Each acquisition position falls into one of three levels for purposes of establishing certification standards. The level is determined by the grade of the position. Except for the Purchasing career field, these three levels are: Level I (GS- 5/8) and military 0-1/3); Level II (GS-9/12) and military 0-4); end Level III (GS-13 and above and military 0-5 and senior). The certification levels for the Purchasing career field are: Level I (GS-5 and E-4/5); Level II (GS-6/8 and E- 6/8); and Level III (OS-9 and E-9).
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Q: Who is the "DACM"?
A: The Director of Acquisition Career Management (DACM) is responsible for the development, implementation and oversight of the Acquisition Workforce Program (AWP). The (DACM) is also responsible for administering centralized funding for training and education required by acquisition workforce members. There are currently four DACMs; the Army, Navy and Air Force each have their own, and the Defense Agencies (4th Estate) are serviced by one DACM.
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Q: What are Functional Boards?
A: Functional Boards, composed of experts in the acquisition functional areas, assist in the identification and resolution of common community issues and recommend education, training and experience requirements, i.e., certification standards, for each acquisition career field.
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Q: What are my training requirements?
A: As a member of the acquisition workforce, you are required to prepare a career development plan, in coordination with your supervisor. This plan should identify both long and short-range career goals, such as membership in the Acquisition Professional Community (APC) or certification in your primary or subsidiary career field. The plan should also outline how you intend to accomplish the educational, training and developmental activities required to achieve your career goals and objectives.
If you do not have a career development plan, you should discuss this with your supervisor and develop one. The annual Defense Acquisition University (DAU) on-line catalog will identify the training that is mandatory for certification. Go to the Certification Standards Checklist found in the on-line DAU Catalog. Select your career field and certification level to view your required training courses. For more detail, link to the course descriptions.
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Q: Acquisition Positions-What are Acquisition Positions?
A: There are roughly 132,000 acquisition coded positions for which education, training and experience standards have been developed and applied. To be considered an acquisition position, the position requirements must include at least 50% acquisition duties. Acquisition positions are characterized as either critical, noncritical, or developmental.
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Q: How do I know if I meet Certification Qualifications?
A: Three areas a person must meet at minimum:
Education - Meet mandatory degree requirements (Contracting, Auditing, Test & Evaluation, SPRD&E)
Experience - Minimum time requirements on the appropriate DAWIA coded positions
Training - Complete mandatory training requirements
DAU maintains a list of all mandatory requirements needed to be certified in any acquisition functional category.
Three Levels of Certification
Each functional area is divided into three career levels for purposes of establishing standards and qualifications: Basic or Entry (Level I), Intermediate or Journey man (Level II), and Advanced or Senior (Level III). Typical grades levels associated with each career level are shown to assist members and supervisors in career development planning. Grade levels vary by functional areas and, in some areas.
I - Basic or Entry (GS 05-09)
Basic level training standards are designed to establish fundamental qualifications and expertise in the individual's career field. Development at the basic level lays the foundation for career progression and is designed to prepare qualified, motivated personnel for positions of increasing responsibility. At the basic level, trainees should be exposed to the functions of acquisition and the roles of its various specializations.
II - Intermediate or Journey man (GS 09-12)
At the intermediate level, specialization is initially emphasized. Development continues, including on-the-job rotational assignments, but the responsibilities and length of time an individual spends in each position generally increases. While specialization is emphasized at the beginning of this level, the individual should later begin to broaden his or her background toward a more general expertise in the overall processes of his or her field.
III - Advanced or Senior (GS 13 and above)
By the time an individual reaches the senior levels of acquisition management, he or she should have completed all the mandatory training and education requirements (or equivalents) of that level, and should have advanced through a career pattern that has given him or her depth of knowledge in his or her functional area and breadth of knowledge across the entire acquisition process. At the senior level, advanced acquisition education and training becomes essential.
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Q: What is the Defense Acquisition University?
A: The Defense Acquisition University (DAU) was created to provide the centralized management and oversight of the acquisition education and training program.
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Q: What is the Acquisition Corps?
A: The Acquisition Corps is a cadre of professionals who have earned recognition as experts in the field of acquisition and are pre-approved to fill Critical Acquisition Positions (CAPs). It is a subset of the acquisition workforce, composed of military and civilian personnel who meet statutory education, training, and experience requirements.
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