Date: Oct. 25, 2012
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
DOD Faces Potential Shortfall in Quality STEM Workers;
Overhaul of Recruitment Practices, Security Requirements Needed
WASHINGTON — The principal challenge for the U.S. Department of Defense's science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) work force is recruiting and retaining top quality professionals for critical positions, says a new report from the National Academy of Engineering and National Research Council. The agency must become -- and be perceived as -- an appealing career destination for the most capable scientists, engineers, and technicians, all of whom are in great demand in the global marketplace.
To that end, DOD recruitment policies and practices should be reviewed and overhauled as necessary to ensure that the department is fully competitive with all sectors of American industry and the global STEM marketplace. The agency will also need to reassess its requirement for security clearances for some STEM positions.
"STEM assignments at the DOD that involve more procedure and bureaucracy than technical challenge and mission are unlikely to satisfy the high-quality STEM professionals the DOD needs to recruit," said C.D. Mote, professor of engineering at the University of Maryland, College Park, and co-chair of the committee that wrote the report. "Making DOD employment an attractive career choice to the most qualified and motivated professionals will pay enormous dividends to the department and the nation."
More effective management of the STEM work force is needed to meet the challenges in recruiting and retention of top talent, the report says. Career growth at DOD is limited, employee skills are often underutilized, and the hiring process is slow, impersonal, and sometimes opaque. The report recommends an overhaul of policies, which could entail expediting the recruitment process and security clearances and making a commitment both to provide meaningful opportunities for technical work and to provide career development opportunities including education.
"It's virtually impossible to forecast the STEM skills and number of individuals possessing those skills that will be needed by DOD beyond the near term because of the increasing rates of advancement in science and technology and the geopolitical uncertainties affecting DOD demands," said Norman Augustine, retired chairman and CEO of the Lockheed Martin Corp. and committee co-chair. "The fundamental issue, therefore, is maintaining the necessary quality, agility, and skills mix. It is critical to include workers at the forefront of emerging, potentially critical technical areas, as well as those capable of redirecting their careers into these new areas."
Because DOD and its contractors need access to the most talented STEM professionals globally, the department should re-examine the need for security clearances in select positions in order to permit non-U.S. citizens to enter portions of the talent pool. Furthermore, the H-1B visa system should be modified to provide DOD with substantially more talent in areas of need such as cyber security.
In addition, DOD should be prepared to educate highly capable, but not STEM qualified individuals rapidly with master's degrees in science and engineering at times of urgency, as is done in the Naval Postgraduate School. The DOD SMART scholarship program is also a proven method of attracting top talent to the agency and should be expanded, the report says. SMART is a civilian "scholarship for service" program that provides full undergraduate or graduate tuition, living and book allowances, summer internships, health insurance, and other benefits contingent on year-for-year post-graduate employment within DOD.
The U.S. Department of Defense sponsored the NAE-NRC study. The National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, Institute of Medicine, and National Research Council make up the National Academies. They are private, independent nonprofit institutions that provide science, technology, and health policy advice under a congressional charter. The Research Council is the principal operating agency of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering. For more information, visit http://national-academies.org. A committee roster follows.
Contacts:
Lorin Hancock, Media Relations Officer
Shaquanna Shields, Media Relations Assistant
Office of News and Public Information
202-334-2138; e-mail news@nas.edu
Pre-publication copies of Assuring DOD a Strong Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Workforce are available from the National Academies Press; tel. 202-334-3313 or 1-800-624-6242 or on the Internet at http://www.nap.edu. Reporters may obtain a copy from the Office of News and Public Information (contacts listed above).
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NATIONAL ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING
and
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences
and
Board on Higher Education and Workforce
Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Workforce Needs for the
U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Defense Industrial Base
Norman R. Augustine1,2 (co-chair)
Chairman and CEO
Lockheed Martin Corp. (retired)
Bethesda, Md.
C.D. Mote Jr.2 (co-chair)
Regents Professor and Glenn L. Martin Institute
Professor of Engineering
A. James Clark School of Engineering
University of Maryland
College Park
Burt S. Barnow
Amsterdam Professor of Public Service
Trachtenberg School of Public Policy and Public Administration
George Washington University
Washington, D.C.
James S. Chew
Director of Advanced Technologies and Concepts
Business Development
L-3 Communications
Anaheim, Calif.
Lawrence J. Delaney
COO
Titan Corp. (retired)
Potomac, Md.
Mary L. Good2
Dean Emeritus and Special Adviser to the Chancellor
University of Arkansas
Little Rock
Daniel E. Hastings
Dean for Undergraduate Education, and
Professor of Aeronautics and Engineering Systems
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Cambridge
Robert J. Hermann2
Private Consultant
Bloomfield, Conn.
J.C. Herz
CEO
Batchtags LLC
Alexandria, Va.
Ray O. Johnson
Senior Vice President and Chief Technology Officer
Lockheed Martin Corp.
Bethesda, Md.
Anita K. Jones2
University Professor Emerita
School of Engineering and Applied Science
University of Virginia
Charlottesville
Sharon G. Levin
Emeritus Professor of Economics
University of Missouri
St. Louis
Frances S. Ligler2
Senior Scientist
Center for Bio/Molecular Science and Engineering
Naval Research Laboratory
United States Navy
Washington, D.C.
Aaron Lindenberg
Assistant Professor
Stanford University
Stanford, Calif.
Paul D. Nielsen2
Director and CEO
Software Engineering Institute
Carnegie Mellon University
Pittsburgh
Daniel Oliver
President
Naval Postgraduate School
United States Navy
Monterey, Calif.
C. Kumar N. Patel1,2
President and CEO
Pranalytica Inc.
Santa Monica, Calif.
Leif E. Peterson
Managing Partner
Advanced HR Concepts and Solutions LLC
Beavercreek, Ohio
Stephen M. Robinson2
Professor Emeritus of Industrial and Systems Engineering and Computer Sciences
University of Wisconsin
Madison
Michael S. Teitelbaum
Wertheim Fellow
Harvard Law School, and
Senior Adviser
Alfred P. Sloan Foundation
Guilford, Conn.
Ronald Williams
Vice President
The College Board
Washington, D.C.
STAFF
Martin Offutt
Study Director
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