ASSURING THE U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE A STRONG
Science, Technology, Engineering, and
Mathematics [STEM] Workforce
Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Workforce
Needs for the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Defense Industrial Base
Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences
with
Board on Higher Education and Workforce
Division on Policy and Global Affairs
NATIONAL ACADEMY OF ENGINEERING AND
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS
Washington, D.C.
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NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.
This study was supported by contract number HQ0034-10-D-0003, delivery order 0003, between the National Academy of Sciences and the U.S. Department of Defense. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
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ISBN 0-309-26213-5
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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES
Advisers to the Nation on Science, Engineering, and Medicine
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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. AUGUSTINE (NAS1/NAE2), Co-chair, Lockheed Martin Corporation (retired)
C.D. (DAN) MOTE, JR. (NAE), Co-chair, University of Maryland, College Park
BURT S. BARNOW, George Washington University
JAMES S.B. CHEW, L-3 Communications
LAWRENCE J. DELANEY, Titan Corporation (retired)
MARY L. GOOD (NAE), University of Arkansas at Little Rock
DANIEL E. HASTINGS, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
ROBERT J. HERMANN (NAE), Private Consultant, Bloomfield, Connecticut
J.C. HERZ, Batchtags, LLC
RAY O. JOHNSON, Lockheed Martin Corporation
ANITA K. JONES (NAE), University of Virginia
SHARON LEVIN, University of Missouri-St. Louis
FRANCES S. LIGLER (NAE), Naval Research Laboratory
AARON LINDENBERG, Stanford University
PAUL D. NIELSEN (NAE), Software Engineering Institute, Carnegie Mellon University
DANIEL T. OLIVER, Naval Postgraduate School
C. KUMAR N. PATEL (NAS/NAE), Pranalytica, Inc.
LEIF E. PETERSON, Advanced HR Concepts and Solutions, LLC
STEPHEN M. ROBINSON (NAE), University of Wisconsin-Madison
MICHAEL S. TEITELBAUM, Harvard Law School
RONALD WILLIAMS, The College Board
Staff
TERRY JAGGERS, Lead Board Director
MARTIN OFFUTT, Study Director
CATHERINE DIDION, Senior Program Officer
GAIL GREENFIELD, Senior Program Officer
DANIEL E.J. TALMAGE, JR., Program Officer
KAMARA BROWN, Research Associate (through January 2012)
SARAH CAPOTE, Research Associate
MARGUERITE SCHNEIDER, Administrative Coordinator
DIONNA ALI, Senior Program Assistant
1 NAS = member, National Academy of Sciences.
2 NAE = member, National Academy of Engineering.
Preface
This report on the science, technology, mathematics, and engineering (STEM) workforce of the Department of Defense (DOD) and the U.S. defense industrial base marks the conclusion of an 18-month study to assess the STEM capabilities that the DOD will need in order to meet its responsibilities and priorities; to assess whether the current DOD workforce and personnel strategies will meet those needs; and to identify and evaluate options and recommend strategies that the department could use to enhance its effectiveness in meeting its future STEM needs. The study was undertaken jointly by the National Academy of Engineering and the National Research Council at the request of the Honorable Zachary J. Lemnios, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (ASD[R&E]).
The committee preparing this report, the Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics Workforce Needs for the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Defense Industrial Base, initially convened a workshop on August 1 and 2, 2011, in Rosslyn, Virginia, for the purpose of gathering a broad range of views from the public sector and the private sector, including major defense contractors, and from nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), all of which are stakeholders in the future STEM workforce. A report issued in early 2012 summarized the views expressed by individual workshop participants.1 An interim report was issued in June 2012 for the purpose of assisting ASD(R&E) with its fiscal year (FY) 2014 planning process and with laying the groundwork for future years.2
The present report highlights and addresses the critical need for scientists and engineers within DOD and its contractors, the latter to the extent they are engaged in defense-related activities.
1 National Research Council. 2012. Report of a Workshop on Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Workforce Needs for the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Defense Industrial Base. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press.
2 National Research Council. 2012. An Interim Report on Assuring DOD a Strong Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Workforce. Washington, D.C.: The National Academies Press.
CAVEAT
It is emphasized that this report does not examine fulfilling the nation’s overall demand for science and engineering talent. Indeed, important differences exist between defense and commercial needs in these fields, not the least of which is the result of the steep decline projected for defense spending, which portends a reduction in opportunities for most, but not all, categories of engineering and scientific talent within the defense sector. The foreseeable consequence for defense is primarily the need to assure the high quality of the workforce as opposed to its quantity.
Most commercial activities have become sufficiently internationalized and globalized that the STEM talent base is itself a global pool. Under these circumstances, the demand for scientists and engineers physically based in the United States often does not, per se, drive personnel decision making. Rather, in this instance, the issue becomes a national one of whether the jobs created through the efforts of scientists and engineers are located in the United States or elsewhere. The latter question, although critically important to the nation as a whole, was not a subject of this report.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
We wish to express our appreciation to the members of the committee for their diligent and dedicated contributions to the study and to the preparation of this report. The committee’s diverse experiences contributed greatly to the broad perspective on STEM workforce evident in this report. We also wish to thank Stephanie Brown of the Naval Postgraduate School for her dedicated attention to the committee’s discussions and its preparation of Chapter 5. The committee cannot thank the NRC staff members, Terry Jaggers, Martin Offutt, Gail Greenfield, Daniel E.J. Talmage, Jr., Kamara Brown, Sarah Capote, Marguerite Schneider, and Dionna Ali, and NAE staff member Catherine Didion, too effusively for their dedication to the study and to the preparation of this report.
Norman R. Augustine, Co-chair
C.D. (Dan) Mote, Jr., Co-chair
Committee on Science, Technology, Engineering,
and Mathematics Workforce Needs for the
U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S.
Defense Industrial Base
Acknowledgment of Reviewers
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures approved by the National Research Council’s (NRC’s) Report Review Committee. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
Wanda Austin, NAE, The Aerospace Corporation
Lynda Carlson, National Science Foundation (retired)
VADM (ret.) Paul Gaffney, NAE, Monmouth University
Maj. Gen. (ret.) Robert Latiff, Independent Consultant
Kaushik Rajashekara, NAE, University of Texas at Dallas
Steven Ramberg, National Defense University
Harold Salzman, Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey
John Sommerer, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Paula Stephan, Georgia State University
David Whelan, NAE, The Boeing Company
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or recommendations nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release. The review of this report was overseen by Lawrence D. Brown, NAS, University of Pennsylvania, and Martha A. Krebs, University of California, Davis. Appointed by the NRC, they were responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with institutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring committee and the institution.
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STEM Skills Relevant to the Five Areas
3 THE STEM WORKFORCE IN THE DEFENSE INDUSTRIAL BASE, WITHIN DOD, AND OVERALL
Historical Trends in the Overall STEM Workforce
Current and Anticipated STEM Labor Market
STEM Workforce in the Defense Industrial Base
4 LIMITATIONS TO MEETING WORKFORCE NEEDS OF DOD AND THE INDUSTRIAL BASE
The Role of Temporary Residents in Meeting STEM Needs
Recruiting—Increasing Public Awareness
Broader Issues That May Impact DOD’s STEM Workforce
Challenges to Meeting Educational Needs of the STEM Workforce
Attrition and Time to Degree Completion
Where and How Should DOD Invest in Educational Capacity?
DOD’s Investments in STEM Development
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Figures, Tables, and Boxes
FIGURES
S-1 Number of master’s degrees awarded in the United States, by visa status
S-3 Retirement eligibility of selected occupational groups in the DOD civilian STEM workforce
S-4 Computer science bachelor’s degree awards and computer programmer real mean salaries, 1992-2008
S-5 Number of new fighter and bomber starts per decade
1-1 Global research publication impact
1-2 Baccalaureate origins of PhDs from the largest feeder schools, 2001-2010
1-3 Foreign graduate students enrolled in S&E fields, 2009
1-4 Total budget authority of DOD military programs, 1985-2009
3-1 STEM workforce by occupational group, 1950, 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, and 2000
3-2 Distribution of STEM workforce by occupational group, 1950, 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, and 2000
3-3 Employment by STEM occupational group, 2010 and 2020 (projected)
3-4 Distribution of STEM workforce by occupational group, 2010 and 2020 (projected)
3-5 Aerospace and defense industry employment, 2005-2010
3-7 Age distribution of the defense industrial base STEM workforce
3-8 Age distribution in the aerospace and defense industry workforce
3-12 Department of Defense civilian STEM employment by major occupational group, 2011
3-13 Department of Defense civilian STEM employment by major occupational group, 2001-2011
3-14 Department of Defense civilian STEM employment by department and major occupational group, 2011
3-15 Highest degree attained for Department of Defense civilian STEM workforce, 2001-2011
3-19 Retirement eligibility of Department of Defense civilian STEM workforce, 2001-2011
3-21 Department of Defense civilian STEM separation rates by type and major occupational group, 2011
4-1 Annual wage estimates for select occupations, May 2010
4-2 STEM-educated migrants in the United States in 2003 by initial entry visa type and cohort
4-3 STEM-educated migrants in the United States in 2003 by birth region (country) and cohort
4-4 Computer science bachelor’s degree awards and computer programmer real mean salaries, 1992-2008
4-5 Number of new fighter and bomber starts per decade
5-4 First university degrees in S&E fields, 2008 or most recent year
TABLES
3-1 Approaches Used to Estimate STEM Employment in Recent Reports by U.S. Government Agencies
3-2 Employment by STEM Occupational Group, Selected Years: 1950, 1960, 1970, 1980, 1990, and 2000
3-3 Employment by STEM Occupational Group, 2010 and 2020 (projected)
3-6 Age Distribution of the Defense Industrial Base STEM Workforce
3-10 Department of Defense Civilian STEM Employment by Major Occupational Group, 2001-2011
3-11 Department of Defense 20 Largest Civilian STEM Occupations, 2011
3-12 Department of Defense 20 Fastest-Growing Civilian STEM Occupations, 2001-2011
3-13 Department of Defense Civilian STEM Employment by OPM Occupational Series, 2001-2011
3-14 Department of Defense Civilian STEM Employment by Department and Major Occupational Group, 2011
3-15 Crosswalk Between Highest Degree Attained and OPM’s Classification of Educational Attainment
3-19 Age Distribution of Department of Defense Civilian STEM Workforce, 2001-2011
3-21 Department of Defense Occupation Codes Identified as STEM by DMDC
5-1 ASD(R&E) Investments in STEM
BOXES
S-2 Recruitment of Non-U.S. Citizens at the National Laboratories
S-4 Agile and Adaptable Workforce Practices at NASA and at Lockheed Martin
S-5 Rapid Retraining into Technical Fields at the Naval Postgraduate School
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