Officer Programs

A selection of Army acquisition Officer education and training programs

Army Acquisition Professional Course (AAPC)
This nine week course is held in Huntsville, Alabama at the Army Acquisition Center of Excellence. It is designed to provide a broad spectrum of knowledge pertaining to the acquisition process, program management and contracting.

Naval Postgraduate School’s Advanced Education Program (Initial Officer Education) Army Acquisition officers attend Naval Postgraduate School’s Masters of Science in Program 522 through the Advanced Civil Schooling fully funded education program.

Each of these programs result in a minimum Acquisition Career Fields (AFC) training of: Contracting (3), Program Management (3), Test and Evaluation (2), and Engineering (2).

Follow on training includes:

Military Education Level 4/Advanced Operations Course Intermediate Qualification Course (IQC): The three-week FA51 IQC is the Army Acquisition Corps (AAC) functional-area specific follow-on to the core intermediate Level Education (ILE).

SSC

Advanced Civil Schooling Program 

The ACS program provides opportunities for Functional Area 51 Officers to pursue advanced degree programs at civilian universities on a full-time basis.  Participants are chosen through a bi-annual selection panel.  The dates are announced through Acquisition Management Branch at Human Resources Command.

Eligibility:
Army Acquisition Officers

Announcement Dates:

ACS 23-01 Panel (Winter Moving Cycle)
Announcement Opening: 6 Dec 2021
Announcement Closing: 16 Feb 2022
Program Start: 1 October 2023 – 30 March 2023

ACS 23-02 Officers (Summer Moving Cycle)
Announcement Opening: 15 June 2022
Announcement Closing: 18 August 2022
Program Start: 1 April 2023 – 30 September 2023

Pre-Command Courses

Acquisition Pre-Command Course: A resident two week course held at the Army Acquisition Center of Excellence in Huntsville, Alabama mandatory for centrally selected to acquisition command positions within the US Army Acquisition Corps.

Program Manager’s Course (PMT 401): A technically focused resident held at the Defense Acquisition University in Fort Belvoir, Virginia mandatory for centrally selected to program management command positions within the US Army Acquisition Corps.

Contracting Pre-Command Course : A technically focused resident two week course held at the Army Acquisition Center of Excellence in Huntsville, Alabama mandatory for centrally selected to contracting command positions within the US Army Acquisition Corps.

Army Acquisition Center of Excellence’s Professional Development Series

Influencer Training – Vital Smarts

Influencer Training is a leadership course that teaches proven behavior change strategies. Drawing from the skills of many of the world’s best change agents and combining them with five decades of social-science research, this course offers a powerful model for behavior change whether you manage a team of ten or ten thousand. For more information contact the AACoE.

Eligibility:
Captains, Majors and Lieutenant Colonels.

Crucial Conversations – Vital Smarts

Crucial Conversations teaches skills for creating alignment and agreement by fostering open dialogue around high stakes, emotional, or risky topics.

Eligibility:
Captains, Majors and Lieutenant Colonels.

CDG

Training With Industry

TWI is a year-long work-experience program intended to give top-performing officers extended exposure to industry management techniques, best practices and technological innovations, as well as a view from the “other side of the fence.”

Eligibility:
Majors and Lieutenant Colonels.

Announcement Dates:
Announcement Opening: Mid-June
Announcement Closing: Early August
Applicant Selection Notification Date: End of September
Applicant Industry Slating: Dec-Jan
Program Start Date: June – Sep

For more information on the TWI program and how to apply, please visit: the TWI Program Page and the AIM website.