Body Of Knowledge And Curriculum To Advance Systems Engineering (BKCASE)
Human Capital Development Dr. Art Pyster
Co-Principal Investigators:
Objectives: The two primary objectives of the BKCASE project were to develop:
- A globally-accepted guide to the Systems Engineering Body of Knowledge (SEBoK), which will inform the state of practice and serve as a reference for both systems engineers and members of related disciplines who seek information in the systems engineering arena
- A Graduate Reference Curriculum for Systems Engineering (GRCSE), which will be a set of guidelines to help improve consistency in and raise the state of masters-level SE education.
Approach: During 2009-2012, a global team of over 70 SE practitioners and educators from government, industry, and academia with support from INCOSE, IEEE-CS, and other professional societies developed the two primary products: SEBoK and GRCSE. The author team met quarterly and sub-teams worked on development assignments in the interim between workshops. Most authors volunteered their time. Incremental development and wiki-based release for SEBoK enabled a broad review of both products and ensured their relevance and value. A thorough adjudication process addressed every review comment received.
Since 2013, a BKCASE governing board has been established with representatives from SERC, INCOSE, and IEEE-Computer Society. A BKCASE editorial board has been formed with volunteer editors from around the world, and lead by the PI and Co-PI as Editor- and Co-Editor-in Chief respectively. In 2014, Rick Adcock from Cranfield University, UK, took over as the Editor-in-Chief of the BKCASE project, and INCOSE and IEEE-CS are now handling the maintenance and releases of SEBoK and GRCSE together with the SERC.
Application: Individual systems engineers and organizations that do systems engineering from around the world are using SEBoK as a key resource. Universities within and outside the US and using GRCSE to improve their current System Engineering programs or to develop new System Engineering programs; GRCSE provides the flexibility to tailor the System Engineering program to meet their specific needs of the university. Panels and tutorials at major international System Engineering conferences, and interactions with individuals, organizations, and universities are enabling and supporting the use of SEBoK and GRCSE by the worldwide System Engineering community.