Manages the cost, schedule and performance of a military system, such as an aircraft, ship, satellite or software program, from requirement to fielding. BLS does not publish separate figures for project management specialists; it counts them within project management specialist (SOC 13-1082), whose median pay is $102,320 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Typical entry-level education: Bachelor's degree.
- SOC 13-1082
- Business and Financial Operations
- Last updated October 9, 2026
At a glance
Defense Acquisition Program Manager in four numbers
- Median pay
- $102,320a year, or $49.19/hrBLS OEWS, May 2025Lowest 10% $62KTop 10% $168K
US median, all jobs: $50,980
- Projected growth
- +6.7%Faster than averageBLS EP, 2025–2035This career+6.7%All jobs+3.5%
Projected employment change, 2025–2035 Item Value This career +6.7% All jobs +3.5% - Openings a year
- 76,5001,094,300 jobs todayBLS EP, 2025–2035
- Jobs in 20251.1M
- Projected 20351.2M
Employment, 2025–2035 Item Value Jobs in 2025 1.1M Projected 2035 1.2M - Typical education
- Bachelor'sneeded to enterBLS EP, 2025–2035; mix: O*NET
Also advertised as: Defense Program Manager, DoD Program Manager, Acquisition Program Manager, Weapons Systems Program Manager, Program Executive.
Pay
How much do Project Management Specialists make?
Every defense acquisition program manager in the US, by percentile of annual wage
Median
$102,320
Middle half earn $78,440 to $133,100
- 10th
- $61,580
- 25th
- $78,440
- 75th
- $133,100
- 90th
- $167,970
All US occupations: $50,980
| Percentile | Value |
|---|---|
| 10th | $61,580 |
| 25th | $78,440 |
| Median | $102,320 |
| 75th | $133,100 |
| 90th | $167,970 |
| All US occupations | $50,980 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
- Median annual wage
- $102,320
- Median hourly wage
- $49.19/hr
- Mean annual wage
- $110,740
- People employed
- 1,066,670
Versus all US occupations
At $102,320, Project Management Specialists earn 101% above the $50,980 median across all US occupations, a difference of $51,340 a year.
Versus business and financial operations occupations
Inside the Business and Financial Operations group, where the middle occupation pays $80,730, this is 27% above the group median.
Pay range
The top 10% earn $167,970 or more while the bottom 10% earn $61,580, a gap of 2.7×. That is a typical spread for a US occupation.
Rank in the bank
This median pays more than 75% of the 1,741 occupations in the NueCareer career bank.
Cost of living
Washington posts the highest raw median ($124,160), but once local prices are taken into account Delaware leads at $122,425 in national-average dollars.
Pay by state
Which states pay Project Management Specialists the most?
State medians come from the same OEWS release as the national figures. The cost-of-living column divides each state median by that state's BEA Regional Price Parity, restating pay in national-average dollars so a high-cost state and a low-cost one can be compared directly.
| State | Median | COL-adjusted | Employed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Washington | $124,160 | $116,023 | 36,240 |
| 2New Jersey | $122,980 | $113,028 | 28,300 |
| 3Delaware | $122,190 | $122,425 | 1,770 |
| 4New York | $121,040 | $112,156 | 68,020 |
| 5California | $120,910 | $109,203 | 114,380 |
| 6Virginia | $120,840 | $119,520 | 43,860 |
| 7Massachusetts | $114,190 | $107,974 | 21,960 |
| 8Colorado | $110,050 | $106,791 | 32,390 |
| 9New Mexico | $106,970 | $116,004 | 4,330 |
| 10Oregon | $105,480 | $102,050 | 19,380 |
Job outlook
Is Defense Acquisition Program Manager a growing career?
Employment change over 2025–2035, against every US occupation
Faster than average. +6.7% projected growth vs 3.5% for all occupations.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Project Management Specialists | +6.7% |
| All US occupations | +3.5% |
Source: BLS EP, 2025–2035
Faster than average
BLS projects employment of Project Management Specialists to change 6.7% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% projected for all occupations. That is 73,200 more jobs.
Annual openings
About 76,500 openings are projected each year, 7.0% of the 1,094,300 jobs that existed in 2025. Most come from workers leaving the occupation, not from growth alone.
Getting in
How to become a Defense Acquisition Program Manager
Most program managers have a bachelor's degree in engineering, science or business, and many hold a master's. Government program managers are military officers or civilians in the Defense Acquisition Workforce, where program management is a defined career field with training through Defense Acquisition University and a certification at the practitioner and advanced levels.
The Project Management Professional credential from the Project Management Institute is common on the contractor side. People typically start as engineers, financial analysts, contracting staff or junior program analysts in a program office and work up to deputy and then program manager roles. The largest programs are led by senior military officers or members of the Senior Executive Service.
- 1
Typical entry-level education
Bachelor's degree
- 2
Work experience in a related occupation
None
- 3
Typical on-the-job training
None
- 4
Preparation needed (O*NET job zone)
Medium preparation
BLS Employment Projections, 2025–2035; job zone from O*NET 31.0 Database.
The work
What does a Defense Acquisition Program Manager do?
Defense acquisition program managers are responsible for getting a military capability built and delivered. A program might be a new radio, a fleet of trucks, a missile, a satellite constellation or a large software system. The program manager runs the program office that turns military requirements into contracts, oversees the companies doing the work, and answers for cost, schedule and performance.
Day to day, that means managing budgets that move through the federal planning and appropriations cycle, tracking technical risk, deciding trade-offs with engineers and users, and preparing for milestone reviews where senior leaders decide whether the program continues. On the industry side, contractor program managers do the mirror-image job, leading the teams that design and build the system and reporting to the government customer.
Day-to-day tasks
- Lead a program office responsible for a military system
- Build and defend program budgets through the federal budget cycle
- Oversee contractor cost, schedule and technical performance
- Manage technical, schedule and cost risks
- Prepare for milestone and design reviews with senior leaders
- Coordinate requirements with military users and engineers
- Approve test plans and review test results
- Report program status to leadership and Congress
Typical tasks, researched by NueCareer from the sources below.
Working conditions and hours
Work takes place in program offices on military bases and in contractor offices, often in secure facilities. Travel to contractor plants, test ranges and the Pentagon is common. Hours stretch around milestone reviews, budget deadlines and test events.
Where the work happens
Indoors, climate-controlled
NeverEvery dayOutdoors in all weather
NeverEvery day
Physical demands
Sitting
NeverAlmost all the timeSeated for more than half the working day.
Standing
NeverAlmost all the timeBending or twisting
NeverAlmost all the time
Working with people
Contact with other people
NoneConstantFace-to-face discussions
NeverEvery dayDealing with the public
Not importantExtremely important
Pressure and stakes
Strict deadlines
NeverEvery dayConflict situations
NeverEvery dayCost of a mistake
Not seriousExtremely serious
Autonomy
Freedom to decide
NoneA lotA lot of freedom to make decisions without checking first.
Conditions: O*NET Work Context survey. Each item has its own scale, so each dot is read against the two answers that end its own line.
Core skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Active Listening3.8
- Critical Thinking3.8
- Writing3.6
- Monitoring3.6
- Reading Comprehension3.5
- Speaking3.5
- Active Learning3.5
- Learning Strategies3.0
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Active Listening | 3.8 |
| Critical Thinking | 3.8 |
| Writing | 3.6 |
| Monitoring | 3.6 |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.5 |
| Speaking | 3.5 |
| Active Learning | 3.5 |
| Learning Strategies | 3.0 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Transferable skills
O*NET importance, 1 to 5
- Judgment and Decision Making3.6
- Coordination3.5
- Time Management3.5
- Social Perceptiveness3.4
- Complex Problem Solving3.4
- Management of Personnel Resources3.4
- Persuasion3.3
- Negotiation3.3
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.6 |
| Coordination | 3.5 |
| Time Management | 3.5 |
| Social Perceptiveness | 3.4 |
| Complex Problem Solving | 3.4 |
| Management of Personnel Resources | 3.4 |
| Persuasion | 3.3 |
| Negotiation | 3.3 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
Tools and software
- Accounting software · in demand
- Analytical or scientific software · in demand
- Application server software · in demand
- Business intelligence and data analysis software · in demand
- Cloud-based data access and sharing software · in demand
- Computer aided design CAD software · in demand
- Content workflow software · in demand
- Customer relationship management CRM software · in demand
- Data base user interface and query software · in demand
- Desktop publishing software · in demand
- Development environment software · in demand
- Document management software · in demand
“In demand” marks an O*NET Employer-Based Hot Technology, software named in real job postings for this occupation.
Personality fit
What personality type suits a Defense Acquisition Program Manager?
NueCareer estimate (Holland code ECI) built on O*NET's Project Management Specialist profile, scored 1 to 7
| Axis | Defense Acquisition Program Manager |
|---|---|
| Realistic | 1 |
| Investigative | 3 |
| Artistic | 2 |
| Social | 3 |
| Enterprising | 6 |
| Conventional | 6 |
Source: O*NET 31.0 Database
What the work is built around
Day to day this is work built around leading, persuading, selling and making decisions, combined with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data.
- Enterprising6.3
- Conventional5.6
- Investigative3.5
- Social3.3
- Artistic1.6
- Realistic1.5
Closest MBTI types
NueCareer fit scores: cosine similarity between each MBTI type's interest vector and this occupation's O*NET interest profile. Not a BLS or O*NET figure; the method is documented on our methodology page.
Explore further
Careers related to Defense Acquisition Program Manager
O*NET related occupations
- Business and Financial Operations
- Computer and Mathematical
- Business and Financial Operations
- Management
- Business and Financial Operations
- Management
More business and financial operations careers
Median annual pay, with project management specialists highlighted
- Financial Advisor$105,070
- Defense Acquisition Program Manager$102,320
- Accountant$83,680
- Insurance Underwriter$81,370
- Coroner$80,730
- Claims Adjuster, Examiner, and Investigator$78,000
- Loan Officer$76,690
- Human Resources Specialist$75,940
- Appraiser and Assessor of Real Estate$67,960
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Financial Advisor | $105,070 |
| Defense Acquisition Program Manager | $102,320 |
| Accountant | $83,680 |
| Insurance Underwriter | $81,370 |
| Coroner | $80,730 |
| Claims Adjuster, Examiner, and Investigator | $78,000 |
| Loan Officer | $76,690 |
| Human Resources Specialist | $75,940 |
| Appraiser and Assessor of Real Estate | $67,960 |
Source: BLS OEWS, May 2025
Lists Defense Acquisition Program Manager appears on
Questions
Defense Acquisition Program Manager: frequently asked questions
How much do Project Management Specialists make?
BLS does not publish a separate wage for project management specialists. It counts them within project management specialist, whose median pay is $102,320 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). The middle half of that occupation earn between $78,440 and $133,100, and the top 10% earn $167,970 or more.
Do you need a degree to become a Defense Acquisition Program Manager?
Yes. BLS reports a bachelor's degree as the typical entry-level education for Project Management Specialists, and O*NET rates the preparation needed as medium preparation.
Is Defense Acquisition Program Manager a growing career?
Yes. Employment is projected to grow 6.7% over 2025–2035, faster than the 3.5% average for all occupations (BLS EP, 2025–2035). BLS still projects about 76,500 openings a year, mostly from workers retiring or moving to other work.
What does a Defense Acquisition Program Manager do?
Defense acquisition program managers are responsible for getting a military capability built and delivered. A typical task: lead a program office responsible for a military system. Employers most often ask for Accounting software, Analytical or scientific software, Application server software.
Which states pay Project Management Specialists the most?
The highest state medians for Project Management Specialists are Washington ($124,160), New Jersey ($122,980), Delaware ($122,190) (BLS OEWS, May 2025). Adjusted for local prices using BEA Regional Price Parities, Delaware moves to the top at $122,425.
What personality type suits a Defense Acquisition Program Manager?
O*NET scores Project Management Specialists highest on the Enterprising, Conventional and Investigative interest areas, so the work mixes leading, persuading, selling and making decisions with organising, following procedures and working precisely with data. On NueCareer's MBTI-to-interest mapping the closest types are ESTJ, ESFJ. Personality is a fit signal, not a gate. The free NueCareer quiz scores your own profile against all 1,731 careers in the bank.