Title: Internship Opportunities at the Pentagon

Speaker: Dr. Rajkumar Raman, Director Program Analysis & Evaluation Marine Corps Headquarters

Abstract: Program Analysis and Evaluation (PA&E) within the Headquarters Marine Corps at the Pentagon serves the primary function of providing resource informed decisions to the Commandant, Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and the Deputy Commandant of Programs and Resources. PA&E analysts are involved in a wide range of topics requiring data analytics, modeling and simulation and operations research.
Significant emphasis is placed on critical thinking skills for problem formulation and an analytical approach leading to an executable solution. Students interested in learning more about the Pentagon and in pursuing internship opportunities are encouraged to attend.

Biography: Dr. Rajkumar Raman is the Director for Program Analysis and Evaluation (PA&E) Division and is responsible for providing the Commandant of the Marine Corps, Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps and the Deputy Commandant for Programs and Resources with analysis and assessment of the relative capabilities, effectiveness, and costs of alternative programs and program proposals. In addition, Dr. Raman provides independent advice to the senior Marine Corps leadership and is responsible for identifying and developing resource strategies, issues, and program assessments to be addressed in the Marine Corps and Navy Program Objective Memorandum (POM). Dr. Raman came to the Marine Corps from the Office of Secretary of Defense Cost Assessment and Program Evaluation, where he was a senior operations research analyst and led several Independent Cost Estimates for Major Defense Acquisition Programs such as the VH-92 Presidential Helicopter Replacement, CVN-79 the second ship of the Gerald R. Ford Class of aircraft carriers, and CH-53K Heavy Lift Helicopter Replacement. He has extensive experience with the Defense Department’s Planning, Programming, Budgeting, and Execution System pertaining to high visibility programs. Dr. Raman’s previous assignments include several positions of increasing responsibility in acquisition and financial management. At RAND, he led several efforts sponsored by the Department of Defense, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense. At Naval Air Systems Command, he was the airframe manufacturing cost lead for the Joint Strike Fighter Program. Early in his career at MATSYS and BDM Federal, he was the technical lead on several Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency funded efforts. Dr. Raman holds a Bachelor of Technology in Chemical Engineering from National Institute of Technology, Trichy, India; Master of Science in Chemical Engineering from Montana State University; a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from State University of New York at Buffalo, and a post-doctoral fellowship from Pennsylvania State University. He has authored/co-authored over 20 peer reviewed publications and 5 US patents.