As an engineer and senior defense analyst for RAND, the global policy think tank, Michael Bohnert works in defense acquisition, where, as a third-party reviewer, he helps the government weigh the positives and negatives of purchasing large-scale, long-term defense systems.

“For these large defense programs, you have to start with early-phase scoping and analysis,” Bohnert ’14 ME Eng says. “That involves wargaming, it involves understanding future threats to the country, and it involves working directly with members of the armed services to understand their evolving needs.” Bohnert then applies engineering modeling and simulation to find cost-effective solutions for the U.S. military, including procuring new or upgrading old aircraft and submarines.

A native of Charleston, W.V., Bohnert started his career as a civilian engineer for the U.S. Navy. He then worked in a Navy nuclear laboratory, where he focused on the design, regulation, and life-cycle management of nuclear systems. In addition to his work for the United States, he has advised the Australian government’s Department of Defence and Canada’s Department of National Defence on topics including emerging and current technology, engineering and design, industrial base management, force structure, modeling and simulation, and wargaming.

Bohnert—who has also written a series of strategic and technical articles on Ukraine for RAND—chose Penn State’s World Campus for his graduate studies because of its emphasis on teaching systems engineering from an interdisciplinary standpoint, which, he says, helped him bridge the divide between engineering and the broader world. —Elton Hayes