The Far Bootcamp®

Course Description

The FAR Bootcamp is a four-and-one half day course that teaches attendees how to research, read, interpret, and apply the Federal Acquisition Regulation. There are no prerequisites. New hires have attended the course on their very first day on the job and done well. Course hours are 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m., Monday through Thursday, and 9:00 a.m. until Noon on Friday. There are no lectures or slide shows. Attendees learn the FAR by working through exercises and problems, which become more complex and difficult as the week progresses. Each attendee receives a copy of the FAR.

There are four kinds of exercises and problems:

Familiarization, Search-and-Find, and Search-and-Answer exercises are worked by the attendees individually. Search-and-Solve problems are worked both individually and in groups of four to five persons. All but Familiarization exercises have multiple levels of difficulty.

Familiarization exercises are designed to accustom the attendee to working with the FAR in a systematic way. They familiarize the attendee with the organization and general content of the FAR and with course tools for doing research.

In Search-and-Find exercises the attendee is given a list of topics and told to find them using the FAR index, and the FAR tables of contents. The purpose of these exercises is to deepen the attendee’s familiarity with the organization and topical content of the FAR and to help the attendee develop a personal FAR research strategy. There are two levels of difficulty for Search and Find exercises. The first level requires attendees to find topics that are more or less clearly marked in FAR. The second requires them to find topics that are difficult to find.

Search-and-Answer exercises are more difficult than Familiarization and Search-and-Find exercises. They require the attendee to search the FAR in order to find answers to specific questions. For example: When determining whether a prospective contract exceeds the dollar threshold for obtaining cost or pricing data, must you include the dollar value of prospective contract options? Yes or No? Provide a FAR citation that expressly supports your answer. The student must find an express answer to that question in the FAR and write down a citation for it. There are two levels of difficulty for Search-and-Answer exercises. The first involves finding answers that are stated in one place. The second involves finding answers that require analysis of two or more parts of the FAR.

Search-and-Solve problems are the most difficult. Each confronts the attendee with a set of facts and a problem, which the attendee must solve by reference to the FAR. There are two levels of difficulty. The first includes problems that do not require case law knowledge. The second includes problems that usually require some case law knowledge in order to find the solution. At each level, attendees must be aware of special terminology.

Each exercise and problem are timed and is followed by a review under the guidance of the Bootcamp Leader. Class size is limited to 25 persons. The limited class size allows the Leader to watch over the attendees and to assist them in the development of their research and interpretation techniques.

The first day of class is devoted to Familiarization and Search-and-Find exercises. The second day is devoted to Search-and-Answer exercises. The next two days are devoted to Search-and-Solve problems. During the third and fourth days the attendees work on more increasingly difficult cases, and sharing their findings with the class, arguing syllogistically. The final day consists of a three-hour graduation exercise, which enables each attendee to assess the amount of progress that he or she has made and to identify the need for further study. The class is Pass or Fail based on participation during the week.

The course is intense and very demanding and should be attended only by persons with a strong desire to learn about the FAR and to attend the course. Attendees should be freed of other office obligations and must make arrangements to arrive every morning on time and to stay in the classroom until the end of the day. Our standards will not permit anyone to receive a course certificate who does not attend all sessions and work all exercises and problems.