Bowie State University's NCMA student chapter was chartered on April 5, 2006 as the first NCMA student chapter in the nation at an HBCU.

In picture from left to right: Adriene Carr, president, Dgessey Majors, vice president 2006, Ana Simmons, vice president, Marcus Moses, president 2006, Dr. Shelton Rhodes, faculty advisor

Did you know that the Washington metropolitan area is home to many of the Black Enterprise top 100 businesses? The majority of these businesses sell products and services to the federal government. There is an ongoing shortage of federal contracting professionals to manage the almost trillion dollar annual federal contracting budget. BSU's School of Business has a procurement and contracting concentration for business majors. This concentration will prepare students for procurement and contracting jobs in the federal government and in the private sector.

Procurement consists of evaluation and selection of suppliers based on availability, reliability, and price, to obtain the highest quality products at the lowest price. Buyers attend trade shows and conferences and visit suppliers' plants to examine products and stay abreast of industry trends. They must develop a working technical knowledge of the goods or services they buy. Often, they forge a strong working relationship with their supplier counterparts—the contract managers—to optimize the outcome for both parties.

Contract Management is a niche within the procurement profession, but it has a very broad perspective in terms of the responsibilities assigned to a contract manager. The job scope ranges from the administrative skills of managing, organizing, and planning, to the excitement and challenge of negotiating a major contract.

Both procurement and contract management demand competence in such areas as contract law, administration, accounting, psychology, management, and planning. The preferred major to enter the profession is business administration, but it is possible to enter the profession from any major.

On June 18, 2005, five Bowie State University students went to Charleston, SC, to attend a national conference sponsored by the National Contract Management Association (NCMA). The purpose was to train students from seven hand-picked universities to start collegiate NCMA chapters. Bowie State University was the only HBCU invited and once BSU's collegiate NCMA chapter is approved, it will be the first and only collegiate chapter of NCMA in the country. The five students from Bowie who attended the conference under the supervision of Dr. Rhodes, chair of the Department of Management, Marketing, and Public Administration, were: Marcus Moses, Linda, Raishad, Ashely

NCMA exists to enable the workforce to grow professionally, assess individual and organizational competency against professional standards, establish values, develop best practices, and provide access to skilled individuals, enabling enterprises to improve their buyer-seller relationships. NCMA was so excited about Bowie State University's interest in their organization that they arranged for the five students to attend the conference, all expenses paid. The NCMA is a professional organization that is making efforts to expand into colleges and universities. Bowie State professor Dr. Shelton Rhodes sees the organization's goal and believes that our students will be a great addition to this nationally recognized association. Because the NCMA started as professional association, there is a wealth of experience in the organization from those who are already in the contracting field. From the student's perspective, NCMA is a great organization of which to be part. Being able to contact professionals that currently hold positions in the workforce is an advantage for anyone who has plans on entering the workforce in any field. Dr. Rhodes and the five students who went to Charleston plan on establishing a collegiate chapter of NCMA on Bowie State's campus, making this advantage available to all students who want to  be prepared for the "real world" upon graduation. If this organization interests you, more information is available through Dr. Shelton Rhodes in the Business Department at 301-860-3622, Adrienne Carr (current president) at Adrienne.E.Carr@irs.gov, or Ana Simmons (vice president), at analeatha05@yahoo.com.

Student Membership and Student Chapters

There are currently 622 student members in our association. Being a student member is a phenomenal means of establishing and maintaining your professional stature—to be a professional, you must behave like a professional. To qualify for this membership class, individuals must be full-time students in an accredited, degree-granting institution, and not hold full-time employment in contract management or a related field. Individuals in this membership class receive all benefits of regular membership. The annual dues for the student member class will be $0.00, and the initiation fee is waived. To sign up, please visit our home page at www.ncmahq.org and select "Join NCMA."

Contract Management Jobs

One of the best benefits you will receive as an NCMA member is free access to our jobs board at www.ContractManagementJobs.com. This is the premier electronic recruitment resource for the industry. Here, employers and recruiters can access the most qualified talent pool with relevant work experience to fulfill staffing needs. Active job seekers can showcase their skills and work experience to prospective employers to find the best job opportunities, while others can take advantage of networking, training, and career development services. Whether you're looking for a new job, or ready to take the next step in your career, we'll help you find the opportunity that's right for you. There are currently 239 worldwide positions being advertised.