Lessons learned from establishing the Systems Engineering Research Center, a networked University Affiliated Research Center

A University Affiliated Research Center (UARC) is a highly valued engineering, research, and development resource to the federal government, largely within the US Department of Defense (DoD). Only 15 exist, all under special authority of the US Code. The Systems Engineering Research Center (SERC), established in 2008, was the first UARC established as a networked research center, gradually growing to include more than two dozen university members, each offering systems engineering research capabilities. This networked model for a UARC has found support within the DoD-exemplified by the newest UARC established recently by the US Air Force. A large diverse pool of faculty and student researchers arguably delivers the most consequential academic research in systems engineering anywhere in the world. In its first few years, the SERC had to overcome challenges that single-university UARCs did not face in exchange for the advantages that such a sizable network of universities offers. This review paper explores those challenges, offering lessons for new network-based UARCs and other network-based university research centers. Systems engineering communities, globally, are exploring such constructs, and this reflective paper may offer useful insights.