Guiding Principles
28%of exam
Pre-Award
20%of exam
30 QuestionsMarket ResearchRequired SourcesAcquisition StrategySolicitation
Award
26.7%of exam
Post-Award
25.3%of exam
Quick Facts
- Exam
- CON 3990V
- Format
- 150 multiple-choice
- Pass
- 70%
- Time
- 3 hours
- Book
- Closed
- DoD access
- TAS authorization
- Civilian access
- FAI CSOD request
- Delivery
- Pearson VUE
- Retake
- At least 30 days
- DoD attempts
- 3 per 12 months
- Civilian attempts
- 4 before remediation
- Distribution
- 42 / 30 / 40 / 38
Blueprint Counts
42 | 30 | 40 | 38
Guiding: 42Pre-Award: 30Award: 40Post-Award: 38
CO vs COR
CO
- Holds warrant
- Binds Government
- Signs modifications
COR
- Delegated technical duties
- Monitors performance
- Cannot change contract
Authority stays with CO
Current Exam Blueprint
- Guiding Principles
- 42 questions28%
- Pre-Award
- 30 questions20%
- Award
- 40 questions26.7%
- Post-Award
- 38 questions25.3%
- Competency model
- November 2024 model
- Updated exam
- Live March 31, 2026
- Assessment
- Initial readiness measure
- Result
- Pass or fail
Acquisition Lifecycle
Plan | Solicit | Award | Administer | Close
Plan: 7 and 10Solicit: 12, 13, 15Award: 15 and 16Administer: 42 and 46Close: 4 and 49
Candidate Pathways
- Shared assessment
- CON 3990V
- DoD certification
- Contracting Professional
- Civilian certification
- FAC-C Professional
- DoD registration
- Agency TAS authorization
- Civilian registration
- FAI CSOD authorization request
- DoD attempts
- Three per twelve months
- Civilian attempts
- Four before remediation
- Retake wait
- At least thirty days
Integrity + Judgment
- Actual conflict
- Conflict presently exists
- Potential OCI
- Organizational conflict may arise
- Apparent conflict
- Reasonable appearance exists
- Procurement integrity
- Protect source-selection information
- Unauthorized commitment
- Lacks binding authority
- Ratification
- Authorized official approves later
- Gratuity
- Avoid prohibited benefits
- Impartiality
- Disclose covered relationships
FAR Map: Foundations
- Part 1
- System and authority
- Part 2
- Definitions
- Part 3
- Improper practices and conflicts
- Part 4
- Administrative matters
- Part 5
- Publicizing actions
- Part 6
- Competition requirements
- Part 7
- Acquisition planning
- Part 8
- Required sources
- Part 10
- Market research
- Part 12
- Commercial acquisitions
FAR Map: Lifecycle
- Part 13
- Simplified noncommercial procedures
- Part 15
- Contracting by negotiation
- Part 16
- Contract types
- Part 19
- Small business programs
- Part 31
- Cost principles
- Part 33
- Protests and disputes
- Part 42
- Contract administration
- Part 44
- Subcontracting policies
- Part 46
- Quality assurance
- Part 49
- Termination
March 2026 RFO Update
- RFO exam
- Live March 31, 2026
- Negotiations
- Current material exchange term
- Clarifications
- No proposal revision
- Legacy communications category
- Removed under RFO
- Proposal revision
- Follows completed negotiations
- Part 12
- All commercial acquisitions
- Part 13
- Noncommercial above MPT through SAT
- Evaluation
- Use stated factors only
- Class deviations
- Use applicable deviation text
Supply Source Order
Inventory | Excess | FPI | AbilityOne
Inventory firstExcess secondFPI thirdAbilityOne fourth
Offer vs Quotation
Offer
- Binding upon acceptance
- Forms contract
- Submitted to solicitation
Quotation
- Not binding offer
- Invites Government order
- Supplier may accept order
Acceptance versus order
Acquisition Path Picker
- Required source exists→Apply FAR Part 8
- Market facts missing→Perform market research
- Commercial solution fits→Apply FAR Part 12
- Noncommercial over MPT through SAT→Apply FAR Part 13
- Negotiated selection needed→Apply FAR Part 15
- Competition unavailable→Document Part 6 exception
- Small-business opportunity→Apply FAR Part 19
- Strategy settled→Document acquisition plan
Current Acquisition Thresholds
- Micro-purchase
- $15,000General
- Simplified acquisition
- $350,000General
- Certified data
- At least $2.5 million
- Adequate price competition
- Certified data exception
- Commercial products or services
- Generally certified-data exception
- Law or regulation
- Certified data exception
- Approved waiver
- Certified data exception
- Subcontracting plan
- Over $900,000Other-than-small prime
- Construction plan
- Over $2 millionPublic facility
- Threshold effective
- October 1, 2025
Planning + Strategy
- Requirement
- Defines mission need
- Funding
- Must be available and proper
- Market research
- Informs acquisition strategy
- Acquisition plan
- Integrates major decisions
- Competition
- Full and open default
- Justification
- Supports statutory exception
- Set-aside
- Reserves small-business competition
- Presolicitation notice
- Publicizes proposed action
- Sources sought
- Tests market capability
- Evaluation factors
- Match acquisition objectives
Required Source Order
- Specific mandates
- Check FAR 8.101 first
- Agency inventory
- First supply source1
- Excess property
- Second supply source2
- FPI
- Third supply source3
- AbilityOne
- Fourth supply source4
- AbilityOne-listed service
- Mandatory service source
- Required-use contract
- Must use when suitable
- Existing governmentwide contract
- Consider when suitable
- Shared service
- Consider when suitable
- Commercial sources
- Use after mandatory sources
Solicitation + Methods
- Part 12
- Commercial products and services
- Part 13
- Noncommercial above MPT through SAT
- Part 15
- Negotiated acquisitions
- RFP
- Requests contract offers
- RFQ
- Requests nonbinding quotations
- Offer
- Acceptance forms contract
- Quotation
- Not a binding offer
- Amendment
- Changes solicitation before award
- Solicitation
- Requests offers or quotations
Analysis Triad
Price total | Cost elements | Realism probable
Price: totalCost: elementsRealism: probable cost
Price vs Cost Analysis
Price
- Total amount
- No element breakdown
- Competition often supports
Cost
- Individual elements
- Certified data often supports
- Tests allocability and allowability
Total versus elements
Analysis Picker
- Adequate competition→Price analysis
- Cost elements provided→Cost analysis
- Cost-reimbursement offer→Cost realism
- Data threshold met→Certified data(Unless exception applies)
- Commercial product or service→Check certified-data exception
- Price seems excessive→Reasonableness test
- Costs seem understated→Realism test
- Objectives established→Negotiate and document
Contract Type Signals
- FFP
- Price stays fixed
- FPEPA
- Defined economic adjustment
- FPI contract
- Target sharing formulaFixed-price
- CPFF
- Allowable costs plus fixed fee
- CPIF
- Cost incentive sharing
- CPAF
- Subjective award fee
- T&M
- Labor rates plus materials
- Labor-hour
- Labor rates only
- T&M limitation
- No suitable alternative type
- T&M ceiling
- Contractor exceeds at own risk
- IDIQ
- Orders within contract scope
- Risk rule
- Contractor bears FFP cost risk
RFO Exchanges
Clarify without revision | Negotiate then permit revision
Clarify: explain without revisionNegotiate: address material issuesRevision opportunity follows negotiation
Reasonableness vs Realism
Reasonableness
- Is price too high
- Protects Government
- Required award judgment
Realism
- Are costs believable
- Predicts probable cost
- Required for cost-reimbursement
High versus believable
Contract Type Picker
- Stable requirement→FFP
- Economic uncertainty→FPEPA
- Target sharing desired→FPI
- Uncertain allowable costs→CPFF
- Cost incentive desired→CPIF
- Subjective incentive needed→CPAF
- Labor extent unknown→T&M(Only when no other type fits)
- Labor only needed→Labor-hour(Only when no other type fits)
- Recurring uncertain quantity→IDIQ
Pricing + Analysis
- Price analysis
- Evaluates total price
- Cost analysis
- Evaluates cost elements
- Cost realism
- Predicts probable performance cost
- Reasonableness
- Protects against overpricing
- Unbalanced pricing
- Overstated and understated line items
- Certified data
- Current accurate complete
- Other data
- Supports fair pricing
- Technical analysis
- Validates labor and quantities
- Negotiation objective
- Government's initial position
- PNM
- Records negotiated result
Clarification vs Negotiation
Clarification
- Explains proposal aspects
- No proposal revision
- Cannot cure material defects
Negotiation
- Material issues discussed
- Revision opportunity follows
- After competitive range
Revision separates negotiation
Source Selection
- SSA
- Makes selection decision
- SSEB
- Evaluates proposals
- Stated factors
- Control proposal evaluation
- Tradeoff
- Permits higher-priced selection
- LPTA
- Lowest acceptable evaluated price
- Competitive range
- Best suited for negotiation
- Clarification
- No proposal revision
- Negotiation
- Addresses material proposal issues
- Proposal revision
- Opportunity follows completed negotiations
- Debriefing
- Explains award decision
- Responsibility
- Contractor can perform
- Best value
- Optimizes stated factors
LPTA vs Tradeoff
LPTA
- Acceptability only
- Lowest evaluated price
- No strength premiums
Tradeoff
- Relative merits matter
- Higher price permitted
- Rationale required
Acceptability versus relative merit
FFP vs CPFF
FFP
- Price fixed
- Contractor cost risk
- Stable requirement
CPFF
- Allowable costs reimbursed
- Fixed fee
- Government cost risk
Risk follows uncertainty
Convenience vs Default
Convenience
- Government choice
- Fault not required
- Settlement costs possible
Default
- Unexcused contractor failure
- Excess costs possible
- Excusable causes matter
Need versus fault
Post-Award Action Picker
- Direction changes scope→Stop and notify CO
- Within-scope change→Contract modification
- Work fails requirements→Inspection remedies
- Performance endangered→Cure notice
- Default considered→Show-cause notice
- Government need ends→Termination for convenience
- Unexcused contractor failure→Termination for default
- Written demand asserted→Claim process
- Performance complete→Contract closeout
Administration + Quality
- COR delegation
- Written limited authority
- Surveillance
- Monitors contractor performance
- QASP
- Defines surveillance approach
- Inspection
- Examines contract conformance
- Acceptance
- Acknowledges conforming delivery
- Nonconformance
- Apply contractual remedies
- CPARS
- Records contractor performance
- Invoice review
- Verifies payable performance
- Government property
- Track contractor accountability
- Subcontract consent
- CO approval when required
- Privity
- Government lacks subcontract privity
Protest vs Claim
Protest
- Challenges acquisition action
- Preaward or postaward
- Forum deadlines control
Claim
- Contract performance dispute
- Demand asserted as right
- CO decision required
Acquisition versus contract
Changes + Disagreements
- Unilateral mod
- One Government signature
- Bilateral mod
- Both parties sign
- Change order
- Directs within-scope change
- Constructive change
- Government conduct changes performance
- REA
- Requests equitable adjustment
- Claim
- Written demand asserted as right
- CO final decision
- Triggers appeal rights
- Cure notice
- At least ten days remain
- Show-cause notice
- Termination appears appropriate
- Protest
- Challenges acquisition action
Unilateral vs Bilateral Modification
Unilateral
- One Government signature
- Exercises existing authority
- May direct change
Bilateral
- Both parties sign
- Reflects agreement
- Often settles adjustment
Authority versus agreement
Termination + Closeout
- Termination convenience
- Contractor fault not required
- Termination default
- Unexcused contractor failure
- Excusable delay
- May prevent default liability
- Excess costs
- Possible default remedy
- Settlement proposal
- Proposes allowable termination costs
- Termination notice
- Stops authorized work
- Final payment
- Required before closeout
- Release
- Extinguishes covered claims
- Property clearance
- Resolves Government property
- Commercial termination
- Cause or convenience
- Closeout
- Confirms all obligations complete
Common Traps
Certification vs warrant
Certification shows competence ≠ Warrant grants authority
FAR vs DFARS
FAR is Government-wide ≠ DFARS supplements DoD
Quotation vs offer
Quotation is nonbinding ≠ Offer binds upon acceptance
COR authority
COR monitors delegated duties ≠ COR cannot change contract
Reasonableness vs realism
Reasonableness tests high price ≠ Realism tests believable costs
Justification vs research
Research informs strategy ≠ Justification supports competition exception
Clarification vs revision
Clarification explains without revision ≠ Revision opportunity follows negotiation
Convenience vs fault
Convenience needs no fault ≠ Default needs unexcused failure
Direction vs authority
Contractor request is not direction ≠ Only CO changes contract
FPI acronym
Source: Federal Prison Industries ≠ Type: fixed-price incentive
RFO terminology
Use negotiations now ≠ Legacy communications category removed
Last Minute
- 1.Counts: 42 / 30 / 40 / 38
- 2.150 questions; 70%; three hours
- 3.Closed book; internalize FAR map
- 4.March 2026 exam uses RFO
- 5.MPT $15K; SAT $350K
- 6.Certified data at least $2.5M
- 7.Part 12 means commercial
- 8.Part 13: noncommercial above MPT
- 9.Part 15 uses negotiations
- 10.Supply order ends at AbilityOne
- 11.CO binds; COR monitors
- 12.Price total; cost elements
- 13.Realism predicts probable cost
- 14.LPTA acceptability; tradeoff merits
- 15.Clarification allows no revision
- 16.Convenience choice; default fault
- 17.Retakes wait at least 30 days
- 18.DoD: three per 12 months
- 19.FAI: four before remediation
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