army promotion board essay

Army Board Guidance

The #1 guide to the Army promotion board

• #1 Administrative
• #2 Study Subjects

Promotion Board Biography

If you don’t know where to start, creating a biography for the Army promotion or Soldier of the month board can be difficult. A biography should inform the board members of your past experience and responsibilities that lead up to you current situation. The biography should convince the board members of your potential of performing at the next level. Regardless if you are going to the Soldier of the month board or promotion board a well written biography will work in both situations.

An actual biography and fill in the blank template of a biography can be found in The Board Bible.

Here is some of the info pulled from The Board Bible to help you plan what the biography should cover:

Rank, Name Location and date of birth Where you grew up and graduated high school Any personal information about family (wife/kids) Enlistment Date Date and location of basic training Date and location of AIT and MOS earned First duty station’s location, unit, and dates assigned Job title Accomplishments at duty station -Leadership positions -Extra duties -Deployments Second duty station’s location, unit, and dates assigned Job title Accomplishments at duty station -Leadership positions -Extra duties -Deployments **add more duty stations if needed Short-term goals (at least 3 with a 1-5 year range) Long-term goals (at least 3 with 5+ year range)

Here is an example I found in an MOI for a Fort Campbell competition board:

BIOGRAPHY (SPC Screaming Eagle)

SPC Screaming Eagle serves as an 11B1P, Automatic Rifleman with Charlie Company, 2nd BN, 327th IN Regiment. SPC Eagle has been in the Army for 8 1⁄2 years and has served in numerous assignments and deployments to Operation Enduring Freedom VII, Operation Iraqi Freedom I, IV, JRTC, and NTC. SPC Eagle is Air Assault, Airborne, Combat Lifesaver, Combatives Level II, and Sapper qualified. A native of Bellingham, Washington, SPC Eagle is married with four children and pursuing a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics. He is interested in culinary arts, sailing, and Sponge Bob. His short term goals are to become a fire team leader and going to Ranger School, while his long term goals include three more successful deployments and attending the Sergeant major’s Academy at Fort Bliss, Texas.

• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
• Click to print (Opens in new window)

Learn how to kill your next board!

“Like” the ABG to get updates on new content

• Affiliate Disclosure
• Become an affiliate

Return to top of page

Copyright © 2024 · Prose Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

• Subscribe Now (Opens in new window)
• Air Force Times (Opens in new window)
• Marine Corps Times (Opens in new window)
• Navy Times (Opens in new window)
• Pentagon & Congress
• Defense News (Opens in new window)
• Flashpoints
• Benefits Guide (Opens in new window)
• Military Pay Center
• Military Retirement
• Military Benefits
• Discount Depot
• Gear Scout (Opens in new window)
• Military Culture
• Military Fitness
• Military Movies & Video Games
• Military Sports
• Transition Guide (Opens in new window)
• Pay It Forward (Opens in new window)
• Black Military History (Opens in new window)
• Congressional Veterans Caucus (Opens in new window)
• Military Appreciation Month (Opens in new window)
• Military History
• Vietnam Vets & Rolling Thunder (Opens in new window)
• Honor the Fallen (Opens in new window)
• Hall of Valor (Opens in new window)
• Service Members of the Year (Opens in new window)
• Create an Obituary (Opens in new window)
• Medals & Misfires
• Installation Guide (Opens in new window)
• Task Force Violent
• Battle Bracket
• CFC Givers Guide
• Photo Galleries
• Early Bird Brief
• Newsletters (Opens in new window)
• Long-Term Care Partners
• Navy Federal
• Digital Edition (Opens in new window)

7 tips to help you get that next Army promotion, from a guy who knows

Were you up for a promotion this year? How did you do? Good or bad, a recent promotion board member has the inside scoop on what the boards are looking for.

Lt. Col. Eric McCoy, now a student at the Army War College, took to Facebook on July 19 with a long list of lessons learned from this year’s board process.

“A lot of it was just wanting to be able to share that with the soldiers I mentor, so they can prepare their soldiers for next year’s boards,” McCoy told Army Times on Tuesday.

Heading into the board process, he said, officers and NCOs he mentored asked him to look into some conventional wisdom about promotions. To his surprise, a lot of them were true.

“I didn’t believe it until seeing it for myself,” he said. “Things like making sure that record briefs are updated, the importance of a good photo.”

For more information on preparing for promotion boards, Army Human Resources Command keeps guides online to preparation checklists, writing a letter to the board and more.

Here are McCoy’s pointers:

1. Check your work

Incomplete or out-of-date paperwork made the top of the list in make-or-breaks when it comes to moving up.

The board saw discrepancies in information like assignments, combat tour credit, education and awards, McCoy wrote, as well as missing or incorrectly calculated PT test scores.

“It is the individual responsibility of every soldier to review and ensure the accuracy of their records,” he wrote. “Moreover, it is highly encouraged that soldiers seek a mentor to review their records.”

2. Fix your face

Make sure there’s a recent, regulation-friendly photo attached to your promotion packet. Some soldiers the board looked at had old or missing photos, while others were out of regs (hair, make-up, mustaches) in the ones available.

“Ill-fitting uniforms (both tight and loose fitting) gave the impression that NCOs were not in compliance with AR 600-9,” McCoy wrote. “Wrinkled pants and jackets detracted from professional appearance.”

And don’t forget to take a photo with the most current version of your uniform, with everything in its proper place. Some soldiers were missing awards that were in their Soldier Record Brief, while others were wearing ribbons in the wrong order or improperly aligned.

Soldiers should “ensure that someone else with knowledge of the regulations inspects them prior to DA Photos and attendance at formal events,” he wrote.

3. Write a letter

Soldiers should include a letter to the president of the board with their packets, McCoy said, but only if it contains some kind of information not already reflected in their records.

“Letters to the board were considered favorably when they highlighted recent achievement or unusual circumstances that the SRB did not reflect (i.e., impact awards, degree completion, or prolonged periods of medical issues),” he wrote.

But if your letter would only summarize what the board can read in your paperwork, skip it, he said.

And if you’re going to include a letter, he added, make sure it’s formatted according to AR 25-50, and make sure there are no grammar errors, he added.

4. Get the story straight

If comments from your rater and senior rater don’t support one another, or they don’t reflect your records, that’s going to look bad.

“Disconnects between rater and senior rater assessment sends a mixed message to the board,” McCoy wrote. “In some situations, the assessment of ‘far exceeded standards’ was not supported by quantitative data in the bullets.”

The officer and NCO evaluation reports that came online in recent years require more of a narrative from raters and senior raters on a soldier’s performance, so it’s important that the comments are consistent and expand on what’s in the records.

“I think the nuance of that is, making sure that raters are talking to senior raters in terms of the picture that they want to paint,” McCoy told Army Times. “A difference in profile assessment from the rater to the senior rater, to some board members, may send a mixed message.”

5. Go for a run

No soldier would be surprised to hear that a top PT score looks good to a promotion board, but a noted lack of physical fitness could also be a black mark.

“There were a number of NCOs with physical profiles and/or low Army Physical Fitness Test scores that limited their ability to lead by example within their respective formations (i.e., PT, field duty) along with access to career enhancing professional opportunities (i.e. drill sergeants),” McCoy wrote.

Further, raters' comments often glossed over how detrimental a lack of fitness is to a solider and a unit.

“This sends an inconsistent message about soldier comprehensive readiness,” he wrote.

Fitter, deadlier soldiers: This is how the Army plans to prepare you for tomorrow’s wars

Leaders are voicing their support for a push to re-think training and maintenance of soldiers themselves, and to treat them as elite athletes preparing for a high-end fight..

A number of promotion packets also raised the question of long-term non-deployability, he added, including a “significant” number of NCOs with P3 profiles ― which, by regulation, require a soldier to go through a medical boarding process to determine whether he or she should be separated.

“Physical readiness management should be re-emphasized in the institutional, operational, and self-developmental domains of leader development,” McCoy wrote. “At six-month mark, commanders should initiate fit for duty evaluations for NCOs that are unable to make progress regarding their physical readiness.”

6. Mix it up

Simply put, soldiers who spend too much time either in operational or institutional assignments are marring their chances for promotion, McCoy wrote.

Broadening assignments like recruiting or drill sergeant look good, but NCOs should make it a point to get back to operational units afterward.

“Conversely, we perceived stagnated growth for NCOs with extended time on station in the same duty position, consecutive duty assignments in institutional Army (i.e., TRADOC, USAREC), or assignments not annotated in the MOS smart book (i.e., Orderly Room NCO, R&U NCO),” he wrote.

7. Go to class

The Army offers up to $4,000 a month toward college tuition and certificate expenses, and a promotion board likes when soldiers take advantage of it.

“Conversely, we viewed NCOs not taking advantage of educational opportunities and those who allowed technical certifications to expire less favorably,” McCoy said. “We also viewed military training transferred to civilian credits without enrollment in and/or completion of a degree-producing program less favorably.”

Leaders are supposed to be helping set education goals for soldiers, he added, so NCOs should be nesting civilian education goals within their career timelines.

Meghann Myers is the Pentagon bureau chief at Military Times. She covers operations, policy, personnel, leadership and other issues affecting service members.

In Other News

Vets bill would expand caregiver support, boost in-home care options

A sweeping veterans measure introduced by lawmakers on tuesday would improve benefits for veteran caregivers and individuals facing homelessness..

Junior enlisted to get 20% pay bump, E5s get 13% more under House plan

House lawmakers are looking to overhaul the military's pay tables next year to dramatically boost junior enlisted pay..

Disinformation creates ‘precarious year for democracy,’ experts warn

Some of the messaging meant to sow division is reaching veterans and service members by preying on their sense of duty to the u.s..

House lawmakers cut back public hearings on annual defense bill

Defense and veterans hearings on capitol hill for the week of may 13, 2024..

VA to provide grants for veteran, spouse employment help

A new grant program will provide up to $500,000 to organizations helping veterans and spouses land post-military jobs..

On a promotion board, how should I answer the question "Why should you be promoted to SSG"?

• Fact or Fiction: "Hands-on" Tasks are not authorized for SGT/SSG Promotion Board 38 Votes 32 Comments
• Who can tell me the purpose behind the SGT and SSG promotion board? 275 Votes 197 Comments
• SGT Promotion board, any advice? What to do/not to do if I don’t know an answer to a q...? 9 Votes 5 Comments
• Are NCOERs required for promotion to SSG? 51 Votes 28 Comments
• What are the administrative mechanics in getting promoted outside of the board process...? 44 Votes 38 Comments
• Will an old DUI haunt me for the E7 promotion board (SSG Evaluation board)? 14 Votes 6 Comments

Join nearly 2 million former and current members of the US military, just like you.

• Capabilities
• Explore All Groups
• Business Services
• Privacy Policy

Welcome to RallyPoint!

Back to Main Page

AR 25-50 (PDF)

    Thanks for your contributions!

We need more examples. Examples can be contributed by using the form below.

Memorandum Templates & Examples

We need more memorandum examples and templates. They can be contributed by sending to [email protected] or by pasting into the form below.

Army Memo Template

The above template will speed up memo writing time. The fill-in sections can be tabbed through and there are styles set throughout that ensure proper formatting. Example: the Header, Memo For line, and name in the signature block will always be ALLCAPS. The date auto-populates and the Office Symbol and Subject replicate in the headers of all of the memo pages. Courtesy of CW3 Tripp

Use this form to contribute examples.

Contributions will not show up until reviewed.

Contact     © copyright armywriter.com     Disclaimer