Enlisted Promotions FAQ

1. Do I have a better chance of getting promoted through the regular process or through a supplemental promotion board?
2. What is the significance of the promotion eligibility cutoff date (PECD)? Do documents such as EPRs or decorations need to be finalized and in my record by the PECD in order to count for promotion?
3. Does the senior NCO promotion board get to review USAF Supervisory Examination scores or other weighted factors?
4. Since I test several months before the promotion release date, why can't I find out immediately how well I scored on the tests?
5. Where do enlisted promotion quotas come from?

Questions and Answers

Question: Do I have a better chance of getting promoted through the regular process or through a supplemental promotion board?

Answer. Your best opportunity for being promoted is through the regular board process. The January 1996 Supplemental Promotion Board considered 204 individuals for promotion and promoted 8 (3.9% rate). This rate is substantially lower than the promotion selection rate during the normal selection process. Therefore, it is very important to closely examine your promotion Data Verification RIP (DVR) to ensure errors are not discovered after the promotion board meets. Also review all enlisted performance reports to ensure the right boxes are “x'd” (senior rater vs deputy, etc.).

Finally, follow-up aggressively on any pending decorations since a decoration, which is approved after promotion selections are announced, may not be counted for that promotion cycle.

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Question: What is the significance of the promotion eligibility cutoff date (PECD)? Do documents such as EPRs or decorations need to be finalized and in my record by the PECD in order to count for promotion?

Answer: The PECD provides time to allow AFPC to screen promotion selection folders for senior NCO boards to ensure all required documents are on file. The PECD also allows a standard date to be used for calculating EPR, decoration and other weighted promotion factors. Additionally, individuals compete for promotion in the Air Force Specialty that they held on the PECD, not an AFSC into which they may be retraining in to. While an EPR does not have to be filed in the personnel record by the PECD, the closeout date of the EPR has to be prior to the PECD. In the case of decorations, the close-out date has to be prior to the PECD, and the decoration has to be approved by the final approval authority prior to the date promotion selectees are determined. This is necessary to prevent decorations from being submitted after the fact in order to game the promotion system.

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Question: Does the senior NCO promotion board get to review USAF Supervisory Examination scores or other weighted factors?

Answer. No. The promotion panel views the promotion selection folder only and does not have access to the USAFSE score; however, the board is provided a personnel data RIP that shows Total Active Military Service Date, decorations, and other personnel data.

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Question: Since I test several months before the promotion release date, why can't I find out immediately how well I scored on the tests?

Answer. The Air Force Personnel Center provided the following clarification: "Questions are challenged all through the promotion cycle and must be reviewed. The Air Force Occupational Management Squadron reviews each question that is challenged on Promotion Fitness Examinations or Specialty Knowledge Tests. Just before the selection phase of the promotion cycle, a final score key with all deleted questions is made and all tests are scored. Therefore, someone's score could be a "75" on the PFE in January and drop to a "70" in June when the promotions are released."

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Question: Where do enlisted promotion quotas come from?

Answer: The number of enlisted members that can be promoted for each grade every cycle is based on the total projected vacancies with allowances for those people who get promoted but are lost through normal attrition.  Air Staff announces the number of people that can be selected (promotion quota) a few days before selections are made. The Air Force Personnel Center enters the quota into a computer where the Weighted Airman Promotion System scores are stored. A computer program then distributes the quota equally based upon the promotion eligible population within each Air Force Specialty Code. The computer can select more than the target number if there are ties in cutoff scores. Once the selection phase is completed and an actual number of “selectees" are identified, the promotion selection rate is announced.

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Page Updated on: 29 January 2007