CSAF Clarifies Officer Promotion Requirements

Chief of Staff Gen. Mark Welsh released a video Thursday clarifying changes to the requirements for officer promotion that will take effect in December. There has been confusion about what is required of those seeking promotion, especially when it comes to advanced education, said Welsh. “Every senior rater seemed to have their own rules to determine who they would give a definitely promote recommendation to,” he said. Company grade officers also were confused about what was actually required, in terms of advanced academic degrees and professional military education. “As a result, everybody’s free time was taken and families were being dramatically impacted, and I’m not sure that job performance was getting any better, because their attentions were divided,” Welsh said. He emphasized that “there’s never been … a written Air Force requirement” for an advanced degree for officers seeking promotion to major and lieutenant colonel, however a master’s degree is required for promotion to colonel. Welsh encouraged airmen who like to study and want to go for the advanced degrees earlier, but said there is no requirement that they do so. “The thing we value most is job performance,” he said.