Education key to Air Force advancement

  • Published
  • By Air Force Staff Sgt. Blake Mize
  • JBER Public Affairs
JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska --  Take a look at the biography of any senior Air Force leader and you're likely to find an extensive list of educational achievements.

This is partly because as Airmen advance in rank, there are more professional military education requirements, such as Squadron Officer School and the Noncommissioned Officer Academy, and partly because those who take advantage of off-duty educational opportunities tend to advance into leadership roles over time.

The methods by which the Air Force conducts business show that education is a vital aspect of success in the Air Force, whether attained through PME, college or both.
For example, a board reviews the records of enlisted members as part of the promotion cycle to the ranks of senior master sergeant and chief master sergeant. Officers' records meet a similar board. One thing members of these boards consider is each candidate's commitment to education.

"Education is a huge advantage in getting promoted," said Chief Master Sgt. Kevin Call, 673d Air Base Wing command chief. "They're not so much looking at whether you have a bachelor's or a master's degree. They're looking at if you're continually educating yourself for the betterment of both yourself and the mission."

Call said it is important to keep in mind that just because you're going to school doesn't means you'll get promoted. Education is just one part of the promotion equation, but a very important one that continually develops Airmen. The Air Force looks at each member's potential to serve in the next rank by evaluating the whole-person concept. A senior non-commissioned officer's promotion board score is based on performance indicators, such as leadership, breadth of experience, job responsibility, professional competence, specific achievements and education.

All commissioned officers must possess at least a bachelor's degree, but other than that, no degree is required to advance in the Air Force. However, Call said it's very rare for enlisted members to achieve the rank of senior master sergeant if they have not obtained at least an associate's degree, in their career field's focus, from the Community College of the Air Force.

"It's a requirement for a senior NCO to have their Course 14 and CCAF degree completed to be eligible for senior rater endorsement on their enlisted performance report," Call said. "And if you don't have a senior-rater endorsement [as a master sergeant], you're not going to get promoted. These two requirements just get you to the game, not necessarily on the court. You should be shooting for the starting line-up and getting to the winner's circle. To achieve that next stripe, you have to go above and beyond what your peers have achieved," Call said.

Course 14 is a distance learning, computer-based, prerequisite PME course needed prior to attending the SNCO Academy in residence.

An advantage in the promotion system is just one area where off-duty education is beneficial to an Airman's career. Besides the advantage of becoming better educated, the initiative to pursue higher learning also bolsters successful quarterly and annual awards submissions - which in turn, help establish a member's record of sustained high performance.

"The biggest thing we look for is what sets the individual being nominated for the award above their peers and how significantly their contributions have impacted either personnel or the mission," said Call, who has judged many award packages during his 26-year Air Force career. "When we see things like 'pursuing education' or 'completed CCAF degree' or 'pursuing a bachelor's degree,' those really give them high marks. Of course, that is depending on the level of competition. Airmen competing for Airman of the Quarter who have accomplished their CCAF or bachelor's degree will score significantly higher than Airmen who are not taking classes or improving themselves. And of course, NCOs and SNCOs must show how they've set themselves above their peer groups as well.

Call said it's not as important to focus on finishing a degree quickly.

"In my personal opinion, consistent education [continually throughout one's career], keeps your mind sharp, sparks more creative thinking and ultimately adds more value to mission accomplishment," he said. "My mindset when I was coming up through the ranks was to show continued education throughout my whole career, not that I was doing four classes at one time to get it done in a year and then not doing anything else for the next ten years."

Call also mentioned that college and PME are not the only ways to stay well informed.
"Don't always wait for information to be fed to you," Call said. "Read books on leadership and management. We've had a lot of great leaders that have come before us that have documented their experiences and there is a lot that can be learned or garnered from all that. We call it doctrine."

There are many educational benefits available to Airmen, including tuition assistance and the Post 9/11 G.I. Bill. For more information, contact your local education center (552-9643 or 552-9647 on JBER-Elmendorf) or access the Virtual Education Center on the Air Force Portal at www.my.af.mil.