Have you maxed out your promotion points?

SSG (ret) William Martin — Tue, 10 Dec 2013 14:17:09 -0500

In reference to the Promotion Point Worksheet (PPW) or a DA FORM 3355, I am asking all eligible individuals to print out their PPW from AKO under Enlisted Promotions found under Army Links on the right side of the home page of AKO.  There are 5 sections of the PPW.  By tracking the PPW, you can see where you can improve yourself for promotion to SGT and SSG. o Section A is "military training" which has a maximum points of 255.  This area covers the APFT, weapons qualification, and combat experience.   - Do more PT.  Learn strategy for doing push-ups, sit-ups, and the run.  Try to max at least on area of the PT test.  -When at the range and if its possible, shoot more than once.  You can only get better with more practice.-Combat experience comes with being deployed.  This maybe the most difficult out of the two but if its possible, find unit that are deploying and try to a transfer to that unit. o Section B is "awards and decorations" which has a maximum points of 195. -Many awards are earned through PCS moves, but there are things you can do in order to shine above your peers to be recognized for recommendations for awards.  The Army is big on volunteer for charities.  I volunteer at the animal shelter.  After 40 hours of volunteering I will earn an award.  -Keep track of your accomplishments-Learn how to write award recommendations  o Section C is "military education which has a maximum points of 280. -If you haven been to ALC or completed phase 1, be patient for your turn.  When both are completed you can 90 points.-See your S3 or your Schools NCO about a list of  ATRRS courses and get enrolled in order to fulfill resident military training-Computer Based Training (Army Correspondence Coure Program (ACCP), Distant Learning (DL), and Army e-learning: lets make this simple- Do SKILLPORT!  It is amazingly simple.  Google: US Army SKILLPORT.  That is an easy 84 points (max)! o Section D is "civilian education" which has a maximum points of 100.   -Go to the Ed Center and ask abour CLEP tests.  You will simply take a test about a common core subject of which you already have knowledge on such as English and if you past, you get that credit for that class.  -Defense Language Proficiency Test (DLPT)- if you pass its worth 10 points.  See the Ed Center-College: take come classes online or in person.  I took college classes while I was deployed.  CLEP test in order to earn college credit.   o Section E is "total points" with a maximum points of 800.   -In this section, all your points are totalled up.  I simply tells you how many points you have towards promotions.   Inconclusion, there are some SPC and some SGTs that have never seen a PPW and if this is your first time, you can now educate your soldiers on this valuable information.  My soldiers don't even realize that they have been building up their PPW with my guidance.  When they are ready for SGT, I hope they will realize it was a good idea to try their best at everything they do.

Response by SFC James Baber made Dec 12 at 2013 12:57 PM

SFC James Baber — Thu, 12 Dec 2013 12:57:18 -0500

SGT M, Been there done that both of my SGT and SSG promotions went that way, I was maxed for education, awards, etc., but not PT or weapons which are always changing, but for me to think about adding a few PT or weapons points, I would sometime lose out, so it wasn't always worth it I had to ride it until the points dropped.

Good luck.

I had the old 998 score sheet for E5, and the updated 798 score sheet for E6, I was promoted to E5 with 992, and E6 with 794, so I feel your pain. They say it will take a few years to work out bugs each time they change the points and promotion system, but many people get caught in the middle, which is lousy but it happens. You'll do fine, just continue to do what you do and it will work for you in the end.

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 24 at 2014 3:02 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 24 Apr 2014 15:02:01 -0400

This deserves a lot more attention than its currently receiving. I've had SPC (P) and SGT buddies that didn't understand the NEW PPW. I think it's sad.