Is not being considered for an officer promotion the same as being passed over?

2015-05-22T09:33:04-04:00

I was selected for promotion by the FY13 CPT ACC board. However, roughly July 16 I went into the IRR. This was 3 days before the board results were validated, so I was removed from the promotion list before promotion. The Reserves probably passed me over once while I was in the IRR around (the FY14 was probably around December of 2013) not considering that I'd ever want to drill.

The next board was (this time ) 02DEC14 thru 12DEC14 (MILPER 14-213), and I had begun drilling near the start of the year. This board file, however, listed me as being on my second look. I asked about this, but the reply from HRC took too long to get me to the right person, so I wasn't able to get an answer on whether this was correct or not before the board met.

Now I'm half a year out, awaiting the board results. However, I've been reading regulations, and it looks like I fell short of the 1-year rule since I hadn't been drilling for a whole year when that board met. It seems there was a way I could have waived that, but I'm sure that's irrelevant 6 months after the fact. If I wasn't considered for this board, will I be a double non-select? This feels like a weird policy hole since I made an arguably more competitive active duty promotion board three boards ago and haven't done anything to mess up my standing, but I've been commissioned for over 5 year and 4 months now, so I've certainly noted that my year group is approaching 2 years since their CPT promotions.

As a follow-up, I believe this means I would be discharged within 90 days of the next promotion list coming out. Am I reading that correctly as well?

Response by CPT Anthony Kennedy made May 22 at 2015 9:36 AM

2015-05-22T09:36:34-04:00

Seem like a good topic for your branch career officer manager....

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made May 22 at 2015 9:37 AM

2015-05-22T09:37:47-04:00

I think you have 7 months after board results are out if you do not make your above the zone look. I could be wrong and it could be different than the reserves. I don't think not being considered for promotion and being passed over are the same thing. Not being considered means your file never was reviewed by a board.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made May 22 at 2015 9:41 AM

2015-05-22T09:41:44-04:00

I'm not at 100% but I believe this would count as your second look if your packet went before the board. If you were a non-select you are entitled to a show cause board. You need to call your branch manager, or call officer promotions directly.
I saw another situation like this where an MAJ switched to reserves for several year. When he switched back to active duty, his calculations put him in a year group that had already had its primary zone look. He didn't get selected for the above the zone look and was flagged for separation. He was allowed to participate in a show-cause board and stay in.

Response by CPT Pedro Meza made May 22 at 2015 10:38 AM

2015-05-22T10:38:57-04:00

Dan, I hate to say but with the cuts, it is the Perfect Storm for anything being is possible. Only solution is calling Branch no matter what you hear from us here on RP the final decision comes from Branch.

Response by MSG Brad Sand made May 22 at 2015 10:54 AM

2015-05-22T10:54:49-04:00

No Sir. Not being considered is not strike against like being passed over.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made May 22 at 2015 11:03 AM

2015-05-22T11:03:00-04:00

This doesn't help you much now, but it might help someone else in the future...situations like yours are why it's SO important to carefully examine all sides before you make that transition. I know it would have been hard to get the answer for every possible scenario that you might not have been able to imagine at the time; however, I'm sure they could have told you if/when you'd be looked at based on the timeline and how it would affect you going forward.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made May 23 at 2015 8:16 AM

2015-05-23T08:16:26-04:00

There are some "blame the Soldier" type comments here and I want to chime in to say that the process is so inexact, no amount of crossing Ts or dotting Is will help you. If career progression in the military is your primary concern, do not switch components. If there are other things in your life that are more important, do what you have to do, but understand it most likely WILL affect your military career - which may include ending your military career.

I experienced problems going from Active Duty to the Guard. I was in the process of ETSing from Active Duty. I had spent the year prior earning my teaching certificate and applying for teaching jobs. I knew that I had boarded for CPT quite some time ago, but results had not been published. This was during the time when HRC was holding board results waiting for a ruling from Big Army about a change in TIG policy. I called HRC in late spring before setting my ETS date. They told me they really didn't know and the delay could be as much as a year...but *definitely* not before OCT. As a potential teacher, I could not push ETS beyond the start of the school year and still reasonably hope for a job. I ETS'd in AUG and 36 hours later, the board results were published with my name near the very top.

It ultimately took over a year and a half for the Guard to get their act together and get all of my paperwork through. It sucked to watch all of my friends get promoted and take commands as I sat there fighting through tons of red tape. Whatever. I lost a lot of pay unrelated to my performance as an officer and watched a person who had two relief for cause OERs (for incompetence, not misconduct...if that matters to you) get promoted with the rest of my YG. These are the kinds of frustrations that are forcing some of the brightest people out...but that topic has been beaten to death.

Response by CPT Private RallyPoint Member made May 25 at 2015 5:41 PM

2015-05-25T17:41:18-04:00

Here's hoping we get our results this week, 1LT Private RallyPoint Member.

This wait has been brutal.

On a side note, if you aren't picked up this time around, have you looked into if there are any reasons, applicable to you, that you can request consideration for a SSB (Special Selection Board)?

https://www.hrc.army.mil/tagd/army%20officer%20special%20selection%20boards%20for%20promotion%20reconsideration

"a. Promotion reconsideration is approved for nonselected officers whose records contained a material error when it was considered by a promotion board. A material error is defined as being of such nature that in the judgment of the reviewing official (or body), had it been corrected at the time the officer was considered by the board that failed to recommend him/her for promotion, it would have resulted in a reasonable chance that the officer would have been recommended for promotion. Reconsideration may also be granted when material information was missing from the officer's file when seen by a promotion board.

b. Promotions Branch is authorized to deny promotion reconsideration.

c. The DCSPER Officer Special Review Board (OSRB) is the agency empowered to approve requests for promotion reconsideration by a special selection board.

d. Examples of requests that may warrant reconsideration include:

(1) One or more evaluation reports seen by a board were subsequently materially altered or deleted from an officer's OMPF.

(2) One or more evaluation reports that should have been seen by a promotion board were missing from the OMPF. These reports must have arrived in HRC Evaluation Reports Branch by the OER cutoff date established in the message announcing the board convene date. OERs that are received in HRC after the OER cutoff date, that are over 60 days past the thru date of the OER by the OER cutoff date, may also qualify for reconsideration.

(3) An adverse document belonging to another person had been filed in the OMPF and was seen by the board.

(4) An award of the Silver Star or higher was missing from the OMPF.

(5) An officer was considered and not selected in an incorrect specialty and the board was directed to recommend for selection by specialty.

(6) An individual's military or civilian education level depicted in the individual's record (i.e., the ORB and/or OMPF was incorrect).

e. Minor administrative errors on the ORB are not a basis for promotion reconsideration. It is the responsibility of the officer to review his OMPF/ORB before the regularly scheduled board convenes to overcome these deficiencies. Additionally, the officer has the opportunity to write to the Board President to call attention to any errors in his record that he or she has been unable to correct.

f. If promotion reconsideration is warranted, the officer's file will be reconstructed as it was seen by the original selection board, the original correspondence will be provided to the special selection board by Promotions Branch. Additional communication to the special selection board is not authorized.

g. The officer's promotion file will be compared with a sampling of those officers of the same competitive category who were both recommended and not recommended for promotion by the original board.

h. An officer not recommended for promotion incurs no additional failure of selection for promotion.

i. If an officer is selected for promotion, the officer will receive the same date of rank, effective date and position on the promotion list as the officer would have received if the officer had been recommended for promotion by the original board.

j. The Secretary of Defense is the final approval authority for all special selection boards. Senate confirmation of a field grade special selection board promotion recommendation is required, just as it for regularly constituted boards.

k. Officers who suspect promotion reconsideration is warranted should request a copy of their file that was seen by the promotion board. Address the request to: U.S. Army Human Resources Command, ATTN: ESPD, Promotions Branch, AHRC-PDV-PO, 1600 Spearhead Division Ave, Dept 470, Fort Knox, KY 40122-5407. Provide the name, SSN, signature and cite the board for which the file was used.

To request promotion reconsideration, write to: U.S. Army Human Resources Command, ATTN: ESPD, Promotions Branch, HRC-PDV-PS, 1600 Spearhead Division Ave, Dept 470. Fort Knox, KY 40122-5407. Cite in as much detail as possible the material error existing in the promotion board file."

Response by CPT Robert Boshears made Sep 12 at 2018 12:07 PM

2018-09-12T12:07:05-04:00

I went IRR to do more military schools. My injuries from Southeast Asia (2 countries) ended my career (I went from the legal 30% VA disability, to 100%). I put in for the disability (Reserve) retirement, to be told IRR soldiers (I was called back to AD for 3 years), and given a good .30 second reason why IRR was not good for retirenent.

Response by LTC John Griscom made Feb 10 at 2019 2:11 PM

2019-02-10T14:11:15-05:00

Used to depend on the rank. Colonels were non-selected for flag rank which was not defined as a pass-over.

Response by COL Victor Hagan made Jun 25 at 2021 11:56 AM

2021-06-25T11:56:01-04:00

You can only be selected or passed over in this instance for promotion if you were considered for promotion. Your assignment officer should be able to tell you within a few keystokes if you were in the zone for promotion. They should also be able to tell you were you rank among your peers because they reviewed every file that went before the board.