Should a 4-year degree be a requirement for selection to E-9?

MSG(P) Quick,

I don't believe it should be a requirement, however; I do believe that all Senior NCOs should be pursuing a Bachelor's by the time they are being considered for promotion. Furthermore, many Senior NCOs are pursuing degrees as a check the block in order to look good on paper for a board.  I mentor my soldiers/NCOs to pursue an education/degree, but to ensure it is something they really are going to enjoy and use in the event they ETS out of the Army. 

Respectfully,

SFC Alicea, Luis A.

I seriously doubt that having a B.S/B.A. will ever be a formal requirement for selection to CSM/SGM.  However, in some MOSs, you will not make CSM/SGM without it. 

I know a couple of MSG's who are very good at their job, and in my opinion, would make very good SGMs.  But, when they don't have a degree or haven't even taken a class.......what kind of message does that send to a board.

The emphasis should be on making yourself better.  If you have two Soldiers that have very similar records, but one is pursuing higher education and the other is not, who is going to get selected? 

I enlisted in the Active Army in 1983 as an infantryman.  There was an education center, but the most you could do is take CLEP exams, SATs, ACT and things of that nature, there was no time for traditional college courses and no internet to take online courses like today.  I got out and went into the reserve component in 1987 and managed to take some traditional college courses accumulating 60 credit hours before becoming and AGR soldier in the National Guard.  Contrary to what some Active component soldiers believe, AGR soldiers are not glorified receptionists and in my daily duties I found myself seriously lacking written communication skills.  I went back to school when I could, deployments, military training, and duty always came first, and my college education came when I could fit it in. In the end, I managed to complete my degree when I was an E8.  Competition for E8 and E9 in the AGR world is very stiff and a good PT score or NCOER was not enough to get promoted.  You had to stand out, through your performance, your ability to communicate (speaking and writing), but most importantly by demonstrating personal initiative. I retired before making E9 because it was just time for me to go, but I am very glad I worked for that college degree because it has served me well in my second career after the Army.  

Getting a higher degree shouldnt just be about chasing promotion points, every class taken with good grades should be reflected on your NCOER as quantifiable bullet remarks that could possibly justify an excellent rating if the courses you are taking are relevent to your career path and goals. One more critical piece to the puzzle would be counseling our soldiers and junior NCOs to set goals and establish a career path that includes recommending college degrees, certificates and/or coursework that will be beneficial to them as they progress through the ranks. Speech, communitcations, business, writing, project management, supervision are a few education tracks that would not only be beneficial to an NCO as they progress through the ranks, but also have value in the civilian world after their military career is over. If you choose not to get a degree and wonder why your career stalled at E7, then it may be because the people examining your promotion packet are comparing it with others who have sacraficed their own time to pursue a degree and decided those individuals have shown more initiative then you. 

 
Finally, the internet and online training has made the pursuit of a degree accessible to anyone who is willing to make the time to get it done.  When I hear an NCO complain about getting paid less than their officer counterpart, I tell them to knock it off.  If you cant accept your payscale, do something about it and go to OCS; otherwise, stop complaining.  Dont discount the value of higher education, and dont devalue it by pursuing meaningless degrees for promotion points.  Should you have a degree to make E9?  Maybe not, but taking higher education out of the promotion picture all together isnt going to solve the problems in today's NCO corps. Draw down is here, and if you arent experiencing it yet, you will very soon.  When the Army cleans house during a draw down, they only keep the cream of the crop, so senior NCOs who chose to not pursue a degree may be forced to retire sooner then they intended, and all that noise you have been hearing about the economy recovering is a lot of bunk.  If you dont like the competition on the inside, wait until you get out here in the civilian world its a whole lot stiffer for jobs that dont pay nearly as well as an E7.