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

<p>The term educated is loaded,&nbsp; because it infers that being educated,&nbsp; makes us more fit to do a specific job.&nbsp;&nbsp; Like a baseball pitcher that becomes "crafty',&nbsp; the pitcher has just made us of his experience.</p><p><br></p><p>A senior NCO has this same wellspring of fundamentals and the kind of wisdom that comes with age and/or a natural inclination.&nbsp;&nbsp; I heard a Meteorologist on LinkedIn say that intuition is subordinate to a more educated approach.&nbsp; (Statistics).&nbsp;&nbsp; I am thinking to myself,&nbsp;&nbsp; his skills as a forecaster are very limited.</p><p><br></p><p>A senior NCO has the requisite experience the professional military education to make the right call.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; But also has intuition and this cannot be taught.&nbsp;&nbsp; Education can only go so far.&nbsp;&nbsp; What is it trying to achieve and who do you hire,&nbsp; the educated &lt;sic&gt; or professionally experienced?</p><p><br></p><p>Yes, furthering your 'education'&nbsp; can help but only maybe as a block on a check sheet.&nbsp; If I were in combat,&nbsp;&nbsp; I want experience over the theoretical war college tactic.&nbsp;&nbsp; Far-flung notions can be lethal,&nbsp;&nbsp;and while they&nbsp;may have use in a class room,&nbsp; reality might throw you a curve.</p><p><br></p><p>As a forecaster,&nbsp; you must be cognizant of&nbsp;variables and thinking outside the box.&nbsp; But a&nbsp;person who is going by the book,&nbsp;&nbsp; may have actually cost someone their lives.&nbsp;&nbsp; In hindsight you could claim that historically,&nbsp; this is the way it happened before,&nbsp; but in weather we are taught to be&nbsp;skeptical.</p><p><br></p><p>And as the Major explained regarding promoting them to Lt. Col. or whatever&nbsp;equivalent rank.&nbsp;</p>

No! Not unless you have the SM Academy confer one in Military Science on graduates!

This almost sounds like pre-req's to be an officer. Yes a degree makes you a more well rounded person but it doesnt soley define you
as a leader.

I don't believe a 4 year degree should be required for E-9 promotion, mostly because I've worked with a lot of CMSgts who didn't have degrees and they were some of the best leaders I ever worked for. In fact as a E-2, an E-9 and I took our first college classes together and he was awesome.

I do believe the AF is moving in this direction. It is not required yet, but in another 10 years I bet it will change. Right now the AF expects all members to have a 2 year associate's degree (CCAF) by the time the member hits E-7.

Education is currently used as a discriminator for promotion boards, strats and awards. I don't think it is far fetched, for the AF to expect a 4 year degree for E-9 when they already expect a 2 year degree at E-7. Associates degrees are also expected for all PME and technical school instructors.

One of the best things about the military is that we rarely judge someone based on their college degree or lack there of. More and more it has become a "tie-breaker" when ranking peers, and this is most often done by those who already have there degrees (officers).

When I got my AA, I was promoted to E-8 almost instantly. I now have my Masters (thanks GI Bill) and can honestly tell you it would have helped me very little as a senior enlisted person. I was counted on to spend every waking moment ensuring my troops and equipment was inspection ready at all times. My JOs had degrees but lacked the ability (experience and knowledge) to accomplish even the simplest of tasks.

My hope is that my beloved Navy eliminates preferential treatment for enlisted personnel with two warfare qualifications as well as those with college degrees. It makes no sense for the career-minded military people. If you are getting out, that's another story. Out here, you better have a degree or you're going to have a hard time getting in the door.

You SGM's pretty much have that covered already don't you? Most of the CSM's I had had bachelors/masters degrees already. I know that many troops are busting their hump already and college is a huge burden to take on as well. The caveat is that an advanced civilian degree broadens the horizons and exposes the individual to more outside the box/outside the military critical thinking. This might change the ways a senior leader tackles problems within the unit. Are all great leaders college educated? No. Some leaders take to the Army "like peas and carrots"(thanks, Forrest). Is it a way to "trim the fat" in an ever shrinking military? You bet! College educated senior officers are going to be deciding who is first to go. If their thinking includes "How are they different from me?.... " I'd be heading to the ed center. Then again, I was a career SFC, so what do I know?

Regardless of how you feel about it, the reality is a degree is a discriminator. There will always be those jobs that dont allow you to take a knee...but somewhere in your career there is , that assignment that gives you time and space. Its about balance. This isnt just about military service, its also about what comes after service.

I don't think so. Choosing to do off duty education is something that should set one apart from other individuals. By making it a requirement you don't see who your hard chargers outside of work are.

Although a degree may not be a predictor of success as an E9, it does increase critical thinking and communication skills. I also think the degrees that include elective credit for Army experience should count the same as those that do not. Subsequently, as a former NCO, I support a four year degree requirement for selection to E9.

I received my Bachelor in Business Administration in 2000. I can honestly say it did nothing to make me a better Soldier or leader in the Army. My leadership skills were developed by attending NCOES and from the mentors I had throughout my career.

I disagree with the notion one only develops critical thinking skills from attending college classes. In each of my NCOES courses we were faced with problems and scenarios where we had to use critical thinking. One also develops critical thinking skills from day-to-day life experiences and problems.

A college degree is not going to make someone a better SGM. I've had SGMs who had Bachelor Degrees and SGMs who did not. Trust me, I had some who had the degree should not have been SGM.