More of this Feature • Officer Information • Guard/Reserve Officer Info

Join the Discussion Visit Our Military Message Board

Related Resources • Officer Job Descriptions • Joining the Military • Army ROTC • Army OCS • West Point

The development of officer values, attributes, skills and actions to meet the needs of the Army is accomplished through the creation of proponent designed life cycle models for each branch and functional area. The selife cycle models clearly depict the schooling, operational assignments and self-development goals that define qualifications for officers in each grade by branch and functional area. Life cycle models are developed by proponents and are based on Army requirements. Proponents closely monitor Army doctrine and force structure to assure their branch or functional area remains relevant, responsive and ready to meet the Army’s evolving needs for officer skills.

The size of the officer inventory is limited. As Army doctrine and force structure change, it may be necessary to realign the strength and professional development goals of each branch and functional area to meet new challenges. Under OPMS XXI, all officers are accessed into the Army’s basic branches. Their basic branch becomes their basic specialty; and, through a series of educa­tional and developmental assignments, they are given the opportunity to meet the branch qualification requirements outlined by their proponent. Midway through their company grade years, all officers also receive a functional area specialty. Finally, following selection for promotion to major, all officers are designated into one of four Career Fields where they continue their development as field grade officers in one specialty, either in their basic branch or in their functional area. Officers in the Reserve Components will also un­dergo Career Field designation with their Active Component counterparts; but, modification to the process is necessary to accommodate ARNG/USAR unique personnel management considerations. Accessioning policies for the Army Acquisition Corps and Special Forces branch are unique and are addressed in their respec­tive chapters.

Following Career Field designation, officers are assigned under a dual-track assignment system. All officers will be assigned to positions which require expertise in the particular specialty associ­ated with each officer’s designated Career Field, either branch skills or functional area skills. In addition, officers may be assigned to branch/functional area generalist positions throughout the Army which require those leadership and managerial skills common to all officers. Assignment of officers to branch/functional area generalist positions are made with the same professional development consid­erations afforded branch and functional area assignments. See the glossary for a discussion of branch/functional area generalist assign­ment criteria.

he Career Field-based management concept is the heart of OPMS XXI. The basic premise is that officers can serve throughout their careers in a variety of assignments centered around their branch and functional areas. Multiple career patterns are possible under OPMS. One of the major objectives of OPMS XXI is to professionally develop officers in their designated branch and func­tional area through the interactions of the individual, the proponent, OPMD and the field commander. These interactions are embodied in the process of officer development:

(1) Development in a designated specialty. There are 38 branch and functional area specialties in OPMS XXI. The differences between a branch and functional area are:

(a) Branch. A branch is a grouping of officers that comprises an arm or service of the Army and is the specialty in which all officers are commissioned or transferred, trained and developed. Officers hold a single branch designation and may serve in repetitive and progressive assignments associated with the branch. An officer may be assigned to only one branch. (Also see AR 310-25 for this and related definitions.)

(b) Functional area. A functional area is a grouping of officers by specialty other than an arm, service or branch who possess interrelated groups of skills and perform tasks that usually require significant education, training and experience. Although functional area requirements are predominately in the field grades, some cap­tains will serve developmental tours in their functional area. After Career Field designation, functional area officers will serve repeti­tive and progressive assignments within their functional area. An officer may not be accessed into or be assigned to more than one functional area at a time.

(2) Officer professional education, to include resident and non-resident instruction, on-the-job training, individual study and when appropriate, civilian education.

(3) Planned, sequential and progressive operational assignments by OPMD assignment branches using the life cycle development models.

(4) Career development counseling and mentoring by the com­mander and OPMD.

(5) Designation and election of branches, functional areas and Career Fields.

(a) Branch designation. Upon commissioning, officers are desig­nated in a basic branch for entry on active duty, training and utiliza­tion. Some combat support and combat service support officers are branch detailed. Selected lieutenants branched Signal, Quartermas­ter, Ordnance, Transportation and Finance are detailed to a combat arms branch for 2 years. Selected Military Intelligence and Adjutant General officers are detailed for 4 years. Lieutenants under the branch detail program attend the OBC and participate in branch specific training for the branch to which they are detailed. On completing the 2-year detail, officers attend a 4-week branch transi­tion course before they return to their designated branch. Officers in the 4-year program receive transition branch training in conjunction with their enrollment in the Captains Career Course. During the early years of service, career development within the branch follows the proponent’s life cycle model for branch qualification. Generally, the first 8 years of service are devoted to branch qualifying tours and training that prepare the officer for further advancement. Offi­cers may request, in writing, a voluntary branch transfer in accord­ance with AR 614-100, paragraph 4-2. Detailed officers must be approved for branch transfer by their detail branch, basic branch and PERSCOM (TAPC-OPD-C), in addition to meeting the require­ments of AR 614-100. Officers between their 4th and 7th years of service, may volunteer for Special Forces training and, upon successful completion of training, will receive a branch transfer into the Special Forces branch.

(b) Functional area designation. Between the 5th and 6th years of service, officers have the opportunity to select and be designated in a functional area. Preference statements are mailed out to each officer in a cohort year group to begin the process. Proponents provide input to OPMD on future requirements and their needs for academic disciplines, schools and branch mix. OPMD calculates the required designation targets by branch and functional area and pas­ses the master plan to the assignment branches for completion. Using the input from the individual officers, a HQDA board com­pletes the designation process. Once approved, the field is notified of the results and the officer master file is updated. Some officers who possess special skills or have been awarded graduate degrees supportive of a certain functional area may receive their designation earlier than their cohort year group. Officers may request a change to their functional area only after they have held the designation for 2 years. Requests should be sent to U.S. Total Army Personnel Command (TAPC-OPB-A), 200 Stovall Street, Alexandria VA 22332-0411. These requests are evaluated by a board of officers within OPMD and the final decisions are based upon individual qualifications and the needs of the Army.

(c) Career Field designation (CFD). Six months prior to consid­eration for promotion to major, captains will submit preference statements concerning their branch and functional area designation priorities. Immediately following selection for promotion to major, officers are designated into a Career Field for branch or functional area specialization. (AAC officers are considered to be Career Field designated upon entry into FA 51 at about the 8th year of service. OPMS XXI restructured the Army Competitive Cat­egory by grouping interrelated branches and functional areas into officer management categories called Career Fields. The Career Field designation process determines in which specialty officers will continue their field grade development; either in their branch or in their functional area. Management of officer development in Career Fields recognizes the increasing specialization of the officer corps and the inherent requirement for officers to gain deeper expertise in a technologically advanced and increasingly complex environment. The CFD process is carried out by a HQDA centralized board. As in centralized selection, these boards consider officer education, train­ing and experience; evaluation reports; life cycle development mod­els; officer preferences; and strength requirements to ensure that the needs of the Army are met for future field grade officer require­ments in each Career Field. Each Career Field has its own unique characteristics and development track for officers which reflect the readiness requirements of the Army today and into the 21st Century. Officers in all Career Fields are assigned across the Army in TOE and TDA organizations.

Some positions in the Army are irrespective of branch or functional area coding and are designated as branch/functional area generalist positions. Officers should expect to serve in these assignments at various times during their careers, regardless of their desig­nated Career Fields. Examples of these key generalist positions are aide-de-camp, Inspector General (IG), U.S. Army Recruiting Com­mand (USAREC), Congressional liaison, Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) and U.S. Military Academy (USMA) faculty and staff. Officers are selected for these and other similar positions based on overall manner of performance, previous experience, military and civilian education and estimated potential for further service. All officers can anticipate serving in one or more of these generalist positions.

Both branches and functional areas may require more specific job skills and qualifications to further prepare their officers to meet highly specialized position requirements. These specific skills are called areas of concentration (AOC). As a general rule, OPMS seeks to cross train and provide experience to officers in as many AOCs within their specialty as possible.

Distinct career development phases are inherent in OPMS and the Leader Development Action Plan. There are four basic phases of officer career development that are related to the military grade and experiences of the officer’s cohort year group. These phases reflect the education and training, operational assignments and self-devel­opment goals required of that branch or functional area. The phases are flexible as to sequence since the actual course of an officer’s career development and utilization will be influenced by Army requirements and the officer's own capabilities and demonstrated manner of performance. Instances may arise that will require officers to serve in positions above their grade.

Branch/FA qualification connotes a mastery of skills, knowl­edge and attributes expected of an officer for his or her grade in a specific branch or FA. In the profession of arms, branch/FA qualifi­cation is a rite of passage into assignments of increased scope, authority and responsibility. Captains achieve branch qualification through mastery of common core and branch skills, knowledge and attributes that assure the strong professional development foundation essential for success in the field grades. Army culture and tradition clearly define branch qualification for captains to be completion of the Career Course followed by successful company level command, considered the most challenging assignment to test character, com­petence and potential of junior officers. In some branches, force structure precludes the company command opportunity for all cap­tains. This, too, is recognized by culture and tradition; so, key staff positions afford qualification in these branches. Branch qualification for majors begins with credit for Command and Staff College fol­lowed by a key staff assignment with troops. The spectrum of branch qualifying assignments for majors varies by branch; but, culture and tradition recognize key staff assignments at division, brigade and battalion level to best prepare majors for leadership positions in the senior grades. Qualification for majors in the func­tional areas is no less important. FA qualification also begins with Command and Staff College, but specialized skills, knowledge and attributes are measured by technical proficiency gained through a mix of training, education and FA experience. In this pamphlet, each proponent has described branch and FA qualification for captains and majors in loud and clear language. Officers must read and understand this branch/FA qualifying criteria as a road map to a successful career.

OPMS XXI introduced significant change to the officer promo­tion system. While policies and procedures for promotions through the grade of captain remain unchanged, promotions in the field grades are managed differently. Majors and lieutenant colonels com­pete for promotion from within their Career Field. Additionally, all secondary or below-the-zone selections will be limited to 5 to 7.5 percent. Officers will receive only one consideration for secondary zone selection for promotion to a given grade. Most fundamental promotion policies remain valid. Selection for promotion is based on performance and potential for further service. These are meas­ured by the officer’s assignment history, branch and functional area qualifications achieved and the officer’s relative standing with his or her peers as indicated in the evaluation reports. The selection boards are briefed as to the number of officers to select based on law, policy and budget. Additionally, the boards receive guidance as to the officer qualities expected for promotion. All of this information is contained in the Secretary of the Army’s Memorandum of In­struction (MOI) issued to the board. Members of the board use DA Pamphlet 600-3 to determine branch and functional area qualifica­tions. Promotion selection lists are approved by the Secretary of the Army and by Congress prior to publication.

Return to Officer Career Information Menu

Above information derived from Army Pamplet 600-3