Referred OER

[statusspasmaticus]

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2nd to last OER was referred but all before and one after (most recent OER) are glowing OER's. How will this affect my chances for promotion to MAJ?

 

[Vandalia]

It is definitely not good. However, it really depends on the reason for the referral. Was it because you didn't meet physical fitness or weight standards? Probably not a fatal problem for a physician to major. (No intended irony as I read this a second time.) Concern about professional competence? Big problem.

If it is viewed as a "one-off" occurrence, and you have a strong record otherwise, it shouldn't prove fatal for major. On the other hand, if there is an indication that it might be the start of a continuing problem, then it could very likely result in a non-select.

If you can have another OER after this to show that again, this was a single occurrence, or a personality conflict, then you can survive it for major. Especially since, unless things have changed dramatically, that is still a "fully qualified" board.

To give you a bit of hope, I know of a former AF medical corps general who was trashed on one OER as a captain in the 70's. He obviously survived. The disclaimer of course was that was a very different era.

 

[HighPriest]

If you're worried, do as suggested above, and consider asking for a change of rater. This will usually require a change of rater OER, and will certainly require a new OER by a different rater at the end of the period or when you PCS. I've been in a situation where I wasn't top blocked just before my promotion board partially be oversight and partially because my rater had top blocked too many people. I asked for a change of rater, he was happy to accomodate, and the change-of-rater OER was stellar.

If you got a bad OER for skinning kittens, writing nuclear secrets on their tanned hides, and mailing them to the Chinese government, then it probably won't matter. But you'll still probably get promoted to Major.

 

[jabreal00]

If it's a referred OER for failed APFT or not making weight you may not get picked up for MAJ promotion on zone. HRC is getting really stringent with this. I know a CPT who got passed over one or two times because of this.

 

[statusspasmaticus]

It was for disciplinary reasons (not weight or APFT) which have been rectified. I was under the impression that as long as there is a more recent stellar OER that follows it, the referred wasn't as big of a deal.

 

[Vandalia]

You are all definitely correct about weight and physical fitness. I have been in the civilian world too long and was looking for an example of something that wasn't very serious. Not good choices, especially today.

I assume the original poster is in the Army by the use of the abbreviation MAJ. I am not sure exactly how the Army promotion mechanics work. In the AF, there is a special promotion recommendation that is prepared for each board. I don't remember if the Army has an equivalent. In any case, if the promotion recommendation form is good, it can probably cover up for the OER for the Major board, at least. Again, depending on the reason behind the referral OER.

 

[jabreal00]

It was for disciplinary reasons (not weight or APFT) which have been rectified. I was under the impression that as long as there is a more recent stellar OER that follows it, the referred wasn't as big of a deal.

During my deployment my senior rater (who is a non-medical battalion commander) went over my OER with me. The gist of what he says is that the board (comprised of line officers and one medical corp) spend a few seconds on each OER/ORB. They are looking for specific boilerplate. Usually to MAJ it's fairly routine. However, a referred OER on the most recent one may be enough to pass you up on first try. If passed up, you should get it second try as long as no more issues.

 

[Homunculus]

in the current climate, it's probably a crap shoot now. like stated above, the board has just a few minutes to go over your file, which i find ironic considering the time/effort placed on OERs for them to literally get scanned for a few seconds once every 5 years or so. for O-5 (when they seem to be looking for any excuse to not promote you) i'd say this would be a big hit. but for O-4 who knows-- no one can really predict, because no one knows if your board will have a member with a zero tolerance policy for those things. yes, it's a "fully qualified" board, but having a referred OER i would argue would at a minimum place a bit of a second look on yours vs the rubber stamp most will get. hopefully people look at it in context, but a "disciplinary reasons" flag may very well derail you this year depending on the circumstances. in my experience, a referred OER for disciplinary issues is not "step 1" in the process and means things were addressed and ignored or it was such a serious offense that a warning would not suffice. or maybe you just had an a-hole rater. i can say that if i were in the board's shoes i'd take a serious look at your file, and even if you had one glowing OER after the bad one depending on the issue i would lean more toward passing you over. primarily because in my experience weight and APFT issues can be fixed, but professionalism and ethics often can't.

good luck and let us know how it goes,

--your friendly neighborhood old habits die hard caveman