The service announced in May that we will be moving to an annual servicewide exam (1-SWE) for those active duty E4s competing for E5, and active duty E5s competing for E6 beginning May 2022. There will no longer be an active duty servicewide in Novembers as in years past.
Nothing changes for active duty members competing for E7 or E8.
By having a single servicewide – 1-SWE – we will be able to maximize advancement opportunities for our junior enlisted members, while reducing the number of advancement notifications late in the assignment year. 1-SWE will reduce assignment volatility caused by the relationship between the advancement and assignment processes without reducing the number of advancements authorized each year. Advancements will continue to be based on Coast Guard personnel service needs, special assignments, advanced education, enlisted to officer appointments, and losses such as retirements, separations, and release from active duty requests. Additionally, 1-SWE will provide both members and commands more timely awareness of billets opening in the applicable assignment year.
“Members notified of advancement and potential reassignment late in the assignment year miss initial solicitations for special assignments, miss paneled professional development opportunities, and were not able to submit an E-Resume when due in November,” said Capt. Jonathan Carter, Chief, Enlisted Personnel Management. “In the last three years, over 4,000 members competing for either E5 or E6 were notified that they were advancing after January 1st. We can’t get this number down to zero, but we can reduce it drastically without reducing the number of advancements authorized each year.”
Please read the Policy Changes Supporting the Implementation of One Servicewide (1-SWE) ACN 110/21 in its entirety for all policy changes that are effective immediately and will be included in the next revision of the Enlisted Accessions, Evaluations, and Advancements Manual COMDTINST M1000.2C. The policy changes provide clarity on evaluation, eligibility, and administration for the 1-SWE.
The following are some of the highlights of the policy changes:
- Including maternity convalescent, caregiver leave, and some instances of command-verified court appearances as authorized reasons for substitute examinations;
- Clarifying the deviation from schedule date(s) for afloat units;
- Clarifying the definition of “observed” to expressly define it based on time rather than paygrade;
- Reducing time observed requirements for submitting a SWE enlisted employee review (EER);
- Amending the Commanding Officer’s Recommendation Change restrictions for EERs following a Discipline EER.
Questions regarding 1-SWE policies may be emailed to the Office of Military Personnel Policy (CG-133). Questions regarding enlisted evaluations may be emailed to CG PSC-EPM-3. Additionally, members and commands are invited to review 1-SWE FAQs on the PPC (ADV) portal site.
“This is continued progress on how Coast Guard leadership is working to find ways to adapt policies to address real-life situations our members experience on a daily basis,” said Master Chief Petty Officer Laurie Kennedy, the gunners mate rating force master chief.
Resources:
- Policy Changes Supporting the Implementation of One Servicewide (1-SWE) ACN 110/21
- Enlisted Accessions, Evaluations, and Advancements Manual COMDTINST M1000.2C
- MyCG Article: 1-SWE coming soon
- PPC (ADV) portal site