Coast Guard Enlisted Occupation Classification System

Enlisted Rating Structure

The Coast Guard Enlisted Rating Structure is used for classifying enlisted personnel, identifying personnel qualifications, and reporting personnel requirements and resources. It also provides the framework for enlisted career development through paths of advancement from paygrades E-1 (recruit) through E-9 (master chief petty officer). For ACE purposes, there are two main types of occupational classifications in the Enlisted Rating Structure.

• General Rates (Apprenticeships) — Identifications assigned to personnel at paygrades E-1, E-2, and E-3. There are two general rates: Seaman and Fireman. They each involve the performance of entry-level tasks and lead to the ratings.
• Ratings — Broad occupational fields that encompass similar duties and functions and that, in most instances, provide paths of advancement and career development for personnel from paygrades E-4 (petty officer third class) to E-9 (master chief petty officer).

Ratings require performance of routine tasks at the lower paygrades and more difficult tasks at progressively higher paygrades. The relationship between petty officer designations and paygrades is shown below.

Petty officer classifications

Paygrade

	Petty Officer Third Class (PO3)	E-4
	Petty Officer Second Class (PO2)	E-5
	Petty Officer First Class (PO1)	E-6
	Chief Petty Officer (CPO)	E-7
	Senior Chief Petty Officer (SCPO)	E-8
	Master Chief Petty Officer (MCPO)	E-9

General rates and ratings are organized in career patterns. A career pattern provides the normal path of advancement from recruit (paygrade E-1) to master chief petty officer (paygrade E-9). An example of a career pattern using the Seaman general rate and the Quartermaster rating is shown in below.

Title

Paygrade

	Seaman Recruit	E-1
	Seaman Apprentice	E-2
	Seaman	E-3
	Quartermaster Third Class	E-4
	Quartermaster Second Class	E-5
	Quartermaster First Class	E-6
	Chief Quartermaster	E-7
	Senior Chief Quartermaster	E-8
	Master Chief Quartermaster	E-9

Standards for Advancement

The Coast Guard's requirements for enlisted minimum skills are defined and contained in two types of minimum standards: military standards and occupational standards. Military standards consist of qualifications (knowledge and practical factors) that specify the skills and knowledge required as a minimum for advancement to specific paygrades. These include military requirements and professional development standards. Occupational standards specify the skills and knowledge that apply to enlisted personnel as a minimum for advancement in a specific general rate or rating in addition to the military standards. They are divided into practical and knowledge factors and are presented as individual qualification items. For both military standards and occupational standards, each higher paygrade represents more complex duties, increased skills, and greater responsibility.

Special Qualifications

The Coast Guard's special qualifications, identified by qualification codes, supplement the enlisted rating structure by identifying special skills and knowledge that require a more refined or specific identification by the assignment of qualification codes to enlisted personnel who meet the stated eligibility requirements. Qualification codes are normally attained by the completion of a technical school or, in some cases, on-the-job training. Because of the specialized nature and limited scope of the skills and qualifications required, qualification codes have not been evaluated.

The Coast Guard Enlisted Evaluation and Advancement System

The Coast Guard regularly evaluates the occupational proficiency of its men and women. In fact, the demonstration of occupational proficiency is directly linked to the advancement system. Individuals are allowed to take the advancement examination after meeting these four criteria: (1) demonstrate that they can perform the tasks required for the next higher paygrade, (2) complete the appropriate correspondence and/or residence courses for the next higher paygrade, (3) serve a minimum length of time in their paygrade and in the service, and (4) be recommended by their commanding officer.

The primary evaluation technique is the written examination for each paygrade of each rating. It contains 175–200 multiple-choice questions that are based on the occupational standards and tasks for each paygrade of a given rating. It is given more weight than any other factor in the evaluation process. Persons are not advanced in their rating until they have demonstrated that they are proficient in the next higher paygrade of the rating. A final score is computed for each individual. It is composed of the following factors:

Factor

Maximum Credit

	Servicewide Exam Score	80
	Performance Marks	50
	Time in Service	20
	Time in Paygrade	20
	Medals and Awards	10
	Bonus Points	2
	Total Possible	182

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