Of the 23,619 tech sergeants eligible to advance, 22.44 percent were selected for promotion, marking the highest selection rate in three years. By comparison, last year's selection rate was 17.96 percent.
The new promotion process involves two phases. First, the Air Force selects the top 60 percent of eligible tech sergeants to go before a promotion board. The promotion board then calculates a score for each airman based on his or her record; that score replaces the weighted enlisted performance reports points from the initial phase in the process.
Download: Master sergeant selectees
The tech sergeants who were selected to advance received an average board score of 377.33, while those airmen who did not advance received an average board score of 332, according to figures released by the Air Force Personnel Center on Thursday.
The board reviewed each airman's evaluation brief, enlisted performance reports closing out within 10 years of the promotion eligibility cutoff date, and all decorations received over the airman's entire career. Any Article 15 received within two years of the cutoff date and recommended for placement in the selection folder by a commander were also considered.
The airmen considered by the promotion board did considerably better on their specialty knowledge tests and promotion fitness examination and received more points for decorations than those not considered by the board, the AFPC figures show.
The master sergeant selectees received an average of 66.86 points on their SKT, 68.70 points on their PFE and 12.02 points for decorations, while those tech sergeants who did not advance received an average of 56.56 points on their SKT, 59.43 points on their PFE and 8.77 points for decorations, the figures show.
Not all of the names of the 5,301 tech sergeants selected by the board are on the list because the Air Force needs to protect the identity of certain airmen, said AFPC spokesman Mike Dickerson. Selectees will begin to be promoted starting on Aug. 1.
