How to Fill Out the Army NCOER Evaluation Report: Bullets and Narrative

Filling out the Army NCOER starts with picking the correct version of DA Form 2166-9 for the rated NCO’s rank, then writing a duty description, six blocks of bullet comments, and a senior rater narrative that all point to the same story about performance and potential. The rules that trip people up are in AR 623-3 and DA PAM 623-3: format, rating chain eligibility, and the senior rater’s profile cap. Everything below walks through those pieces in the order you’ll actually complete them.

Match the Form to the Rank

Three versions of DA Form 2166-9 exist, and using the wrong one is one of the fastest ways to get a report kicked back.¹

DA Form 2166-9-1 covers Sergeants. The rater uses a two-box scale: Met Standard or Did Not Meet Standard.²
DA Form 2166-9-2 covers Staff Sergeants through First Sergeants and Master Sergeants. The rater picks from four boxes: Far Exceeded Standard, Exceeded Standard, Met Standard, Did Not Meet Standard.²
DA Form 2166-9-3 covers Command Sergeants Major and Sergeants Major and uses the same four-box scale, with criteria written for strategic-level leadership.²

On the -9-2 and -9-3, the senior rater also picks a potential rating: Most Qualified, Highly Qualified, Qualified, or Not Qualified.³ That box drives promotion outcomes more than anything else on the form.

Confirm the Rating Chain Before You Start

Every NCOER moves through a rater, a senior rater, and sometimes a supplementary reviewer. Getting any of these wrong is a common reason reports come back.⁴

The rater is the direct supervisor and must have supervised the NCO for at least 90 calendar days on active duty, or 120 days for Reserve and National Guard soldiers.⁵
The senior rater is an officer, NCO, or DOD civilian senior to the rater. Minimum time in the chain is 60 days for active component and 90 days for Reserve and Guard. Members of allied armed forces cannot serve as senior raters.⁵
A supplementary reviewer is required when the senior rater holds 2LT–1LT, WO1–CW2, or SFC–1SG/MSG. It’s also required when no uniformed Army rating official in the rank of CSM/SGM, CW3–CW5, or CPT and above appears anywhere in the chain. The supplementary reviewer must outrank the senior rater and hold one of those qualifying ranks.⁵

Write the Duty Description First

The duty description sets context for every bullet that follows. A board member who doesn’t understand the scope of the job will read the bullets flat. Name the number of soldiers supervised, the dollar value of equipment managed, and the core responsibilities.

Squad leader: “Principal NCO responsible for the training, discipline, and welfare of a 9-soldier rifle squad; maintains accountability of individual and crew-served equipment valued in excess of $500,000; plans and executes squad-level training in support of platoon and company operations.”
Platoon sergeant: “Senior NCO responsible for the readiness, training, and administration of a 40-soldier platoon; manages equipment valued at approximately $4M; coordinates logistics, maintenance, and training schedules to support platoon operational requirements.”
Operations NCO: “Plans and synchronizes daily operations for a 500-soldier infantry battalion; manages the production and dissemination of operational orders; coordinates resources across four subordinate companies to meet the commander’s training and mission objectives.”

Numbers will vary by unit type and table of organization. The point is specificity. “Supervised soldiers and maintained equipment” tells a board nothing. “40-soldier platoon” and “$4M in equipment” tells them the level of responsibility immediately.

Bullet Comment Format Rules

Every rating block needs at least one bullet, no matter which box is checked. DA PAM 623-3 sets specific formatting rules, and skipping any of them will get the report returned.

Write in past tense. Two lines maximum per bullet; one line is preferred.
Start each bullet with an action verb (“led,” “developed,” “maintained”) or a possessive pronoun (“his,” “her”). Personal pronouns (“he,” “she”) are also acceptable.
Precede each bullet with a lowercase “o” and double-space between bullets.
A specific example can only appear once across the entire evaluation. Pick the block where it fits best.
Every bullet must support the box the rater checked. Extraordinary achievements paired with a “Met Standard” check confuse the board.

The strongest bullets follow an action-result-impact pattern. “Led” says what the NCO did. “Resulting in a 100% qualification rate” gives the outcome. “Which increased the company’s readiness posture ahead of deployment” says why it mattered. Bullets like “performed duties in an exemplary manner” waste space on a form where space is already tight.

Bullet Examples: Attributes

The rater assesses three leadership attributes drawn from ADP 6-22: character, presence, and intellect. Each needs at least one bullet, and the bullet’s quality should match the box check.

Character

Character bullets address moral and ethical conduct. Show the behavior; don’t just assert it.

Far Exceeded Standard: o identified an ethical breach in the supply accountability process and developed a corrective training program; battalion recorded zero repeat violations across the remaining eight months of the rating period
Met Standard: o maintained personal discipline and upheld Army values during all training exercises and field operations; required no corrective action throughout the rating period

Presence

Presence covers physical fitness, military bearing, and composure under stress.

Exceeded Standard: o maintained superior physical fitness with a 490 on the Army Fitness Test; personal example motivated the platoon to raise its average score by 30 points over the rating period⁶
Met Standard: o maintained a professional appearance and military bearing in garrison and field environments; consistently passed height and weight standards

The Army Fitness Test has five events worth up to 100 points each, for a maximum total of 500.⁶ A specific score gives the bullet weight, but make sure the number is accurate. Boards notice inflated figures.

Intellect

Intellect bullets highlight mental agility, sound judgment, and problem-solving.

Far Exceeded Standard: o developed a digital tracking system for supply requests that reduced processing time by 40% across the brigade; system adopted as the standard operating procedure by the support operations officer
Met Standard: o applied acquired knowledge and sound judgment to complete routine tasks accurately and on time; demonstrated the ability to adapt to changing mission requirements

Bullet Examples: Competencies

The three competencies are leads, develops, and achieves. These blocks show what the NCO actually did during the rating period.

Leads

This competency covers providing purpose, direction, and motivation. Show direct influence on subordinates.

Far Exceeded Standard: o led a 30-soldier team through a high-intensity training cycle; achieved a 100% qualification rate on crew-served weapons, the only platoon in the battalion to do so
Met Standard: o supervised a squad during routine maintenance operations; ensured all assigned equipment was operational and ready for deployment within established timelines

Develops

Development bullets focus on mentorship, training others, and building the force. Counseling records and professional development activity feed this block.

Exceeded Standard: o mentored three subordinates through promotion board preparation; all three earned early promotion recommendations ahead of their peers
Met Standard: o conducted all required quarterly counseling sessions on time and ensured soldiers attended scheduled professional development courses¹

Many NCOs struggle to find content for the develops block. If the NCOER Support Form was maintained through the rating period, it should contain documented mentorship activities and training outcomes to pull from.²

Achieves

Achievement bullets quantify mission results. Numbers matter here more than anywhere else on the form.

Far Exceeded Standard: o managed a $2.3M construction project that finished two weeks ahead of schedule and 10% under budget; savings redirected to fund additional unit training
Met Standard: o completed all assigned tasks within established timelines and in accordance with applicable regulations; maintained a zero-deficiency rate during command inspections

Dollar amounts, percentages, completion rates, timeline comparisons: those give the board something concrete. “Worked hard” is an opinion. “Finished two weeks early and under budget” is a fact.

Senior Rater Narrative

For SSG and above, the senior rater’s narrative is the single most consequential section. Promotion boards weigh it heavily, so the language needs to be precise and deliberate.

Most Qualified: “Ranked number 1 of 10 SSGs I currently senior rate. Promote immediately to SFC. This NCO is ready for the most demanding leadership positions and should be selected for the Sergeants Major Academy ahead of contemporaries. Place in a First Sergeant position now.”
Highly Qualified: “Ranked in the top 25% of SSGs I currently senior rate. A strong performer who consistently delivers results and is ready for increased responsibility. Promote to SFC with peers and assign to a challenging staff or operational position.”
Qualified: “A competent NCO who meets expectations and should be promoted as vacancies occur. Continue to develop through challenging assignments and professional military education.”

A Most Qualified narrative should leave no ambiguity. State the ranking, name the next grade, and recommend a specific type of assignment. Board members scan hundreds of evaluations, so vague language in a top-block narrative undercuts the rating.

The 24% Profile Cap

A senior rater can rate no more than 24% of the NCOs they evaluate at a given rank as Most Qualified.⁷ The cap runs separately for each rank from SSG through CSM/SGM.³

If a Most Qualified rating would push the profile above 24%, the rating is flagged as a “misfire” and automatically redacted to Highly Qualified. Reports submitted through the Evaluation Entry System will block the selection before it happens. Paper submissions get redacted after the fact, and the rated NCO loses the top-block evaluation.⁸ The profile is calculated when HRC receives the report, not when it’s signed, so senior raters should check their current profile before selecting Most Qualified.⁹

Pick the Right Report Type

Not every NCOER is an annual. Using the wrong report code is another frequent cause of returned evaluations.

Annual (Code 02): required after one calendar year of duty following the “Thru” date of the last evaluation, with no periods of nonrated time. The rater must have supervised the NCO for at least 90 rated days (120 for Reserve and Guard).¹
Extended Annual (Code 10): prepared when nonrated time has occurred since the last evaluation. The report covers more than one calendar year, but actual rated time cannot exceed 365 days.¹
Change of Rater: triggered when the rater changes, usually from a PCS. Minimum rated time is 90 days (120 for Reserve and Guard). Below the minimum, the time is recorded as nonrated.⁵
Relief for Cause: required for any NCO relieved from duties for cause. A supplementary review is mandatory when the senior rater or someone outside the rating chain directed the relief.¹
Complete the Record: optional, at the rater’s discretion, when a soldier is about to appear before a promotion or schooling selection board. The rated NCO must have served at least 120 days in the same position under the same rater.¹
Senior Rater Option: submitted when the senior rater changes, at the departing senior rater’s discretion.

For a change-of-rater report triggered by PCS, the “Thru” date is the day before PCS leave begins. If a soldier is PCSing within 90 days of a required annual, an extended annual can be submitted instead to avoid an awkwardly short change-of-rater report.

Submit Through EES

The Evaluation Entry System is the Army’s preferred submission method. Once all signatures are in place, the submitter clicks “Submit to HQDA” within EES to send the report for processing.⁹

A few pitfalls are worth knowing. Signatures must be removed in reverse order: supplementary reviewer first, then rated soldier, then senior rater, then rater. Removing them out of sequence locks people out. EES also throws error messages for common problems; ignoring them usually results in the evaluation being returned. Once an evaluation moves past “E” status and is filed in iPERMS, HQDA will not return it for corrections. At that point the only remedy is the appeals process.⁹

HRC processes evaluations in the order they are received, and the senior rater’s profile is calculated at the moment of receipt.⁹ Late submissions can cost the rated NCO a top-block rating if the profile shifts in the interim.

If the Report Is Already Filed and Wrong

If the rated NCO believes the evaluation contains errors or is unjust, AR 623-3 provides an appeals process. Substantive appeals must be submitted within three years of the report’s completion date; only exceptional circumstances justify a waiver.¹⁰

Administrative appeals address procedural errors and data mistakes such as a deviation from the established rating chain, an insufficient period of observation, errors in the report period, or incorrect height and weight entries. These are adjudicated by the HRC Evaluation Appeals Branch and have no time limit.¹¹¹⁰

Substantive appeals challenge the fairness or accuracy of the ratings themselves, including allegations of bias, prejudice, or unjust assessments. They go to the Army Special Review Board. The burden is high: the appellant must produce evidence that clearly and convincingly establishes both that the presumption of regularity should not apply and that corrective action is warranted.¹¹ Third-party statements carry the most weight when they come from people who directly observed both the rated soldier’s performance and their interactions with rating officials. If lower-level appeals are denied or the three-year window has passed, the last resort is the Army Board for Correction of Military Records.¹²

1
U.S. Army Publishing Directorate. Army Regulation 623-3 – Evaluation Reporting System
2
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. DA Form 2166-9 Series Module 3 – NCOER Support Form and Grade Plate NCOER
3
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Evaluation Reporting System Module 4 – Profiling
4
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. HQDA Evaluation Processing Questions and Selection Boards
5
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Army Regulation 623-3 – Policy Updates
6
U.S. Army. Army Fitness Test and Requirements
7
United States Army. With New Report Senior Raters May Identify Just 24 Percent Most Qualified
8
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Misfire Overview
9
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Evaluation Entry System Users Guide
10
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Guide for Preparation of Officer and NCO Evaluation Report Appeals
11
Department of the Army. NCOER and OER Appeal
12
U.S. Army Human Resources Command. Record Maintenance and Updates