MILPER Number: 24-322

Proponent
AHRC-FSF-OA

Title
FY25 U.S. Army Federal In-Service Officer Candidate School Program Announcement

...Issued:[08 Aug 2024]...

A. Army Directive 2020-09, (Appointment and Enlistment Waivers), 20 August 2020.

B. Assistant Secretary of the Army for Manpower and Reserve Affairs (ASA (M&RA)) Directive
Memorandum, subject: Requirement for Federal Officer Candidate School (OCS) Candidates to Possess a
Baccalaureate Degree to Attend Federal OCS, 2 September 2009.

C. AR 40-501 (Standards of Medical Fitness), 27 June 2019.

D. AR 135-100 (Army National Guard and Army Reserve Appointment of Commissioned and Warrant
Officers of the Army), 1 September 1994.

E. AR 140-50 (Officer Candidate School, Army Reserve), 15 October 1999.

F. AR 350-51 (United States Army Officer Candidate School), 11 June 2001.

G. AR 600-8-2 (Suspension of Favorable Personnel Actions (Flag)), 5 April 2021.

H. AR 600–9 (The Army Body Composition Program), 16 July 2019.

I. AR 601-100 (Appointment of Commissioned and Warrant Officers in the Regular Army), 21 November
2006.

1. This MILPER message rescinds MILPER Message Number 23-497. This message expires 30
September 2025 unless earlier rescinded or amended.

2. Applicability. This message applies to all Regular Army (RA) and U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) in-service
applicants for attendance at U.S. Army Federal OCS, Fort Moore, GA. This message does not pertain to
State and accelerated U.S. Army National Guard (ARNG) OCS training programs.
3. This message outlines Soldier eligibility and application requirements, waiver and selection procedures,
and general information.

4. The RA OCS FY25 panel date is 21 - 25 July 2025.

a. Complete applications must be submitted and arrive at U.S. Army Human Resources Command (HRC),
Officer Accessions Branch between 1 September 2024 through 17 January 2025.

b. No applications will be accepted after this date, no exceptions (refer to paragraphs 7 thru 14 for
application submission procedures and guidance).

5. USAR Soldiers must contact their Career Counselor at U.S. Army Reserve Careers Group (USARCG)
for assistance with submitting an OCS application. The FY25 USAR OCS panel date is 23 - 27 June 2025.

a. Complete applications must be submitted and arrive at USARCG between 1 September 2024 through
17 January 2025 via MS Teams. USARCG must have all completed USAR In-Service OCS applications
submitted to HRC, Officer Accessions Branch via MS Teams not later than 14 February 2025.

b. No applications will be accepted after this date, no exceptions (refer to paragraphs 7 thru 14 for
application submission procedures and guidance).

6. Eligibility criteria.

a. Soldiers who cannot apply:

(1) Soldiers who are conscientious objectors unless they renounce such belief in writing and it’s filed in
their Army Military Human Resource Record (AMHRR).

(2) Soldiers involuntarily separated from any branch of service under less than honorable conditions.

(3) Soldiers in violation of the Lautenberg Amendment who have been convicted of a misdemeanor crime
of domestic violence.

(4) Soldiers not recommended by the first two commanders in their chain of command or by a majority of
the local structured interview board members (refer to DA Form 6285).

(5) Soldiers who do not have, at a minimum, a conferred bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or
university verified by the Department of Education and/or Council for Higher Education Accreditation
(CHEA) website.
(6) Soldiers in receipt of assignment instructions.

(7) Soldiers selected or on special detail assignments such as Recruiting, Drill Instructor, Inspector
General, etc., unless they are within their last 12 months of the special assignment tour at the time of the
application submission window. Please refer to paragraph 4a and 5a for submission dates.

(8) Soldiers with a permanent profile who cannot run (must be able to complete 4-miles in less than 36-
minutes, no alternate event is allowed) or carry load bearing equipment (must be able to pass the 12-mile
ruck march, no alternate event is allowed).

(9) Soldiers who are suspended from favorable personnel actions (Flagged) under AR 600–8–2.

b. Soldiers who may apply (the following criteria must be met; no waivers are authorized):

(1) Be a United States citizen.

(2) USAR Active Guard Reserve (AGR) may apply for COMPO 3 In-Service OCS. Please contact
USARCG for more information at usarmy.usarc.arcg.mbx.hq-ops-spcmsn-organizational-
mailbox@army.mil.

(3) Achieve a General Technical (GT) Aptitude Test score of 110 or higher on the Armed Services
Vocational Aptitude Battery (ASVAB).

(4) Soldier must have a conferred bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university verified by
the Department of Education and/or Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) website.

(a) Only companies listed on the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) website
at https://www.naces.org are authorized to translate transcripts.

(b) Soldiers who are awaiting receipt of their final transcript must provide an official letter from the college
or university registrar’s office which reflects cumulative grade point average (GPA), cumulative hours,
degree conferred, and expected date final transcript will be issued to the graduate. Soldiers must be in
good standing and eligible to receive their degree at the time of submission.

(5) Must pass the Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) and meet height and weight standards in
accordance with AR 600–9 at the time of application submission.

(6) Must have a secret security clearance or interim secret clearance initiated. Final security clearances
must be granted prior to graduation/appointment.

(7) Achieve a score of 80 or higher on the English Comprehension Level Test (ECLT) if the applicant’s
primary language is other than English. The Structured Interview Board may request an ECLT if deemed
necessary. Results must be provided with application.

(8) Be of good moral character.

(9) Enlisted Soldiers must have completed advanced individual training (AIT).

(10) Have a type “A” medical examination within 10 months of the panel start date. Soldiers must meet
procurement medical fitness standards and possess a physical profile serial of at least 222221. Physical
must be done at an installation military treatment facility (MTF) and must be signed and stamped by the
physician performing the Chapter 2 examination (RA only; USAR only requires signature).

(11) Must have at least 6 months time-on-station.

(12) If stationed outside of the contiguous United States (OCONUS), Soldiers will be involuntarily
extended unless currently serving a “dependent restricted tour” until the OCS selection MILPER message
is published (RA only).

c. Eligibility requirements that are waiverable, see AR 350-51 (United States Army Officer Candidate
School, June 2001) Chapter 1, Paragraph 1-9.

7. Documents required for OCS applications are identified in the checklist available on the HRC OCS
website. The files must be built according to the checklist found at:
https://www.hrc.army.mil/content/Officer%20Candidate%20School%20(OCS).

8. Administrative requirements for OCS applications include:

a. Essay: only typed essays will be accepted (refer to paragraph 11c).

b. DA Form 6285 (Interview Plan #2) dated February 2023 is a controlled form and will not be provided to
the applicant. Military Personnel Division (MPD), Department of Human Resources (DHR), or brigade-level
commands and above that conduct the interview must:

(1) Request the form by contacting the OCS Team at usarmy.knox.hrc.mbx.fadd-ocs-acc-br@army.mil.

(2) USAR commands must request the DA Form 6285 from USARCG by
emailing usarmy.usarc.arcg.mbx.hq-ops-spcmsn-organizational-mailbox@army.mil.

(3) Interview Plan #2 (Structured Interview Army Pre-commissioning Selection College Background and/or
Military Service) pages 16 and 17 are required for each interviewing officer (refer to paragraph 11). An
interview memorandum is required for every applicant (template is available on the HRC OCS website).
During the interview, board members can request that the applicant complete an ECLT. The ECLT must be
annotated on the applicant’s interview memo. Receipt of an incomplete DA Form 6285 will be returned
without action (total of 7 pages, filled out entirely).

c. DA Form 61. Follow instructions located on the HRC OCS website

at https://www.hrc.army.mil/content/Officer%20Candidate%20School%20(OCS).
(1) RA Soldiers will be branched using the Talent Based Branching (TBB) methodology. Information
pertaining to this will be sent to those Soldiers who have been cleared for the OCS panel at a later date.

(2) RA Soldiers with Medical Services (MS) as their number one choice will be considered for MS. No
other specialty branch is authorized at U.S. Army Federal OCS.

(3) USAR Soldiers will indicate their top three branch preferences. Overall branching will be based on the
needs of the USAR. Cyber (CY) must be pre-approved by U.S. Army Reserve Command (USARC) G-1.

d. Personal Information Sheet must be filled out by unit S1. Sheet is located
at https://www.hrc.army.mil/content/Officer%20Candidate%20School%20(OCS).

e. Letters of recommendation (optional but strongly suggested). Applicants may submit up to four; letters
should be less than one year old at the time the OCS panel convenes.

f. DA Form 705-TEST. Soldiers must take all 6 events and must score a minimum of 60 points in each
event. Alternate events are authorized for Soldiers with a permanent profile. If applicable, permanent
profile must be provided.

g. DD Form 785 or National Guard Bureau (NGB) equivalent, (Record of Disenrollment from Officer Type
Training), if applicable.

h. DA Form 3575 (USAR only).

i. An endorsed memorandum from the installation education center certifying the Soldier has a conferred
bachelor’s degree, or higher, from an accredited college or university. Memorandums must include
cumulative GPA, type of degree conferred, and the date degree was conferred. It is the Soldier’s
responsibility to ensure that their official transcript(s), to include transcribed transcripts, are in their
AMHRR.

9. Medical application includes:

a. DD Form 2807-1 (Report of Medical History). Form must have examining physician’s stamp and
signature (RA only; USAR only requires signature).

b. DD Form 2808 (Report of Medical Examination). The DD Form 2808 must specify if Soldier “meets” or
“does not meet” accession standards. If the Soldier does not meet accession standards, the examining
physician must state the medical reason(s). Form must have examining physicians signature and stamp
(RA only; USAR only requires signature).

c. All supporting documentation for medical waiver performed at the MTF or surrounding area specialists
(if applicable).
d. If currently receiving Behavioral Health (BH) treatment, Soldiers must have been in treatment for at
least 10 months at the time application is submitted. All clinician notes from both military and civilian
providers must be submitted at time of waiver request.

e. Additional medical application requirements include:

(1) Commissioning physicals cannot be older than 10 months from the date of the HQDA OCS Selection
Panel convene date.

(2) DD Form 2807-1-and DD Form 2808 must indicate type of physical as “other-OCS” or
“commissioning.”

(3) Minimum Physical Profile Serial System (PULHES) is 222221.

(4) All lab test results.

(5) Hearing conservation test results.

(6) Soldiers who have received any type of corrective eye surgery must submit the pre and post-operative
eye measurements with the application packet. Post operative results must be on or before the DD Form
2807-1-and DD Form 2808 are completed. Applicants who have any type of corrective eye surgery after
submitting the application packet will be medically disqualified until two positive eye exams are performed.

f. All required application medical forms must be present and fully completed, annotated “meets” or “does
not meet” accessioning standards, signed and stamped (RA only; USAR only requires signature) by
examining physician or the application will be returned without action. Soldiers will only have until the
application suspense date (refer to para 4a and 5a above) to resubmit their full OCS application. No
exceptions will be granted.

10. The following documents are required and must be present in the Soldier’s AMHRR:

a. All college transcripts including translations of foreign transcripts. Transcripts must annotate “degree
conferred.” All institutions must be accredited on the Department of Education and/or Council for Higher
Education Accreditation (CHEA) websites.

b. All DA Form 1059s from noncommissioned officer education system/officer education system
(NCOES/OES), if applicable.

c. All noncommissioned officer evaluation reports/officer evaluation reports (NCOER/ OER), if applicable.

d. ECLT (if required).

e. Proof of U.S. citizenship (i.e., birth certificate, naturalization document).

f. All enlistment/reenlistment documents.

g. SF Form 86 for first term, enlisted Soldiers.

11. Guidance for conducting the Structured Interview.

a. The DA Form 6285 is like a job interview and must be objective. Local interview board members who
have been requested by the Soldier, are in the Soldier’s immediate chain of command, or have personal
knowledge of the Soldier may not be on the structured interview board.

b. A board of three commissioned Army officers will conduct the interview. The board president must hold
the grade of O-4 or above while the remaining two board members must hold the grade of O-3 or above.
All members must have completed the Captains Career Course.

c. The day of and immediately preceding the Structured Interview Board, the board recorder or a board
member will proctor the required typed essay. The board recorder or board member who proctored the
essay must sign and date the bottom of the essay.

(1) The Soldier will be allowed a maximum of one hour to complete the essay.

(2) No assistance except the use of a grammar or spell-check will be permitted. Any Soldier caught using
alternate means will not be allowed to proceed with the interview process.

(3) The essay will be titled, “Why I Want to be an Army Officer.”

(4) Essays will be single-spaced with font of either Times New Roman or Arial and font size 12 with 1-inch
margins on standard 8.5 by 11 inch paper.

(5) The Soldier’s rank and full name must be in the header of each page.

d. Interviewers will adhere only to the questions on the DA Form 6285.

e. Each interviewer must include a comment for their given ratings in each category on pages 16 and 17
on the DA Form 6285. Comments are also required in the “Overall Recommendation” block on page 17.
Interviewers must sign the DA Form 6285. Failure to complete pages 16 and 17 of the DA Form 6285 will
result in the application being returned without action. Please write legibly; interviewers must sign.

12. Application submission procedures.

a. RA applications will be submitted and accepted through OCS group email (subject line: applicant name,
RA OCS application), one email per applicant (RA only) specified below, by the MPD, DHR, or Brigade S1.
USAR applications must be submitted by the OANCO to ARCG. Applications must be sent to one of the
following:
(1) RA submissions: usarmy.knox.hrc.mbx.fadd-ocs-acc-br@army.mil.

(2) USAR submissions: OANCO contact USARCG

b. The application packet must be uploaded using one to four PDF separate files (do not use portfolio
mode) within the same email submission (refer to the FY25 OCS Application Packet Checklist). No Soldier
should have multiple email submissions. Naming convention for the email packet will be “RA_last name,
first name_last four of social security number (SSN)” (i.e., RA_Doe, Jane_4321).

c. Pages should be in the order listed in the FY25 OCS Application Packet Checklist.

(1) The first PDF must contain all documents for the OCS panel packet. This file must be in order and
titled “Panel Packet - RA_last name, first name_last four of social security number (SSN)” (i.e., RA_Doe,
Jane_4321).”

(2) The second PDF must contain all commissioning medical documents. All documents must be in order
and titled “Medical Packet - RA_last name, first name_last four of social security number (SSN)” (i.e.,
RA_Doe, Jane_4321).”

(3) The third PDF must contain requested waivers (with the exception of medical) and any additional
supporting documents. This file must be titled “Waiver Packet - RA_last name, first name_last four of
social security number (SSN)” (i.e., RA_Doe, Jane_4321).”

(4) The fourth PDF must contain all additional requirements for commissioning through OCS. All
documents must be provided and titled “Additional Requirements - RA_last name, first name_last four of
social security number (SSN)” (i.e., RA_Doe, Jane_4321).”

(5) All blank pages should be removed to decrease file size. What you submit will go before the panel
members. Any additional documents submitted not listed on the checklist will be discarded.

d. Applications will be reviewed by the HRC OCS team/USARCG team in the order they are received.
This is the Soldier’s first test as a potential officer. Soldiers will have until the application suspense date
listed in para 4a and 5a above to resubmit any errors annotated from the HRC OCS team/USARCG team.
No exceptions will be granted. Once an application is cleared to be paneled, the file will be closed and an
email response will be sent to the Soldier and the point of contact who submitted the application.

13. Waiver Requests.

a. All waivers must be submitted on a memorandum and signed by the Soldier and his/her first two
commanders in their chain of command.

b. Civil/moral waiver requests must be accompanied by all legal documents, court records, and include a
sworn statement (either DD Form 2823 or memorandum for record) from the Soldier.
c. Disenrollment from OCS and/or unsuccessful completion of any officer type training in any
branch/component of service must be accompanied by a DD Form 785 or NGB equivalent and sworn
statement detailing the reason for disenrollment.

14. Templates for waiver requests and other documents required for the OCS application are available on
HRC’s OCS website at: https://www.hrc.army.mil/content/Officer%20Candidate%20School%20(OCS).

15. For any USAR related application questions, please contact the USARCG
at usarmy.usarc.arcg.mbx.hq-ops-spcmsn-organizational-mailbox@army.mil.

16. For questions regarding OCS application submissions, exceptions, and waivers please contact your
Brigade S1, MPD and/or DHR. General questions regarding this message may be sent
to usarmy.knox.hrc.mbx.fadd-ocs-acc-br@army.mil.