Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1946-11-23
Army Initiating Plan
For GIs 10 Pass on
Officer Candidates
Higher Ranking Noncoms
Will EvuIuute Men in
Brood New Program
By Nelson M. Shepard

Inc war department an
nounced today 1t is initiating a
new system on February, under
which Army enlisted men, for
the first time, will evaluate the
qualities of other enlisted men
to attend officer candidate
schools.
Carrying characterization of the
postwar Army a step further. the
order was signed by Gen. Dwight
D. Eisenhower, Chief of Staff, to
guarantee a sound and uniform
method and procedure for the Sc
lection of officer candidates on an
Arfny-wide competitive basis"
The radical departure is in line
with new War Department policy
for revitalizing Army leadership and
making II possible to commission
more officers from men who served
In the ranks. .s,.--s----.s
The program also provides that
selection for school attendance bs
based more on intelligence and Of
ficer-hke qualities than on q formal
educational background.
Procedure Outlined.
Any enlisted man or warrant of
ficer qualified under provisions of
the program may apply for admis-
sion to the Army's school at Fort
Benning, Ga, or to the air forces
school at San Antonio, Tex. Officer
candidates now are chosen solely on
recommendations of superior off,
GERS.
Under the new method, when the
candidate passes preliminary ply
steal and intelligence tests, a pri-
vate or noncom in the lower grades
comes up for final evaluation before
a higher-ranking noncommissioned
officer. To safeguard the Army's in
terests, the noncom who will do the
rating will be chosen as the one
best qualified to make such an
evaluatien, based on his personal
knowledge of and daily contacts
with the applicant. In the event
the candidate is a noncom in the
upper brackets, a qualified commits
stoned officer viii make the final de-
cision.
Oficer candidate classes have an
annual attendance of about $500
ground and technical students and
600 AAF students. Accounting for
an attrition rate of about Is per
cent, they bring into the entire
Army some 5000 second lieutenants
each year.
Money-Saving Seen.
The War Department believes the
exacting new system Of selection will
cut this attrition rate in officer can
didates considerably, thereby Great
ing a savings both in time and
money. In the event of another
emergency, it is claimed. the peace
time plan would provide the Army
with an efficient and practiced sys-
tenn Of selecting better officer mate
rial from civilian manpower pools.
One exacting feature Of the new
plan is the requirement that each
candidate pass certain tests, from
which he will be rated according to
his composite score" That score
would determine his standing in re-
lation to all other applicants being
considered for selection for a spe-
cific class at particular time. The
quotas will be filled from the num-
Der of men having the highest COM
posite scores, starting at the top.
Eligible in Six Weeks.
Men between the ages of 10 and
81, with at least six weeks continu-
GUS service. will be acceptable under
the program, provided they possess
the desired qualifications. This pro-
vides that man entering the Army
can qualify for an officer school on
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