Senior chief petty officer Senior chief petty officer is the eighth enlisted rank in the U . S . Navy and U . S . Coast Guard , just above chief petty officer and below master chief petty officer , and is a noncommissioned officer . They are addressed as " Senior Chief " in most circumstances , or sometimes , less formally , as " Senior " . Advancement to senior chief petty officer is similar to that of chief petty officer . It carries requirements of time in service , superior evaluation scores , and peer review . In the Navy , it is the first promotion that is based entirely on proven leadership performance ; test scores do not play a part . A chief petty officer can only advance if a board of master chiefs approves , convened every year around March . Senior chief petty officers make up just 2 . 5 % of the total enlisted force of the Navy . In the Coast Guard , advancement to senior chief is similar to other advancements , in that candidates compete with other advancement - eligible chief petty officers . Advancement - eligible chief petty officers are prioritized based on written examination scores , evaluations , award points , time in service , and time in grade . Senior chief petty officers are then selected monthly from this prioritization list as positions become available . As do chief petty officers , senior chief petty officers take on more administrative duties in their new paygrade . In the Navy , their khaki uniform continues to reflect their responsibility level : It is similar to an officer ' s uniform , but with different insignia . ( In the Coast Guard , petty officers , chief petty officers , warrant officers , and commissioned officers all wear similar uniforms . ) Like petty officers , every chief has both a rate ( rank ) and rating ( job , similar to an MOS in other branches ) . A chief ' s full title is a combination of the two . Thus , a senior chief petty officer with the rating of machinist ' s mate would properly be called a senior chief machinist ' s mate , the abbreviation of which is " MMCS " . Each rating has an official abbreviation , such as MM for machinist ' s mate , QM for quartermaster , and YN for yeoman . The rating and the rate combined give the abbreviation of a senior chief ' s full title , such as BMCS for senior chief boatswain ' s mate . In the expanded form , the title of senior chief always precedes the rating . It is not uncommon practice to refer to a senior chief petty officer by this shorthand in all but the most formal correspondence ( such as printing and inscription on awards ) . The rating insignia for a senior chief is an eagle with spread wings above three chevrons . The chevrons are topped by a rocker that goes behind the eagle ( or " crow " , as it is commonly called ) . An inverted star ( similar to the stars on the sleeves of line officers ) is above the eagle . This is used on the dress blue uniform . On all other uniforms , the insignia used is the one that has become universally accepted as the symbol of the chief petty officer : a foul ( entwined in the anchor chain ) gold anchor superimposed with a silver " USN " in the Navy or a silver shield in the Coast Guard . As in the dress blue insignia , the anchor is capped by an down - pointing star . In the Navy , officers and chiefs are referred to as " khakis " . This is a reference to the color of one of their most common uniforms and is a direct contrast to those in paygrades E - 6 and below ( " blueshirts " ) . Command Senior Chief Petty Officer . As of 2005 and after a pilot program taking place on three mine countermeasures ships , the Navy started appointing senior chiefs to command senior chief . Until this time , senior chiefs had a senior enlisted leadership role in the submarine force as chiefs of the boat . This new effort works to formalize leadership at the senior chief level . Irish Naval Service . Senior chief petty officer is also a rank in the Irish Naval Service ( Irish : " Ard - Mhion - Oifigeach Sinsearach " ) . The rank is deemed equivalent to a member of the NATO armed forces ranked E - 8 , making it the equivalent of a senior chief petty officer in the US Navy or a warrant officer class 2 in the Royal Navy . The rank is one grade below an Irish warrant officer .