Coast Guard Officer Career Development

Human Resource Management
Entry requirements vary widely: some have minimal requirements while others require postgraduate or higher education. Contact the appropriate assignment officer or program manager for entry requirements.

The specialties comprising Human Resource (HR) management are quickly evolving. With over two-thirds of the Coast Guard’s operating expenses going to cover the cost of people, and decisions in the HR system becoming more complex, the need to create and maintain a professional base of HR knowledge has never been greater.

The structure of OBCs is being studied so that it may better reflect current and future professional disciplines; billets requiring or benefiting from specialized HR knowledge are being identified; and the notion of a human resources officer is emerging.

In the future, assignments in “personnel” will not be considered out-of-specialty tours for those in other disciplines, but will be considered as the core assignments of the emerging human resources profession.

The human resources system supplies a skilled workforce to unit commanders that enables mission accomplishment, and helps the Coast Guard achieve its strategic goals. In addition, it manages a system that provides for the needs of Coast Guard people—active and reserve military members, civilians, auxiliarists, and even contractor support personnel.

This career field includes a wide variety of specialties. As mentioned above, this is evolving rapidly, but at present billets are distributed as follows:

• Human Resource Management – General (OBC 10) – 44
• Human Resource Management – Officer/Enlisted (OBC 11/12) – 21
• Recruiting (OBC 14) - 15 F Training (OBC 15) – 78
• Systems and Services (OBC 16 & 17) – 11
• Medical Administration (OBC 19) – 11
• Reserve Programs (OBC 05) – 34

Required Skills and Knowledge
The human resources management specialty is available to officers with degrees related to the field who have completed an initial operational tour. Assignments beyond O-4 generally require prior experience in the discipline and an advanced degree in a related field.

Advanced Education and Specialization Opportunities
One way to ensure the Coast Guard builds the intellectual capital it needs within the HR community is through postgraduate education. Opportunities exist for advanced degrees in Human Performance Technology, Leadership, Instructional Systems Design (Medical Administration), Operations Research, Organizational Behavior, Administrative Science and Public Administration (HR focus).

The Coast Guard Officer Career Guidebook contains a detailed list of Advanced Education Opportunities.