What 'Promotable' Really Means

USA Today reports on Cmdr. Mark Russell, who says the Navy's trying to run him out because he has criticized the military's mental health care system. Russell has filed a complaint with the Defense Department inspector general alleging that he received negative job reviews this year and last after speaking out.

A Navy spokesman says the drop in ratings of Russell's advancement prospects from "early promote" to "promotable" doesn't mean that he couldn't advance to captain someday. But a former Navy public affairs officer calls the two "promotable" ratings a "kiss of death" and "career-ender."

It seems clear from this RAND report that "promotable" ain't much of a rating. Here's the full scale of rankings, from the bottom to the top: “not observed,” “significant problems,” “progressing,” “promotable,” “must promote,” and “early promote.”