promote officers?
- Thread starter Rayleo02
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I always assumed that Picard had this authority and that the promotion would be at least partially based on the recommendations of Riker and Troi in their crew evaluations. Remember the episode Lower Decks? On Voyager Janeway seemed to have the sole authority (look at Tom Paris' demotion then later promotion), but perhaps Chakotay did crew evaluations too. I remember Seven of Nine providing reports about the efficiency of different departments, but don't remember Chakotay evaluating the crew. Of course, promotions might not have been "normal" on a Starfleet vessel stranded in the Delta Quadrant.
It does seem to fall primarily on the captain, who might be influenced by crew evals, or recommendations, acts of service etc... However, I'd like to think high command officers (Admirals & such) might be able to step in & bestow promotions in certain circumstances too, the same as they can bestow other honors, medals, citations etc...
After all, that's how some commanders go from Lt. Cmdr to a commanding commander or captain, like Sisko
After all, that's how some commanders go from Lt. Cmdr to a commanding commander or captain, like Sisko
As others have said, the captain (or ranking officer) most likely has final say, though the first officer and the department heads probably have a lot of input. I doubt Kirk would have promoted someone in engineering without Scotty’s blessing.
I always thought it was handled at a higher level. Like, there's a Starfleet Promotion Board somewhere.
Picard can recommend that Geordi be promoted to Lt.Cmdr, but someone above him tells him yes or no.
Janeway is a special case: cut off from contact with Starfleet, she has a bit more leeway with her crew. But nobody's promotion is official until Starfleet signs off on it.
Another factor: sometimes a promotion comes with a transfer. The Enterprise D (and E) has all the Commanders it has room for. If Geordi or Data want to get promoted, they are going to need to transfer to another ship.
That is one area where Picard has special dispensation: most ships would have seen a lot more turnover in the Command staff in just the seven years of the show, much less the movies too.
Picard can recommend that Geordi be promoted to Lt.Cmdr, but someone above him tells him yes or no.
Janeway is a special case: cut off from contact with Starfleet, she has a bit more leeway with her crew. But nobody's promotion is official until Starfleet signs off on it.
Another factor: sometimes a promotion comes with a transfer. The Enterprise D (and E) has all the Commanders it has room for. If Geordi or Data want to get promoted, they are going to need to transfer to another ship.
That is one area where Picard has special dispensation: most ships would have seen a lot more turnover in the Command staff in just the seven years of the show, much less the movies too.
I'd assume that division supervisors evaluate their teams and make recommendations to department chiefs, who also evaluate their supervisors and staff before submitting a report and recommendations for promotions and other awards to the captain and first officer, who carry out further evaluations and ultimately bestow any promotions on the crewmembers that have earned them. It'll be a whole lot of bureaucracy that goes on behind the scenes we've never seen.
I don't believe there's so much bureaucracy at all, and Captains can promote. I mean, Captain Picard just made Wesley a full Ensign, right? I don't feel either there's a limit to how many officers on a ship, since Deanna got her full Commander promotion and she's the third on the Enterprise, I feel if Data, Geordi, or Worf wanted to they could all have sought those promotions. I don't feel Starfleet officers are as vain as people in our day, and they're not so obsessed with ranks (lol you're probably getting tired off my hierarchy demise feelings?), so we don't see them so often working nonstop to climb a ladder which doesn't really matter.
I feel Captains will promote when she or he feels it's appropriate, and taking advice of his or her executive officers to make sure everyone's in their right place and function for the best of the ship community. I do feel Admirals have to promote to Captain, but it's like they can just do so without consulting anyone.
I feel Captains will promote when she or he feels it's appropriate, and taking advice of his or her executive officers to make sure everyone's in their right place and function for the best of the ship community. I do feel Admirals have to promote to Captain, but it's like they can just do so without consulting anyone.
Acting Ensign.
As a general rule, the Captain of a vessel is a rank above the First Officer, who in turn is at least one rank above everyone else. (There are exceptions to this. For example on modern US Aircraft Carriers the First Officer is also a Captain, and often the Chief Engineer is too. This is due factors too lengthy to go into here.)
It isn't a problem that Dr. Crusher is also Commander Crusher because, as Chief Medical Officer, she is technically outside the chain of command. That is, because she has the authority to remove the Captain from duty pretty much at her whim ("in my opinion you are medically unfit for duty"), she can never wind up in command of the ship by doing so. (However, the Captain may turn over command to anyone he chooses, so it is no problem that we have seen Dr. Crusher in command.)
One would presume something similar applies to Councilor Troi, although this would appear to have been contradicted by the episode where the only conscious people on the bridge were Chief O'Brien, Ensign Ro, and Councelor Troi and O'Brien pointed out to Ro that Lieutenant Commander Troi was in command.
Starfleet doesn't award ranks to satisfy someone's vanity: your rank indicates where you fit into the command structure of the ship. Doctor Crusher is in charge of the medical people, and none of the other doctors outrank her. In fact, probably none if them are even of equal rank to her.
And none of the Engineers outrank Geordi. (In fact, his promotion was probably because some of the Lieutenants under him had been Lieutenants longer than him, and since Data (his boss) had been a Lieutenant Commander for years there was no question who was senior.
I also assumed that final approval would come from some office at Starfleet Headquarters. There might be some secret thing on the officer's record that prevents them from being promoted beyond a certain rank, that their current commanding officer may not be aware of.
Kor
Kor
In Menage a Trois he made Wesley a full Ensign!
Beverly didn't have to be a commander to be chief medical officer, Deanna said so in Thine Own Self?
Yes, and I believe that's the time he got the normal Starfleet uniform as well.
I stand corrected.
However, I think it is clear the Wesey was still not really an Ensign, since he still went to Starfleet Academy and was a Cadet there.
(Sigh). It would make things so much clearer if they had caled him Midshipman Crusher (the term for a Cadet serving aboard ship). But they didn't.
I believe what happened to Wesley (and Nog) was what are called Brevit ranks.
Basicly, is Picard says everyone should treat this Ensign like he is a Commander, then everyone does. Everyone under Picard's command, that is.
But to the rest of Starfleet he's still an Ensign.
So Wesley was treated like and Ensign on the Enterprise, but if he ever wants to serve on another ship he still has to go through the Academy.
However, I think it is clear the Wesey was still not really an Ensign, since he still went to Starfleet Academy and was a Cadet there.
(Sigh). It would make things so much clearer if they had caled him Midshipman Crusher (the term for a Cadet serving aboard ship). But they didn't.
I believe what happened to Wesley (and Nog) was what are called Brevit ranks.
Basicly, is Picard says everyone should treat this Ensign like he is a Commander, then everyone does. Everyone under Picard's command, that is.
But to the rest of Starfleet he's still an Ensign.
So Wesley was treated like and Ensign on the Enterprise, but if he ever wants to serve on another ship he still has to go through the Academy.
Like SpyOne, I always thought that, outside of field promotions, it was handled by the admiralty, with captains only able to recommend for promotion... but Lower Decks seems to indicate that the first officer seems to have the authority to promote junior officers aboard a ship, or at least to make such a strong recommendation (either to the captain or the admiralty) that they'd be followed by the superiors.
In the 18th century, a ship board promotion would have to confirmed by the admiral.
Under current US law, the Senate does not require the commissions of all military officers to be confirmed, however, anyone being first promoted to major in the Army, Air Force, or Marine Corps, or lieutenant commander in the Navy does require such confirmation. (Yes, that’s from Wikipedia. So sue me.)
Under current US law, the Senate does not require the commissions of all military officers to be confirmed, however, anyone being first promoted to major in the Army, Air Force, or Marine Corps, or lieutenant commander in the Navy does require such confirmation. (Yes, that’s from Wikipedia. So sue me.)
Scotty was the Captain of Engineering on the Excelsior (for about 5 minutes). No reason you couldn't have full Commanders in charge of departments like engineering, sciences or medical, especially on a large ship like a Galaxy class.
Smaller ships are probably another story, just like they could have Commanders (in rank) as their Captains.
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