For some soldiers studying for the promotion board will be the most information they have ever retained in that amount of time. At first glance the mountain of information is extremely intimidating and makes it hard to believe that a person could remember it all in such a small time-frame. Let me tell you now, it’s very possible and countless soldiers before you have successfully accomplished this endeavor.
Finding the best way to study for the promotion or soldier of the month board will mostly depend on the amount of time available before the day of the board. There are three ways to study for the promotion board and each way is broken into the amount of time and effort available.
Plenty of Notice (2 months)
If you are blessed with a few months notice before the board, then you have adequate time to really dig into the regulations. Use your Memorandum of Instruction (MOI) to determine which ADPs to start reading. It seems like a lot but if you read a few pages incrementally throughout the day you will have no trouble whatsoever.
The beauty of having so much extra time is that you also have the ability of going over study guides that cover the subjects listed in the MOI. Combine these two together and you will be so squared away, the president will probably ask you to sit on the next promotion board.
The hardest part of tackling the “plenty of notice” method is time management. If you start procrastinating now you will soon end up using the “short notice” method that is explained next. Get yourself a calendar and write the regulations and subjects you need to read over for each day of the week. The more time that’s available, the less daily reading you will have to do. As the board gets closer make sure to review the subjects and even consider doubling up subjects for review up to a week prior. 
Short notice (1 month)
With only a month of notice before the board, you will be hard pressed to get everything ready and study for the board. Don’t sweat it though, you can still beast the board if you hit it hard over the next few weeks. Start with a calendar like I mentioned earlier and list the subjects from the MOI into each day. The difference between you and the guy who has plenty of notice is the amount of subjects in each block. It will be a good idea to double up on subjects that need the extra attention.
Instead of adding regulations to your calendar, opt for study guides that can get you the common questions that are asked on the board. Your sponsor will have a good idea on what you need to focus the most attention on. You may miss a few questions by not reading the entire regulation but having a good grasp on the material from reviewing a study guide will make a difference in your overall performance. I recommend using ArmyADP.com, it was created by a 1SG who read through each regulation and pulled out pertinent questions.
“Oh shit” notice
You find out on Monday that next week you are attending the board and couldn’t be less prepared. That sucks, yes, and it happens from time to time but having a bad attitude about it will not change the fact that you will be standing tall in front of the board in a few days.
First you should know that this is what AR 600-8-19 states:
The board, utilizing a question and answer format, will test the preparedness of the recommended Soldier to determine their potential to serve at the recommended rank. Hands-on tasks are not author- ized. Questions should focus on leadership, awareness of military programs, and knowledge of basic Soldiering and world affairs. The board should consider the Soldier’s overall personal appearance, bearing, self-confidence, oral expression and conversational skills, and attitude when determining each Soldier’s potential to serve at the next level of NCO responsibility.
Now you know exactly what the board members are looking for, you should focus on these main subjects. Leadership, military programs, basic soldier skills (land nav, customs & courtesies, ect.), and world affairs. These subjects will accompany many other subjects in the MOI but at least you know which ones mean the most. It’s also a good idea to check with past board attendees and your sponsor to make sure you focus on the most important subjects.
Use study guides to get your basic and easy questions down pact and utilize every available moment of the day to review them. If your leadership is giving last minute notice they will usually allow you adequate time at work to study and prepare your uniform.
Conclusion
The board is a Go/No-go event that is focused on providing your leadership with enough information to make a decision on whether you are ready for the next level of responsibility. They are not there to pummel you so stay focused on studying and prepare as much as you can in advance. Good luck and keep me posted on how well you did by emailing me directly
Resources for studying
Of course the best tool to get you on track is The Board Bible that was created by yours truly.
When it comest to study guides, I highly recommend using ArmyADP.com to get the down and dirty of the ADPs and various subjects.
There is an app created by AskTop.net called The Board Master that gives all the most common questions asked at the board that will get you off to a great start. Apple & Android
