RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2015-02579 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: His Air Force Officer Qualification Test (AFOQT) scores be corrected to his reflect his original Form S (passing) score. APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: On 22 May 2015, his AFOQT score was changed from the Form S to Form T without his knowledge. He requested the Air Force Instruction justifying the change and none was provided. According to AFI 36-2605, Longevity of Scores, only AFOQT scores for Form S and future revisions are valid because previous versions do not include all the current subtest. In addition, scores from different Forms of the AFOQT may not be combined. Therefore, his passing scores should be valid. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant is a member of the Air National Guard serving in the grade of airman first class. The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are contained in the memorandum prepared by the Air Force office of primary responsibility (OPR), which is attached at Exhibit B. AIR FORCE EVALUATION: USAF/A1PT recommends denial. The AFOQT has been used by the Air Force for officer selection and classification for Air Force line officers since 1951. The AFOQT measures aptitudes used to select candidates for officer commissioning programs and specific commissioned officer training programs. The AFOQT consists of 12 subtests and those scores are combined to generate composite scores used to help predict success in certain types of Air Force training programs. The AFOQT is periodically revised to address currency, maintain validity by ensuring it has not been over-exposed, minimize compromise from test exposure and make any changes to more effectively assess critical abilities required in the current Air Force environment to be an effective junior officer. The AFOQT Form S was operational from 2005 to 2014. AFOQT Form T became operational effective 14 February 2015. The AFOQT is a norm-referenced test. Norm-referenced tests determine an examinee's score based on the distribution of scores of a sample population that is representative of the applicant population against which the examinee is competing. This representative sample is called the normative sample. The AFOQT Form S was normed to an officer applicant pool sample in 2000 which is no longer representative of the aptitudes and abilities of current officer applicants. Professional testing standards and best practices require that the normative sample be updated on a recurring basis. Therefore the new AFOQT Form T was normed to the current officer candidate pool. Test scores were collected in the· fall of 2014 from a sample representing a full cross section of applicants (i.e., AFROTC, OTS, and USAFA cadets). Because of changes in the officer applicant pool, examinees in the 2014 normative sample had higher raw scores when compared to the 2000 normative sample. Similarly, the American Educational Research Association (AERA)/American Psychological Association (APA)/National Council on Measurement in Education (NCME) Standards for Educational· and Psychological Testing state that when two forms of a test are not strictly equivalent, scores should be reported on a new, common scale. For example, in this situation, they were equated to the new form with updated norms. All AFOQT scores being used for selection and classification decisions must be comparable to ensure equity and fairness. Therefore, all historical AFOQT Form S scores were converted to the Form T metric. An Air Force- wide news release was published 15 May 2015. All accession sources were also notified. In addition to complying with professional testing standards, the need for equating the two sets of scores for operational use is necessary because some candidates who took Form S will compete in boards with candidates who took Form T. As stated above, the scores used by the boards must be comparable to ensure equity and fairness. Rather than requiring all examinees to retest on Form T and to support AFI 36-2605, Air Force Military Personnel Testing System, para A2.7, “only AFOQT scores for Form S and future revisions are valid…” the Form S scores were converted to a common Form T score so they would remain valid. The applicant’s request should be denied. Allowing him to keep his original Form S scores would provide him an unfair advantage. It would also result in him competing against others on different metrics. All candidates meeting officer selections boards should be measured on the same metric so that boards can compare apples to apples. The applicant’s contention that only AFOQT scores for Form S and future revisions are valid which means his original Form S score is valid is untrue. Per professional testing standards, best practices and standards of equity and fairness, Form S scores can only be compared to Form T scores when the Form S and the Form T scores are calibrated to a comparable metric. Only the applicant’s converted scores are valid for meeting an officer commissioning board. Anyone with AFOQT Form S scores applying for commissioning and meeting a board after 15 February 2015 is competing against applicants who took AFOQT Form T. Form S and Form T scores are not comparable - they are not based on the same officer applicant normative sample, which is the basis for determining the AFOQT percentile scores. Any comparison of unconverted AFOQT Form S scores to AFOQT Form T scores would be unfair and would not provide an accurate comparison. The applicant would be unfairly advantaged and those with AFOQT Form T metric scores would be unfairly disadvantaged. If the applicant does not believe his AFOQT Form S scores are representative of his current aptitude and abilities he can retest on Form T. He has only tested on the AFOQT one time and therefore is eligible to retest without a waiver. A complete copy of the USAF/A1PT evaluation is at Exhibit C. A APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant on 17 September 2015 for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit D). As of this date, no response has been received by this office. THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was timely filed. 3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice. We took notice of the applicant’s complete submission in judging the merits of the case; however, we agree with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force office of primary responsibility (OPR) and adopt its rationale as the basis for our conclusion that applicant has not been the victim of an error of injustice. The Board notes the applicant is eligible to retest without a waiver and is encouraged to do so. Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to recommend granting the requested relief. 4. The applicant’s case is adequately documented and it has not been shown that a personal appearance with or without counsel will materially add to our understanding of the issues involved. Therefore, the request for a hearing is not favorably considered. THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT: The applicant be notified the evidence presented did not demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; the application was denied without a personal appearance; and the application will only be reconsidered upon the submission of newly discovered relevant evidence not considered with this application. The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2015-02579 in Executive Session on 7 April 2016 under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 16 Jun 15, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Memorandum, USAF/A1PT, dated 13 Aug 15. Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 17 Sep 15.