The only Coast Guard rating that provides candidates for the Bandmaster Chief Warrant Officer (CWO) specialty is Musician (MU). While competition among MU personnel is understandably intense given the small number of available openings, the candidates can at least take solace in the fact that they won’t have to wait long before they can be considered for promotion: personnel enter the MU rating at E-6, the minimum required rate for CWO selection.
Bandmaster Chief Warrant Officers wear two types of shoulder boards, Hard and Enhanced; Hard boards are worn primarily on white Dress and Service Uniforms, and enhanced boards are intended for more functional uniforms. Both styles of shoulder board are issued in Regular and Small size so that CWOs can choose one that offers the best fit for their shoulders and dimensions.
The design of Coast Guard Bandmaster CWO shoulder boards mirrors the configuration of the sleeve ornamentation used on the service’s blue Dress and Service uniforms. Closest to the board’s outermost edge is the CWO rank stripe (these are placed two inches from and parallel to the sleeve bottom on Blue uniforms). Above the stripe is a gold Coast Guard shield, and above the shield is the specialty mark (a lyre in the case of the Bandmaster CWO).
Please refer to Section 4.A.1 0f COMDTINST M1020.6J, Uniform Regulations, for complete guidance on the wear of shoulder boards.
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