Form DA-4856

How to create a Developmental Counseling Form

Form DA 4856 is a counseling form divided into four parts. The non-commissioned officers in the army and the soldier are responsible for filling out these forms.

For more detailed info on how to prepare this document read an instruction below.

  • The first part of DA Form 4856 is about Administrative Data. It includes lines for personal info: name and rank of a soldier. In the last column the name of the counselor and the military group should be mentioned too.
  • The second part is dedicated to background information. In particular, it comes to describing the purposes of counseling. An individual should point out the most meaningful reasons for counseling. It may touch professional, or event spheres.
  • The third part has a format of a summary. It is more like a review of the main topics and key points of the discussion. This block should be filled out during the process, or immediately after. The summary should be filled out both by the leader and soldier.
  • Pay specific attention to the part that is intended for the plan of actions. It is supposed to be created after the whole counseling. It is about to build a strategy for the next time period taking all the main points of the conversation into account.
  • The last part, session closing, should include the key points of the discussion and evaluate the counselee’s understanding of the plan of actions. The soldier should agree or disagree with the leader and write in his or her comments. Thereafter, it is necessary to put a signature and date of the procedure.
  • At the last part of a form it is important to underline the completion of above mentioned tasks and goals. These details are usually written in few days after the counseling.
  • DA Form 4856 has a special column for leader responsibilities. Here the officer should mention the resources by which he or she needs to provide the soldier. Then the leader has to sign a document and write in a date.
  • The part 4 of the DA 4856 is dedicated to the evaluation of the plan of action. This block is usually filled out some time later after the counseling.