A junior officer was a commissioned officer, typically with the rank of no greater than lieutenant. The term was often used to refer to the early part of an officer's career when he or she had little or no command experience or department head responsibility. In 2369, Ambassador Taxco was embarrassed by the fact that Deep Space 9's liaison for the visiting delegation was a "first year officer", Julian Bashir. (DS9: "The Forsaken") The term may also be used loosely to indicate the relative ranks of two officers, as Kim was considered the junior officer on Voyager's senior staff.