The promotion is a reward for Dalgleish who had a breakout second half of the 2013 season after making his debut in Round 21 against North Melbourne.
The 20-year old added run and poise out of defence replacing the injured Courtney Dempsey for the final three games of the season.
After two seasons on the Bombers rookie list, Essendon list manager Adrian Dodoro said Dalgleish had earned his position on the senior list.
“We have recognised his two years of development, he adds a lot of speed to the team and we think he has a huge future with us,” Dodoro said.
“Once he gets his engine up a bit we see a big future for him through the midfield.”
“He showed that he is comfortable at the level, uses the ball really well and he has got something that our team doesn’t have a lot of and that is just natural speed.”
The Bombers will enter the draft with selections 26, 55, 66, 102 and 120, one of which will be used to promote Dalgleish.
