United States General Accounting Office

GAO Report to Congressional Requesters

April 1995 DOD SERVICE

ACADEMIES

Academic Review

Processes

GAO/NSIAD-95-57

GAO United States

General Accounting Office

Washington, D.C. 20548

National Security and

International Affairs Division

B-259417 

April 5, 1995

The Honorable Strom Thurmond

Chairman

The Honorable Sam Nunn

Ranking Minority Member

Committee on Armed Services

United States Senate

The Honorable Dan Coats

Chairman

The Honorable Robert C. Byrd

Ranking Minority Member

Subcommittee on Personnel

Committee on Armed Services

United States Senate

The Honorable John Glenn

United States Senate

In response to a request by the former Chairman of the Senate Committee

on Armed Services and the former Chairman of its Subcommittee on

Manpower and Personnel, we examined the academic review processes at

the three Department of Defense service academies—the Military

Academy at West Point, New York; the Naval Academy in Annapolis,

Maryland; and the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Our

objective was to describe how the academies use these processes to

review cases of students who have not met academic performance

standards.

Results in Brief The three service academies have established review processes to

evaluate cases of academically deficient students and prescribe

dispositions for each case. The processes in place at each academy are

generally similar. Dispositions range from requiring an individual to repeat

a failed course to disenrollment from the academy. Before a student is

academically disenrolled, at least one academic review group evaluates

the case. Students may present statements on their behalf during the

review process.

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B-259417 

Background The academic programs at the academies are demanding. The core

curriculum at each of the academies heavily emphasizes math and science.

For example, a first-year student at the Air Force Academy takes

chemistry, calculus, general physics, and computer science, in addition to

other required courses and electives.

Students receive interim grade reports at prescribed intervals throughout

each term to help them monitor their academic performance. To assist

students who have difficulty meeting these academic demands, the

academies provide a range of academic assistance efforts. A student may

receive additional instruction from course instructors or through cadet

tutoring and assistance from assigned academic counselors. Even with

assistance, some students still do not meet academic performance

standards. Total academic disenrollments at the academies for the classes

of 1990-94 ranged from a low of 2.4 percent to a high of 8.3 percent (see

table 1). Total disenrollments for all causes ranged from 21 percent to

31 percent for these same classes.1

Table 1: Academic Disenrollments at

the Three Service Academies, Classes

of 1990-94

Military Academy Naval Academy Air Force Academy

Class

year

Academically

disenrolled

Percent

of class

Academically

disenrolled

Percent

of class

Academically

disenrolled

Percent

of class

1990 68 5.1 113 8.3 50 3.7

1991 66 4.9 109 8.2 62 4.5

1992 73 5.5 74 5.5 36 2.4

1993 60 4.4 56 4.0 43 3.1

1994 43 3.2 63 5.1 45 3.2

Note: “Percent of class” denotes the total number of academically disenrolled students as a

percentage of the total number of students initially enrolled for each class.

Most courses at the academies are graded on a quality point scale, with an

“A” worth 4 quality points, a “B” worth 3 quality points, and so on, down to

an “F” worth no quality points. At the end of each term, the academies

compute a term academic quality point score (the credit-hour weighted

average of grades in all courses taken during the term) and a cumulative

academic quality point score (the credit-hour weighted average of grades

in all courses taken to date) for all students.

1

Reasons for disenrollment other than academic may include personal resignations, honor and conduct

violations, medical separations, and physical fitness and military performance deficiencies.

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Criteria for Academic

Performance at the

Academies

Each academy has prescribed minimum academic performance standards

that students must maintain to be in good academic standing. At the Air

Force and Military academies, cadets must achieve a grade of “D” or better

in all required academic courses. These academies have also established

intermediate levels of acceptable term and cumulative academic quality

point scores over the 4-year period. Academic deficiency at these

academies results from a course grade of “F” or a term or cumulative

academic quality point score falling below the required minimum score.

The minimum cumulative academic quality point score gradually rises

over each of the 4 years at the two academies up to a 2.0 academic quality

point average (a “C”), which is required for graduation.

At the Naval Academy, midshipmen are considered academically deficient

if they receive more than one “F” in a given semester or an “F” in each of

two consecutive semesters. They must also meet minimum semester and

cumulative academic quality point scores and graduate with a minimum

score of 2.0.

The Academic Review

Processes

At the end of each term, each academy convenes special committees to

review cases of academically deficient students. While the overall

composition of these committees differs somewhat among the academies,

all of the committees include academy officers, such as the Dean and the

heads of academic departments.

When conducting an academic review, the committee is to consider all

pertinent aspects of a student’s performance, including academic and

medical records, potential for graduation and commissioned service,

military and physical program grades and evaluations, and written input

from faculty and military officers. While students are not permitted to

appear in person before the committee, they may submit in writing matters

relevant to their performance.

After deliberations, the committee votes on whether to retain or disenroll

each academically deficient student. Decisions for retention are final for

that semester, and in these cases, the committee also determines how the

deficiency should be remedied. Remedies include repeating a failed

course, taking summer academic courses, and being “turned back” to the

next lower class. Recommendations for disenrollment are passed on to the

Academic Board.

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B-259417 

The Academic Board at each academy is composed of top-level academy

administrators and faculty, including the Superintendent, the

Commandant, and the heads of several academic departments. The boards

consider each student’s complete record, relying on the same types of

information that the committees considered. After deliberation, the boards

make their determinations of student academic deficiencies and decide

the appropriate disposition of each case, based on their appraisal of the

individual student’s potential to complete the academic program and to

become a commissioned officer. A simple majority vote is required for

board decisions.

At the Military Academy, when the committee finds a cadet to be deficient,

the case is forwarded for review by the Academic Board. A cadet

recommended for separation may submit a written request for

reconsideration. The board’s recommendation is forwarded either to the

Superintendent or the Secretary of the Army, depending on the class and

prior-service status of the cadet.

At the Air Force Academy, a student found to be academically deficient

may request that the academic review committee reconsider the decision

before forwarding it to the Dean for the next level of review. Following the

Dean’s review, the case is forwarded to the Superintendent, who may refer

the case to the Academy Board for advice. The Air Force Academy

Superintendent ordinarily makes the final decision. In disputed cases

affecting cadets in their final 2 years who have incurred active duty service

requirements, the Secretary of the Air Force makes the final

determination.

At the Naval Academy, a student found to be academically deficient may

also request reconsideration. However, the Naval Academy does not have

any other level of review beyond that of the Academic Board.

Scope and

Methodology

We interviewed academy officials at the three service academies and

reviewed documents relevant to their academic review processes. We

performed our review at the Military Academy; the Naval Academy; and

the Air Force Academy. We conducted our review between October 1994

and January 1995 in accordance with generally accepted government

auditing standards. Officials of the service academies and the Department

of Defense reviewed a draft of this report, and their informal comments

have been incorporated where appropriate.

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B-259417 

If you or your staff have any questions, please call me at (202) 512-5140.

Major contributors to this report were William E. Beusse and 

Rudolfo G. Payan.

Mark E. Gebicke

Director, Military Operations

 and Capabilities Issues

(703089) Page 5 GAO/NSIAD-95-57 DOD Service Acadeies
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