Military Education: Student and Faculty Perceptions of Student Life at the Military Academies
Published: 2003-09-12T00:00:00

Fast Facts:

Highlights:
section_title: Why GAO Did This Study
paragraphs: The Army, Navy, and Air Force each operate an academy to educate and train young men and women to become leaders and effective junior officers in the military services. The approximately 4,000 students who attend each academy undergo a challenging 4-year program of academic, physical, and military education that culminates in a bachelor's degree and a commission as a military officer. In addition to completing academic course work, students must participate in rigorous military training and in mandatory athletic activities. In return for their free education, these students must serve on active duty for 5 years after graduation. In two reports, GAO reviewed all three service academies and their preparatory schools. In this report, GAO surveyed students and faculty to obtain their perceptions of various aspects of student life at the academies. GAO conducted a Web-based survey of 12,264 students and 2,065 faculty members at the three service academies on questions related to such student life issues as academic and military programs; gender- and race-/ethnicity-based discrimination and harassment; and preferential treatment. GAO's survey did not query students and faculty on specific incidents of alleged sexual assault at the academies. We are making no recommendations in this report. DOD reviewed a draft of this report and had no comments.
section_title: What GAO Found
paragraphs: The majority of students who responded to GAO's survey expressed overall satisfaction with their academy, although students gave wide-ranging responses to a variety of quality-of-life questions. About 59 percent of students at the Military and Naval Academies and 71 percent at the Air Force Academy reported that quality-of-life problems are openly confronted and/or solved to some, little, or no extent. Over 90 percent of students rated their academic programs as good or excellent. About a quarter to a third of students rated their academy's performance standards for developing military officers as too low. Most differences in student responses on academy emphasis on prevention of gender- and race-/ethnicity-based discrimination and harassment were generally between male and female students and minorities and nonminority students. Over 80 percent of students who were not recruited as athletes responded that recruited athletes receive preferential treatment during the admissions process. The faculty members who responded to the survey generally agreed with the students' perceptions of student life at the academies, but they were less likely than students to say that quality-of-life problems are seldom openly confronted and/or solved. About a quarter to a third of faculty agreed with student perceptions that performance standards for developing military officers were too low. Faculty perceptions varied on issues associated with gender- and race-/ethnicity-based discrimination and harassment and preferential treatment. More than 90 percent of faculty who participated in the admissions process in the past 4 years at the Military and Naval Academies and 72 percent at the Air Force Academy responded that recruited athletes receive preferential treatment during the admissions process.

section_title: Letter
paragraphs: The Army, the Navy, and the Air Force each operate an academy to educate  and train young men and women to be leaders and effective junior officers  in the military services. Student life at the military service academies is  demanding and, in many ways, differs from student life at other colleges  and universities. The approximately 4,000 students who attend each  academy at any one time undergo a challenging 4-year program of  academic, physical, and military education that culminates in a bachelor’s  degree and a commission as a military officer. In addition to completing the  academic course work at the service academies, students must participate  in rigorous military training activities and in mandatory athletic activities.  In return for their free education, these students must serve on active duty  for 5 years after graduation.
The House of Representatives report on defense appropriations for fiscal  year 2003 directed that we perform reviews of all three service academies  and their respective preparatory schools. In September 2003, we issued  two reports on these topics. In our report on the three service academies,  we recommended that the Secretary of Defense, in concert with the  services, enhance performance goals and measures to improve oversight  of the academies’ operations and performance. In our report on the three  service academy preparatory schools, we recommended that the Secretary  of Defense, together with the services and service academies, clarify the schools’ mission statements, establish quantified performance goals  and measures, and enhance the existing oversight framework by using  quantified performance goals and measures to objectively evaluate  the performance of the schools. As part of our review of the service  academies, the House report also directed us to survey students and  faculty to obtain their perceptions of various aspects of student life at the  academies. As agreed with your offices, this report presents the results of  the student and faculty surveys.
We conducted Web-based surveys of all students and faculty at the  three service academies—the U.S. Military Academy (Military Academy)  at West Point, New York; the U.S. Naval Academy (Naval Academy)  in Annapolis, Maryland, and the U.S. Air Force Academy (Air Force  Academy), in Colorado Springs, Colorado. In total, we surveyed  12,264 students and 2,065 faculty members between February 5 and  March 7, 2003. We obtained responses from 9,238 students (an overall  response rate of 75 percent) and 1,586 faculty members (an overall  response rate of 77 percent) to questions related to such student life issues  as academic and military programs, the honor code/concept, social life  and campus services, gender- and race-/ethnicity-based discrimination and  harassment, and preferential treatment for various student groups.  We also asked students about their career intentions. Our surveys did not  query students and faculty on specific incidents of alleged sexual assault at  the academies.
The individual academy response rates for the student survey were  83 percent at the Military Academy; 82 percent at the Naval Academy;  and 60 percent at the Air Force Academy. The individual academy response  rates for the faculty survey were 90 percent at the Military Academy;  73 percent at the Naval Academy; and 69 percent at the Air Force Academy.  We were unable to determine the reason for the lower overall response  rates from students and faculty at the Air Force Academy. There were  initial difficulties in resolving inaccuracies in the list of student and faculty  E-mail addresses provided to us by the Air Force Academy, resulting in  delays in notifying all students and faculty of the surveys’ availability.  Additionally, during the survey period, issues associated with alleged  sexual assaults at the Air Force Academy became widely reported in  the press, and several Air Force and Department of Defense (DOD)  investigations commenced. Due to concerns about the overall lower Air  Force Academy survey response rates, we extended the survey period by a  week to March 7, 2003, at all academies. We received full cooperation from  Air Force Academy officials, who sent additional notices to students and  faculty encouraging them to respond to our surveys. Although overall  response rates at the Air Force Academy were lower, our analysis shows  that the survey responses for various groups at each academy (e.g., women  and minorities) appear generally representative of their respective  academy populations. Further details of our scope and methodology are  in appendix I. Student and faculty surveys and responses are available  in appendixes II and III, respectively. We performed our work between  November 2002 and July 2003 in accordance with generally accepted  government auditing standards.
subsections: section_title: Background
paragraphs: The Departments of the Army, Navy, and Air Force each have their own  educational institutions (academies) to produce a portion of each branch’s  officer corps: U.S. Military Academy, established in 1802,  U.S. Naval Academy, established in 1845, and  U.S. Air Force Academy, established in 1954.
The academies are structured to provide a curriculum critical to the  development of successful future officers in the areas of academic,  military, and physical achievement. Additionally, the academies emphasize  the moral and ethical development of students through their respective  honor codes and concepts.
Approximately 4,000 students are enrolled at each of the three service  academies at any one time, though in December 2002 Congress authorized  an annual increase of up to 100 students until the total number reaches  4,400 for each academy. Each academy’s student population consists of  about 15 percent women and 19 to 24 percent racial/ethnic minorities.  Table 1 shows the numbers of females and racial/ethnic minorities at each  academy during the time our survey was taken.
The academies employ both civilian and military faculty. Faculty at the  Military Academy and the Air Force Academy are comprised  predominantly of military officers (79 and 75 percent, respectively), while  at the Naval Academy 59 percent of the faculty are civilians. Table 2 shows  the distribution of civilian and military faculty members at each academy  during the time our survey was taken. Additionally, the academies’ staffs  include others who have regular contact with students, such as military  officers who serve as commanders to students at each academy (tactical  officers at the Military Academy, company commanders at the Naval  Academy, and air officers commanding at the Air Force Academy). About  398 of these other staff were also given the faculty survey.
Between 1993 and 1995, we issued a series of reports on student  treatment at the three service academies. At the core of our reviews  were surveys of academy students and faculty on a range of student-related  subjects, including sexual harassment and the treatment of women and  minorities. In the reports, we concluded that more actions were needed to  eliminate sexual harassment and that disparities in the treatment of women  and minorities existed at the academies. We made recommendations to  help DOD achieve its goal of a sexual harassment-free environment and to  improve the monitoring and evaluation of gender and racial disparities.
section_title: Students Express Overall Satisfaction with Academies, but Perceptions Vary on Some Quality-of-Life Issues
paragraphs: Although a majority of the 9,238 students who responded to our survey  at the three military service academies expressed overall satisfaction  with their academy, the students gave wide-ranging responses to a variety  of questions about quality-of-life issues. A majority responded that  quality-of-life problems are openly confronted and/or solved at their  academies to some, little, or no extent. Most students responded they  were satisfied overall with their academic and military training, but they  expressed mixed views on the practice of the honor code/concept on their  campuses. They reported varying levels of satisfaction with their social life  and certain campus services. Their perceptions of discrimination and  harassment prevention and preferential treatment issues often varied  according to gender and race/ethnicity. Finally, many students indicated  that they planned long military careers.
subsections: section_title: Overall Satisfaction with Academies Is High
paragraphs: The majority of students at all three academies reported that, overall,  they were satisfied with their academy, while about one-fifth of the  students at each school responded that they were dissatisfied. As figure 1  shows, 62 percent at the Military Academy (USMA), 64 percent at the  Naval Academy (USNA), and 59 percent at the Air Force Academy  (USAFA) reported their overall satisfaction with their academy.
At the same time, some 59 to 71 percent of students at each academy  reported that quality-of-life problems are being openly confronted and/or  solved at the academies to some, little, or no extent.
section_title: Students’ Rating of Academic and Military Training Is High
paragraphs: As figure 3 shows, between 90 and 93 percent of the students at each  academy rated the overall academic program as good or excellent. At the  same time, a majority of them reported that they thought their academic  workload was definitely or probably too heavy (see fig. 4). This response  ranged from 63 percent at the Military Academy, 56 percent at the  Naval Academy, to 69 percent at the Air Force Academy.
In terms of military training, the majority of students at each academy  evaluated their overall military development program as good or excellent.  As figure 5 shows, the percentages ranged from 53 percent at the Air  Force Academy to 71 percent at the Military Academy. However, about  one-quarter to one-third of the students rated their academy’s performance  standards for developing military officers as generally or much too low  (see question 8, app. II). Moreover, about 40 percent of the students at the  Air Force and Naval Academies and 27 percent at the Military Academy  evaluated the 4-year class system for developing military officers as very  or generally ineffective (see question 9, app. II).
section_title: Students Have Mixed Views on the Practice of the Honor Code/Concept at Their Academy
paragraphs: Students gave varied responses regarding the practice of the honor  code/concept at their academy. Whereas 62 percent of students at the  Military Academy believed the honor code/concept is practiced as taught to  a great or very great extent, 37 percent of students at the Naval Academy  and 43 percent at the Air Force Academy held the same view (see fig. 6).
Students also expressed varied impressions of how fairly the honor  code/concept is applied at the academies with respect to students  who have been accused of similar violations. As figure 7 shows, about  40 percent of students at the Military and Air Force Academies and  30 percent at the Naval Academy reported that they thought the honor  code/concept was fairly applied to students with similar violations to a  great or very great extent.
section_title: Students Report Various Levels of Dissatisfaction with Social Life and Certain Campus Services
paragraphs: A majority of students at each academy expressed dissatisfaction with the  social life on their campus. As figure 8 indicates, the percentages ranged  from a high of 73 percent at the Military Academy to a low of 57 percent at  the Naval Academy.
Male students were more likely to be dissatisfied with their social life than  female students. As table 3 shows, between 60 and 74 percent of males  across the three academies expressed dissatisfaction with their social life  while between 42 and 63 percent of females across the academies had a  similar response.
Students also expressed varying levels of satisfaction or dissatisfaction  with certain campus services. As tables 4, 5, and 6 indicate, the majority  of students at the three academies were generally satisfied with medical  care (except for the Air Force Academy), updating of school computer  equipment, condition of athletic facilities (except for the Military  Academy), and personal safety. At the same time, some 40 to 50 percent of  students at each academy indicated that they were dissatisfied with the  quality of mess hall food and laundry service on campus.
A majority of students, with higher percentages at the Military and Air  Force Academies, reported that they did not have adequate time to handle  their personal affairs. As figure 9 indicates, 58 percent at the Naval  Academy, 67 percent at the Military Academy, and 73 percent at the  Air Force Academy reported that the time they had was generally or  very inadequate.
section_title: Student Perceptions of Prevention of Discrimination and Harassment Varied
paragraphs: Student responses on a range of discrimination and harassment issues  often varied according to gender or race/ethnicity. As figure 10 shows,  47 percent of students at the Military Academy, 45 percent at the Naval  Academy, and 51 percent at the Air Force Academy responded that their  academy’s emphasis on preventing gender-based discrimination was about  right. However, as table 7 indicates, these responses varied according to  the respondents’ gender, with female students more likely to say that  prevention was underemphasized. Between 34 and 47 percent of female  students at each academy believed that prevention was underemphasized  while between 8 and 17 percent of male students had a similar response.
As figure 11 shows, in terms of sexual harassment, about one half of the  students at each academy responded that their academy’s emphasis on  the prevention of sexual harassment was about right. However, female  students were more likely than male students to report that the prevention  of sexual harassment was generally or greatly underemphasized.  Twenty-five percent of female students at the Military Academy, 21 percent  at the Naval Academy, and 37 percent at the Air Force Academy responded  that the prevention of sexual harassment was generally or greatly  underemphasized (table 8).
As figure 12 shows, about one half of all students at each of the three  academies rated the overall atmosphere for women as good or excellent.  The percentages ranged from 57 percent at the Military and Air Force  Academies to 49 percent at the Naval Academy. However, female students  were more likely to view the atmosphere for women as poor or below  average than were male students. As table 9 indicates, between 36 and  43 percent of female students at the three academies expressed this view  compared with between 17 and 22 percent of the males. The results of  our 1994 survey of students on sexual harassment issues showed that  the majority of women students experienced some form of gender-based  harassment that interfered with their performance or created an  intimidating, hostile, or offensive environment.
The perceptions of students on the emphasis the academies place on  preventing race-/ethnicity-based discrimination also varied according  to group membership. As figure 13 shows, a large majority of students  at each academy reported that the emphasis was about right. The  percentages ranged from 75 percent at the Naval Academy to 68 and  62 percent, respectively, at the Air Force and Military Academies.
However, minority students were more likely than nonminority students  to report that the prevention of race-/ethnicity-based discrimination was  generally or greatly underemphasized. As figure 14 shows, 4 percent of  nonminority students at the Military Academy, 5 percent at the Naval  Academy, and 9 percent at the Air Force Academy responded that their  academy underemphasized this prevention. By comparison, 17 percent  of minority students at the Military Academy, 21 percent at the Naval  Academy, and 27 percent at the Air Force Academy responded in this way.
In terms of race-/ethnicity-based harassment, a large majority of all  students responded that their academy’s emphasis on preventing such  harassment was about right. For example, as figure 15 shows, 77 percent  of all students at the Naval Academy, 71 percent at the Air Force Academy,  and 65 percent at the Military Academy reported this view. However, as  figure 16 indicates, minority students were more likely to report that  the prevention of race-/ethnicity-based harassment was generally or  greatly underemphasized.
A large majority of all students rated the overall atmosphere for racial/  ethnic minorities as good or excellent. As figure 17 shows, 83 percent of  students at the Military Academy, 81 percent at the Naval Academy, and  79 percent at the Air Force Academy expressed this view. However, these  views varied within groups. As table 10 shows, minority students were  more likely than nonminority students to evaluate the overall atmosphere  for minorities as poor or below average. Some 10 to 17 percent of minority  students expressed this view while about 2 percent of nonminority  students had a similar view.
section_title: Student Perceptions of Preferential Treatment Varied
paragraphs: Student perceptions varied as to whether various groups of students,  such as women, recruited athletes, and minorities, receive preferential  treatment during the admissions process and in general at the academies.  The differences varied most between members of a particular group and  those who were not part of that group. As table 11 shows, 58 percent of  male students at the Military Academy, 63 percent at the Naval Academy,  and 53 percent at the Air Force Academy believed that women received  preferential treatment during the admissions process. By comparison,  25 percent of female students at the Military Academy, 27 percent at the  Naval Academy, and 24 percent at the Air Force Academy expressed the  same view. Additionally, between 83 and 87 percent of students who were  not recruited athletes believed that recruited athletes received preferential  treatment during the admissions process. Between 64 and 68 percent of  recruited athletes held the same view.
Student perceptions also varied as to whether the same groups of students  receive discriminatory treatment (unfair, adverse treatment) during the  admissions process and in general at the academies. Table 12 shows the  differences between groups of students and those who are outside those  groups in perceptions of discriminatory treatment during the admissions  process and at the academies in general. For example, between 37 and  42 percent of female respondents at the three academies reported that they  perceived discriminatory treatment in general at the academy while 8 to  14 percent of male respondents held the same view.
A majority of students at the Military Academy and the Air Force  Academy (54 percent and 64 percent, respectively) indicated that varsity  intercollegiate athletics were generally or greatly overemphasized,  while at the Naval Academy 39 percent of the students reported the same  overemphasis (see question 29, app. II).
In our prior surveys on student treatment, we asked respondents whether  they believed women and minorities were treated better than, the same  as, or worse than men by various academy systems such as faculty  members. Students perceived that women and minorities generally  received treatment equal to that of men and whites. However, differences  in student perceptions were generally between male and female students  and minorities and nonminority students.
section_title: Many Students Plan Long Military Careers
paragraphs: Many students at the three academies reported that they plan to stay in  the military beyond their initial obligation or until retirement (40 percent  at the Military Academy, 44 percent at the Naval Academy, and 55 percent  at the Air Force Academy), while between 14 and 19 percent across all  academies responded that they would probably or definitely leave at the  end of their obligation. Figure 18 shows the student responses of their  career intentions.
section_title: Faculty Generally Agree with Student Perceptions on Some Quality-of-Life Issues
paragraphs: The 1,586 faculty members who responded to our survey generally agreed  with student perceptions of aspects of student life at the academies, but  they were less likely than students to report that quality-of-life problems  at the academies are seldom openly confronted and/or solved. Faculty  perceptions varied on the practice of the honor code/concept and gender  and race-/ethnicity-based discrimination and harassment and preferential  treatment issues.
subsections: section_title: Faculty Perceptions Varied on the Extent to Which Quality-of-Life Problems Are Addressed
paragraphs: Thirty-eight percent of the faculty at the Military Academy, 45 percent at  the Naval Academy, and 46 percent at the Air Force Academy reported that  quality-of-life problems are openly confronted and/or solved to some, little,  or no extent at the academies. By comparison, 59 percent of students at the  Military and Naval Academies and 71 percent of students at the Air Force  Academy held the same views. About one third of faculty at each academy  indicated that these problems are openly confronted and/or solved to a  moderate extent (see question 29, app. III).
section_title: Overall Satisfaction with Academic and Military Training Is High
paragraphs: Overall faculty satisfaction with academic and military training is high. As  figure 19 shows, a large majority of faculty members at each academy  rated the overall academic program as good or excellent (88 percent at the  Military Academy, 87 percent at the Naval Academy, and 91 percent at the  Air Force Academy).
With regard to the students’ academic workload, figure 20 shows that  55 percent of faculty at the Military Academy, 60 percent at the Naval  Academy, and 58 percent at the Air Force Academy responded that the  workload was about right.
Figure 21 shows the faculty perceptions of the overall military development  program. Seventy-three percent at the Military Academy, 77 percent at the  Naval Academy, and 60 percent at the Air Force Academy reported that the  overall military development program was good or excellent. However,  26 percent of faculty at the Military Academy, 22 percent at the Naval  Academy, and 32 percent at the Air Force Academy rated their academy’s  performance standards for developing military officers as generally too low  or much too low (see question 10, app. III).
section_title: Faculty Perceptions Varied on Practice of the Honor Code/Concept
paragraphs: Faculty perceptions varied on the practice of the honor code/concept.  Figure 22 shows that while 51 percent of faculty at the Military Academy,  41 percent at the Naval Academy, and 34 percent at the Air Force Academy  reported that the honor code/concept was practiced as taught to a great or  very great extent. Twenty-two percent of faculty at the Military Academy,  32 percent at the Naval Academy, and 36 percent at the Air Force Academy  indicated that it was practiced as taught to some, a little, or no extent.
As figure 23 shows, 53 percent of faculty at the Military Academy and  41 percent at the Naval and Air Force Academies reported that the honor  code/concept was applied fairly with respect to students who have been  accused of similar violations.
section_title: Faculty Perceptions of Prevention of Discrimination and Harassment Varied
paragraphs: Faculty were asked for their perceptions on the same gender-based and  race-/ethnicity-based discrimination and harassment issues as were  students. The same definitions of discrimination and harassment were  used. Figure 24 shows that about 70 percent of the faculty at each academy  reported that the level of emphasis given to the prevention of gender-based  discrimination was about right.
Figure 25 shows that 75 percent of the faculty at the Military and Naval  Academies and 65 percent at the Air Force Academy reported that the level  of emphasis given to the prevention of sexual harassment was about right.  Figure 26 shows that just over one half of the faculty at each academy  assessed the overall atmosphere for women at the academies as good  or excellent.
With regard to the emphasis the academies place on the prevention of  race-/ethnicity-based discrimination, figure 27 shows that about 80 percent  of faculty at each academy reported that the emphasis was about right.
A similar majority of faculty at each academy reported that the  emphasis placed on the prevention of race-/ethnicity-based harassment is  about right and that the overall atmosphere for racial/ethnic minority  students at the academies is good or excellent. Figures 28 and 29 show  these perceptions.
section_title: Faculty Perceptions of Preferential Treatment Varied
paragraphs: Faculty perceptions varied as to whether different groups of students,  such as women, recruited athletes, and minorities, receive preferential  treatment during the admissions process and in general at the academies.  Table 13 shows the differences between faculty who had been involved  in the admissions process in the last 4 years and those who had not in  perceptions of preferential treatment during the admissions process.  More than 90 percent of the faculty who had participated in the  admissions process in the last 4 years at the Military and Naval Academies  and 72 percent at the Air Force Academy responded that they perceived  recruited athletes as receiving preferential treatment during the admissions  process. While 75 percent of the faculty who had participated in the  admissions process at the Military Academy and 81 percent at the Naval  Academy reported that they perceived African-Americans as receiving  preferential treatment during the admissions process, only 29 percent of  faculty at the Air Force Academy who had participated in the process gave  the same assessment.
With the exception of perceptions regarding varsity athletes, faculty across  the academies were less likely to perceive preferential treatment of various  student groups while at the academies, as shown by table 14.
As figure 30 shows, about one-half the faculty at the Military and Naval  Academies and 70 percent of the faculty at the Air Force Academy reported  that the relative emphasis given to varsity intercollegiate athletics was  generally or greatly overemphasized.
section_title: Conclusion
paragraphs: The results of the student and faculty surveys presented in this report  highlight several areas that may warrant further study. For example,  the percentage of students and faculty that rated their academy’s  performance standards for developing military officers as being generally  or much too low suggests that this may be an area of concern. Likewise,  similar responses from students and faculty related to the conduct of  the honor code/concept underscore another area of potential concern.  In addition, the high percentage of student responses indicating  dissatisfaction with their social life at the academies and with certain  campus services may also suggest cause for concern.
In our report on oversight and admissions issues at the service academies,  we concluded that DOD conducts considerable oversight of the academies’  operations and performance, but they lack a complete oversight  framework. To develop a more complete oversight framework, we  recommended that DOD improve its oversight by enhancing its  performance goals and measures. The academies’ climate surveys are  conducted periodically and can inform decision makers about areas that  may warrant further attention. The results of our surveys, especially those  areas mentioned above, may be of use to DOD in enhancing the quality of  its oversight.
section_title: Agency Comments
paragraphs: DOD reviewed a draft of this report and had no comments.
We are sending copies of this report to the appropriate congressional  committees; the Secretaries of Defense, the Army, the Navy, and the Air  Force; and the Director, Office of Management and Budget. We will also  make copies available to others upon request. In addition, the report will be  available at no charge on the GAO Web site at http://www.gao.gov.
Please contact me on (202) 512-5559 if you or your staff have any questions  concerning this report. Key contributors are listed in appendix IV.
section_title: Scope and Methodology
paragraphs: To obtain student and faculty perceptions of aspects of student life at the  U.S. Military Academy, the U.S. Naval Academy, and the U.S. Air Force  Academy, we took the following initial steps:  To design two separate surveys (one for students and one for faculty),  we reviewed our surveys used to query academy students in 1993 and  1994 and prior service academy instruments to develop general topics  and questions that were appropriate indicators of student life issues.  Specifically, we reviewed student and faculty surveys on quality-of-life  issues administered by the Military, Naval, and Air Force Academies  within the last 2 years. We also reviewed the student and faculty  surveys on various aspects of student life that we administered during  our 1994 review of the Air Force Academy. For the student survey, we  developed questions for nine general topics: (1) academic climate;  (2) military/professional development; (3) social and cultural climate;  (4) harassment, discrimination (gender- and race-/ethnicity-based), and  preferential treatment for various groups of students; (5) moral climate  and honor code/concept; (6) intercollegiate and intramural athletics;  (7) campus services; (8) personal affairs; and (9) career intentions.  For the faculty survey, we developed five student-related topics:  (1) academic climate; (2) military/professional development;  (3) harassment, discrimination (gender- and race-/ethnicity-based),  and preferential treatment for various groups of students; (4) moral  climate and honor code/concept; and (5) intercollegiate and  intramural athletics.
To ensure the relevance and appropriateness of the survey questions,  we sought outside comments on our survey approach and questions  from officials in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for  Personnel and Readiness; the Army, Navy, and Air Force headquarters;  and the Military, Naval, and Air Force academies. The purpose of  seeking outside consultation was twofold. First, to determine whether  the questions and the manner in which we planned to ask them were  adequate for addressing the larger questions posed by our evaluation.  Second, to find out whether academy students and faculty had the  knowledge to answer our survey questions. The reviewing officials did  not act as pretest interviewees; they provided critiques. Based on the  comments received, we modified the survey terminology to apply to the  respective academies, eliminated and/or changed questions or response  items that did not apply, and added questions or response items to  address issues germane to all three service academies.
To test the survey questions before they were administered, we  pretested the surveys in focus groups of students and faculty at the  Naval and Air Force Academies. At both academies, we held two  student focus groups, one for junior and senior students and one for  freshmen and sophomore students, and two faculty focus groups, one  each for military and civilian faculty. Each focus group consisted of  approximately 10 participants, was racially diverse, and included males  and females. We refined the survey questions based on the comments  made during these sessions. Time constraints prevented pretesting at  the Military Academy, although we discussed some of the survey topics  with one student focus group during our site visit.
To identify all students and faculty that would be included in the survey,  we requested and obtained E-mail addresses for all students and faculty.  For the faculty population, we asked the academies to include both  teaching faculty and other staff who have regular contact with students,  particularly the officers who serve as commanders of student units  (companies or squadrons). Since we left it to the discretion of the  academies which of these other staff they included (about 398 total),  the numbers of total faculty vary among academies. There were initial  difficulties in resolving inaccuracies in the E-mail addresses provided to  us by the Air Force Academy, but Air Force Academy officials worked  with us to resolve those issues.
To administer the surveys, we built six Web-based survey sites, two  for each academy (one for students and one for faculty). Before  administering the surveys, the superintendent of each academy notified all  students and faculty of our upcoming surveys and encouraged participation  in them. This notification was followed by our E-mail to all students and  faculty, containing the Web link to the appropriate survey as well as the  individual’s unique user name and password. The previously discussed  inaccurate E-mail addresses resulted in delays in notifying all students  and faculty at the Air Force Academy of the surveys’ availability. The  Web-based surveys were initially operational from February 5 to  February 28, 2003. During this time, students and faculty completed the  surveys and contacted designated GAO personnel, via telephone or E-mail,  regarding any difficulties. Each week, we sent follow-up E-mail to all  respondents, requesting that they complete the surveys if they had not  done so. At the end of the survey period, we extended the survey at all  academies by 1 week to March 7, 2003, to allow respondents at the Air  Force Academy additional time to complete the surveys. Each academy’s  superintendent sent out an additional notification E-mail, announcing that  we were extending the deadline for the surveys and once again  encouraging participation. Table 15 shows that the response rates for the  surveys were generally high.
To analyze the response rates for possible errors due to some  groups responding out of proportion to the population as a whole,  we compared the rates for certain demographic subgroups to the  relevant academy student populations. We found comparable distributions  of students for these subgroups and concluded that the survey results for  each academy appeared to be generally representative of the academy  populations. Although overall response rates for the Air Force Academy  were lower than those of the other two academies, the pattern of  responses across demographic groups is much the same as for the other  academies. Table 16 shows the percentage of groups who completed the  student survey compared to the percentage of identified groups in the  entire student population.
To analyze survey results, we noted responses for all questions and  highlighted those where a significant response occurred in a particular  category, such as an unfavorable opinion. We also compared responses  by groups for questions addressing those groups (e.g., male and female  student responses and minority and nonminority student responses).  Since we surveyed the entire student and faculty populations at all three  academies and not a statistical sample, achieved high response rates, and  found minimal occurrences of some groups responding out of proportion  to the population as a whole, the responses can be considered  representative of those populations.
We performed our work between November 2002 and July 2003 in  accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards.
section_title: Aspects of Student Life at the Academies: Student Survey and Responses
subsections: section_title: Academic Climate
paragraphs: 1. Considering all your responsibilities, how would you characterize your academic workload? (percent) (percent) (percent)
2. How much emphasis does the Academy place on academics, relative to what you think it should be?(percent) (percent) (percent)
3. How would you characterize the level of academic competition among Academy students? (percent) (percent) (percent)
4. How effective or ineffective is additional instruction available outside the normal class meeting time for students who need it?(percent) (percent) (percent) 31.6 (percent) (percent) (percent)
5. Overall, how effective or ineffective are your Academy instructors as teachers?(percent) (percent) (percent)
6. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the overall academic program at the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: Military/Professional Development
paragraphs: 7. Considering all your responsibilities, how would you characterize your military development workload during the academic year? (percent) (percent) (percent) 15.7 8. How would you rate the Academy’s performance standards for developing you as an officer? (percent) (percent) (percent)
9. How effective or ineffective is the four-year class system for developing students as officers? (percent) (percent) (percent) 10. How effective or ineffective are the summer military development activities (not including initial entry summer training) for providing you  with the skills needed to be an officer? (percent) (percent) (percent)
11. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the overall military development program at the Academy? (percent) (percent)
section_title: Social and Cultural Climate
paragraphs: 12. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with your social life at the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
13. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with the types of cultural opportunities (e.g., courses related to the arts, opportunities to  participate in the arts, and attending such events) available to Academy students on or off Academy grounds? (percent) (percent) (percent)
14. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with opportunities to participate in religious services and activities? (percent) (percent)
section_title: Harassment, Discrimination, and Preferential Treatment
paragraphs: Discrimination: Academy policies or practices that lead to unfair adverse treatment of a person or  group based on race, ethnicity, gender or religion.
Harassment: Derogatory comments, gestures or other actions aimed at race, gender, religion, or  ethnicity that interfere with an individual’s performance or create an intimidating, offensive or hostile  environment, including unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal or  physical conduct of a sexual nature.
subsections: section_title: 15. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the prevention of sexual harassment, relative to what you think it should be?
paragraphs: (percent) (percent) (percent)
16. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the prevention of gender-based discrimination, relative to what you think it  should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
17. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the overall Academy atmosphere for women? (percent) (percent) (percent) 18.6 18. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the prevention of race-/ethnicity-based harassment, relative to what you think it  should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
19. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the prevention of race-/ethnicity-based discrimination, relative to what you think it  should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
20. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the overall Academy atmosphere for members of racial/ethnic minorities? (percent) (percent) (percent) 21. Based on your perception, how were your classmates in the following groups treated during the admissions process relative to other  applicants? (percent) (percent) (percent) 11.1  (percent) (percent) (percent) 4.1  (percent) (percent) (percent)
22. To your knowledge, how are members of the following groups treated at the Academy in general, relative to other students? (percent) (percent) (percent) 3.9  (percent) (percent) (percent) .7  (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: Moral Climate and Honor Code/Concept
paragraphs: 23. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the moral/ethical development of students, relative to what you think it should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
24. To what extent is the Honor Code/Concept practiced as it is taught? (percent) (percent) (percent) 10.4 25. To what extent is the Honor Code/Concept fairly applied to students with similar violations? (percent) (percent) (percent)
26. How frequently have you witnessed academic cheating at the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: Intercollegiate and Intramural Athletics
paragraphs: 27. When you were applying to the Academy, were you recruited to be an athlete for one of the Academy’s varsity intercollegiate  athletic teams? (percent) (percent) (percent)
28. Are you an athlete on one of the Academy’s varsity intercollegiate teams? (percent) (percent) (percent) 18.2 29. How much emphasis does the Academy place on varsity intercollegiate athletics? (percent) (percent) (percent)
30. How much emphasis does the Academy place on intramural athletics? (percent) (percent) (percent)
31. How much emphasis does the Academy place on club athletics? (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: Services
paragraphs: 32. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with the following housing conditions, food services and other services/facilities at the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent) 8.8  (percent) (percent) (percent) 1.1   (percent) (percent) (percent) 19.8  (percent) (percent) (percent) 18.1  (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: Personal Affairs
paragraphs: 33. How adequate or inadequate is the amount of time you have to handle your personal affairs? (percent) (percent) (percent)
34. How satisfied or dissatisfied are you with opportunities to use personal time as you would like to use it? (percent) (percent)
section_title: General
paragraphs: 35. Considering everything, how would you rate your overall satisfaction with the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
36. To what extent are quality of life problems at the Academy openly confronted and/or solved? (percent) (percent) (percent)
37. Which of the following best describes your career intentions at the present time? (percent) (percent)
section_title: Background Information
paragraphs: (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent)
41. Are you either Spanish, Hispanic, or Latino? (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) (percent) 95.4  (percent) (percent) (percent)
43. Were you prior enlisted before enrolling in the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
44. Did you attend the Academy’s preparatory school before enrolling in the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
45. Is either of your parents a graduate of a military academy? (percent) (percent) (percent) 8.6 46. Is either of your parents currently serving in the active services or Guard/Reserves? (percent) (percent)
section_title: Aspects of Student Life at the Academies: Faculty Survey and Responses
subsections: section_title: Academic Climate
paragraphs: 1. Considering all the students’ responsibilities, how would you characterize their academic workload at the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
2. How much emphasis does the Academy place on academics, relative to what you think it should be?(percent) (percent) (percent)
3. How would you characterize the level of academic competition among Academy students? (percent) (percent) (percent)
4. How effective or ineffective is additional instruction available outside the normal class meeting time for students who need it?(percent) (percent) (percent) 33.1 (percent) (percent) (percent) 5. How would you rate the academic preparedness of students who attended the Academy Preparatory School relative to their classmates  at the Academy?(percent) (percent) (percent)
6. Overall, how effective or ineffective are Academy instructors as teachers?(percent) (percent) (percent)
7. Who among the following have ever tried to improperly influence you to modify the grades in any of your Academy courses? (percent) (percent) (percent) 1.4  (percent) (percent) (percent)
8. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the overall academic program at the Academy? (percent) (percent)
section_title: Military/Professional Development
paragraphs: 9. Considering all the students’ responsibilities, how would you characterize their military development workload during the  academic year? (percent) (percent) (percent)
10. How would you rate the Academy’s performance standards for developing students as officers? (percent) (percent) (percent)
11. How effective or ineffective is the four-year class system for developing students as officers? (percent) (percent) (percent)
12. How effective or ineffective are the summer military development activities (not including initial entry summer training) for providing  students with the skills needed to be an officer? (percent) (percent) (percent) 7.5  (percent) (percent) (percent)
13. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the overall military development program at the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: Harassment, Discrimination, and Preferential Treatment
paragraphs: Discrimination: Academy policies or practices that lead to unfair adverse treatment of a person or  group based on race, ethnicity, gender or religion.
Harassment: Derogatory comments, gestures or other actions aimed at race, gender, religion, or  ethnicity that interfere with an individual’s performance or create an intimidating, offensive or hostile  environment, including unwanted sexual advances, requests for sexual favors and other verbal or  physical conduct of a sexual nature.
subsections: section_title: 14. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the prevention of sexual harassment of students, relative to what you think it should be?
paragraphs: (percent) (percent) (percent) 2.7 15. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the prevention of gender-based discrimination of students, relative to what you think  it should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
16. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the overall Academy atmosphere for women students? (percent) (percent) (percent) 17. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the prevention of race-/ethnicity-based harassment of students, relative to what you  think it should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
18. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the prevention of race-/ethnicity-based discrimination of students, relative to what  you think it should be? (percent) (percent) (percent) 1.3 19. Based on your experiences, how would you rate the overall Academy atmosphere for members of racial/ethnic minorities? (percent) (percent) (percent)
20. Based on your perception, how were students in the following groups treated during the admissions process relative to  other applicants? (percent) (percent) (percent) 46.6  (percent) (percent) (percent) 43.0  (percent) (percent) (percent)
21. To your knowledge, how are members of the following groups treated at the Academy in general, relative to other students? (percent) (percent) (percent)
1.7   (percent) (percent) (percent) 27.7  (percent) (percent)
section_title: Moral Climate and Honor Code/Concept
paragraphs: 22. How much emphasis does the Academy place on the moral/ethical development of students, relative to what you think it should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
23. To what extent is the Honor Code/Concept practiced as it is taught? (percent) (percent) (percent)
24. To what extent is the Honor Code/Concept fairly applied to students with similar violations? (percent) (percent) (percent) 6.3 25. How frequently have you witnessed academic cheating at the Academy? (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: Intercollegiate and Intramural Athletics
paragraphs: 26. How much emphasis does the Academy place on varsity intercollegiate athletics, relative to what you think it should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
27. How much emphasis does the Academy place on intramural athletics, relative to what you think it should be? (percent) (percent) (percent)
28. How much emphasis does the Academy place on club athletics, relative to what you think it should be? (percent) (percent) (percent) 45.9  (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: General
paragraphs: 29. To what extent are quality of life problems at the Academy openly confronted and/or solved? (percent) (percent) (percent)
section_title: Background Information
paragraphs: (percent) (percent) (percent)
31. Are you a military or civilian member of the Academy faculty? (percent) (percent) (percent) 14.5  32. Are you a graduate of one of the military academies? (percent) (percent) (percent)
33. Are you a tactical officer (USMA), company officer (USNA), or air officer commanding (USAFA)? (percent) (percent) (percent)
34. In the past 4 years, have you participated in the admissions process? (percent) (percent)
section_title: Acknowledgments
paragraphs: In addition to the individual named above, Gabrielle M. Anderson, Nancy L.  Benco, Carolyn M. Boyce, Brian G. Hackett, and Joseph W. Kirschbaum  also made key contributions to this report.
section_title: Related GAO Products
paragraphs: Military Education: DOD Needs to Enhance Performance Goals and  Measures to Improve Oversight of the Military Academies. GAO-03-1000.  Washington, D.C.: September 10, 2003.
Military Education: DOD Needs to Align Academy Preparatory Schools’  Mission Statements with Overall Guidance and Establish Performance  Goals. GAO-03-1017. Washington, D.C.: September 10, 2003.
DOD Service Academies: Problems Limit Feasibility of Graduates  Directly Entering the Reserves. GAO/NSIAD-97-89. Washington, D.C.:  March 24, 1997.
DOD Service Academies: Comparison of Honor and Conduct  Adjudicatory Processes. GAO/NSIAD-95-49. Washington, D.C.:  April 25, 1995.
DOD Service Academies: Academic Review Processes. GAO/NSIAD-95-57.  Washington, D.C.: April 5, 1995.
DOD Service Academies: Update on Extent of Sexual Harassment.  GAO/NSIAD-95-58. Washington, D.C.: March 31, 1995.
Coast Guard: Cost for the Naval Academy Preparatory School and  Profile of Minority Enrollment. GAO/RCED-94-131. Washington, D.C.:  April 12, 1994.
Military Academy: Gender and Racial Disparities. GAO/NSIAD-94-95.  Washington, D.C.: March 17, 1994.
DOD Service Academies: Further Efforts Needed to Eradicate Sexual  Harassment. GAO/T-NSIAD-94-111. Washington, D.C.: February 3, 1994.
DOD Service Academies: More Actions Needed to Eliminate Sexual  Harassment. GAO/NSIAD-94-6. Washington, D.C.: January 31, 1994.
Academy Preparatory Schools. GAO/NSIAD-94-56R. Washington, D.C.:  October 5, 1993.
Air Force Academy: Gender and Racial Disparities. GAO/NSIAD-93-244.  Washington, D.C.: September 24, 1993.
Military Education: Information on Service Academies and Schools.  GAO/NSIAD-93-264BR. Washington, D.C.: September 22, 1993.
Naval Academy: Gender and Racial Disparities. GAO/NSIAD-93-54.  Washington, D.C.: April 30, 1993.
DOD Service Academies: More Changes Needed to Eliminate Hazing.  GAO/NSIAD-93-36. Washington, D.C.: November 16, 1992.
DOD Service Academies: Status Report on Reviews of Student Treatment.  GAO/T-NSIAD-92-41. Washington, D.C.: June 2, 1992.
Service Academies: Historical Proportion of New Officers During  Benchmark Periods. GAO/NSIAD-92-90. Washington, D.C.: March 19, 1992.
DOD Service Academies: Academy Preparatory Schools Need a Clearer  Mission and Better Oversight. GAO/NSIAD-92-57. Washington, D.C.:  March 13, 1992.
Naval Academy: Low Grades in Electrical Engineering Courses Surface  Broader Issues. GAO/NSIAD-91-187. Washington, D.C.: July 22, 1991.
DOD Service Academies: Improved Cost and Performance Monitoring  Needed. GAO/NSIAD-91-79. Washington, D.C.: July 16, 1991.
Review of the Cost and Operations of DOD’s Service Academies.
GAO/T-NSIAD-90-28. Washington, D.C.: April 4, 1990.
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