8-Accessions

Of the 7,823 individuals who applied for service in the USCG, a total of 3,769 actually accessed. This number represents a 48-percent accession-to-applicant ratio, up from 44 percent in FY 1998. The distribution of race/ethnicity by gender for FY 1999 Coast Guard and overall DoD Active Component NPS accessions is shown in Table 8.1. Eighty-seven percent of USCG NPS accessions were male (Appendix Table E-6), of whom 84 percent were White, 4 percent Black, 9 percent Hispanic, and 4 percent “Other.” Of the female USCG accessions, 82 percent were White, 5 percent Black, 7 percent Hispanic, and 7 percent “Other.” Overall, USCG accessions were slightly more likely to be White and male than accessions in DoD. The proportion of USCG accessions who were Black is approximately one fifth of the percentage for the overall DoD.

Age.While the overall acceptable age range for enlistment in the Armed Services is between 17 and 35, the USCG further restricts its new accessions to the 17 to 27 age range. In FY 1999, 90 percent of USCG NPS accessions were between the ages of 18 and 24 as compared to 87 percent of overall DoD accessions, and 29 percent of the comparable civilian population. Age differences are explained, in part, by different age requirements in each Service. The Army and Navy (accounting for 65 percent of overall DoD NPS accessions) accept 17 to 35 year olds. For detailed age statistics, see Appendix Table E-5 for USCG and Appendix Table B-1 for overall DoD figures.

Education. As shown in Table 8.2, almost 96 percent of USCG NPS accessions in FY 1999 were regular high school diploma graduates as compared to 93 percent for the overall DoD. The difference between the USCG and overall DoD can be accounted for in the numbers of GED holders accepted by the USCG (4 percent) compared to DoD (6 percent). For both the USCG and DoD as a whole, the overall percentage of accessions with high school credentials, either diplomas or GED certificates, was 99 percent, exceeding the comparable civilian group at 79 percent.

Table 8.2. Education Levels and AFQT Categories of FY 1999 USCG and DoD Active Component NPS Accessions and Civilians 18–24 Years Old (Percent)
Education Level	Coast Guard	DoD		18- to 24-Year-Old Civilians*
Tier 1: Regular High School Graduate or Higher	95.8	92.8		78.8
Tier 2: GED, Alternative Credentials	4.1	6.0
Tier 3: No Credentials	0.2	1.2		21.2
Total	100.0	100.0		100.0
College Experience (Part of Tier 1)	5.3	6.6		45.9
AFQT CATEGORY
MALE
	Coast Guard		DoD
I	4.6		4.1
II	42.2		33.7
IIIA	31.7		27.3
IIIB	21.5		32.8
IV	0.0		1.6
Other/Unknown	**		0.6
Total	100.0		100.0
FEMALE
I	3.0		2.5
II	42.6		31.0
IIIA	31.3		31.4
IIIB	23.0		33.9
IV	0.0		0.7
Other/Unknown	0.0		0.5
Total	100.0		100.0
Columns may not add to total due to rounding. * Civilian numbers/percentages for education combine Tiers 1 and 2 as civilian data include GED certificates with high school graduate rates. ** Less than one-tenth of one percent. Also see Appendix Tables B-5 (NPS Active Component Enlisted Accessions by AFQT Category, Service, and Gender), B-7 (NPS Active Component Enlisted Accessions by Education, Service, and Gender), E-7 (Coast Guard NPS Active Component Enlisted Accessions by AFQT Category, Gender, and Race/Ethnicity), and E-8 (Coast Guard NPS Active Component Enlisted Accessions by Education, Gender, and Race/Ethnicity).

AFQT.The primary measure of a recruit’s potential for success in training is his or her AFQT score. Table 8.2 shows FY 1999 USCG accessions were more likely than their DoD counterparts to be in AFQT Categories I – IIIA (i.e., top 50 percent). The overall proportion of FY 1999 USCG accessions in AFQT Categories I–IIIA was comparable to the distribution in the Air Force (79 and 76 percent, respectively).

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