Observations on the Navy's Process for Determining Annual Enrollment Requirements

GAO reviewed the Navy's processes for determining annual enrollment requirements for functional and skill training courses.

GAO found that: (1) the Navy uses two processes to plan enrollment requirements, one for certain types of skills courses and one for all other courses; (2) the process for forecasting enrollments for skills courses is not well documented and divides responsibilities among too many different organizations; and (3) there is no standard process for forecasting enrollments in other types of courses and individual training activities prepare their own forecasts. GAO also found that: (1) in fiscal year 1984, planned attendance exceeded actual attendance in almost 50 percent of the courses offered; (2) actual attendance exceeded planned enrollment in only 20 percent of the courses offered; (3) in 19 percent of the courses, utilization remained at less than 80 percent for more than 3 years; and (4) in several instances, better planning and monitoring could have reduced the number of necessary instructor positions. GAO noted that the Navy has initiated improvements in its planning process that should alleviate many of the inadequacies it identified.