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An implicit goal of Congress, the Department of Defense, and the armed services is that diversity in the armed services should approximate diversity in the general population. A key aspect of that diversity is the representation of Hispanics. Although polls of Hispanic youth show a strong propensity to serve in the military, Hispanics are nevertheless underrepresented among military recruits. The authors discuss the major characteristics that disproportionately disqualify Hispanic youth and explore the following questions: If recruiting standards were relaxed, what would be the effect on military performance? What actions could be taken to increase Hispanic enlistments? Finally, they examine several approaches to increasing enlistments -- increasing the number of Hispanic youth who are eligible and would meet the military's entry standards, increasing interest and recruiting more intensively among the qualified Hispanic population, and targeting recruiting toward less-qualified Hispanics.

Hispanics are a growing segment of the youth population, yet they have historically been underrepresented among military recruits. A widely cited reason is Hispanics’ below-average rate of graduation from high school, combined with the services’ preference for recruits with high school diplomas. But other, less studied, factors may also contribute. Such factors might include lack of language proficiency as reflected in aptitude test scores; fertility choices; health factors, such as obesity; and involvement in risky activities, such as the use of illegal drugs. These factors, to the extent they are present in the Hispanic population, could adversely affect the services’ ability to meet their enlistment standards.

Our project, “Hispanic Youth in the U.S. and the Factors Affecting Their Enlistment,” analyzed the factors that lead to the underrepresentation of Hispanic youth among military enlistments. To help policymakers evaluate the feasibility of improving Hispanic enlistments by recruiting more intensively from among the population that is qualified for service and the implications of recruiting Hispanics who are less qualified, we also analyzed both the nonmilitary opportunities available to qualified Hispanic youth and the consequences of recruiting less-qualified Hispanic youth.

Full document online: http://www.rand.org/content/dam/rand/pubs/research_briefs/2009/RB8009.pdf

Critics of American education frequently blame lagging student performance on the deteriorating American family structure. Moreover, it is widely asserted that substantial spending on schools and social programs over the past two decades has failed to reverse the educational downtrend. However, a recent study conducted by RAND’s Institute for Education and Training sharply challenges this view. First, the study points out that prior research--contrary to public perception--has reported gains in student performance between 1970 and 1990, as measured by nationally representative test score data. The largest gains were made by minority students, although a substantial gap still remains. Second, the study finds that demographic trends affecting the family over this time period contributed to rising test scores. Third, the minority gains cannot be fully explained by changing family characteristics, suggesting that we need to look to other factors for explanations. The most likely explanations are rising public investment in schools and families and equal educational opportunity policies.

Quote from the report:

"DoD has now been approached about partnering in the follow-on NLS-Y2010. That survey is projected to select a sample of 8,000 to 12,000 individuals age 12 to 17. They would then be followed and reinterviewed annually.

Unless the NLS-Y2010 is much larger than currently projected (which seems unlikely) or military enlistment increases sharply (which seems even less likely), the projected number of participating enlistees for the NLS-Y2010 is likely to be about 500. As was just noted, this is simply too small to do serious analysis of the enlistment decision. Thus, concerns about sample size for enlistment analyses are likely to remain."

Contents: Introduction -- Military Administrative Data -- Current Military Cross-Sectional Survey Programs -- Matching DoD Administrative Data to DoD Cross-Sectional Surveys -- Matching DoD Administrative Data to Civilian Administrative Data -- Matching DoD Administrative Data to Civilian Cross-Sectional Surveys -- Civilian Panel Surveys and Choice-Based Sampling -- An Alternative Model for Military Cross-Sectional Surveys -- A Military Panel Survey -- Discussion -- Appendix A: Formal Discussion of Some Technical Issues -- Appendix B: U.S. Census Bureau Residence Rules -- Appendix C: Survey Veteran Questions.