Changes to the IPEDS Data Collections from 2019-20 through 2021-22
Detailed Changes to Forms by IPEDS Survey Component
Fall Collection
Institutional Characteristics (IC, includes Header and Identification).
The changes to the IC/ICH survey component are minor and are the results of two meetings of the IPEDS Technical Review Panel (TRP): one on Subbaccalaureate Certificates held in March 2017 and another on Capturing and Clarifying Dual Enrollment Data in the IPEDS Data Collection held in March 2018.
Subbaccalaureate certificates.On the ICH form, Part B, there is currently a checkbox question asking institutions what award levels they offer. Subbaccalaureate certificates are reported to IPEDS in three categories based on the program length, and measured in terms of academic year, with a clock and credit hour equivalency. The less-than-1-year certificate has become a catch-all category for emerging alternative credentials such as stackable certificates and industry credentials, and between 1998-99 and 2013-14, there has been an 88.1 percent increase in the reporting of such awards.
At the IPEDS TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates, the panel considered possible alternatives to the classification system to more appropriately measure less-than-1-year programs. Based on suggestions from the TRP, such awards should be segmented into two categories, as noted in table A1 below. In addition, references to academic year equivalencies and to contact hours have been removed for these two categories as they also have reported to be confusing. These changes should have no impact on burden.
Dual enrollment.The IC survey component, Part C, collects information on whether the institution accepts credit earned prior to admission through dual credit, credit for life experiences, AP credits, or none of these. Given the multiple definitions of the term "dual credit" and complexity with how credits are applied to degrees, the IPEDS TRP on Capturing and Clarifying Dual Enrollment Data noted that the question is confusing as written and should be changed as the terms dual credit and dual enrollment are inconsistently used in IPEDS. Based on the TRP input, NCES will replace the "dual-credit" checkbox option with a "dual enrollment" checkbox option. There will be no change in burden for this change.
New FAQ.NCES is adding a new FAQ to help institutions that only have room or board, but not both, understand how to appropriately report cost of attendance.
Cross-cutting definition/terminology changes.The IC survey component will use the terminology of "recognized postsecondary credential" instead of "formal award" and "clock hours" instead of "contact hours". No change in burden.
Addition of instruction to exclude students receiving Experimental Pell.The IC component will include the instruction not to include students receiving Experimental Pell. No change in burden.
Table A1. Changes to the IC Form
Change
Implementation year
Source
Estimated burden
Part B - Organization - Control and Levels
Q2. 2. What award levels are offered by your institution?
[Check all that apply]
Split current options for certificates of less than one academic year in length into two award level categories as follows:
1a. Postsecondary award, certificate, or diploma of
- less than
300 clock hours, or
- less than 9
semester or trimester credit hours, or
- less than 13
quarter credit hours
1b. Postsecondary award, certificate, or diploma of
- 300-899
clock hours, or
- 9-29
semester or trimester credit hours, or
- 13-44
quarter credit hours
In addition, references to academic year equivalencies and to contact
hours have been removed from all levels of subbaccalaureate certificates.
2020-21
TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates (March 2017)
No change
Part C - Student Services - Special Learning Opportunities
Does your institution accept any of the following? [Check
all that apply]
Replace checkbox
option "Dual credit (college credit earned while in high school)" with "Dual
Enrollment" checkbox option.
2020-21
TRP on Capturing and Clarifying Dual Enrollment Data (March 2018)
No change
New FAQ
6)
If my
institution offers room or board, but not both, how should I report this on
the Cost of Attendance page?
In this case, the "room
and board" value must include both the known value and an estimate for the
unknown value. Inclusion of both meal cost and housing cost is necessary to
generate a total cost of attendance, which is subsequently needed for Net
Price calculations. For example, if the institution offers meals but no
housing, in the "on-campus room and board" field they would need to enter a
total that includes the cost of the meal plan plus an estimate of housing
cost (such as a housing cost similar to that of off-campus housing).
2019-20
NCES initiated
No change
Cross-cutting definition and terminology changes:
Replace "formal award"
terminology with "recognized postsecondary credential"; replace "contact
hour" with "clock hour"; add instruction to exclude students receiving
Experimental Pell.
2019-20
TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates (March 2017); NCES initiated
No change
Completions (C).
The changes to the Completions survey form are based on input from two separate meetings of the IPEDS TRP: one on Subbaccalaureate Certificates held in March 2017 and another on Evaluating Distance Education Elements in the IPEDS Data Collection held in June 2017.
Subbaccalaureate certificates.
Like the change on IC Header file, subbaccalaureate certificates that are less that an academic year will be broken into two categories for reporting counts of certificates awarded. In addition, for all subbaccalaureate certificates, references to academic year equivalencies and to contact hours have been removed since the TRP noted that these tend to be confusing and can result in inconsistent data. There will be a moderate increase in reporting burden in the first year as institutions will need to reclassify short-term programs into the new categories; subsequently, the change is minimal.
Distance education.
The IPEDS Completions component currently collects whether the institution offers the full program (as defined by the Classification of Instructional Programs [CIP] code system and award level) through distance education. If more than one program is offered under a CIP code by award level, institutions are instructed to check "yes" to the distance education question if any of the programs are offered as a distance education program. TRP panelists noted that a constraint of the current format is the inability to identify the number of programs offered as distance education programs if more than one program is offered under a CIP code. The TRP considered several options for categorizing exclusively distance education programs in ways that are better aligned with how institutions organize their programs. Based on the TRP input, NCES will revise the question about programs under a CIP being offered as distance education to clarify whether all or at least one program for the CIP and award level is offered via distance education, and include details regarding whether programs are entirely distance education or have a mandatory or non-mandatory distance education requirement. The change in reporting burden should be minimal.
Cross-cutting definition/terminology changes.
The C survey component will use the terminology of "recognized postsecondary credential" instead of "formal award" and "clock hours" instead of "contact hours". No change in burden.
Addition of instruction to exclude students receiving Experimental Pell.
The C component will include the instruction not to include students receiving Experimental Pell. No change in burden.
Changes to the Completions survey are summarized in table A2 below.
Table A2. Changes to the Completions Form
Change
Implementation year
Source
Estimated burden
Split current options for reporting the count of certificates of less than one academic year in length into two award level categories as follows:
Postsecondary
award, certificate, or diploma of
- less
than 300 clock hours, or
- less
than 9 semester or trimester credit hours, or
- less
than 13 quarter credit hours
Postsecondary
award, certificate, or diploma of
-
300-899 clock hours, or
- 9-29
semester or trimester credit hours, or
- 13-44
quarter credit hours
In addition, references
to academic year equivalencies have been removed from all levels of
subbaccalaureate certificates.
2020-21
TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates (March 2017)
Moderate increase in first year only
For the question, "Is at least one program within this CIP code offered as a distance education program?", change answer options from "yes" or "no" to:
-All programs in this CIP code in this award level can be completed entirely via distance education. (Radio button)
-Some programs in this CIP code in this award level can be completed entirely via distance education. (Radio button)
-At least one program in this CIP code in this award level has a mandatory onsite component. (Checkbox)
-At least one program in this CIP code in this award level has a non-mandatory onsite component. (Checkbox)
-None of the programs in this CIP code in this award level can be completed entirely via distance education. (Radio button)
2020-21
TRP on Evaluating Distance Education Elements in the IPEDS Data Collection (June 2017)
Minimal increase
Cross-cutting definition and terminology changes:
Replace "formal award" terminology with "recognized
postsecondary credential"; replace "contact hour" with "clock hour"; add instruction
to exclude students receiving Experimental Pell.
2019-20
TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates (March 2017); NCES initiated
No change
12-Month Enrollment (E12).
The changes to the E12 survey forms are from two sources. The first change was initiated by NCES to better align (and integrate) the various survey components of IPEDS, in this case, specifically the E12 and OM components. The second change involves collecting more accurate counts of students enrolled in distance education and is based on input from the meeting of the IPEDS TRP on Evaluating Distance Education Elements in the IPEDS Data Collection.
E12/OM alignment.
Currently on the E12 survey, institutions report the number of undergraduate students and graduate students by race/ethnicity and gender. However, to better align the survey components, NCES proposes to disaggregate the information on undergraduate students into four categories that will help establish the cohorts that are tracked and subsequently reported on in the Outcome Measures survey. The change is initiated by NCES in its effort to better integrate the various components of the IPEDS data collection and to improve data quality. There will be a moderate change in reporting burden in the first year. In subsequent years, the change should be minimal.
Distance education.
Currently, distance education enrollments are only collected on the Fall Enrollment component (academic reporters report enrollment as of October 15, or as of the institution''s official fall enrollment date; program reporters report enrollment during the 3-month period of August 1 to October 31). However, TRP panelists noted that completely distance education institutions are more likely to enroll students continuously throughout the year and would benefit from reporting distance education enrollments on the E12 survey component. The resulting data would more accurately reflect the total institutional enrollments, which in some cases are nearly double those of the fall. The addition of this data collection for E12 will result in a moderate increase in reporting burden.
Cross-cutting definition/terminology changes.
The E12 survey component will use the terminology of "recognized postsecondary credential" instead of "formal award" and "clock hours" instead of "contact hours". No change in burden.
Addition of instruction to exclude students receiving Experimental Pell.
The E12 component will include the instruction not to include students receiving Experimental Pell. No change in burden.
Changes to the E12 survey from are summarized in table A3 below.
Table A3. Changes to the E12 Form
Change
Implementation year
Source
Estimated burden
Disaggregate reporting of undergraduate student by race/ethnicity and
gender into the following categories:
Add a distance education
question to E12 to report counts of students in distance education:
Report number of
undergraduate degree/certificate-seeking, undergraduate non-degree/certificate-seeking,
and graduate students that are:
-Enrolled
exclusively in distance education
courses
-Enrolled
in at least one but not all
distance education courses
-Not enrolled in any distance education
courses
2020-21
TRP on Evaluating Distance Education Elements in the IPEDS Data Collection (June 2017)
Moderate increase
Cross-cutting definition and terminology changes:
Replace "formal award" terminology with "recognized
postsecondary credential"; replace "contact hour" with "clock hour"; add
instruction to exclude students receiving Experimental Pell.
2019-20
TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates (March 2017); NCES initiated
No change
Winter Collection
Graduation Rates (GR), Graduation Rates 200 (GR200), and Outcome Measures (OM).
The changes are based on comments from the 60-day comment period for this data collection and are to clarify reporting by coordinated institutions to ensure that students are not being double counted. The changes include modifications to glossary terms and to FAQs, as well as the addition of a new FAQ.
Table A4. Changes to the GR, GR200, and OM Forms
Change
Implementation year
Source
Estimated burden
Clarify the term "transfer-in student" by adding "For systems of coordinated institutions (multi-campus system), students are to be identified as transfer-in students upon entering an institution from another institution within the same coordinated system."
The complete new definition for transfer-in student is:
A student entering the reporting institution for the first time but known to have previously attended a postsecondary institution at the same level (e.g., undergraduate, graduate). This includes new students enrolled in the fall term who transferred into the reporting institution the prior summer term. The student may transfer with or without credit. For systems of coordinated institutions (multi-campus system), students are to be identified as transfer-in students upon entering an institution from another institution within the same coordinated system.
2019-20
NCES initiated based on 60-day comment period
No change
Clarify the term "transfer-out student" by adding "For systems of coordinated institutions (multi-campus system), students are to be identified as transfer-out students when leaving an institution to enroll into another institution within the same coordinated system."
The complete new definition for transfer-out student is:
A student that leaves the reporting institution and enrolls at another institution. For systems of coordinated institutions (multi-campus system), students are to be identified as transfer-out students when leaving an institution to enroll into another institution within the same coordinated system.
2019-20
NCES initiated based on 60-day comment period
No change
Modify existing OM FAQ#30 "Counting Transfer-in and Transfer-out Students" by adding "For systems of coordinated institutions (multi-campus systems), each reporting entity with an IPEDS UnitID is recognized as an individual reporting institution for Outcome Measures purposes. Only the institution that confers the degree or award can report the students as a completer. Thus, if a student transfers out of the initial institution (institution A) and transfers-in to another institution (institution B) within a coordinated system, that student is reported as a transfer-out by the initial institution (institution A), regardless of whether or not that student received a degree or award at another institution (institution B) within the coordinated system." to the answer.
The complete new OM FAQ #30 is:
Q: Are first-time or non-first-time students who transfer-out to another institution included in the non-first-time entering cohort of the transfer-in institution?
A: Yes. If first-time or non-first-time students transfer into your institution and have never been previously enrolled in your institution, you should report them in the appropriate non-first-time entering subcohort.
For systems of coordinated institutions (multi-campus systems), each reporting entity with an IPEDS UnitID is recognized as an individual reporting institution for Outcome Measures purposes. Only the institution that confers the degree or award can report the students as a completer. Thus, if a student transfers out of the initial institution (institution A) and transfers-in to another institution (institution B) within a coordinated system, that student is reported as a transfer-out by the initial institution (institution A), regardless of whether or not that student received a degree or award at another institution (institution B) within the coordinated system.
2019-20
NCES initiated based on 60-day comment period
No change
New GR/GR200 FAQ (For GR, this FAQ will be the new FAQ #4 under "Transfer Out" category. For GR 200, this would new FAQ would also initiate a new FAQ section for GR200).
Q: My institution is part of a coordinated system of institutions. If a student transfers out of my institution and goes to another institution within the coordinated system, can I count that student at my institution as a completer?
A: No. Your institution may not count that student as completer because that student is considered a transfer-out student. Each reporting entity that has an IPEDS UnitID is recognized as an individual reporting institution for Graduation Rates purposes and can only report completers if that campus confers the award or degree.
2019-20
NCES initiated based on 60-day comment period
No change
Cross-cutting definition and terminology changes:
Replace "formal award" terminology with "recognized postsecondary credential"; replace "contact hour" with "clock hour"; add instruction to exclude students receiving Experimental Pell.
2019-20
TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates (March 2017); NCES initiated
No change
Spring Collection
Academic Libraries (AL).
The change to the AL form was initiated by NCES with input from the IPEDS Academic Libraries Task Force. Currently, data on library staff are collected as an occupational category on the HR survey. These occupational categories will be removed from HR, so to retain information on library staff, a question will be added to capture this detailed information on the AL form. This change should have no impact on reporting burden. The change is detailed in table A4. In addition, based on the recommendation of the Task Force, digital/electronic serials will be included in the total counts for library circulations
Table A5. Changes to the AL Form
Change
Implementation year
Source
Estimated burden
Add question regarding
library staff (detail moved from HR survey, higher level numbers still
collected on HR):
Do you have Library Staff?
- Yes
- No
Report Number of FTEs for:
- Librarians
- Other
Professional Staff
- All
Other Paid Staff (Except Student Assistants)
- Student
Assistants
See associated
instructions in AL package attachment
2020-21
NCES initiated; QC; IPEDS Academic Libraries Joint Task Force
Increase to AL (moved from HR)
Add instruction related
to inclusion of digital/electronic serials in library circulations:
An e-serial is a periodical publication issued in successive
parts bearing numerical or chronological designations, is intended to be
continued indefinitely, and is published in digital form to be displayed on a
computer screen in any medium. This definition includes digital and digitized
periodicals, newspapers, and annuals (reports, yearbooks, etc.); the
journals, memoirs, proceedings, transactions, etc. of societies; and numbered
monographic series. If possible,
+report the
count of only those de-duplicated or otherwise unique e-serial titles
searchable through the library's catalog or discovery system.
+include
ceased electronic serial titles.
+do not
count earlier title changes; however, do not worry about removing them if it
is not possible/feasible. A source for counting e-serials may be a library-
or vendor-developed A-Z title list of e-journals.
Include open access (OA) titles if the individual titles are
searchable through the library's catalog or discovery system, except do not
count e-serial titles from HathiTrust Center for Research Libraries, Internet
Archive, and similar collections unless the library owns the digitized item
and it is accessible under current copyright law."
2020-21
IPEDS Academic Libraries Joint Task Force
No change
Change instructions for
Total Digital/Electronic Circulation or Usage to:
Report usage of digital/electronic titles whether viewed,
downloaded, or streamed. Do not include institutional repository documents.
Include usage for e-books and e-media titles only, even if the
title was purchased as part of a database. Do not include usage of titles in
Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) or Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA)
collections until they have been purchased or leased by the library. Do not
include transactions of VHS, CDs, or DVDs, as the transactions of these
materials are reported under "physical circulation".
Many vendors will provide usage statistics in COUNTER reports.
Project COUNTER Code of Practice is available here. Relevant COUNTER reports
for e-books are: BR1-Number of Successful Title Requests by Month and Title;
and BR2- Number of Successful Section Requests by Month and Title. For media,
the report MR1-Number of Successful Multimedia Full Content Unit Requests by
Month and Collection, is most relevant.
If COUNTER reports are available, IPEDS suggest that libraries
report counts from BR1 and MR1. If BR1 and MR1 statistics are not available,
BR2 and MR2 statistics can be used. In cases where vendors do not provide
COUNTER reports, libraries may report using other means for monitoring
digital/electronic circulation/usage (downloads, session views, transaction
logs, etc.).
Report usage of e-serial titles whether viewed, downloaded, or
streamed. Include usage for e-serial titles only, even if the title was
purchased as part of a database. Viewing a document is defined as having the
full text of a digital document or electronic resource downloaded. [NISO
Z39.7-2013, section 7.7] If available, include the count for open access
e-journal usage if the title is accessible through the library's catalog or
discovery system.
Libraries may need to ask vendors for e-serial usage reports;
reports may not be delivered automatically or in easily-understood formats by
the vendor to the library. Many vendors will provide usage statistics in
COUNTER reports. When possible, record usage at the article level. The most
relevant COUNTER report is JR1 (defined as the "Number of Successful
Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") which includes any use
in JR1GOA (defined as the "Number of Successful Gold Open Access
Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") and JR1a reports
(defined as the "Number of Successful Full-Text Article Requests from an
Archive by Month and Journal").
Applicable COUNTER definitions:
+ eJournal: "Serial content that is published
online".
+ Full-Text Article: "The complete text, including all
references, figures and tables, of an article, plus links to any
supplementary material published with it."
+ Gold Open Access: "Access, immediately upon publication
and at no charge to the user (but usually supported financially by the author
or the author's funding agency), of peer-reviewed, full-text articles that
have been accepted for publication in a journal."
+ Archive: "Non-current collections of journals, books,
articles, or other publications that are preserved because of their
continuing value and which are frequently made available by publishers as
separate acquisitions."
In cases where vendors do not provide COUNTER reports,
libraries may report using other means for monitoring digital/electronic
circulation/usage (downloads, session views, transaction logs, etc.), or
report zero. An electronic resource management system (ERMS) and/or a usage
consolidation service may be helpful for collecting e-serial usage
statistics. Do not include usage of titles in Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA)
or Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA) collections until they have been purchased
or leased by the library."
2020-21
IPEDS Academic Libraries Joint Task Force
No change
Update Reporting Digital/Electronic Collections FAQ 9 to:
9) What is a digital/electronic serial and how do I report
digital/electronic serials in collection and circulation?
An e-serial is a periodical publication issued in successive
parts bearing numerical or chronological designations, is intended to be
continued indefinitely, and is published in digital form to be displayed on a
computer screen in any medium. This definition includes digital and digitized
periodicals, newspapers, and annuals (reports, yearbooks, etc.); the
journals, memoirs, proceedings, transactions, etc. of societies; and numbered
monographic series. If possible,
+ report the count of only those
de-duplicated or otherwise unique e-serial titles searchable through the
library's catalog or discovery system.
+ include ceased electronic serial titles.
+ do not count earlier title changes;
however, do not worry about removing them if it is not possible/feasible. A
source for counting e-serials may be a library- or vendor-developed A-Z title
list of e-journals.
Include open access (OA) titles if the individual titles are
searchable through the library's catalog or discovery system, except do not
count e-serial titles from HathiTrust Center for Research Libraries, Internet
Archive, and similar collections unless the library owns the digitized item
and it is accessible under current copyright law."
Report usage of e-serial titles whether viewed, downloaded, or
streamed. Include usage for e-serial titles only, even if the title was
purchased as part of a database. Viewing a document is defined as having the
full text of a digital document or electronic resource downloaded. [NISO
Z39.7-2013, section 7.7] If available, include the count for open access
e-journal usage if the title is accessible through the library's catalog or
discovery system.
Libraries may need to ask vendors for e-serial usage reports;
reports may not be delivered automatically or in easily-understood formats by
the vendor to the library. Many vendors will provide usage statistics in
COUNTER reports. When possible, record usage at the article level. The most
relevant COUNTER report is JR1 (defined as the "Number of Successful
Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") which includes any use
in JR1GOA (defined as the "Number of Successful Gold Open Access
Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") and JR1a reports
(defined as the "Number of Successful Full-Text Article Requests from an
Archive by Month and Journal").
Applicable COUNTER definitions:
+ eJournal: "Serial content that is
published online".
+ Full-Text Article: "The complete
text, including all references, figures and tables, of an article, plus links
to any supplementary material published with it."
+ Gold Open Access: "Access,
immediately upon publication and at no charge to the user (but usually supported
financially by the author or the author's funding agency), of peer-reviewed,
full-text articles that have been accepted for publication in a
journal."
+ Archive: "Non-current collections of
journals, books, articles, or other publications that are preserved because
of their continuing value and which are frequently made available by
publishers as separate acquisitions."
In cases where vendors do not provide COUNTER reports,
libraries may report using other means for monitoring digital/electronic
circulation/usage (downloads, session views, transaction logs, etc.), or
report zero. An electronic resource management system (ERMS) and/or a usage
consolidation service may be helpful for collecting e-serial usage
statistics.
Do not include usage of titles in Demand-Driven Acquisition
(DDA) or Patron-Driven Acquisition (PDA) collections until they have been
purchased or leased by the library."
2020-21
IPEDS Academic Libraries Joint Task Force
No change
Add to Reporting Digital/Electronic Circulation FAQ 4:
Libraries may need to ask vendors for e-serial usage reports;
reports may not be delivered automatically or in easily-understood formats by
the vendor to the library. Many vendors will provide usage statistics in
COUNTER reports. When possible, record usage at the article level. The most
relevant COUNTER report is JR1 (defined as the "Number of Successful
Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") which includes any use
in JR1GOA (defined as the "Number of Successful Gold Open Access
Full-Text Article Requests by Month and Journal") and JR1a reports
(defined as the "Number of Successful Full-Text Article Requests from an
Archive by Month and Journal").
Applicable COUNTER definitions:
+ eJournal: "Serial content that is
published online".
+ Full-Text Article: "The complete
text, including all references, figures and tables, of an article, plus links
to any supplementary material published with it."
+ Gold Open Access: "Access,
immediately upon publication and at no charge to the user (but usually
supported financially by the author or the author's funding agency), of
peer-reviewed, full-text articles that have been accepted for publication in
a journal."
+ Archive: "Non-current collections of
journals, books, articles, or other publications that are preserved because
of their continuing value and which are frequently made available by
publishers as separate acquisitions."
In cases where vendors do not provide COUNTER reports,
libraries may report using other means for monitoring digital/electronic
circulation/usage (downloads, session views, transaction logs, etc.), or
report zero. An electronic resource management system (ERMS) and/or a usage
consolidation service may be helpful for collecting e-serial usage statistics.
2020-21
IPEDS Academic Libraries Joint Task Force
No change
Finance (F).
IPEDS finance data are heavily grounded in the accounting-based conventions that govern how and what data are collected. Therefore, the first two changes to the F component are based on changes to GASB Statements 74/75.These modifications that are based on changes to the GASB forms will only impact the public institutions that use that form and will ensure that the IPEDS Finance components continue to align with what is reported for GASB. These changes will have a minimal impact on burden for those institutions.
The TRP on IPEDS Financial Metrics also resulted in four changes to be made to the Finance component. The specific purpose of the TRP, which was held in October 2018, was to discuss opportunities to improve the utility of IPEDS data by collecting new finance data that the postsecondary community and IPEDS stakeholders consider important, while also maintaining the quality (reliability and validity) of the data and balancing burden for data reporters.
Athletics.
The Finance survey component includes a checkbox asking institutions to indicate whether intercollegiate athletics expenses are reported as an auxiliary enterprise, a student service, in another functional category, or if the institution does not participate in intercollegiate athletics. The panel suggested adding a similar question to capture information about where athletics revenues are included. To make the information more useful for data users, responses to both the expense and revenue checkboxes will be included as separate variables (rather than response status flags) within the published data. This new checkbox question will only be reported by degree-granting institutions, and will have a minimal increase on reporting burden.
The panelists also discussed whether IPEDS should collect actual total athletics revenue and expenses (or athletics revenue and expenses as a percent of the total) and whether the collected data would be useful. While they generally agreed they could be, they also noted possible duplication with an existing federal source of data that collects financial data on intercollegiate athletics at a more granular level than what is included on institutions' audited statements -- the Office of Postsecondary Education's (OPE) Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act (EADA) Survey collects financial data on operating (game day) expenses, recruiting expenses, and total revenues and expenses by sport and by gender of team (men/ women). NCES has decided not to pursue the collection of these data at this time for these reasons.
Financial Health Indicators.
Panelists at the TRP also noted that the financial health of higher education institutions is noted as important issue for policymakers and consumers, yet there is a lack of metrics regarding financial health currently available in IPEDS. Therefore, the panelists suggested that NCES should make available to the industry financial health indicators that expand on the revenue, expenditure, and balance sheet portions of the current Finance survey component. They suggested adding a new screen to the Finance survey component for institutions to report the underlying data for Composite Financial Index calculations. These data will be collected only from degree-granting institutions and will have a minimal impact on burden.
Discounts and Allowances.
Panelists at the IPEDS TRP on Financial Metrics also discussed how scholarships and fellowships may be used to pay tuition and fees and other institutional charges such as room and board or bookstore charges. Under GASB and FASB accounting standards, the amounts used to pay tuition and other institutional charges are considered discounts or allowances, reducing the amount the student actually pays to attend the institution. NCES currently collects the portion of revenues coming from financial aid sources and is interested in expanding the Scholarships and Fellowships screen to understand how financial aid sources contribute to the institutional revenues and scholarship discounts. Panelists suggested adding new fields to collect additional detail on discounts and allowances by grant type (discounts from Pell, other federal grants, state government, local government, endowments and gifts, other institution sources). This approach focuses on institutional resources and aligns with the current Finance survey component in terms of reporting period (fiscal year) and coverage (all students, credit and noncredit). Although the resulting data will provide more information on discount rates and student aid expense, panelists recognized that the changes do not fully capture aid sources for student subgroups (e.g., graduate, noncredit students). The change will apply to all reporting institutions and result in a minimal increase in burden.
Endowments.
IPEDS currently collects the value of institutions' endowment assets at the beginning and end of the fiscal year from applicable private not-for-profit FASB institutions and GASB institutions. The panel agreed to use "endowment net assets" instead of "endowment assets", where applicable, to clarify this section could include endowment liabilities and to add a field to calculate amount of the change in value of endowment net assets. The panel also suggested collcting more detail on the change in the value of endowment assets. The change will have minimal effect on reporting burden for institutions.
All the Finance component changes are detailed in table A6 below.
Table A6. Changes to the Finance Forms
Change
Implementation year
Source
Estimated burden
GASB institutions only: Revise
screening question to add defined benefit pension or postemployment benefits
other than pension (OPEB) liabilities:
Does your institution
include defined benefit pension or postemployment benefits other than pension
(OPEB) liabilities, expenses, and/or deferrals in its General Purpose
Financial Statements?
2019-20
GASB Statements 74/75
Minimal increase
GASB institutions only: In
Part M, include new data elements to collect data on pension and
postemployment benefits other than pension (OPEB) for:
05 OPEB expense
06 Net OPEB liability
07 Deferred inflows related to OPEB
08 Deferred outflows related to OPEPB
2019-20
GASB Statements 74/75
Minimal increase
Degree-granting institutions
only: New screening question to determine where/whether institutions will
report intercollegiate athletics revenues:
If your institution participates in intercollegiate athletics, indicate
the category where these revenues are included (check all that apply):
Sales and services of educational activities
Sales and services of auxiliary enterprises
Other (explain in context box)
Does not have intercollegiate athletics revenue
2020-21
TRP on Financial Metrics (October 2018)
Minimal increase
Degree-granting institutions
only: Add new screen to collect numerator and denominator for calculating
financial health ratios (note: ratios will not be calculated; terminology changed to more accurately reflect existing standards for FASB and for-profit institutions)
GASB /FASB/ For profit
01 Operating income (loss) + net nonoperating revenues (expenses)/ Changes in unrestricted net assets/ Pretax income
02 Operating revenues + nonoperating revenues/ Total unrestricted operating revenues/ Total revenues (preloaded)
03 Change in net position/ Change in net assets (preloaded)/ Total equity (preloaded)
04 Net position/Total net assets (preloaded)/ Total assets (preloaded)
05 Expendable net assets/ Expendable net assets/ Adjusted equity
07 Total expenses/ Total expenses (preloaded)/ Total expenses (preloaded)
2020-21
TRP on Financial Metrics (October 2018)
Minimal increase
All institutions: Add new
screen to collect sources of discounts and allowances
Collect tuition and fees discounts and allowances and auxiliary
enterprises discounts and allowances (then calculate a total) for:
01 Pell grants (federal)
02 Other federal grants (Do NOT include FDSL amounts)
03 Grants by state government
04 Grants by local government
05 Endowments and gifts
06 Other institutional sources (calculated value = 07 – (sum of 01
through 05))
07 Total (preloaded into new screen)
2020-21
TRP on Financial Metrics (October 2018)
Moderate increase, especially in year 1
GASB and FASB not-for-profit institutions
only: Add fields to collect detail on changes to endowment net assets. This
included new data elements added to Part H and rewording:
Rewording of "endowment assets" to "endowment net assets"
Added lines 03-03d to
Part H to collect more detail on the change in endowments (see below)
03 Change in value of endowment net assets (calculated value = 02 - 01)
03a New gifts and additions
03b Endowment and investment
return
03c Spending distribution
use
03d Other (calculated value
03 – (03a+03b+03c)
2020-21
TRP on Financial Metrics (October 2018)
Moderate increase, especially in year 1
Definition and Instructions (Cross-cutting).
In addition to the changes for specific survey forms, there are some changes to definitions and instructions that will cut across surveys. First, a change to the definition of "dual enrollment" that was suggested by the TRP on Capturing and Clarifying Dual Enrollment Data. Second is the replacement of the term "formal award" with "recognized educational credential" that came out of a discussion by NPEC. Finally, how to handle experimental Pell Grants for reporting purposes will be clarified in the instructions.
Dual enrollment.
The expansion of dual enrollment—in terms of location (e.g., high school, college campus, and online delivery), instructor qualification (e.g., high school teacher, college instructor), student eligibility, and funding arrangement—blurs the line between the secondary and postsecondary education sectors. Although growth in dual enrollment has been observed in all sectors of postsecondary institutions, the degree to which IPEDS measures dual enrollment is unclear. The IPEDS collection does not differentiate high school students taking college courses for credit from other students enrolled for credit at the undergraduate level or students who enter with advanced standing (earned college credit or postsecondary award before graduation from high school) from other entering first-time students. Thus, it is likely that dual enrollment affects the data and metrics comparability of IPEDS survey components, which answer questions about student enrollment and progression, institutional revenues and spending, and investment in instructional and staff support.
NPEC commissioned a research paper to examine how the IPEDS collection can capture and clarify dual enrollment data. One finding of this exploratory research indicates that IPEDS definitions and terms related to dual enrollment are unclear and inconsistent with varied institutional practices for measuring the number of high school students taking college courses and first-time-in-college students who took college courses in high school. The IPEDS TRP was convened in March 2018 to discuss Capturing and Clarifying Dual Enrollment Data.
IPEDS currently defines "dual enrollment" as "a program through which high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school." The panel discussed limitations of that language, noting the current definition refers to high school students who may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school, but it is unclear whether that includes AP and other types of college credits earned through an exam, such as International Baccalaureate. Panelists noted these credits operate like dual enrollment in that students can earn postsecondary credit in high school. A key difference, however, is that high school students do not enroll in postsecondary courses when they participate in exam-based credit but earn credit by passing an exam with a qualifying score. Panelists suggested clarifying that the dual enrollment definition should include enrollment in courses for which postsecondary credit is awarded for successfully completing the course, rather than examples of models where students may earn postsecondary credit through an examination or other means that do not require postsecondary enrollment. Panelists noted that postsecondary coursework at the remedial or developmental level would be considered dual enrollment if the postsecondary institution awards the student credit (as defined by the institution) for successfully completing the course and the postsecondary credit is recorded on the student's college transcript. Given the multiple and varied delivery models available across and within institutions (e.g., traditional seated instruction, distance education, hybrid models), the panel suggested IPEDS clarify that dual enrollment should include courses identified as postsecondary courses, independent of course delivery mode, funding, location, or type of instructor.
The current dual enrollment definition also specifies "while still enrolled in high school." The panel noted this language would exclude students who participate in dual enrollment but do not attend a high school, such as home-schooled students or middle school students. Panelists suggested maintaining the element of duality in the current definition of dual enrollment—high school students enrolled in college courses while still in high school—and expanding it to be more inclusive of students who do not have a high school diploma but are enrolled in secondary education while taking college-credit coursework. The specific change in definition for dual enrollment proposed by the TRP is provide in table A7. The change should not impact reporting burden.
Formal award.
IPEDS currently uses the phrase "formal award" across surveys to refer to the certificates or degrees being awarded by an institution. However, there is currently no definition of "formal award" in the IPEDS dictionary and the term does not align with language used by other parts of the U.S. Department of Education or in legislation. Indeed, Federal Student Aid (FSA) uses the term to describe financial aid awarded, not a degree or certificate. NCES raised this inconsistently with NPEC, which discussed how the term could be changed to align with other postsecondary offices and terms defined in legislation. NPEC members noted that FSA uses the phrase "recognized credential" to refer to degrees and certificates in programs eligible to award HEA Title IV federal student aid programs. In addition, the Higher Education Act also makes references to credentials rather than awards. Therefore, NCES proposes globally replacing the phrase "formal award" with "recognized postsecondary credential" across the IPEDS survey components and adding a definition of "recognized postsecondary credential" to the glossary. This change will have no impact on reporting burden. While the definition of recognized postsecondary credential will be similar to the definition in Title IV of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), credentials for programs that are eligible for Title IV are all reported to IPEDS and should continue to be reported to IPEDS.
Experimental sites.
Congress authorized the Experimental Sites Initiative under section 487A(b) of the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended. This Initiative—or "experiments," as they are frequently called—tests the effectiveness of statutory and regulatory flexibility for participating institutions disbursing Title IV student aid. The Department of Education has waived specific statutory or regulatory requirements at the postsecondary institutions, or consortia of institutions, approved to participate in the experiments. By contrasting the results achieved when granted the flexibilities with results under current regulations, without the flexibilities, the Department has data to support changes to regulations and statute. The outcomes of experiments have the potential to benefit all postsecondary institutions and the students they serve. More information about experimental sites can be found at: https://experimentalsites.ed.gov/exp/index.html.
There are two main experiments that can have an impact on IPEDS reporting: (1) the Dual Enrollment Experiment, wherein participating institutions will be provided a waiver of the specific statutory and regulatory provisions that prevent students who are enrolled in secondary school from receiving Federal Pell Grants for enrollment in title IV-eligible postsecondary programs (for more details about the experiment, refer to the October 15, 2015 Federal Register Notice at http://ifap.ed.gov/fregisters/FR101515InvitationtoParticipateintheExperSitesInitiative.html) and (2) the Second Chance Pell Experiment, wherein participating institutions will provide Federal Pell Grant funding to otherwise eligible students who are incarcerated in Federal or State penal institutions (for more details about the experiment, refer to the August 3, 2015 Federal Register Notice at http://ifap.ed.gov/fregisters/FR080315NoticeInvitePostEDInstitutionsToParticipateinUndertheExperimentalSiteInit.html).
NCES has received numerous questions from institutions and has told institutions on a case by case basis to exclude these students from reporting. NCES is including a new general FAQ, impacting all surveys except for Academic Libraries, Finance, and Human Resources, to clarify this for all institutions.
Clock and contact hours.
The IPEDS TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates suggested that the term "contact hour" was confusing and not generally used in the postsecondary community. The Office of Federal Student Aid (FSA) refers only to clock hours in the Federal Student Aid Handbook. NCES will therefore remove the term "contact hour" from the data collection and use only "clock hour". In addition, NCES will update the definition of clock hour to add detail outlined in 34 CFR 600.2.
Other glossary terms.
After a review of the IPEDS glossary, NCES determined that some terms needed to be added to the glossary. The terms being added include cost of attendance, cohort year, child institution, and parent institution.
Table A7. Changes to Definitions and Instructions (Cross-cutting)
Change
Implementation year
Source
Estimated burden
Change definition of "dual enrollment" from "a program through which
high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in
high school" to the following:
Dual enrollment: Refers
to students who enroll in college courses offered by an institution of higher
education while enrolled in high school or seeking a recognized equivalent.
Student performance is recorded on a college transcript and postsecondary
credit is awarded for a passing grade in the course.
·
Includes: All postsecondary courses,
independent of course delivery mode, course location, course instructor,
whether secondary credit is also offered, and whether the student enrolls
through a formal state/local program or enrolls outside a formal state/local
program.
·Excludes: Credit-by-exam models such as
Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate in which the student is
not enrolled in a postsecondary institution.
2020-21
TRP on Capturing and Clarifying Dual Enrollment Data (March 2018)
No change
Replace "formal award" with "recognized postsecondary credential" throughout IPEDS forms and add the FAQ and definition below:
FAQ:
Q: What types of credentials should be included in IPEDS?
A: Institutions are required to report all credentials from both Title IV eligible and non-Title IV eligible programs, including all degrees, certificates, and other recognized postsecondary credentials to the IPEDS.
·
Any credential that is received after completion of a program that is eligible for Title IV federal student aid needs to be included in IPEDS reporting.
·
Credentials that are awarded to recognize an individual's attainment of measurable technical or industry/occupational skills necessary to obtain employment or advance within an industry/occupation. (generally based on standards developed or endorsed by employers or industry associations).
Glossary term:
A recognized postsecondary credential includes any credential that is received after completion of a program that is eligible for Title IV federal student aid or that is awarded in recognition of an individual's attainment of measurable technical or industry/occupational skills necessary to obtain employment or advance within an industry/occupation. These technical or industry/occupational skills generally are based on standards developed or endorsed by employers or industry associations. This definition is drawn from Title IV of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA).
2019-20
NCES-initiated with input from NPEC
No change
New FAQ re: Experimental Sites
Should my institution,
which is participating as an experimental site, report high school students or
incarcerated students who have received a Pell Grant while taking college
coursework?
If your institution is participating in the Dual Enrollment
experimental site or the Second Chance Pell experimental site program, exclude
these students from reporting.
2019-20
NCES initiated – based on calls from institutions
No change
Remove the term "contact hour" and only use the term "clock hour"
throughout IPEDS. Update the definition of "clock hour" to the following
definition per CFR 34 600.2:
A period of time
consisting of (1) A 50- to 60-minute class, lecture, or recitation in a 60-minute
period; (2) A 50- to 60-minute faculty-supervised laboratory, shop training,
or internship in a 60-minute period; or (3) Sixty minutes of preparation in a
correspondence course.
2019-20
TRP on Subbaccalaureate Certificates (March 2017)
No change
Add definitions for
cohort year, cost of attendance, child institution, and parent institution to
the glossary.
Cohort year: The year that a cohort of students begins attending college.
Cost of attendance: The
amount of tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, and other
expenses that a full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking student can
expect to pay to go to college for an academic year. Costs reported by the
institutions are those amounts used by the financial aid office to determine a
student's financial need.
Child institution: An
institution that has some or all of its data reported by another institution,
known as the parent institution.
Parent institution: An
institution that reports some or all data for another institution, known as
the child institution.
2019-20
NCES initiated – based on glossary review
No change
Classification of Instructional Programs (Completions).
In June 2019, NCES announced the release of the 2020 Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP), which can be downloaded from the Resources section of the 2020 CIP website (https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/Default.aspx?y=56) as either a Word or Excel file. NCES released the 2020 CIP approximately one year in advance of its implementation to allow sufficient time for institutions to update their reporting systems. IPEDS institutions will be expected to use the 2020 CIP beginning with the Fall 2020 Completions survey component, when institutions report on the number of degrees and certificates awarded by 6 digit CIP Code between July 1, 2019-June 30, 2020.
NCES plans to release training on how to use the 2020 CIP in early 2020. Until then, users can email questions to NCES staff at CIP2020@ed.gov. The CIP website also contains a detailed Help document and Frequently Asked Questions, which will be updated on a regular basis.
Table A8. Changes Classification of Instructional Programs (Completions)
Change
Implementation year
Source
Estimated burden
Report using the 2020 Classification of Instructional Programs in Completions
2020-21
Decennial CIP update; TRP 56, CIP 2020: A Decennial Update to the Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP)
