Adjusted cohort The result of removing any allowable exclusions from a cohort (or subcohort). For the Fall Enrollment component, it is the cohort for calculating retention rate; for the Graduation Rates component, this is the cohort from which graduation and transfer-out rates are calculated; and for the Outcome Measures component, these are the four cohorts (first-time, full-time; first-time, part-time; non-first-time, full-time; or non-first-time, part-time) for which outcomes rates are calculated at 4, 6, and 8 years.

Cohort A specific group of students established for tracking purposes.

Cohort year The year that a cohort of students begins attending college.

Fall cohort The group of students entering in the fall term established for tracking purposes. For the Graduation Rates component, this includes all students who enter an institution as full-time, first-time degree or certificate-seeking undergraduate students during the fall term of a given year.

Full-year cohort This is a group of students entering at any time during the 12-month period for tracking and reporting. For Graduation Rate (GR), a full-year cohort is from September 1 through August 31 and is used primarily by institutions that offer occupational programs of varying lengths. Students must be full-time and first-time to be considered in the cohort. For Outcome Measures (OM) component, all degree-granting institutions report on a full-year cohort from July 1 through June 30. Students are reported once in one of the four OM cohorts: first-time, full-time; first-time, part-time: non-first-time, full-time; or non-first-time, part-time.

Initial cohort A specific group of individuals established for tracking purposes. For the Graduation Rates (GR) and Outcome Measures (OM) components of IPEDS, the initial cohort is defined as the enrollment count before removing revisions and exclusions of all degree/certificate-seeking students who enter in either (1) the fall term of a given academic year, or (2) between September 1st and August 31st of the following year. For the GR component of IPEDS, the initial cohort is only for full-time, first-time students. For OM, all undergraduates are placed in one of four initial cohorts: full-time, first-time; part-time, first-time; full-time, non-first-time; and part-time, non-first time.

Other degree/certificate-seeking subcohort A subset of students belonging to a GR cohort who were seeking a degree or certificate other than bachelor’s degree upon entry.

Revised cohort Initial cohort after revisions are made. Cohorts may be revised if an institution discovers that incorrect data were reported in an earlier year.

Subcohort A predefined subset of the initial cohort or the revised cohort established for tracking purposes. Degree/certificate-seeking students in the bachelor’s degree-seeking group in the Graduation Rates (GR) component and Pell-Grant, non-first-time, part-time students in the Outcome Measures (OM) component are examples of subcohorts.

Retention rate A measure of the rate at which students persist in their educational program at an institution, expressed as a percentage. For four-year institutions, this is the percentage of first-time bachelors (or equivalent) degree-seeking undergraduates from the previous fall who are again enrolled in the current fall. For all other institutions this is the percentage of first-time degree/certificate-seeking students from the previous fall who either re-enrolled or successfully completed their program by the current fall.

Race/ethnicity (old definition) Categories used to describe groups to which individuals belong, identify with, or belong in the eyes of the community. The categories do not denote scientific definitions of anthropological origins. A person may be counted in only one group. The groups used to categorize U.S. citizens, resident aliens, and other eligible non-citizens are as follows: Black, non-Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, White, non-Hispanic.

Cost of attendance (for IPEDS reporting purposes) The amount of tuition and fees; food and housing; books, course materials, supplies, and equipment; 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 to IPEDS by the institution are those amounts used by the financial aid office to determine a student’s financial need for the academic year, which is typically nine months.

Average cost of attendance The average of the actual or average allowable costs as defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, used to determine a student’s eligibility for Title IV and other financial aid programs. The average may be based on all students or different categories of students such as undergraduates or graduates. Other student categories may include enrollment status, academic program, or residency. For IPEDS reporting purposes, cost of attendance is only reported for full-time, first-time students.

Total cost of attendance The sum of the cost of attendance components used to compute the average net price for first-time, full-time degree or certificate seeking students for IPEDS reporting purposes. This amount is typically based on a nine-month period for institutions using a traditional academic calendar. Program reporters provide one month of costs that are annualized in the system for IPEDS reporting purposes.

Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), conducted by the NCES, began in 1986 and involves annual institution-level data collections. All postsecondary institutions that have a Program Participation Agreement with the Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), U.S. Department of Education (throughout IPEDS referred to as “Title IV”) are required to report data using a web-based data collection system. IPEDS currently consists of the following components: Institutional Characteristics (IC); 12-month Enrollment (E12);Completions (C); Admissions (ADM); Student Financial Aid (SFA); Human Resources (HR) composed of Employees by Assigned Position, Fall Staff, and Salaries; Fall Enrollment (EF); Graduation Rates (GR); Outcome Measures (OM); Finance (F); and Academic Libraries (AL).

IPEDS coordinator The person responsible for Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) survey related coordination activities for a specified group of schools within a state or system. This person has certain viewing, verifying and locking privileges on the data collection system.

IPEDS universe Those postsecondary institutions that have been identified and are potential respondents to the IPEDS surveys. The universe does not include all postsecondary institutions because many exist that are not included in the list of Title IV eligible institutions and, thus, there is currently no complete list of these institutions.

Institutional Characteristics (IC) This annual component is the core of the IPEDS system is and is required of all currently operating Title IV postsecondary institutions in the United States and other areas. As the control file for the entire IPEDS system, IC constitutes the sampling frame for all other NCES surveys of postsecondary institutions. It also helps determine the specific IPEDS screens that are shown to each institution. This component collects the basic institutional data that are necessary to sort and analyze not only the IC DATA, but also all other IPEDS DATAs. IC data are collected for the academic year, which generally extends from September of one calendar year to June of the following year. Specific data elements currently collected for each institution include: institution name, address, telephone number, control or affiliation, calendar system, levels of degrees and awards offered, types of programs, application information, student services, and accreditation. The IC component also collects pricing information including tuition and required fees, food and housing charges, books and supplies and other expenses for release on College Navigator.

IPEDS Use the Data Webpage (formerly IPEDS Data Center) The IPEDS Use the Data webpage is the single-entry point for retrieving IPEDS data. Using the webpage, one can easily download data files for one or more institutions with information from any of the IPEDS survey components or download complete data files, produce a variety of reports and data trends, or create group statistics.

Data Analysis System (DAS) The Data Analysis System (DAS) is a software application that allows a user to produce tables from selected NCES data sets. While each collection year uses a separate DAS, all have a consistent interface and command structure. User can select from several output formats, either direct printing or comma-separated file which can be input for other software.

Data collection system The Web environment that is used to collect the IPEDS data.

Data dictionary A file or a list that contains all known information about variables such as format, data type, field width, and source.

Data revision system The Web environment where an institution’s prior year data may be revised by keyholders or data managers.

Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number The Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number is a 9-digit number assigned by the Dun & Bradstreet Information Corporation to any entity providing products, goods, or services. The DUNS number was the official identifier for doing business with the U.S. Government until April 4, 2022.

Data year The year to which data pertain in a particular IPEDS component. For example, for collection year 2003-04, tuition is for data year 2003-04, whereas completions are for data year 2002-03.

Database Collection of electronically stored data or unit records (facts, bibliographic data, and texts) with a common user interface and software for the retrieval and manipulation of the data. The data or records are usually collected with a particular intent and relate to a defined topic. Each database is counted individually even if access to several databases is supported through the same vendor interface.

Dataset Cutting Tool (DCT) An early IPEDS data access tool, no longer available. All the functions in the Dataset Cutting Tool have been incorporated into the IPEDS Data Center.

Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), conducted by the NCES, began in 1986 and involves annual institution-level data collections. All postsecondary institutions that have a Program Participation Agreement with the Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE), U.S. Department of Education (throughout IPEDS referred to as “Title IV”) are required to report data using a web-based data collection system. IPEDS currently consists of the following components: Institutional Characteristics (IC); 12-month Enrollment (E12);Completions (C); Admissions (ADM); Student Financial Aid (SFA); Human Resources (HR) composed of Employees by Assigned Position, Fall Staff, and Salaries; Fall Enrollment (EF); Graduation Rates (GR); Outcome Measures (OM); Finance (F); and Academic Libraries (AL).

IR Institutional Research

First-professional The use of this term was discontinued in IPEDS as of the 2010-11 data collection, when use of the new postbaccalaureate award categories became mandatory.
May refer to a degree, certificate, or level of student.
A first-professional degree was an award that required completion of a program that met all of the following criteria: (1) completion of the academic requirements to begin practice in the profession; (2) at least 2 years of college work prior to entering the program; and (3) a total of at least 6 academic years of college work to complete the degree program, including prior required college work plus the length of the professional program itself. First-professional degrees may be awarded in the following 10 fields:
• Chiropractic (D.C. or D.C.M.)
• Dentistry (D.D.S. or D.M.D.)
• Law (L.L.B., J.D.)
• Medicine (M.D.)
• Optometry (O.D.)
• Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.)
• Pharmacy (Pharm.D.)
• Podiatry (D.P.M., D.P., or Pod.D.)
• Theology (M.Div., M.H.L., B.D., or Ordination)
• Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.)

A first-professional certificate was an award that required completion of an organized program of study designed for persons who had completed the first-professional degree. Examples could be refresher courses or additional units of study in a specialty or subspecialty.
A first-professional student was a student enrolled in one of these programs.
The 12-month FTE for first-professional students was calculated using the unduplicated headcounts reported on the 12-month enrollment component. Since the 12-month unduplicated headcounts do not differentiate between full-time and part-time students, an estimation was used. The ratio of full-time to part-time first-professional students from the previous collection year fall enrollment (which corresponds to the same academic year students) was calculated, and this ratio was applied to the 12-month unduplicated headcount. Adding the resulting full-time and one-third part-time student estimates results in the FTE for first-professional students.

First-time student (undergraduate) A student who has no prior postsecondary experience (except as noted below) attending any institution for the first time at the undergraduate level. This includes students enrolled in academic or occupational programs. It also includes students enrolled in the fall term who attended college for the first time in the prior summer session, and students who entered with advanced standing (college credits or recognized postsecondary credential earned before graduation from high school).

New hires Persons who were hired for full-time permanent employment either for the first time (new to the institution) or after a break in service between November 1 (prior year) and October 31 (current year) and still on the payroll as of November 1 of the current year. Does not include persons who have returned from sabbatical leave OR full-time Postsecondary Staff who are working less-than-9-month contracts.
Non-first-time entering student (undergraduate) A student who has prior postsecondary experience before attending the reporting IPEDS institution. This cohort of students may closely reflect the transfer-in (non-first-time entering) enrollment from Fall Enrollment (EF), 12-month Enrollment (E12) and Outcomes Measures (OM) components.

Required fees Fixed sum charged to students for items not covered by tuition and required of such a large proportion of all students that the student who does not pay the charge is an exception.

Transfer-in (non-first time entering) student 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 session. 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.

Variable A fundamental unit of data contained in a file which is given a unique label./

Continuing/Returning student (undergraduate) A student who is not new to the institution in the fall, but instead is continuing his or her studies at the institution (i.e., not first-time and not transfer-in).

Entering students (undergraduate) Students at the undergraduate level, both full-time and part-time, coming into the institution for the first time in the fall term (or the prior summer session who returned again in the fall). This includes all first-time undergraduate students, students transferring into the institution at the undergraduate level for the first time, and non-degree/non-certificate-seeking undergraduates entering in the fall.

First-time student (undergraduate) A student who has no prior postsecondary experience (except as noted below) attending any institution for the first time at the undergraduate level. This includes students enrolled in academic or occupational programs. It also includes students enrolled in the fall term who attended college for the first time in the prior summer session, and students who entered with advanced standing (college credits or recognized postsecondary credential earned before graduation from high school).

Non-first-time entering student (undergraduate) A student who has prior postsecondary experience before attending the reporting IPEDS institution. This cohort of students may closely reflect the transfer-in (non-first-time entering) enrollment from Fall Enrollment (EF), 12-month Enrollment (E12) and Outcomes Measures (OM) components.

Undergraduate A student enrolled in a 4- or 5-year bachelor’s degree program, an associate’s degree program, or a vocational or technical program below the baccalaureate.

Graduate student A student who holds a bachelor’s degree or above and is taking courses at the postbaccalaureate level. These students may or may not be enrolled in graduate programs.

Graduate Assistants (Other) Graduate assistants not included in the graduate assistant teaching or research sections.

Graduate Assistants (Research) Graduate assistants whose specific assignments customarily are made for the purpose of conducting research.

Graduate Assistants (Teaching) Graduate assistants who assist faculty or other instructional staff in postsecondary institutions by performing teaching or teaching related duties, such as teaching lower level courses, developing teaching materials, preparing and giving examinations, and grading examinations or papers.

Fall Enrollment (EF) This annual component of IPEDS collects data on the number of students enrolled in the fall at postsecondary institutions. Students reported are those enrolled in courses creditable toward a degree or other recognized postsecondary credential; students enrolled in courses that are part of a vocational or occupational program, including those enrolled in off-campus or extension centers; and high school students taking college courses for credit. Institutions report annually the number of full- and part-time students, by gender, race/ethnicity, and level (undergraduate and graduate, including doctor’s – professional practice students); the total number of full- and part-time undergraduate degree/certificate-seeking students (first-time entering, transfer-ins, and continuing/returning) and full- and part-time undergraduate non-degree/non-certificate students); and retention rates. In even-numbered years, data are collected for state of residence of first-time students and for the number of those students who graduated from high school or received high school equivalent certificates in the past 12 months. Also in even-numbered years, 4-year institutions are required to provide enrollment data by gender, race/ethnicity, and level for selected fields of study. In odd-numbered years, data are collected for enrollment by age category by student level and gender.

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.

Enrolled for credit Credit can be measured in units such as clock hours or credit hours. Credit is the recognition of attendance or performance in an instructional activity (course or program) that can be applied by a recipient toward the requirements for a postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other recognized postsecondary credential, irrespective of the activity’s unit of measurement.

Distance education Education that uses one or more technologies to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor synchronously or asynchronously.

Distance education course A course in which the instructional content is delivered exclusively via distance education. Requirements for coming to campus for orientation, testing, or academic support services do not exclude a course from being classified as distance education.

Distance education program A program for which all the required coursework for program completion is able to be completed via distance education courses.

In-state student A student who is a legal resident of the state in which he/she attends school.

Out-of-state student A student who is not a legal resident of the state in which he/she attends school.

SACSCOC The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges