Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2016-2019

Fall Enrollment
Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2016-17

This IPEDS Fall Enrollment data collection instrument was used
during the 2015-16 data collection. Changes to the IPEDS Fall
Enrollment component starting with the 2016-17 data collection
are reflected on the next 5 pages.

Changes to IPEDS Fall Enrollment component, 2016-17
Changes to Part E: Retention Rate
1. A new field will be added to the retention screen for inclusions to the Fall 20XX cohort to allow
the institution to include in their first-time cohort eligible students who studied abroad their first year
upon entering the institution.
2. Additional screen instruction will also be added to clarify that students studying abroad their
sophomore year should be included in the institution’s cohort of returning students.

Part E: Retention Screen for 4-year institutions
Full-time, First-time Bachelor’s Cohort Retention
Prior year data
(Fall 2014 cohort)

E1
Full-time, first-time Fall 2015 bachelor's cohort
E2a
Exclusions from the Fall 2015 cohort
E2b
Inclusion to the Fall 2015 cohort
E3
Adjusted Fall 2015 cohort (line E1- E2a + E2b)
E4
Students from Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2016
E5
Full-time, first-time Fall 2015 bachelor's cohort retention rate
(line E4 / line E3)

CV
CV %

%

Instructions for Part E: Retention Rates for First-Time Bachelor's Degree Seeking Student Cohort
Retention rates examine the percentage of first-time bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking
students enrolled in the fall of the prior year that are still enrolled in the fall of the current year.
On each retention screen (full-time cohort and part-time cohort screens) institutions must report:
 First-time bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking Fall 2015 cohort.
Academic reporters: determine the cohort using the institution's official fall reporting date or as of
October 15, 2015.
Program reporters: determine the cohort based on students who were enrolled in the institution at
any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Note: The retention cohorts are the subset of first-time degree/certificate-seeking students reported
in Part A of the prior year Fall Enrollment survey that are bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking.
Attendance status (full- or part-time) should be based on the student's Fall 2015 status.




Exclusions from the cohorts (see below for allowable exclusions)
Inclusion to the Fall 2015 cohort. Report on this line first-time bachelor’s-seeking study abroad
students who were excluded from the first-time cohort on line E1but who have re-enrolled at the
institution their second year.
Total number of students retained from the Fall 2015 cohort. Include students who were reported as
first-time in line E1 but who are studying abroad Fall 2016.
Total students retained = students from the Fall 2015 cohort who are still enrolled as of Fall
2016.
Academic reporters: Report students retained as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as
of October 15, 2016.
Program reporters: Report students retained as of August 1, 2016.

Exclusions:
Institutions may report cohort exclusions. Allowable exclusions are students who left the institution for any of
the following reasons:

 Died or were totally and permanently disabled
 To serve in the armed forces (including those called to active duty)
 To serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g., Peace Corps)
 To serve on official church missions
The system will compute an adjusted cohort by subtracting the student exclusions from the original cohort
prior to calculating the retention rate.
Retention rates will be computed by the system after clicking 'Save.' The retention rate is calculated as:
(Students from the Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2016/Adjusted Fall 2015 cohort)*100

Part E: Retention Screen for 4-year institutions
Part-time, First-time Bachelor’s Cohort Retention
Prior year data
(Fall 2014 cohort)

E6
Part-time, first-time Fall 2015 bachelor's cohort
E7a
Exclusions from the Fall 2015 cohort
E7b
Inclusion to the Fall 2015 cohort
E8
Adjusted Fall 2015 cohort (line E6- E7a + E7b)
E9 Students from Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2016
E10
Part-time, first-time Fall 2015 bachelor's cohort retention rate
(line E9 / line E8)

CV
CV %

%

Instructions for Part E: Retention Rates for First-Time Bachelor's Degree Seeking Student Cohort
Retention rates examine the percentage of first-time bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking
students enrolled in the fall of the prior year that are still enrolled in the fall of the current year.
On each retention screen (full-time cohort and part-time cohort screens) institutions must report:
 First-time bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking Fall 2015 cohort.
Academic reporters: determine the cohort using the institution's official fall reporting date or as of
October 15, 2015.
Program reporters: determine the cohort based on students who were enrolled in the institution at
any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Note: The retention cohorts are the subset of first-time degree/certificate-seeking students reported
in Part A of the prior year Fall Enrollment survey that are bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking.
Attendance status (full- or part-time) should be based on the student's Fall 2015 status.




Exclusions from the cohorts (see below for allowable exclusions)
Inclusion to the Fall 2015 cohort. Report on this line first-time bachelor’s-seeking study abroad
students who were excluded from the first-time cohort on line E6 but who have re-enrolled at the
institution their second year.
Total number of students retained from the Fall 2015 cohort. Include students who were reported as
first-time in line E6 but who are studying abroad Fall 2016.
Total students retained = students from the Fall 2015 cohort who are still enrolled as of Fall
2016.
Academic reporters: Report students retained as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as
of October 15, 2016.
Program reporters: Report students retained as of August 1, 2016.

Exclusions:
Institutions may report cohort exclusions. Allowable exclusions are students who left the institution for any of
the following reasons:
 Died or were totally and permanently disabled
 To serve in the armed forces (including those called to active duty)
 To serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g., Peace Corps)
 To serve on official church missions
The system will compute an adjusted cohort by subtracting the student exclusions from the original cohort
prior to calculating the retention rate.
Retention rates will be computed by the system after clicking 'Save.' The retention rate is calculated as:
(Students from the Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2016/Adjusted Fall 2015 cohort)*100

Part E: Retention Screen for less-than-4-year institutions
Full-time, First-time Cohort Retention
Prior year data
(Fall 2014
cohort)

Preloaded
cohort
E1
Full-time, first-time Fall 2015 cohort
E2a
Exclusions from the Fall 2015 cohort
E2b
Inclusion to the Fall 2015 cohort
E3
Adjusted Fall 2015 cohort (line E1- E2a + E2b)
E4
Students from Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled +
students from Fall 2015 cohort who completed their program
as of Fall 2016
E5
Full-time, first-time Fall 2015 cohort retention rate
(line E4 / line E3)

CV

CV %

%

Part E: Retention Rates for the First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Student Cohort
Retention rates examine the percentage of first-time degree/certificate seeking students enrolled in the fall
of the prior year that are either still enrolled in the fall of the current year or have completed their program in
that time.
The retention cohorts, full-time and part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates from Fall
2015, are preloaded from Part A of the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
On each retention screen (full-time cohort and part-time cohort screens), institutions must:
 Verify the preloaded Fall 2015 cohort.
 Attendance status (full- or part-time) should be based on the student's Fall 2015 attendance status.
 Report any exclusions for the cohort (see below for allowable exclusions).
 Report inclusions of first-time bachelor’s-seeking study abroad students who were excluded from the
first-time cohort on line E1but who have re-enrolled at the institution their second year.
 Report the total number of students retained from the Fall 2015 cohort. Include students who were
reported as first-time in line E1 but who are studying abroad Fall 2016.
Total students retained = students from Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2016 + students
from Fall 2015 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2016.
Academic reporters: Report students retained as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of
October 15, 2016.
Program reporters: Report students retained as of August 1, 2016.
Exclusions:
Institutions may report exclusions for the Fall 2014 cohort. Allowable exclusions are students who left the
institution for any of the following reasons:
 Died or were totally and permanently disabled
 To serve in the armed forces (including those called to active duty)
 To serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g., Peace Corps)
 To serve on official church missions
The system will compute an adjusted cohort by subtracting the student exclusions from the original cohort
prior to calculating the retention rate.
Retention rates will be computed by the system after clicking 'Save.' The retention rate is calculated as:
(Students from Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled + Students from Fall 2015 cohort who completed their
program as of Fall 2016/Adjusted Fall 2015 cohort)*100.

Part E: Retention Screen for less-than-4-year institutions
Part-time, First-time Cohort Retention
Prior year data
(Fall 2014
cohort)

Preloaded
Cohort
E6
Part-time, first-time Fall 2015 bachelor's cohort
E7a
Exclusions from the Fall 2015 cohort
E7b
Inclusion to the Fall 2015 cohort
E8
Adjusted Fall 2015 cohort (line E6- E7a + E7b)
E9
Students from Fall 2015 cohort who are still enrolled +
students from Fall 2015 cohort who completed their program
as of Fall 2016
E10
Part-time, first-time Fall 2015 cohort retention rate
(line E9 / line E8)

CV

CV %

%

Part E: Retention Rates for the First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Student Cohort
Retention rates examine the percentage of first-time degree/certificate seeking students enrolled in the fall
of the prior year that are either still enrolled in the fall of the current year or have completed their program in
that time.
The retention cohorts, full-time and part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates from Fall
2015, are preloaded from Part A of the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
On each retention screen (full-time cohort and part-time cohort screens), institutions must:
 Verify the preloaded Fall 2015 cohort.
 Attendance status (full- or part-time) should be based on the student's Fall 2015 attendance status.
 Report any exclusions for the cohort (see below for allowable exclusions).
 Report inclusions of first-time bachelor’s-seeking study abroad students who were excluded from the
first-time cohort on line E1but who have re-enrolled at the institution their second year.
 Report the total number of students retained from the Fall 2015 cohort. Include students who were
reported as first-time in line E1 but who are studying abroad Fall 2016.
Total students retained = students from Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2016 + students
from Fall 2015 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2016.
Academic reporters: Report students retained as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of
October 15, 2016.
Program reporters: Report students retained as of August 1, 2016.
Exclusions:
Institutions may report exclusions for the Fall 2014 cohort. Allowable exclusions are students who left the
institution for any of the following reasons:
 Died or were totally and permanently disabled
 To serve in the armed forces (including those called to active duty)
 To serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g., Peace Corps)
 To serve on official church missions
The system will compute an adjusted cohort by subtracting the student exclusions from the original cohort
prior to calculating the retention rate.
Retention rates will be computed by the system after clicking 'Save.' The retention rate is calculated as:
(Students from Fall 2015 cohort still enrolled + Students from Fall 2015 cohort who completed their
program as of Fall 2016/Adjusted Fall 2015 cohort)*100.

Image description. The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System End of image description.

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or ipedshelp@rti.org

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Form

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment for 4-year degree-granting institutions
Overview 
Fall Enrollment Overview
The Fall Enrollment component collects student enrollment counts by level of student, enrollment status, gender and
race/ethnicity. In addition, first-time student retention rates and the student-to-faculty ratio are collected. Every other
year data on residence of first-time undergraduates is required and in opposite years, enrollment by student age is
required to be reported.
Institutions operating on a traditional academic year calendar (semester, trimester, quarter, or 4-1-4) report Fall
enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or October 15. Institutions operating on a calendar that
differs by program or that enrolls students on a continuous basis (referred to as program reporters) report Fall
enrollment as students enrolled any time during the period August 1 and October 31.
Data Reporting Reminders:
•Part B, Enrollment of students by age, is required this year.
•Part C, Residence of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates, is optional this year.

Resources:
To download the survey materials for this component: Survey Materials
To access your prior year data submission for this component: Reported Data
If you have questions about completing this survey, please contact the IPEDS Help Desk at 1-877-225-2568.

Part Selection 
Completion of Part C (Residence of First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates) is optional this year.
Do you wish to complete Part C this year?
If you select 'No', you will skip Part C.
If you select 'Yes', you will be expected to complete the Part C screens.
No, I will not complete Part C
Yes, I will complete Part C

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Full-Time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Full-time Undergraduate Students
Reporting Reminders:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only
•Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.

Men
Enrolled for
credit

First-time

Degree/certificate-seeking
Non-degree/
Total,
Full-time
Transfer-in Continuing/ Total degree/certificate- non-certificate-seeking
undergraduate
Returning
seeking
students

First-time

Degree/certificate-seeking
Non-degree/
Total,
Full-time
Transfer-in Continuing/ Total degree/certificate- non-certificate-seeking
undergraduate
Returning
seeking
students

Nonresident
alien
Hispanic/Latino
American
Indian or
Alaska Native
Asian
Black or
African
American
Native
Hawaiian or
Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more
races
Race and
ethnicity
unknown
Total men
Total men prior
year
Women
Enrolled for
credit
Nonresident
alien
Hispanic/Latino
American
Indian or
Alaska Native
Asian
Black or
African
American
Native
Hawaiian or
Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more
races
Race and
ethnicity

Total women
Total women
prior year
Grand total
(men+women)
Grand total
(men+women)
prior year

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Part-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Part-time Undergraduate Students
Reporting Reminders:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only
•Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.

Men
Enrolled for
credit

First-time

Degree/certificate-seeking
Non-degree/
Total,
Transfer-in Continuing/ Total degree/certificate- non-certificate-seeking part-time
undergraduate
Returning
seeking
students

First-time

Degree/certificate-seeking
Non-degree/
Total,
Transfer-in Continuing/ Total degree/certificate- non-certificate-seeking part-time
undergraduate
Returning
seeking
students

Nonresident
alien
Hispanic/Latino
American
Indian or Alaska
Native
Asian
Black or African
American
Native
Hawaiian or
Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more
races
Race and
ethnicity
unknown
Total men
Total men prior
year
Women
Enrolled for
credit
Nonresident
alien
Hispanic/Latino
American
Indian or Alaska
Native
Asian
Black or African
American
Native
Hawaiian or
Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more
races
Race and
ethnicity
unknown

Total women
Total women
prior year
Grand total
(men+women)
Grand total
(men+women)
prior year

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Graduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15,
2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.

Graduate Students
Race/Ethnicity Reporting Reminder:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only

Graduate Student Reporting Reminder:
•Report all postbaccalaureate degree and certificate students as graduate students, including any doctor's-professional
practice students (formerly first-professional)
•Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.

Men
Enrolled for credit
Nonresident alien

Total full-time

Total part-time

Total graduate students

Total full-time

Total part-time

Total graduate students

Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Total men prior year
Women
Enrolled for credit
Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Total women prior year
Grand total (men+women)
Grand total (men+women) prior year

Part A - Fall Enrollment Summary 
Fall Enrollment Summary
Men
Students enrolled for credit

Total full-time
students

Total part-time
students

Grand total,
all students

Total full-time
students

Total part-time
students

Grand total,
all students

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Women
Students enrolled for credit
Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Grand Total (men+women)

Part A - Fall Enrollment by Distance Education Status 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Undergraduate Students
Degree/Certificate
Non-Degree/Certificate
Seeking
Seeking
Enrolled exclusively in distance education
courses
Enrolled in some but not all distance
education courses
Not enrolled in any distance education
courses
Total (from prior part A screens)
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Graduate
Students

Part A - Fall Enrollment by Distance Education Status 
Of those students exclusively enrolled in distance
education courses, report the number that are:
Located in
Located in the U.S. but not in
Located in the U.S. but state/jurisdiction unknown
Located outside the U.S.
Location unknown/unreported
Total students exclusively enrolled in distance
education (from section above)

Undergraduate Students
Degree/Certificate
Non-Degree/Certificate
Seeking
Seeking

Graduate
Students

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Full-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total full-time undergraduate students (from part A)

Full-time Undergraduate Students
Men
Women

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Part-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total part-time undergraduate students (from part A)

Part-time Undergraduate Students
Men
Women

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Full-time Graduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total full-time graduate students (from part A)

Full-time Graduate Students
Men
Women

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Part-time Graduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total part-time graduate students (from part A)

Part-time Graduate Students
Men
Women

Part C - Screening Question 
Did any of your first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (reported in Part A) enroll within 12
months of graduating high school or receiving their GED?
No, we do not have any first-time students who enrolled within 12 months of their high school
graduation.
Yes, we have first-time students who enrolled within 12 months of their high school graduation.
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS Code
Of students in column 1, those
Total first-time
was first admitted
who enrolled within 12 months
degree/certificate-seeking
of high school graduation
undergraduates
or receiving their GED
(1)
(2)
Alabama
01
Alaska

02

Arizona

04

Arkansas

05

California

06

Colorado

08

Connecticut

09

Delaware

10

District of Columbia

11

Florida

12

Georgia

13

Hawaii

15

Idaho

16

Illinois

17

Indiana

18

Iowa

19

Kansas

20

Kentucky

21

Louisiana

22

Maine

23

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS Code
Total first-time
Of students in column 1, those
was first admitted
degree/certificate-seeking
who enrolled within 12 months
undergraduates
of high school graduation
(1)
or receiving their GED
(2)
Maryland
24
Massachusetts

25

Michigan

26

Minnesota

27

Mississippi

28

Missouri

29

Montana

30

Nebraska

31

Nevada

32

New Hampshire

33

New Jersey

34

New Mexico

35

New York

36

North Carolina

37

North Dakota

38

Ohio

39

Oklahoma

40

Oregon

41

Pennsylvania

42

Rhode Island

44

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS
Total first-time
Of students in column 1, those
was first admitted
Code degree/certificate-seeking who enrolled within 12 months of
undergraduates
high school graduation
(1)
or receiving their GED
(2)
South Carolina
45
South Dakota

46

Tennessee

47

Texas

48

Utah

49

Vermont

50

Virginia

51

Washington

53

West Virginia

54

Wisconsin

55

Wyoming

56

State Unknown

57

American Samoa

60

Federated States of Micronesia

64

Guam

66

Marshall Islands

68

Northern Marianas

69

Palau

70

Puerto Rico

72

Virgin Islands

78

Foreign Countries

90

Residence unknown/unreported
Total first-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates (from Part A)

98

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

This part is only required from academic reporters.
Part D - Total Undergraduate Entering Class 
Total Undergraduate Entering Class, Fall 2015
D1 Total full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates from Part A (GR cohort)
D2 Total first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) from Part A
D3 Total transfer-in degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) from Part A
D4 Total non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) from Part A
D5 Of the total non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates displayed on line D4, the number that are
new to the institution in Fall 2015
D6 Total entering students at the undergraduate level
Note: This is calculated as first-time students (line D2) + students transferring to the institution (line D3)
+ non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates entering in Fall 2015 (line D5).
D7 Percentage of undergraduate entering class represented by your GR cohort (line D1/line D6)

Part E - First-time Bachelor's Cohort Retention Rates (Full-time) 
Retention Rates
Full-time, First-time Bachelor's Cohort from Fall 2014
Academic reporters determine the cohort and retention as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of
October 15. Program reporters determine the cohort with enrollment any time between August 1 and October
31, 2014 and retention based on August 1, 2015.
The retention rate is calculated by the system after clicking "Save" on the screen. Exclusions are subtracted
from the original cohort and the resulting adjusted cohort is used for calculating the retention rate.
Retention Data Reporting Reminders:
•
Include only full-time, first-time bachelor's students in this cohort.
•
Determine the full-time cohort using Fall 2014 status (e.g. if a student was full-time in Fall 2014, report them in
the full-time cohort regardless of their Fall 2015 status).
•
If there are no students to report in the cohort, enter zero. Do not leave the field blank.
•
Report in the exclusions box (line E2) the number of students from the cohort who left the institution for any of
the following reasons: died or were totally and permanently disabled; to serve in the armed forces (including
those called to active duty); to serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g. Peace Corps);
or to serve on official church missions.

Prior year
data (Fall
2013 cohort)
FULL-TIME, FIRST-TIME BACHELOR'S COHORT RETENTION:
E1
Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor's cohort
E2

Exclusions from the Fall 2014 cohort

E3
E4

Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort (line E1- line E2)
Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015

E5
E3)

Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor's cohort retention rate (line E4 / line

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You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part E - First-time Bachelor's Cohort Retention Rates (Part-time) 
Retention Rates
Part-time, First-time Bachelor's Cohort from Fall 2014
Academic reporters determine the cohort and retention as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of
October 15. Program reporters determine the cohort with enrollment any time between August 1 and October
31, 2014 and retention based on August 1, 2015.
The retention rate is calculated by the system after clicking "Save" on the screen. Exclusions are subtracted
from the original cohort and the resulting adjusted cohort is used for calculating the retention rate.
Retention Data Reporting Reminders:
•
Include only part-time, first-time bachelor's-seeking students in this cohort.
•
Determine part-time using Fall 2014 attendance status (e.g. if a student was part-time in Fall 2014, report them
in the part-time cohort regardless of their Fall 2015 status).
•
If there are no students to report in the cohort, enter zero. Do not leave the field blank.
•
Report in the exclusions box (line E7) the number of students from the cohort who left the institution for any of
the following reasons: died or were totally and permanently disabled; to serve in the armed forces (including
those called to active duty); to serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g. Peace Corps);
or to serve on official church missions.
Prior year
data (Fall
2013 cohort)
PART-TIME, FIRST-TIME BACHELOR'S COHORT RETENTION:
E6
Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor's cohort
E7

Exclusions from the Fall 2014 cohort

E8
E9

Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort (line E6 - line E7)
Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015

E10
E8)

Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor's cohort retention rate (line E9 / line

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You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part F - Student-to-Faculty Ratio 
Please provide your institution's student-to-faculty ratio (i.e., student-to-instructional staff) for undergraduate
programs for Fall 2015. The student-to-faculty ratio and any accompanying context that is provided will be
displayed on College Navigator.
Note: Logic in this item is similar to item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.

Click here to use a worksheet to help you determine the student-to-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio

to 1

Student-to-faculty ratio prior year

to 1

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notes
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the College
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description.

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part F - Four-Year Institutions with Graduate Programs Student-to-Faculty Ratio Worksheet 
This worksheet is designed to help you determine your institution's student-to-faculty ratio.
Data entered on this worksheet will NOT be collected or saved. Therefore, please PRINT this screen if you
would like to refer to the ratio calculation for your institution at a later time.
The term "stand-alone graduate or professional program" used below is defined as a graduate or professional
practice program such as medicine, law, veterinary, dentistry, social work, or public health, in which faculty
teach virtually only graduate-level students (often referred to as "independent" programs).
Note: The logic used for this calculation is similar to item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.
Students, Fall 2015
FULL-TIME STUDENTS:
F1 Total full-time students from Part A
Full-time Student Exclusion (Line F2):
F2 Of the full-time students reported in Line F1, the number enrolled in stand-alone
graduate or professional programs
F3

Total adjusted full-time student count
(Line F1 - F2)
PART-TIME STUDENTS:
F4 Total part-time students from Part A
Part-time Student Exclusion (Line F5):
F5 Of the part-time students reported in Line F4, the number enrolled in stand-alone
graduate or professional programs
F6
F7

Total adjusted part-time student count
(Line F4 - F5)
Full-time equivalent of adjusted part-time student count
(Line F6 * 1/3)

F8

Total adjusted full-time equivalent students
(Line F3 + F7)
Instructional Staff, Fall 2015
FULL-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF:
F9 Number of full-time instructional staff (non-medical) as reported on the HR survey
component
Full-time Instructional Staff Exclusions (Line F10A and 10B):
(Note: an individual instructor meeting both exclusion criteria should only be reported in ONE exclusion line item.)
F10A Of the full-time instructional staff reported in Line F9, the number teaching
exclusively in stand-alone graduate or professional programs
F10B Of the full-time instructional staff reported in Line F9, the number teaching
exclusively non-credit courses
F11 Total adjusted full-time instructional staff
(Line F9 - (F10A + F10B))
PART-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF:
F12 Number of part-time instructional staff (non-medical) as reported on the HR
survey component
Part-time Instructional Staff Exclusions (Line F13A and 13B):
(Note: an individual instructor meeting both exclusion criteria should only be reported in ONE exclusion line item.)
F13A Of the part-time instructional staff reported in Line F12, the number teaching
exclusively in stand-alone graduate or professional programs
F13B Of the part-time instructional staff reported in Line F12, the number teaching
exclusively non-credit courses
Part-time Instructional Staff Addition (Line F14):
F14 Number of administrators, or other staff not reported to IPEDS as instructors, that
are teaching a credit course(s) in the Fall
F15 Total adjusted part-time instructional staff
(Line F12 - (F13A + F13B) + F14)
F16 Full-time equivalent of adjusted part-time instructional staff
(Line F15 * 1/3)
F17 Total full-time equivalent of adjusted instructional staff

(Line F11 + F16)
F18 Student-to-faculty ratio
(Line F8/F17)

to 1

U.S. Department of Education
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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or ipedshelp@rti.org

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Instructions

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment Full Instructions

Purpose of the Survey
Changes in Reporting
General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
Context Boxes

Coverage
Who To Include
Who To Exclude

Where to Get Help for Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
AIR Website
IPEDS Website Resources

Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Institution Level
Aggregate Level

Reporting Directions
Screening Questions
Reporting Individuals by Racial/Ethnic Categories
Part A: Fall Enrollment by Level, Attendance Status, Race/Ethnicity, and Gender
Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age
Part C: Residence of First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates
Part D: Total Undergraduate Entering Class
Part E: Retention Rates for First-Time Bachelor's Seeking Students
Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio

Purpose of Survey
The purpose of the Fall Enrollment component of IPEDS is to collect enrollment data on all students enrolled for credit
in courses/programs that could lead to awards ranging from postsecondary certificates of less than 1 year to doctoral
degrees. Fall enrollment data are collected by level of student, attendance status, race/ethnicity, and gender. In
addition, the Fall Enrollment component collects data on the institution's undergraduate entering class, first-time
student retention rates, and the student-to-faculty ratio. Every other year data on enrollment by nine selected fields of
study are collected, as is residency of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students. In opposite years,
enrollment by student age is collected.
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Changes in Reporting
Enrollment by age will be mandatory this year. Enrollment by residence is optional.
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General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
For institutions operating on a traditional academic year calendar (semester, trimester, quarter, or 4-1-4), fall
enrollment should be reported as of the institution's official fall reporting date or October 15.
For institutions operating on an "other academic calendar," a calendar that differs by program, or enrolls students on a
continuous basis (referred to as program reporters), fall enrollment is reported for students enrolled any time during
the period August 1 and October 31.

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Context Boxes
Context boxes are provided to allow institutions to provide more information regarding survey component items. Note
that some context boxes are posted on the College Navigator Website, which is the college search tool offered by
NCES. NCES will review entries in these context boxes for applicability and appropriateness before posting them on the
College Navigator Website; institutions should check grammar and spelling of their entries.
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Coverage
Who to Include
Include all students enrolled for credit (enrolled in instructional activity, courses or programs, that can be applied
towards the requirements for a postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award), regardless of
whether or not they are seeking a degree or certificate. This includes:

•
•
•
•
•

Students enrolled for credit in off-campus centers
High school students taking regular college courses for credit
Students taking remedial courses if the student is degree-seeking for the purpose of student financial aid
determination
Students from overseas enrolled for credit at your institution (e.g., online students)
Graduate students enrolled for thesis credits, even when zero credits are awarded, as these students are still
enrolled and seeking their degree

Who to Exclude
Exclude students who are not enrolled for credit. For example, exclude:

•
•
•
•
•

Students enrolled exclusively in courses that cannot be applied towards a formal award
Students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses)
Students enrolled exclusively in Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
Students exclusively auditing classes
Residents or interns in doctor's - professional practice programs, since they have already received their
doctor's degree

In addition, the following students should be excluded:

•
•

Any student studying abroad (e.g., at a foreign university) if their enrollment at the 'home' institution serves
as an administrative record
Students enrolled in any branch campus located in a foreign country

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Where to Get Help with Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
Phone: 1-877-225-2568
Email: ipedshelp@rti.org

Web Tutorials
You can also consult the IPEDS Website Trainings & Outreach page which contains several tutorials on IPEDS data
collection, a self-paced overview of IPEDS tools, and other valuable resources.

IPEDS Resource Page
The IPEDS Website Reporting Tools page contains frequently asked questions, a link to data tip sheets, tutorials,
taxonomies, information centers (e.g., academic libraries, average net price, human resources, race/ethnicity, etc.),
and other valuable information.
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Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Data collected through IPEDS will be accessible at the institution- and aggregate-levels.
At the institution-level, data will appear in the:

•
•
•
•

College Navigator Website
IPEDS Data Center
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
College Affordability and Transparency Center Website

At the aggregate-level, data will appear in:

•
•
•
•
•

IPEDS First Looks
IPEDS Table Library
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
The Digest of Education Statistics
The Condition of Education

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Reporting Directions
Screening Questions
Before entering any data, screening questions will need to be answered.
Part C Selection
Part C (Enrollment of Students by Residence) is optional this year. Indicate whether or not you will complete Part C of
the Fall Enrollment survey component this year.
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Reporting Persons by Racial/Ethnic Category (1997 OMB)
This information is being collected in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 and Sec. 421(a)(1) of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act. These instructions
correspond with the Final Guidance on Maintaining, Collecting, and Reporting Racial and Ethnic Data to the U.S.
Department of Education, published in the Federal Register on October 19, 2007.
Method of collection - Institutions must collect race and ethnicity information using a 2-question format. The first
question is whether the respondent is Hispanic/Latino. The second question is whether the respondent is from one or
more races from the following list: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native
Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and White. Institutions should allow students and staff to self-identify their race
and ethnicity. For further details on the guidance for collecting these data, please see the full Federal Register notice.
Method of reporting aggregate data - Institutions must report aggregate data to the U.S. Department of Education
using the NINE categories below. Racial/ethnic designations are requested only for United States citizens, resident
aliens, and other eligible non-citizens.

•

Hispanic or Latino, regardless of race

For Non-Hispanic/Latino individuals:

•
•
•
•
•
•

American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races

In addition, the following categories may be used:

•
•

Nonresident alien
Race and ethnicity unknown

Racial/ethnic descriptions - Racial/ethnic designations as used in this survey do not denote scientific definitions of
anthropological origins. The categories are:
•
•
•
•
•
•

Hispanic or Latino- A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish
culture or origin, regardless of race.
American Indian or Alaska Native- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South
America (including Central America) who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or
community attachment.
Asian- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian
Subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine
Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Black or African American- A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii,
Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
White - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

Other descriptive categories

•

•

Nonresident alien - A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country
on a visa or temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely. NOTE - Nonresident aliens are
to be reported separately, in the boxes provided, rather than included in any of the seven racial/ethnic
categories. Resident aliens and other eligible (for financial aid purposes) non-citizens who are not citizens or
nationals of the United States and who have been admitted as legal immigrants for the purpose of obtaining
permanent resident alien status (and who hold either an alien registration card (Form I-551 or I-151), a
Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), or an Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) with a notation that
conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee
or Cuban-Haitian) are to be reported in the appropriate racial/ethnic categories along with United States
citizens.
Race and ethnicity unknown - This category is used only if the person did not select EITHER a racial or
ethnic designation.

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Part A: Full-Time Undergraduate Students by Race/Ethnicity and Gender

On this screen, include all students enrolled for credit, full-time at the undergraduate level. The undergraduate level
includes students enrolled in undergraduate level courses, in 4 or 5-year bachelor's degree programs, associate's
degree programs, or any certificate programs below the baccalaureate level. Students who have already earned a
bachelor's degree but are taking undergraduate courses for credit should be included as undergraduates.

Full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students
In column 1, report undergraduate students who have no prior postsecondary experience and have enrolled fulltime with the intent to earn a degree, certificate, or other formal award. The following are also considered firsttime:

•
•

Students enrolled in the fall term who attended college for the first time in the prior summer session
(applicable to both academic and program reporters)
Students who entered with advanced standing (any college credits earned before graduation from high school)

In order to be considered degree or certificate-seeking, the student must be enrolled in courses for credit and be
recognized by the institution as seeking a degree or other formal award. Note: All students eligible to receive federal
student financial aid are to be considered degree/certificate-seeking. Dual enrolled high school students are not
degree/certificate-seeking students. 
Program Reporters: Include first-time students who entered your institution between August 1, 2015 and October
31, 2015.
Academic Reporters: Student counts reported in column 1 define the initial cohort for reporting graduation rates in
the IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) component to meet Student Right-to-Know reporting requirements. Students
reported in this group will become your GR cohort in the reporting year appropriate for your institution. The number of
students reported in column 1 will also appear in Part D to be used in determining the percentage of the
undergraduate entering class represented by the cohort.

Full-time, transfer-in degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column 2, report the total number of full-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students entering the
reporting institution for the first time but known to have previously attended a postsecondary institution at the
undergraduate level. Include students enrolled in the fall term who transferred into the institution the prior summer
term. These students may or may not have transferred credit(s).
Program Reporters: Include students who transferred into your institution between August 1, 2015 and October 31,
2015 and those who transferred in the prior summer term.
Academic Reporters: Include students who transferred into your institution as of the institution's official fall
reporting date or October 15, 2015 and those who transferred in the prior summer term.

Full-time, continuing degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column 3, report the total number of continuing (i.e., not first-time and not transfer-in) full-time degree/certificateseeking undergraduate students. These are students who are not new to the institution in the fall, but instead are
continuing their studies at the institution.

Full-time, non-degree/certificate-seeking full-time undergraduates
In column 5, report the total number of full-time non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates. These students are
enrolled for credit but not with the intent of earning a degree or other formal award. Note: High school students
enrolled in creditable courses prior to high school graduation are considered non-degree/certificate-seeking students.
Once you save the data by clicking the 'Verify and Save' button, the 'Total full-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates' (column 4) and 'Total, full-time undergraduate students' (column 6) will be calculated by the system
and display on the survey screen.
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Part A: Part-time Undergraduate Students
Report part-time students using the same definitions and instructions provided for full-time undergraduate students.

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Part A: Graduate Students by Race/Ethnicity and Gender
Report all students enrolled for credit at the graduate level as either full-time (column 1) or part-time (column 2).
Include graduate students enrolled for thesis credits, even when zero credits are awarded, as these students are still
enrolled and seeking their degree.
Graduate Student Reporting Reminder: Institutions are required to report using the new postbaccalaureate
classifications. Report all postbaccalaureate degree and certificate students as graduate students, including doctor'sprofessional practice students (formerly first-professional).
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Part A: Enrollment by Distance Education Status
On this screen, report all students reported on previous Part A screens who are:
•
•

Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses offered at your institution: Students who are
enrolled only in courses that are considered distance education courses at your institution.
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses offered at your institution: Students who are
enrolled in at least one course that is considered a distance education course, but are not enrolled exclusively
in distance education courses.

Note: Requirements for coming to campus for orientation, testing, or academic support services do not exclude a
course from being classified as exclusively distance education. Similarly, if a student is taking instructional portions of
their program entirely online, but are then required to complete a practicum, residency, or internship, the student can
still be considered enrolled in entirely distance education courses.
Not enrolled in any distance education courses offered at your institution: This number represents the
students who are not enrolled in any distance education courses at your institution. It will be calculated by subtracting
the (students enrolled exclusively in distance education + students enrolled in some but not all distance education
courses) from the total enrolled students from Part A, which is the totals for degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate
(first-time + transfer-in + continuing), non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate and graduate students. 
Location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
If there are students reported as enrolled exclusively in distance education courses, further data on the location of
these distance education students will need to be reported. Report, by student level and undergraduate degreeseeking status, the number of exclusively distance education students that are located in the same state/jurisdiction
as the institution, in a different state/jurisdiction than the institution, in the U.S. but the state/jurisdiction is unknown,
and residing outside the U.S.
The total students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses will be carried forward from earlier on the screen.
If the total students reported by location does not equal the total enrolled exclusively in distance education from
above, the “Location unknown/unreported” is calculated.
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Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender
Part B is mandatory this year. This part is required in odd-numbered years.
This distribution of students should include all students reported in Part A.

Enrollment by Age
Use institutional records to calculate student age.
Academic reporters: report student age as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters: report student age as of August 1, 2015.

The totals by gender for each attendance status (full- or part-time) and student level (undergraduate or graduate) will
be carried forward from the corresponding Part A screens. When the Part B and Part A totals do not agree, the "Age
unknown/unreported" is calculated.
Note: If the Part B student count total is larger than the total carried forward from Part A (resulting in a negative
value), a fatal error results. In this case, reexamine both the age data and comparable portion of Part A to identify the
error and make appropriate corrections.
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Part C: Residence of First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduate Students
Part C is optional this year. This part is required in even-numbered years only.
This distribution of students should include all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
(both full- and part-time) reported in Part A.

Recent High School Graduates Screening Question
Part C begins with a screening question to determine whether or not your institution has first-time degree/certificateseeking undergraduate students who enrolled within 12 months of graduating high school or receiving their GED. If the
answer is 'No', then only one column for all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates will display in Part C.
If the answer is 'Yes', then 2 columns will be reported in Part C, one for all first-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates and one for those first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates enrolled within 12 months of
graduating high school or receiving their GED. 

State of residence
Use the state identified by the student as his/her permanent address at the time of application to the institution. This
may be the legal residence of a parent or guardian, or the state in which a student has a driver's license or is
registered to vote. It is not necessarily the state in which the student's high school is located.

Residence of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column (1), report all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students, both full-time and parttime, by state of residence. The total line for column (1) will be carried forward from the total first-time
degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part A. If the sum of the students reported by state of
residence in column (1), lines 1-90, does not agree with the total first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates
from Part A, the "Residence unknown/unreported" (line 98) will be calculated.
Note: When the sum of students by state of residence is larger than the total carried forward from Part A (resulting in
a negative value calculated for the "Residence unknown/unreported" line), a fatal error results. In this case, reexamine
both the residence data and comparable section of Part A to identify the error and make appropriate corrections.
If your institution responded 'Yes' to the screening question, the subset of students from column (1) who enrolled
within 12 months of graduating high school or receiving their GED are to be reported again by their state of residence
in column (2).
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Part D: Total Undergraduate Entering Class
Program reporters and non-degree-granting institutions do not complete Part D.
Total entering class data are included to address concerns some institutions have raised about the cohort that is
defined by the IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) component. The GR cohort includes only full-time, first-time
degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students. For institutions with substantial part-time, transfer-in, and nondegree/certificate-seeking enrollment, this may result in graduation rates that are not representative of their typical
entering class.
The total undergraduate entering class is comprised of all first-time undergraduates (full-time and part-time), all
transfer-in undergraduates (full-time and part-time) and the subset of non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates
who are new to the institution in the Fall. To reach the total entering class total, Part D follows a line-by-line step
process.

Lines D1 - D4 are carried forward from Part A reporting.
In Line D5, report the subset of non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students displayed on line D4, who are
new to the institution in Fall 2015.
Line D6 will calculate the total undergraduate entering students. This is calculated as all first-time students (line D2)
+ all transfer-in students (line D3) + non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students new to the institution in
Fall 2015 (line D5).
After clicking 'Save', Line D7 will display the percentage of the undergraduate entering class that is represented by
the current GR cohort (the GR cohort is carried forward from Part A and displayed in Line D1). The percentage is
calculated as line D1/D6.
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Part E: Retention Rates for First-Time Bachelor's Degree Seeking Student Cohort
Retention rates examine the percentage of first-time bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking students
enrolled in the fall of the prior year that are still enrolled in the fall of the current year.
On each retention screen (full-time cohort and part-time cohort screens) institutions must report:

•

First-time bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking Fall 2014 cohort.
Academic reporters: determine the cohort using the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October
15, 2014.
Program reporters: determine the cohort based on students who were enrolled in the institution at any time
between August 1 and October 31, 2014.
Note: The retention cohorts are the subset of first-time degree/certificate-seeking students reported in Part A
of the prior year Fall Enrollment survey that are bachelor's degree (or equivalent) seeking. Attendance status
(full- or part-time) should be based on the student's Fall 2014 status.

•

Exclusions from the cohorts (see below for allowable exclusions)

•

Total number of students retained from the Fall 2014 cohort.
Total students retained = students from the Fall 2014 cohort who are still enrolled as of Fall 2015.
Academic reporters: Report students retained as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of
October 15, 2015.
Program reporters: Report students retained as of August 1, 2015.

Exclusions:
Institutions may report cohort exclusions. Allowable exclusions are students who left the institution for any of the
following reasons:

•
•
•
•

Died or were totally and permanently disabled
To serve in the armed forces (including those called to active duty)
To serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g., Peace Corps)
To serve on official church missions

The system will compute an adjusted cohort by subtracting the student exclusions from the original cohort prior to
calculating the retention rate.
Retention rates will be computed by the system after clicking 'Save.' The retention rate is calculated as:

(Students from the Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015/Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort)*100
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Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio
Graduate only institutions do not complete Part F.
Report the student-to-faculty ratio for undergraduate programs at your institution. A worksheet is available to help
determine your institution's ratio. Click on the link from the Part F screen to access the worksheet.

Worksheet for Institutions with Graduate or Professional Programs
The worksheet is designed to help institutions determine their student-to-faculty ratio for undergraduate programs. It
is NOT mandatory that you use this worksheet to calculate your student-to-faculty ratio. Data entered on the
worksheet will NOT be collected or saved in the system. Make sure to print the screen in order to refer to the ratio
calculation for your institution at a later time.
Please note: The logic used in this calculation is similar to that of item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.
The term "stand-alone graduate or professional programs" used on the worksheet is defined as graduate or
professional programs such as medicine, law, veterinary, dentistry, social work, or public health, in which faculty teach
virtually only graduate-level students (also referred to as "independent" programs). Student and instructional staff
counts will be adjusted for stand-alone graduate or professional programs to allow the ratio to come closer to an
undergraduate program student-to-faculty ratio without overburdening institutions with reporting detail on the level of
instruction taught by each instructor.

FULL- AND PART-TIME STUDENT DATA:
The total number of full-time and part-time students (lines F1 and F4) are carried forward from Part A.
Institutions with stand-alone graduate or professional programs (see definition above) report the following Fall 2015
student exclusions:

•
•

In line F2, report the total number of full-time students enrolled in stand-alone graduate or professional
programs.
In line F5, report the total number of part-time students enrolled in stand-alone graduate or professional
programs.

With the above student exclusions, the system will then compute the following on the worksheet:

•

•
•

Lines F3 and F6. Total adjusted full-time and total adjusted part-time student counts.
These are the total full-time and part-time students reported in Part A, excluding those enrolled in stand-alone
graduate or professional programs. The system will calculate line F3 as line F1 (total full-time students) minus
line F2 (total full-time students enrolled in stand-alone graduate or professional programs) and calculate line
F6 as line F4 (total part-time students) minus line F5 (total part-time students enrolled in stand-alone
graduate or professional programs).
Line F7. A full-time equivalent (FTE) of the adjusted part-time student count.
The FTE will be calculated as line F6 (total adjusted part-time student count) * 1/3.
Line F8. Total adjusted FTE students.
This is calculated as the sum of lines F3 (total adjusted full-time students) and F7 (FTE of total adjusted parttime students). Line F8 is used in the ratio calculation.

FULL-AND PART-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF DATA:
Lines F9 and F12 should be reported based on data your institution is reporting in the IPEDS Human Resources (HR)
survey component. Please work together with the appropriate staff at your institution to ensure that the data used on
this worksheet and reported in the HR component are the same.

•
•

Line F9. The total number of full-time instructional staff (non-medical) as reported on the HR component.
Line F12. The total number of part-time instructional staff (non-medical) as reported on the HR component.
NOTE: Graduate assistants are not included.

Instructional Staff Exclusions for Stand-Alone Programs:
Institutions with stand-alone graduate or professional programs (see definition above) report the following Fall 2015
instructional staff exclusions on the worksheet:

•

•

In line F10A, report the number of full-time instructional staff teaching exclusively in stand-alone graduate or
professional programs.
Please note that instructional staff reported on the medical school screens in the HR component (medical
school screens are seen only by institutions with M.D. and/or D.O. programs) are already excluded from the
counts in line F9 and therefore should not be reported in line F10.
In line F13A, report the number of part-time instructional staff teaching exclusively in stand-alone graduate
or professional programs.
Please note that instructional staff reported on the medical school screens in the HR component (medical
school screens are seen only by institutions with M.D. and/or D.O. programs) are already excluded from the
counts in line F12 and therefore should not be reported in line F13.

Instructional Staff Exclusion for Non-Credit Instructors:

•
•

In line F10B, report the number of full-time instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses.
In line F13B, report the number of part-time instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses.

For institutions that have a large amount of non-credit activity (most often public two-year institutions), the above
exclusions will better align the student data with the instructional staff data being used in the ratio.

Part-Time Instructional Staff Addition:

•

In line F14, report the number of administrators or other staff NOT reported to IPEDS as instructors (and
therefore not included in the EAP count reported in line F12) that are teaching a credit course in Fall 2015.

For institutions that have administrators and other professionals on staff that are not reported to IPEDS as instructors
(because it is not their "primary function") but they teach credit courses throughout the year, the above allowable
addition will produce a more accurate ratio.
With the above instructional staff exclusions and part-time instructional staff addition information above, the system
will compute the following on the worksheet:

•

Line F11. Total adjusted full-time instructional staff.
The adjusted full-time instructional staff is the total full-time instructional staff, excluding those teaching
exclusively in stand-alone graduate or professional programs and those teaching exclusively non-credit
classes. The system will calculate line F11 as line F9 (total full-time instructional staff as reported on HR)
minus the total exclusions [line F10A (total full-time instructional staff teaching exclusively in stand-alone
graduate or professional programs) + line F10B (total full-time instructional staff teaching exclusively noncredit courses)].

•

•
•
•

Line F15. Total adjusted part-time instructional staff.
The adjusted part-time instructional staff is the total part-time instructional staff, excluding those teaching
exclusively in stand-alone graduate or professional programs and those teaching exclusively non-credit
classes, and adding those administrators and other staff teaching credit courses. The system will calculate line
F15 as line F12 (total part-time instructional staff as reported on HR) minus the total exclusions [line F13A
(total part-time instructional staff teaching exclusively in stand-alone graduate or professional programs) +
line F13B (total part-time instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses)] + line F14
(administrators and other staff teaching credit courses).
Line F16. Total FTE of adjusted part-time instructional staff.
The FTE will be calculated as line F15 (total adjusted part-time instructional staff) * 1/3.
Line F17. Total FTE of adjusted instructional staff.
This is calculated as the sum of lines F11 (total adjusted full-time instructional staff) and F16 (FTE of total
adjusted part-time instructional staff). Line F17 is used in the ratio calculation.
Line F18. Student-to-faculty ratio.
The ratio will be calculated by the system as line F8 (total adjusted FTE students) divided by line F17 (total
adjusted FTE instructional staff). The ratio will be displayed on the worksheet as xxx to 1.
The calculated ratio can then be entered onto the Part F (Student-to-Faculty Ratio) screen.

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date: 11/24/2015

Glossary
Term

Definition

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 (full-time, first-time; part-time-first-time; full-time, non-first-time;
and part-time, non-first-time) for which outcomes rates are calculated at 6 and 8 years.

American Indian or Alaska
Native

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) who
maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community attachment.

Asian

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian Subcontinent,
including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand,
and Vietnam.

Audit/auditing (a class)

Term used when a student elects to take a course, but does not wish to receive credit for the course toward a
degree or other formal award.

Bachelor's degree

An award (baccalaureate or equivalent degree, as determined by the Secretary, U.S. Department of Education) that
normally requires at least 4 but not more than 5 years of full-time equivalent college-level work. This includes all
bachelor's degrees conferred in a 5-year cooperative (work-study) program. A cooperative plan provides for
alternate class attendance and employment in business, industry, or government; thus, it allows students to
combine actual work experience with their college studies. Also includes bachelor's degrees in which the normal 4
years of work are completed in 3 years.

Black or African American

A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.

Branch institution

A campus or site of an educational institution that is not temporary, is located in a community beyond a reasonable
commuting distance from its parent institution, and offers full programs of study, not just courses.

CIP code

A six-digit code in the form xx.xxxx that identifies instructional program specialties within educational institutions.

Classification of Instructional
Programs (CIP)

A taxonomic coding scheme for secondary and postsecondary instructional programs. It is intended to facilitate the
organization, collection, and reporting of program data using classifications that capture the majority of reportable
data. The CIP is the accepted federal government statistical standard on instructional program classifications and is
used in a variety of education information surveys and databases.

Cohort

A specific group of students established for tracking purposes.

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).

Credit

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 formal award,
irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.

Credit course

A course that, if successfully completed, can be applied toward the number of courses required for achieving a
postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.

Degree/certificate-seeking
students

Students enrolled in courses for credit who are seeking a degree, certificate, or other formal award. This includes
students who:
   - received any type of federal financial aid, regardless of what courses they took at any time;
   - received any state or locally based financial aid with an eligibility requirement that the student be enrolled in a
degree, certificate, or transfer-seeking program; or
   - obtained a student visa to study at a U.S. postsecondary institution
High school students also enrolled in postsecondary courses for credit are not considered degree/certificate-seeking.

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.
Technologies used for instruction may include the following: Internet; one-way and two-way transmissions through
open broadcasts, closed circuit, cable, microwave, broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite or wireless communication
devices; audio conferencing; and video cassette, DVDs, and CD-ROMs, if the cassette, DVDs, and CD-ROMs are used
in a course in conjunction with the technologies listed above.

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.

Doctor's degree-professional
practice

A doctor's degree that is conferred upon completion of a program providing the knowledge and skills for the
recognition, credential, or license required for professional practice. The degree is awarded after a period of study
such that the total time to the degree, including both pre-professional and professional preparation, equals at least
six full-time equivalent academic years. Some of these degrees were formerly classified as first-professional and
may include: Chiropractic (D.C. or D.C.M.); Dentistry (D.D.S. or D.M.D.); Law (J.D.); Medicine (M.D.); Optometry
(O.D.); Osteopathic Medicine (D.O); Pharmacy (Pharm.D.); Podiatry (D.P.M., Pod.D., D.P.); or, Veterinary Medicine
(D.V.M.), and others, as designated by the awarding institution.

Dual credit

A program through which high school students are enrolled in Advanced Placement (AP) courses, taught at their high
school, that fulfill high school graduation requirements and may earn the student college credits .

Dual enrollment

A program through which high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school.
Students are not required to apply for admission to the college in order to participate.

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 term 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 nondegree/certificate seeking undergraduates entering in the fall.
Exclusions

Those students who may be removed (deleted) from a cohort (or subcohort). For the Graduation Rates, Outcome
Measures , and Fall Enrollment retention rate reporting, students may be removed from a cohort if they left the
institution for one of the following reasons: death or total and permanent disability; service in the armed forces
(including those called to active duty); service with a foreign aid service of the federal government, such as the
Peace Corps; or service on official church missions.

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 term, and
students who entered with advanced standing (college credits earned before graduation from high school).

Full-time student

Undergraduate: A student enrolled for 12 or more semester credits, or 12 or more quarter credits, or 24 or more
contact hours a week each term. Graduate: A student enrolled for 9 or more semester credits, or 9 or more quarter
credits, or a student involved in thesis or dissertation preparation that is considered full-time by the institution.
Doctor's degree - Professional practice - as defined by the institution.

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.

High school diploma or
recognized equivalent

A document certifying the successful completion of a prescribed secondary school program of studies, or any of the
following:
•recognized attainment of satisfactory scores on the GED or another state-authorized
examination
•recognized completion of homeschooling at the secondary level as defined by state law
•completion of secondary school education in a homeschool setting which qualifies for an
exemption from compulsory attendance requirements under state law, if state law does not
require a homeschooled student to receive credential for their education

Hispanic/Latino

A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless
of race.

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).

Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.

Non-degree-seeking student

A student enrolled in courses for credit who is not recognized by the institution as seeking a degree or formal award.

Non-first-time 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 enrollment from Fall Enrollment (EF) component.

Noncredit course

A course or activity having no credit applicable toward a degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award.

Nonresident alien

A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country on a visa or temporary basis
and does not have the right to remain indefinitely.

Off-campus centers
(extension centers)

Sites outside the confines of the parent institution where courses are offered that are part of an organized program
at the parent institution. The sites are not considered to be temporary but may be rented or made available to the
institution at no cost by another institution or an organization, agency, or firm.

Official fall reporting date

The date (in the fall) on which an institution must report fall enrollment data to either the state, its board of trustees
or governing board, or some other external governing body.

Part-time student

Undergraduate: A student enrolled for either less than 12 semester or quarter credits, or less than 24 contact hours
a week each term. Graduate: A student enrolled for less than 9 semester or quarter credits.

Race and ethnicity unknown

The category used to report students or employees whose race and ethnicity are not known.

Race/ethnicity

Categories developed in 1997 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that are 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. The designations are used to categorize U.S. citizens, resident aliens,
and other eligible non-citizens.
Individuals are asked to first designate ethnicity as:
   - Hispanic or Latino or
   - Not Hispanic or Latino
Second, individuals are asked to indicate all races that apply among the following:
   - American Indian or Alaska Native
   - Asian
   - Black or African American
   - Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
   - White

Remedial courses

Instructional courses designed for students deficient in the general competencies necessary for a regular
postsecondary curriculum and educational setting.

Residence

A person's permanent address determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For entering
freshmen, residence may be the legal residence of a parent or guardian.

Resident alien (and other
eligible non-citizens)

A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States but who has been admitted as a legal immigrant for the
purpose of obtaining permanent resident alien status (and who holds either an alien registration card (Form I-551 or
I-151), a Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), or an Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) with a notation that
conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee or
Cuban-Haitian).

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.

State of residence

A person's permanent address as determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For
entering freshmen, state of residence may be the legal state of residence of a parent or guardian.

State unknown

Status used when the reporting institution is unable to determine from existing records the home state or residence
of the student.

Student-to-faculty ratio

The ratio of FTE students to FTE instructional staff, i.e., students divided by staff.
Students enrolled in "stand-alone" graduate or professional programs and instructional staff teaching in these
programs are excluded from both full-time and part-time counts.
"Stand-alone" graduate or professional programs are those programs such as medicine, law, veterinary, dentistry,
social work, or public health, in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students (also referred to as
"independent" programs).
Each FTE value is equal to the number of full-time students/staff plus 1/3 the number of part-time students/staff.

Study abroad

Arrangement by which a student completes part of the college program studying in another country. Can be at a
campus abroad or through a cooperative agreement with some other U.S. college or an institution of another
country.

Summer session

A summer session is shorter than a regular session and is not considered part of the academic year. It is not the
third term of an institution operating on a trimester system or the fourth term of an institution operating on a
quarter calendar system. The institution may have two or more sessions occurring in the summer months. Some
schools, such as vocational and beauty schools, have year-round classes with no separate summer session.

Title IV institution

An institution that has a written agreement with the Secretary of Education that allows the institution to participate
in any of the Title IV federal student financial assistance programs (other than the State Student Incentive Grant
(SSIG) and the National Early Intervention Scholarship and Partnership (NEISP) programs).

Transfer-in 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 institution the prior summer term.  The student may transfer with or without credit.

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.

White

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

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2015-16 Survey Materials > FAQ

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment
Click one of the following questions to view the answer.
General
1) Who should I include in my enrollment reporting?
2) What is the reporting period/date for fall enrollment?
3) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
4) In the past I reported first-professional students on this component. Why are there no screens for reporting firstprofessional students?
5) My school is part of a consortium of schools. How do I report student enrollment? 
6) Do I include students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses) in Fall Enrollment?
Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender (Part A)
1) What is NOT considered "prior postsecondary experience" when reporting first-time students?
2) Where do I report students if I don't know whether or not they are first-time?
3) Where do I report undergraduate students who enrolled at my institution for the first time this fall (without prior
postsecondary experience), but earned college credits during the prior summer?
4) How do I treat new students who transferred into the institution the prior summer term and take courses in the fall? 
5) Does "continuing/returning student" include those students who have stopped out and re-entered the same institution? 
6) How do I report a student who earned college credit while in high school (a dual enrolled student) and has now graduated
high school and enrolled in my institution in the Fall?
7) Where do I report a high school student who is enrolled for credit at my institution (a dual enrolled student)?
8) If a student enrolled for credit has not indicated whether they intend to earn a degree or certificate, how do I determine
whether they are degree/certificate-seeking?
9) Where do I report students who are seeking a second baccalaureate degree?
10) How do I report an undergraduate student who took courses as a non-degree-seeking student and re-enrolls as a degreeseeking student at the same reporting institution? 
11) My institution has students for which gender is unknown. Since there is no place to report “gender unknown” on the IPEDS
data collection screens, how should we report these individuals?
12) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
13) How does enrollment in non-credit or zero-credit remedial/ESL and co-op courses count in the determination of a student's
full-time status?
14) In which race/ethnicity category do I report undocumented students?
Fall Enrollment in Selected Fields (Part A, 4-year institutions only)
1) What do I do if my institution does not offer any of the program areas listed on the CIP selection screen?
2) How do I report students in program areas that do not appear on the CIP selection screen?
3) How do I report undergraduates who have not yet declared a major?
4) How do we report a student that has majors falling under more than one of the CIP codes collected in Part A (i.e., 13.0000
Education and 27.0000 Mathematics)?
Distance Education
1) If a student is taking the instructional portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to complete a
practicum, residency, or internship, is the student considered enrolled in exclusively distance education courses?
2) What should I do if I do not know the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses?
3) How do I determine location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education?
4) Are U.S. jurisdictions or territories (like Guam, the U.S. Virgin Island, etc.) considered in the U.S. for distance education
location reporting?
5) We offer courses that combine distance education and traditional teaching methods (“hybrid” courses). How should students
enrolled in these courses be counted in the distance education portion of Fall Enrollment? 
Fall Enrollment by Age (Part B)
1) I am not able to enter a number in the “Age unknown/unreported” box. How do I report students whose ages are unknown?
2) My institution uses age range categories that differ from the ones IPEDS uses in Part B. What should I do?
Residence of First-Time Undergraduates (Part C)
1) When reporting students by residence (Part C), should I include students who completed a GED in the second column that
asks for numbers of students that graduated high school within 12 months?
2) Some first-time undergraduates at my institution are dependents whose parents are in foreign countries on a temporary
basis (e.g., military/diplomatic service). When reporting residence and migration data, what location do I use?
Total Undergraduate Entering Class (Part D)
1) What is the difference between the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort (GRS cohort) and the
undergraduate entering class calculated in Part D?
Retention Rates for First-Time Undergraduates (Part E)
1) How is the retention rate calculated?
2)

How do I report students who changed attendance status (part-time to full-time or full-time to part-time) between one fall
and the next?
3) Are students on a leave of absence from the institution considered retained?
4) For less-than-4-year institutions that have a student who completed a program and are still enrolled at the same institution
in another program, how should they count that student? 
Undergraduate Student-to-Faculty Ratio (Part F)
1) How do I calculate my institution's student-to-faculty ratio?
2) Can you provide an example of a stand-alone graduate or professional program (a program such as medicine, law,
veterinary, or dentistry in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students)?
3) My institution has graduate and/or doctors-professional practice programs but does not have any "stand-alone" programs.
What should I enter on the student and faculty exclusion line items related to these types of programs on the worksheet for
Part F?

Answers:
General
1) Who should I include in my enrollment reporting?
All students enrolled for credit should be reported. Credit is defined as “Recognition of attendance or performance in an
instructional activity (course or program) that can be applied by a recipient toward the requirements for a degree, diploma,
certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.”
Students who are not seeking a degree or certificate may be still be enrolled for credit. These students are to be reported in the
non-degree/certificate-seeking column.

Back to top
2) What is the reporting period/date for fall enrollment?
Fall enrollment is a count of students enrolled on a particular date in the Fall. Fall enrollment is often referred to as a "snapshot"
of the enrollment at an institution at a specific time in the Fall. The date/period used depends on whether the institution is an
academic reporter or a program reporter for IPEDS purposes.
Academic reporters: Report enrollment as of October 15 or as of the institution's official fall reporting date.
Program reporters: Report enrollment during the 3-month period of August 1 to October 31. If a student enrolls or remains
enrolled at any time during that period, the student is included in the fall enrollment counts.
Back to top
3) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
Students who are enrolled in your institution and attend classes in a foreign country should be included in your institution's
enrollment report if your institution provides instructional resources (classroom, instructors), even though the education occurs
abroad. Students who are enrolled in your institution and attend classes in a foreign country should NOT be included in your
enrollment report if:

•
•
•

The students are enrolled ONLY in courses offered by another institution;
The students are enrolled at a branch campus of your institution in a foreign country;
Your institution does not provide the instructional resources (i.e., classrooms, instructors), even if the
student pays tuition to your institution. Their enrollment at your institution serves only as an administrative
record. 

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4) In the past I reported first-professional students on this component. Why are there no screens for reporting
first-professional students?
Beginning with the 2009-10 collection year, institutions are required to use the new postbaccalaureate degree categories
(eliminating the first-professional category and reclassifying those programs). In parts A and B, all postbaccalaureate students
are to be reported as graduate students, including doctor's-professional practice students (formerly reported as firstprofessional). Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.
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5) My school is part of a consortium of schools. How do I report student enrollment?
For reporting students studying in consortium agreements, please refer to the Resource page
at http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/submit_data/Consortium_Cheatsheet.asp. 
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6) Do I include students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses) in Fall
Enrollment?
ESL has never been considered a postsecondary program by IPEDS.  Since it is considered non-postsecondary, students who
are ONLY enrolled in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses), regardless of whether or not
they are receiving Title-IV aid, should NOT be counted in enrollment. 
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Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender (Part A)
1)
What is NOT considered "prior postsecondary experience" when reporting first-time students?

•
•
•
•
•

Credit for military service/training from an association such as the American Council on Education, 
Credit from any non-credit courses, as defined by the institution, 
Credit received for completion of tests/assessments, 
Credit received before the student has earned a high school diploma (i.e., AP or dual enrollment credits), or
Credit for life experience.

Students with prior postsecondary experience credit from attending a military academic institution (e.g., Community College of
the Air Force, West Point, U.S. Naval Academy, etc.) would NOT be considered first-time students. 
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2)
Where do I report students if I don't know whether or not they are first-time?
If their status is not indicated directly and the student does not enroll with prior credits or transcripts from another institution,
then assume the student is first-time.
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3)
Where do I report undergraduate students who enrolled at my institution for the first time this fall (without
prior postsecondary experience), but earned college credits during the prior summer?
These students should be reported as first-time undergraduates. The definition of “first-time” allows for students to still be
classified as first-time if the college credit they have previously earned occurred in the summer immediately prior to enrollment.
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4)
How do I treat new students who transferred into the institution the prior summer term and take courses in
the fall?
For the Fall Enrollment survey, count the student as a "transfer-in," even if the student transferred into the institution during
the prior summer term and is not entering the institution for the first time in the fall. 
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5)
Does "continuing/returning student" include those students who have stopped out and re-entered the same
institution?
Yes, "continuing/returning student" is meant to capture students who are not first-time or transfer-in. This includes students
who have been continuously enrolled in the institution and those who have stopped out and re-enrolled, without having
transferred to another institution. 
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6)
How do I report a student who earned college credit while in high school (a dual enrolled student) and has
now graduated high school and enrolled in my institution in the Fall?
If the college credit was earned prior to the student graduating high school, then this student would be considered a first-time
student in the Fall. The definition of “first-time” allows for students to still be classified as first-time if the college credit they
have previously earned was prior to their high school graduation.
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7)
Where do I report a high school student who is enrolled for credit at my institution (a dual enrolled student)?
This student would be reported as non-degree/certificate-seeking. Prior to receipt of a high school diploma or recognized
equivalent (see glossary definition), a student is non-degree/certificate-seeking. After receipt of the high school diploma or
recognized equivalent, they can be classified as degree/certificate-seeking, if appropriate.
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8)
If a student enrolled for credit has not indicated whether they intend to earn a degree or certificate, how do I
determine whether they are degree/certificate-seeking?
If the student has not indicated any intent but is applying for Title IV federal financial aid, assume the student to be
degree/certificate-seeking.
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9)
Where do I report students who are seeking a second baccalaureate degree?
Report these students in the column labeled "Continuing" degree/certificate-seeking students (column 3). This column is
intended to capture all degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students who are not first-time and did not transfer-in to the
institution in that Fall.
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10) How do I report an undergraduate student who took courses as a non-degree-seeking student and re-enrolls
as a degree-seeking student at the same reporting institution?
This student should be reported as a "continuing/returning" student. IPEDS defines "continuing/returning students" as "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 firsttime and not transfer-in)."
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11) My institution has students for which gender is unknown. Since there is no place to report “gender unknown”
on the IPEDS data collection screens, how should we report these individuals?
These individuals are still to be reported to IPEDS, even though their gender is unknown. It is up to the institution to decide
how best to handle reporting individuals whose gender is unknown. However, a common method used is to allocate students
with gender unknown based on the known proportion of men to women.
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12) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
There has been no change to how these students should be reported. Foreign students living outside the U.S., such as a foreign
student living outside the U.S. who is enrolled in distance education at your institution, should be classified in the Race/Ethnicity
Unknown category. Only U.S. citizens are to be categorized in the specific Race/Ethnicity categories. The non-resident alien
category is reserved specifically for students that are in the U.S. under that specific legal status.
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13) How does enrollment in non-credit or zero-credit remedial/ESL and co-op courses count in the determination
of a student's full-time status?
Students in the following categories are considered degree-seeking in IPEDS, though they may be enrolled in courses not
creditable for an award:

•
•
•

Students enrolled in remedial courses that are not creditable toward an award but have been admitted into
an eligible Title-IV program and receive Title-IV aid
Students enrolled in ESL courses that are not creditable toward an award but have been admitted into an
eligible Title-IV program and receive Title-IV aid
Co-op students enrolled in courses that are not creditable toward an award but are required for award
attainment

In determination of the student's full-time status, credit or contact hours (up to one academic year's worth) of remedial and ESL
courses may be used in the determination of a student's full-time status if the remedial or ESL course is part of a program that
leads to a postsecondary award. In these cases, the remedial or ESL courses should count the same as the comparable fullcredit class. For co-op students, the work portion of a cooperative education program in which the amount of work performed is
equivalent to the academic workload of a full-time student will also count toward the determination of full-time status.
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14) In which race/ethnicity category do I report undocumented students?
Because the race and ethnicity designations are reported only for U.S. citizens and the "nonresident alien" category is a legal
status for students with specific types of visas, undocumented students would not be reported under any of these statuses.
Instead, they should be reported as "Race/ethnicity unknown." Please visit the race/ethnicity FAQ for more
information: https://surveys.nces.ed.gov/ipeds/visFaq_re.aspx. 
However, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) students are a particular group of undocumented students that have
been authorized by the Department of Homeland Security to be lawfully present in the U.S. for the duration of their DACA, and
as such, this status would allow them to be reported under the "nonresident alien" category. 
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Fall Enrollment in Selected Fields (Part A, 4-year institutions only)
1) What do I do if my institution does not offer any of the program areas listed on the CIP selection screen?
Select “None of the above” on the CIP selection screen and report all students enrolled for credit, regardless of field of
study, Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A.
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2) How do I report students in program areas that do not appear on the CIP selection screen?
The program areas on the CIP selection screen are the only fields for which enrollment data is collected separately. In addition
to reporting enrollment by the selected fields requested, report all students enrolled for credit (regardless of field of study) on
the "Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A.
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3) How do I report undergraduates who have not yet declared a major?
These students should only be reported on the Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A, where all
students enrolled for credit (regardless of field of study) are reported.
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4) How do we report a student that has majors falling under more than one of the CIP codes collected in Part A
(i.e., 13.0000 Education and 27.0000 Mathematics)?
Report the students as either full-time or part-time depending on their status at the institution. Then report them on the
corresponding CIP pages. The CIP pages are not an unduplicated count and students can be included on more than one page.  
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Distance Education
1) If a student is taking the instructional portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to
complete a practicum, residency, or internship, is the student considered enrolled in exclusively distance
education courses?
Yes, if the instructional portions are entirely online, the student is considered to be enrolled in exclusive distance education
course. 
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2) What should I do if I do not know the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses?
If you have no information about the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education, do not report them in any
of the location fields. The system will calculate the number of "Location Unknown" exclusively distance education enrollments. 
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3) How do I determine location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education?
Location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education should be their physical location or current address, as of
the institution's Fall reporting date. If this is not available, use the address on file for the student. For students enlisted in the
military on active duty, use the permanent address instead of the student's physical location. 
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4) Are U.S. jurisdictions or territories (like Guam, the U.S. Virgin Island, etc.) considered in the U.S. for distance
education location reporting?
Yes, Students located in a U.S. jurisdiction while they are enrolled in distance education courses should be reported as located
in the U.S.
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5) We offer courses that combine distance education and traditional teaching methods (“hybrid” courses). How
should students enrolled in these courses be counted in the distance education portion of Fall Enrollment?
Hybrid courses are not considered by IPEDS as distance education. Students enrolled in “hybrid” courses should be reported as
“not enrolled in any distance education courses.”
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Fall Enrollment by Age (Part B)
1) I am not able to enter a number in the “Age unknown/unreported” box. How do I report students whose ages
are unknown?
The number of students whose age is unknown will be computed by the data collection system. The difference between the sum
of students reported by age category in Part B and the corresponding total enrollment reported in Part A results in the number
of students whose age is unknown.
If this results in a negative number, a fatal error will appear and you will need to either correct your data or contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
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2) My institution uses age range categories that differ from the ones IPEDS uses in Part B. What should I do?
In order to have consistent data from all institutions, IPEDS must use standard age categories. Use the students' dates of birth
to report the enrollment by IPEDS age categories.
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Residence of First-Time Undergraduates (Part C)
1) When reporting students by residence (Part C), should I include students who completed a GED in the second
column that asks for numbers of students that graduated high school within 12 months?
If the student received the GED within the past 12 months, they should be included in the second column.
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2) Some first-time undergraduates at my institution are dependents whose parents are in foreign countries on a
temporary basis (e.g., military/diplomatic service). When reporting residence and migration data, what
location do I use?
The home state could be the student’s or parent’s official home state, the state where they are registered to vote or pay taxes,
or the state issuing their driver’s license. If no such information is available, they would be reported under “State
unknown”(57).
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Total Undergraduate Entering Class (Part D)
1) What is the difference between the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort (GRS cohort) and the
undergraduate entering class calculated in Part D?
In addition to the students in the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort, the total undergraduate entering class
includes part-time students of the same criteria as well as transfers-in and full- and part-time non-degree/certificate-seeking
students that are new to your institution in the Fall.
The entering class is intended to represent all students new to an institution in a given fall and provide context for the GRS
cohort. The percent of the entering class that is represented by the institution's GRS cohort is included on College Navigator as
a note to the graduation rate data displayed.
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Retention Rates for First-Time Undergraduates (Part E)
1) How is the retention rate calculated?
The retention rate is calculated as follows:
4-year Institutions:
first-time bachelor's degree-seeking students in Fall 2014 who are still enrolled in Fall 2015/(first-time bachelor's degreeseeking students in Fall 2014 - cohort exclusions)
2-year and Less-than-2-year Institutions:
(first-time students in Fall 2014 who are still enrolled in Fall 2015 + first-time students in Fall 2014 who completed their
program by Fall 2015)/(first-time students in Fall 2014 - cohort exclusions)
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2) How do I report students who changed attendance status (part-time to full-time or full-time to part-time)
between one fall and the next?
Report students based on their attendance status in the fall the cohort was initially based on, even if that status changed in the
following fall.
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3) Are students on a leave of absence from the institution considered retained?
No. Students must be enrolled for credit at the institution in the Fall to be considered retained from the previous fall.
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4) For less-than-4-year institutions that have a student who completed a program and are still enrolled at the
same institution in another program, how should they count that student?
The institution should count that student as "retained" only once. Do NOT count that student twice, once for having completed
the program and another time for still being enrolled. 
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Undergraduate Student-to-Faculty Ratio (Part F)
1) How do I calculate my institution's student-to-faculty ratio?
A worksheet has been provided to guide the process of calculating the student-to-faculty ratio for your institution. The
worksheet can be accessed from the Part F screen in the Data Collection System.
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2) Can you provide an example of a stand-alone graduate or professional program (a program such as medicine,
law, veterinary, or dentistry in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students)?

An example of a program that would fall into this category (typically a doctor's-professional practice program) is a school of
medicine that only awards degrees/certificates at the graduate level and therefore its faculty exclusively (or in some cases
almost exclusively) teach graduate students. Programs that are "stand-alone" graduate programs may have some
undergraduate students enrolled in their courses, however a "stand-alone" graduate program would only award
degrees/certificates at the graduate level. An example of a graduate program that would not meet this criteria is a school of
business that has an undergraduate and graduate program and therefore enrolls both types of students and awards
degrees/certificates at both levels. Further, the faculty would teach a mix of undergraduate and graduate students. Excluding
“stand-alone” graduate programs is intended to make the student-to-faculty ratio closer to an undergraduate student-to-faculty
ratio than it would be if these programs were included in the calculation, without overburdening institutions.
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3) My institution has graduate and/or doctors-professional practice programs but does not have any "standalone" programs. What should I enter on the student and faculty exclusion line items related to these types of
programs on the worksheet for Part F?
If your institution does not have any "stand-alone" graduate or professional programs, then enter 0 for students and 0 for
faculty in the lines for these types of programs. Most institutions do not have these types of graduate or professional programs,
so entering 0 in those lines will be fairly common.
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2015-16 Survey Materials > Narrative Edits

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment for 4-year degree-granting institutions
Edit specifications for the 2015-16 IPEDS Web-Based Data Collection
Fall Enrollment (EF) Component
Applicable to 4-year degree-granting institutions
NOTE: The specifications in this document apply to the institutions listed above. Some sections and parts may not
apply to your particular institution. Please read the specifications carefully to determine which sections and/or parts
apply to your institution.
All screens must be completed in order to lock the survey.

Screening Question
Part A: Enrollment of Students by Race/Ethnicity
Part B: Enrollment of Students by Age
Part C: Residence
Part D: Total Undergraduate Entering Class
Part E: Retention Rates
Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio
Screening Question
You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is
shown.

Part Selection
Completion of Part C: Residence is optional for this reporting year. Before continuing, you must indicate the following:
•

Do you wish to complete Part B this year?
◦ No (If this option is selected, then Part C will not be displayed.)
◦ Yes (If this option is selected, then you will be required to complete all screens in Part C.)

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Part A: Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender
Full-Time Degree-granting Undergraduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported full-time undergraduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of First-time, Transfer-in, and Continuing full-time undergraduate
degree/certificate-seeking students, as well as the number of full-time undergraduate Non-degree/non-certificate-seeking
students, enrolled in creditable courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the total number of undergraduate degree/certificate-seeking students,
and the grand total number of full-time undergraduate students (degree/certificate-seeking plus non-degree/non-certificateseeking) enrolled for credit by race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand
total (men + women) enrolled for credit by student type.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•
•
•

•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total, full-time undergraduate students must be greater than 0.
If your institution reported that it enrolls full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part B of
the IC Header survey, you must report students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are
receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part
B of the IC Header survey, you are not expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is enrolled
and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If you reported First-time students on this screen, you are also expected to report Transfer-in and/or Continuing
students.
Note:
◦ For Academic Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time in the fall of the current year (or the summer immediately preceding).
◦ For Program Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time between August 1 and October 31 of the current year.
If your institutions is a Public institution, then the calculated grand total (men + women) for Transfer-in students
must be greater than 0.

•
•
•
•

•

•

For each gender category, if the total number of Transfer-in students is greater than 0, then the number of
Continuing students should also be greater than 0. If this is not the case, then you must confirm that the specified
values are correct.
If the percent of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category
is between 20 percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category
is greater than 80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.
For each gender category, the total number of First-time students is expected to be within a certain range of the
prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is less than or equal to 25, then the
current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is between 26 and 100, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is between 101 and 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is greater than 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Part-Time Degree-granting Undergraduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported part-time undergraduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of First-time, Transfer-in, and Continuing part-time undergraduate
degree/certificate-seeking students, as well as the number of part-time undergraduate Non-degree/non-certificateseeking students, enrolled in creditable courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the total number of undergraduate degree/certificate-seeking students,
and the grand total number of part-time undergraduate students (degree/certificate-seeking plus non-degree/non-certificateseeking) enrolled for credit by race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand
total (men + women) enrolled for credit by student type.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•
•
•

•
•
•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total, part-time undergraduate students must be greater than 0.
If your institution reported that it enrolls part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part B of
the IC Header survey, you must report students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are
receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in
Part B of the IC Header survey, you are not expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is
enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If you reported First-time students on this screen, you are also expected to report Transfer-in and/or Continuing
students.
Note:
◦ For Academic Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time in the fall of the current year (or the summer immediately preceding).
◦ For Program Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time between August 1 and October 31 of the current year.
For each gender category, if the total number of Transfer-in students is greater than 0, then the number of
Continuing students should also be greater than 0. If this is not the case, then you must confirm that the specified
values are correct.
If the percent of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown
category is between 20 percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown
category is greater than 80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.

•

•

•

For each gender category, the total number of First-time students is expected to be within a certain range of the
prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is less than or equal to 25, then the
current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is between 26 and 100, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is between 101 and 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is greater than 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Graduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported graduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of full-time and part-time graduate students enrolled in creditable graduate
courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the total number of graduate students (full-time + part-time) enrolled for
credit by race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand
total (men + women) enrolled for credit by student type.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total graduate students must be greater than 0.
If your institution reported that it enrolls full-time, graduates in Part B of the IC Header survey, you must report
students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may
contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll full-time, graduates in Part B of the IC Header survey, you are not
expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in
error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it enrolls part-time, graduates in Part B of the IC Header survey, you must report
students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may
contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll part -time, graduates in Part B of the IC Header survey, you are not
expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in
error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If the percent of Total graduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category is between 20
percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Total graduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category is greater than
80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.
For each gender category, the number of Total Full-time students is expected to be within a certain range of the
prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total Full-time students reported in the prior year is less than or equal to 25, then the
current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total Full-time students reported in the prior year is between 26 and 100, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total Full-time students reported in the prior year is between 101 and 500, then the
current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total Full-time students reported in the prior year is greater than 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total Part-time students is expected to be within a certain range of the
prior year value, as outlined below:

◦
◦
◦
◦

If the number of Total Part-time students reported in the prior year is less than or equal to 25, then the
current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
If the number of Total Part-time students reported in the prior year is between 26 and 100, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
If the number of Total Part-time students reported in the prior year is between 101 and 500, then the
current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
If the number of Total Part-time students reported in the prior year is greater than 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 1
On this screen, you must report the number of Degree/Certificate-seeking and Non-Degree/Certificate-seeking
undergraduate students enrolled at the institution for each of the following categories:
•
•

Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses

If your institution has graduate enrollment, you must also provide the above amounts for Graduate Students.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate  the number of students not enrolled in any distance education
courses by degree/certificate-seeking status (Degree/Certificate Seeking, Non-degree/Certificate Seeking, and Graduate
Students), as applicable to your institution. The value is calculated by subtracting the (students enrolled exclusively in
distance education + students enrolled in some but not all distance education courses) from the total enrolled students from
Part A which are displayed for your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•

•

•
•

•

If your institution reported offering undergraduate distance education opportunities in this year's Institutional
Characteristics survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in distance education
courses and Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses across all status options is expected to be
greater than 0.
If your institution reported NOT offering undergraduate distance education opportunities in this year's Institutional
Characteristics survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in distance education
courses and Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses across all status options is expected to be
0.
If your institution reported that all undergraduate programs are offered via distance education in this year's
Institutional Characteristics survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled in some but not all
distance education courses and Not enrolled in any distance education courses is expected to be 0.
If your institution enrolls graduate students, and reported offering graduate distance education opportunities in this
year's Institutional Characteristics survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in
distance education courses and Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses is expected to be
greater than 0.
If your institution enrolls graduate students, and reported NOT offering graduate distance education opportunities in
this year's Institutional Characteristics survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled in some but
not all distance education courses and Not enrolled in any distance education courses is expected to be 0.

Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 2
On this screen, you must report the number of Degree/Certificate-seeking and Non-Degree/Certificate-seeking
undergraduate students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses for each of the following location categories:
•
•
•
•

Located in the state/jurisdiction of [state/jurisdiction where institution is located]
Located in the U.S. but not in [state/jurisdiction where institution is located]
Located in the U.S. but state unknown
Located outside the U.S.

If your institution has graduate enrollment, you must also provide the above amounts for Graduate Students.
For each applicable enrollment and degree/certificate seeking status (Degree/Certificate Seeking, Non-degree/Certificate
Seeking, and Graduate Students), the total number of students Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses from
Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 1 is displayed for your reference. Based on the data entered, the system will
calculate the number of students whose location is unknown/unreported.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•

•

For each applicable enrollment and degree-seeking status, if the Total students exclusively enrolled in distance
education is greater than or equal to 5 and you report all students under the same location category, th en an
explanation error will occur.
For each applicable enrollment and degree-seeking status, the calculated value for
Location unknown/unreported cannot be a negative number. Please correct your values so that the total of each
status is not greater than the preloaded Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education from
Distance Education, Page 1.
For each applicable enrollment and degree-seeking status, the calculated value for Location unknown/unreported
is not expected to be equal to the corresponding Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education.

Fall Enrollment Summary
This screen displays a summary of the data reported in Part A of this survey, including Total full-time students, Total part
-time students, and Grand total, all students enrolled at the institution by race/ethnicity and gender. Additional summary
screens will be generated for each CIP code selected on the CIP Selection screen.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•

The calculated Grand Total (men + women) calculated for Grand total, all students must be greater than 0.
The current year racial/ethnic distribution of Men is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year racial/ethnic
distribution, otherwise an explanation must be provided.
Note: These distributions are calculated by finding the absolute value of the current year percentage for men minus
the corresponding prior year percentage for men from each race/ethnicity category. If the sum of the absolute values
across all race/ethnicity categories (excluding the White category) is greater than 30, then an explanation error will
occur. For example, in Table 1 (shown below) the sum of the Current year minus prior year absolute values
across all applicable race/ethnicity categories is 40. Because this number is greater than 30, an explanation error will
occur.
Table 1

Race/ethnicity

Nonresident Alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian/Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total
•

Current year
percentage
of men
6
10
1
8
25
6

Prior year
percentage
of men
14
9
3
6
10
4

Current year minus
prior year absolute
value
8
1
2
2
15
2

50
4
0
--

46
6
8
--

-2
8
40

As with the distribution of Men explained previously, the current year racial/ethnic distribution of Women is expected
to be within a 30% range of the prior year racial/ethnic distribution, otherwise an explanation must be provided.

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Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender
In Part B you must report the number of students enrolled for credit at the institution by age distribution and gender for each
of the following student types, as applicable (based on enrollment reported in the IC Header survey):
•
•
•
•

Full-time undergraduate
Part-time undergraduate
Full-time graduate
Part-time graduate

For each applicable student type, the system will calculate the total number of students reported in Part B by gender and
subtract this value from the corresponding total from Part A to determine the number of students with Age
unknown/unreported.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for each applicable student type:
•

•

For each gender category, the number of full-time undergraduate students with Age unknown/unreported cannot
be negative.
Note: If this number is less than 0, it is because the sum of men and women from all age groups is greater than the
number of students reported for the corresponding student type in Part A. Corrections must be made to the data in
one or both parts to resolve the fatal error that will occur.
For each gender category, the number of students with Age unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to
20% of the number of students reported for the corresponding student type in Part A.

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Part C: Residence
Applicable to institutions that answered Yes to the Part Selection screening question at the beginning of the
survey

Part C Screening Question

You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is
shown.
•

Did any of the first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part A enroll within 12 months
of graduating from high school or receiving their GED?
◦ No
◦ Yes

The system will perform the following edit on the data entered:
•

If your institution reported that you enroll full-time, first-time degree/certificate seeking undergraduate students in
Part B of the IC Header survey, then you are expected to respond Yes to the screening question above.

First-time Residence (3 screens)
Applicable to institutions that answered Yes to the 'Part C Screening Question'
On these screens you must report the number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students enrolled in the
institution (column 1), and the number of these students who enrolled within 12 months of graduating from high school or
receiving their GED (column 2) by State of residence when student was first admitted. This includes all states and US
territories, along with additional "State Unknown" and "Foreign Countries" categories, each with its own unique 2-digit FIPS
Code.
On the final screen in Part C, the system will calculate the number of students with Residence unknown/unreported (FIPS
Code 98) by subtracting the sum of all students entered in column 1 from the total number of first-time, degree/certificateseeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•
•
•

•
•
•

For each FIPS Code, the number of students reported in column 2 must be less than or equal to the number of
students reported in column 1.
The sum of all students entered in column 2 must be greater than 0.
The sum of all students entered in column 2 must be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of students
entered in column 1.
The number of students with Residence unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
Note: You must report state of residence for the maximum number of students possible. If you are unable to provide
at least 20% of residences, you must enter an explanation.
The total number of First-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part C cannot
exceed the number of total First-time undergraduate students reported in Part A.
The number of students from State Unknown (FIPS Code 57) is expected to be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
If your institution is a public institution, then the total number of first-time, degree/certificate seeking undergraduate
students in your institution’s "home state" is expected to be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of firsttime, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

First-time Residence (3 screens)
Applicable to institutions that answered No to the 'Part C Screening Question'
On these screens you must report the number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students enrolled in the
institution (column 1) by State of residence when student was first admitted. This includes all states and US territories,
along with additional "State Unknown" and "Foreign Countries" categories, each with its own unique 2-digit FIPS Code.
On the final screen in Part C, the system will determine the number of students with Residence unknown/unreported
(FIPS Code 98) by subtracting the sum of all students entered in column 1 from the total number of first-time,
degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•

•
•
•

The number of students with Residence unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
Note: You must report state of residence for the maximum number of students possible. If you are unable to provide
at least 20% of residences, you must enter an explanation.
The total number of First-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part C cannot
exceed the number of total First-time undergraduate students reported in Part A.
The number of students from State Unknown (FIPS Code 57) is expected to be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
If your institution is a public institution, then the total number of first-time, degree/certificate seeking undergraduate
students in your institution’s "home state" is expected to be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of firsttime, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

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Part D: Total Undergraduate Entering Class
On this screen, several data items from Part A of this survey are preloaded for your reference. This includes:

•
•
•
•

Line
Line
Line
Line

D1: The number of full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates reported (your GR cohort).
D2: The total number of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) reported.
D3: The total number of transfer-in degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) reported.
D4: The total number of non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) reported.

You must report the following information for line D5:
•

Of the total non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates displayed on line D4, the number that are new to the
institution in Fall 2015.

Based on this additional data, the system will determine the Total entering students at the undergraduate level (Line D6) by
summing lines D2, Line D3, and Line D5. The percentage of those students who are represented by the GR cohort (Line D7) is
calculated as Line D1 divided by Line D6.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for Line D5:
•
•
•

The number of students entered for line D5 is expected to be greater than 0. If this is not the case, then you must
confirm that the data entered are correct.
The number of students entered for line D5 must be less than or equal to the number of students in line D4.
The number of students entered for line D5 should not be equal to those in line D1 since this would indicate that the
institution’s entering class is 100% of the GR cohort. If the institution’s entering class is 100% of the GR cohort, then
you must confirm that this is correct.

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Part E: Retention Rates
In Part E, you must report the retention rates for the Full-time, first-time bachelor’s cohort and the Part-time, firsttime bachelor’s cohort.
Note: Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program
reporters report retention data on students enrolled in the institution at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and
retention based on August 1, 2015.

Full-time, first-time bachelor’s cohort retention rates
You must report the number of students in the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor’s cohort (E1), as well as any
Exclusions from the cohort (E2). Once the screen is saved, the system will display the difference between the two in the
Adjusted cohort (E3) field.
In addition, the number of Students from Fall 2014 still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E4) must be reported in order to
determine the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor’s cohort retention rate (E5) percentage.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•

•
•
•
•
•
•
•

•

•

The Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor's cohort (E1) is expected to be within a certain range of the Prior
year data, as outlined below:
◦ If the prior year amount for E1 is less than 25, then the current year amount must be between 0 and plus 10
of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount for E1 is between 25 and 99, then the current year amount must be within a 30%
range of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount for E1 is between 100 and 499, then the current year amount must be within a 20%
range of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount for E1 is greater than or equal to 500, then the current year amount must be within a
10% range of that amount.
The full-time, first-time bachelor's cohort entered must be less than or equal to the total number of full-time, firsttime students reported in last year's Fall Enrollment survey component.
If the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor's cohort is greater than 0, then the Exclusions from the cohort
must be less than 50% of this value.
If the Adjusted cohort is greater than 0 and E1 is greater than 5, then the number of Students from Fall 2014
cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 is expected to be greater than 0.
The number of Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E4) must be less than or equal to
the Adjusted cohort.
The number of students reported for E4 is expected to be greater than or equal to 15% of the Adjusted cohort.
If the number of students reported for E4 is equal to the Adjusted cohort, then you must confirm a retention rate of
100% for that cohort.
If you reported enrollment for full-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are expected to report full-time, first-time students on this
screen. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
If you did not report enrollment for full-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are not expected to report full-time, first-time students on
this screen. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
The value reported for E5 is expected to be within plu s or minus 15% of the prior year retention rate.

Part-time, first-time bachelor’s cohort retention
You must report the number of students in the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor’s cohort (E6), as well as any
Exclusions from the cohort (E7). Once the screen is saved, the system will display the difference between the two in the
Adjusted cohort (E8) field.
In addition, the number of Students from Fall 2014 still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E9) must be reported in order to
determine the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor’s cohort retention rate (E10) percentage.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•

•
•
•
•
•
•

•

•

The Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor's cohort (E6) is expected to be within a certain range of the
Preloaded cohort, as outlined below:
◦ If the prior year amount for E6 is less than 25, then the current year amount must be between 0 an d plus 10
of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount for E6 is between 25 and 99, then the current year amount must be within a 30%
range of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount for E6 is between 100 and 499, then the current year amount must be within a 20%
range of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount for E6 is greater than or equal to 500, then the current year amount must be within a
10% range of that amount.
The part-time, first-time bachelor's cohort entered must be less than or equal to the total number of part-time, firsttime students reported in last year's Fall Enrollment survey component.
If the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 bachelor's cohort is greater than 0, then the Exclusions from the cohort
must be less than 50% of this value.
If the Adjusted cohort is greater than 0 and E6 is greater than 5, then the number of Students from Fall 2014
cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 is expected to be greater than 0.
The number of Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E9) must be less than or equal to
the Adjusted cohort.
If the number of students reported for E9 is equal to the Adjusted cohort, then you must confirm a retention rate of
100% for that cohort.
If you reported enrollment for part-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are expected to report part-time, first-time students on this
screen. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
If you did not report enrollment for part-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are not expected to report part-time, first-time students on
this screen. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
The value reported for E10 is expected to be within plus or minus 15% of the prior year retention rate.

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Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio
On this screen, you must report your institution's Student-to-faculty ratio (e.g., student-to-instructional staff ratio) for Fall
2015 using the ratio format provided. Additional resources are available, including the prior year student-to-faculty ratio, and
a worksheet for assistance in determining your institution’s student-to-faculty ratio.
Note: The student-to-faculty ratio and any accompanying context provided on this screen will be displayed on College
Navigator.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•
•

The ratio entered here is expected to be greater than 0 to 1.
If the ratio entered is greater than 50 to 1, then a fatal error will occur.
The ratio entered must be within a certain range of the prior year amount, as outlined below:
◦ If the prior year amount entered is between 0 and 10 to 1, then the current year amount must be within 5
integers of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount entered is greater than 10 to 1, then the current year amount must be within a 50%
range of that amount.

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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or ipedshelp@rti.org

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Form

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment for 2-year degree-granting institutions
Overview 
Fall Enrollment Overview
The Fall Enrollment component collects student enrollment counts by level of student, enrollment status, gender and
race/ethnicity. In addition, first-time student retention rates and the student-to-faculty ratio are collected. Every other
year data on residence of first-time undergraduates is required and in opposite years, enrollment by student age is
required to be reported.
Institutions operating on a traditional academic year calendar (semester, trimester, quarter, or 4-1-4) report Fall
enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or October 15. Institutions operating on a calendar that
differs by program or that enrolls students on a continuous basis (referred to as program reporters) report Fall
enrollment as students enrolled any time during the period August 1 and October 31.
Data Reporting Reminders:
•Part B, Enrollment of students by age, is required this year.
•Part C, Residence of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates, is optional this year.
Resources:
To download the survey materials for this component: Survey Materials
To access your prior year data submission for this component: Reported Data
If you have questions about completing this survey, please contact the IPEDS Help Desk at 1-877-225-2568.

Part Selection 
Completion of Part C (Residence of First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates) is optional this year.
Do you wish to complete Part C this year?
If you select 'No', you will skip Part C.
If you select 'Yes', you will be expected to complete the Part C screens.
No, I will not complete Part C
Yes, I will complete Part C

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Full-Time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Full-time Undergraduate Students
Reporting Reminders:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only
•Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.

Men
Enrolled for
credit

First-time

Degree/certificate-seeking
Non-degree/
Total,
Full-time
Transfer-in Continuing/ Total degree/certificate- non-certificate-seeking
undergraduate
Returning
seeking
students

First-time

Degree/certificate-seeking
Non-degree/
Total,
Full-time
Transfer-in Continuing/ Total degree/certificate- non-certificate-seeking
undergraduate
Returning
seeking
students

Nonresident
alien
Hispanic/Latino
American
Indian or
Alaska Native
Asian
Black or
African
American
Native
Hawaiian or
Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more
races
Race and
ethnicity
unknown
Total men
Total men prior
year
Women
Enrolled for
credit
Nonresident
alien
Hispanic/Latino
American
Indian or
Alaska Native
Asian
Black or
African
American
Native
Hawaiian or
Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more
races

Race and
ethnicity
unknown
Total women
Total women
prior year
Grand total
(men+women)
Grand total
(men+women)
prior year

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Part-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Part-time Undergraduate Students
Reporting Reminders:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only
•Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.

Men
Enrolled for
credit

First-time

Degree/certificate-seeking
Non-degree/
Total,
Transfer-in Continuing/ Total degree/certificate- non-certificate-seeking part-time
undergraduate
Returning
seeking
students

First-time

Degree/certificate-seeking
Non-degree/
Total,
Transfer-in Continuing/ Total degree/certificate- non-certificate-seeking part-time
undergraduate
Returning
seeking
students

Nonresident
alien
Hispanic/Latino
American
Indian or Alaska
Native
Asian
Black or African
American
Native
Hawaiian or
Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more
races
Race and
ethnicity
unknown
Total men
Total men prior
year
Women
Enrolled for
credit
Nonresident
alien
Hispanic/Latino
American
Indian or Alaska
Native
Asian
Black or African
American
Native
Hawaiian or
Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more
races
Race and
ethnicity
unknown

Total women
Total women
prior year
Grand total
(men+women)
Grand total
(men+women)
prior year

Part A - Fall Enrollment Summary 
Fall Enrollment Summary
Men
Students enrolled for credit

Total full-time
students

Total part-time
students

Grand total,
all students

Total full-time
students

Total part-time
students

Grand total,
all students

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Women
Students enrolled for credit
Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Grand Total (men+women)

Part A - Fall Enrollment by Distance Education Status 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Undergraduate Students
Degree/Certificate Seeking Non-Degree/Certificate Seeking
Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses
Not enrolled in any distance education courses
Total (from prior part A screens)
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part A - Fall Enrollment by Distance Education Status 
Of those students exclusively enrolled in distance education
courses, report the number that are:
Located in
Located in the U.S. but not in
Located in the U.S. but state/jurisdiction unknown
Located outside the U.S.
Location unknown/unreported
Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education (from
section above)

Undergraduate Students
Degree/Certificate
Non-Degree/Certificate
Seeking
Seeking

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Full-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total full-time undergraduate students (from part A)

Full-time Undergraduate Students
Men
Women

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Part-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total part-time undergraduate students (from part A)

Part-time Undergraduate Students
Men
Women

Part C - Screening Question 
Did any of your first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (reported in Part A) enroll within 12
months of graduating high school or receiving their GED?
No, we do not have any first-time students who enrolled within 12 months of their high school
graduation.
Yes, we have first-time students who enrolled within 12 months of their high school graduation.
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS Code
Of students in column 1, those
Total first-time
was first admitted
who enrolled within 12 months
degree/certificate-seeking
of high school graduation
undergraduates
or receiving their GED
(1)
(2)
Alabama
01
Alaska

02

Arizona

04

Arkansas

05

California

06

Colorado

08

Connecticut

09

Delaware

10

District of Columbia

11

Florida

12

Georgia

13

Hawaii

15

Idaho

16

Illinois

17

Indiana

18

Iowa

19

Kansas

20

Kentucky

21

Louisiana

22

Maine

23

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS Code
Total first-time
Of students in column 1, those
was first admitted
degree/certificate-seeking
who enrolled within 12 months
undergraduates
of high school graduation
(1)
or receiving their GED
(2)
Maryland
24
Massachusetts

25

Michigan

26

Minnesota

27

Mississippi

28

Missouri

29

Montana

30

Nebraska

31

Nevada

32

New Hampshire

33

New Jersey

34

New Mexico

35

New York

36

North Carolina

37

North Dakota

38

Ohio

39

Oklahoma

40

Oregon

41

Pennsylvania

42

Rhode Island

44

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS
Total first-time
Of students in column 1, those
was first admitted
Code degree/certificate-seeking who enrolled within 12 months of
undergraduates
high school graduation
(1)
or receiving their GED
(2)
South Carolina
45
South Dakota

46

Tennessee

47

Texas

48

Utah

49

Vermont

50

Virginia

51

Washington

53

West Virginia

54

Wisconsin

55

Wyoming

56

State Unknown

57

American Samoa

60

Federated States of Micronesia

64

Guam

66

Marshall Islands

68

Northern Marianas

69

Palau

70

Puerto Rico

72

Virgin Islands

78

Foreign Countries

90

Residence unknown/unreported
Total first-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates (from Part A)

98

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

This part is only required from academic reporters.
Part D - Total Undergraduate Entering Class 
Total Undergraduate Entering Class, Fall 2015
D1 Total full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates from Part A (GR cohort)
D2 Total first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) from Part A
D3 Total transfer-in degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) from Part A
D4 Total non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) from Part A
D5 Of the total non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates displayed on line D4, the number that are
new to the institution in Fall 2015
D6 Total entering students at the undergraduate level
Note: This is calculated as first-time students (line D2) + students transferring to the institution (line D3)
+ non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates entering in Fall 2015 (line D5).
D7 Percentage of undergraduate entering class represented by your GR cohort (line D1/line D6)

Part E - First-Time Student Cohort Retention Rates (Full-time) 
Retention Rates
Full-time, First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Cohort from Fall 2014
The Fall 2014 cohort is preloaded based on data reported in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program
reporters determine the cohort with enrollment any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based
on August 1, 2015.
The retention rate is calculated by the system after clicking "Save" on the screen. Exclusions are subtracted from the
original cohort and the resulting adjusted cohort is used for calculating the retention rate.
Retention Data Reporting Reminders:
•
Include only full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students in this cohort.
•
Determine full-time using Fall 2014 attendance status (e.g. if a student was full-time in Fall 2014, report them in
the full-time cohort regardless of Fall 2015 status).
•
If there are no students to report in the cohort, enter zero. Do not leave the field blank.
•
Report in the exclusions box (line E2) the number of students from the cohort who left the institution for any of
the following reasons: died or were totally and permanently disabled; to serve in the armed forces (including
those called to active duty); to serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g. Peace Corps);
or to serve on official church missions.
Preloaded
cohort

Prior year
data (Fall
2013
cohort)

FULL-TIME, FIRST-TIME COHORT RETENTION:
E1
Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort
E2

Exclusions from the Fall 2014 cohort

E3
Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort (line E1 - line E2)
E4
Students from Fall 2014 cohort who are still enrolled + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015
E5
Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (line E4 / line
E3)
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notes
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the
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%

%

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part E - First-Time Student Cohort Retention Rates (Part-time) 
Retention Rates
Part-time, First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Cohort from Fall 2014
The Fall 2014 cohort is preloaded based on data reported in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program
reporters determine the cohort with enrollment any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based
on August 1, 2015.
The retention rate is calculated by the system after clicking "Save" on the screen. Exclusions are subtracted from the
original cohort and the resulting adjusted cohort is used for calculating the retention rate.
Retention Data Reporting Reminders:
•
Include only part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students in this cohort.
•
Determine part-time using Fall 2014 attendance status (e.g. if a student was part-time in Fall 2014, report them
in the part-time cohort regardless of their Fall 2015 status).
•
If there are no students to report in the cohort, enter zero. Do not leave the field blank.
•
Report in the exclusions box (line E7) the number of students from the cohort who left the institution for any of
the following reasons: died or were totally and permanently disabled; to serve in the armed forces (including
those called to active duty); to serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g. Peace Corps);
or to serve on official church missions.

Preloaded
cohort

Prior year
data (Fall
2013
cohort)

PART-TIME, FIRST-TIME COHORT RETENTION:
E6
Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort
E7

Exclusions from the Fall 2014 cohort

E8
Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort (line E6 - line E7)
E9
Students from Fall 2014 cohort who are still enrolled + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015
E10
Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (line E9 / line
E8)
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context
notes
will
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posted
the
College
Navigator.
End
of image
description.

%

%

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part F - Student-to-Faculty Ratio 
Please provide your institution's student-to-faculty ratio (i.e., student-to-instructional staff) for undergraduate
programs for Fall 2015. The student-to-faculty ratio and any accompanying context that is provided will be
displayed on College Navigator.
Note: Logic in this item is similar to item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.

Click here to use a worksheet to help you determine the student-to-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio

to 1

Student-to-faculty ratio prior year

to 1

Image
description.
These
context
notes
will
be on
posted
the College
Navigator.
End of image
description.

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part F - Less Than Four-Year Institutions and Four Year-Institutions Without Graduate
Programs Student-to-Faculty Ratio Worksheet 
This worksheet is designed to help you determine your institution's student-to-faculty ratio.
Data entered on this worksheet will NOT be collected or saved. Therefore, please PRINT this screen if you
would like to refer to the ratio calculation for your institution at a later time.
Note: The logic used for this calculation is similar to item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.
Students, Fall 2015
F1 Total full-time students from Part A
F2 Total part-time students from Part A
F3 Full-time equivalent of part-time students
(Line F2 * 1/3)
F4 Total full-time equivalent students
(Line F1 + F3)
Instructional Staff, Fall 2015
FULL-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF:
F5 Number of full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR survey component
Full-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion (Line F6):
F6 Full-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion:
Of the number of full-time instructional staff reported in Line F5, the number teaching
exclusively non-credit courses
F7 Total adjusted full-time instructional staff
(Line F5 - F6)
PART-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF:
F8 Number of part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR survey component
Part-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion (Line F9):
F9 Of the number of part-time instructional staff reported in Line F8, the number teaching
exclusively non-credit courses
Part-Time Instructional Staff Addition (Line F10):
F10 Number of administrators, or other staff not reported to IPEDS as instructors, that are
teaching a credit course(s) in the Fall
F11 Total adjusted part-time instructional staff
(Line F8 - F9 + F10)
F12 Full-time equivalent of adjusted part-time instructional staff
(Line F11 * 1/3)
F13 Total full-time equivalent instructional staff
(Line F7 + F12)
F14 Student-to-faculty ratio
(Line F4/F13)

to 1

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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or ipedshelp@rti.org

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Instructions

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment Full Instructions

Purpose of Survey
Changes in Reporting
General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
Context Boxes

Coverage
Who To Include
Who To Exclude

Where to Get Help For Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
AIR Website
IPEDS Website Resources

Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Institution Level
Aggregate Level

Reporting Directions
Screening Questions
Reporting Individuals by Racial/Ethnic Categories
Part A: Fall Enrollment by Level, Attendance Status, Race/Ethnicity, and Gender
Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age
Part C: Residence of First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates
Part D: Total Undergraduate Entering Class
Part E: Retention Rates for First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates
Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio

Purpose of Survey
The purpose of the Fall Enrollment component of IPEDS is to collect enrollment data on all students enrolled for credit
in courses/programs that could lead to awards ranging from postsecondary certificates of less than 1 year to doctoral
degrees. Fall enrollment data are collected by level of student, attendance status, race/ethnicity, and gender. In
addition, the Fall Enrollment component collects data on the institution's undergraduate entering class, first-time
student retention rates, and the student-to-faculty ratio. Every other year data on enrollment by nine selected fields of
study are collected, as is residency of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students. In opposite years,
enrollment by student age is collected.
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Changes in Reporting
Enrollment by age will be mandatory this year. Enrollment by residence is optional.
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General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
For institutions operating on a traditional academic year calendar (semester, trimester, quarter, or 4-1-4), fall
enrollment should be reported as of the institution's official fall reporting date or October 15.
For institutions operating on an "other academic calendar," a calendar that differs by program, or enrolls students on a
continuous basis (referred to as program reporters), fall enrollment is reported for students enrolled any time during
the period August 1 and October 31.

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Context Boxes
Context boxes are provided to allow institutions to provide more information regarding survey component items. Note
that some context boxes are posted on the College Navigator Website, which is the college search tool offered by
NCES. NCES will review entries in these context boxes for applicability and appropriateness before posting them on the
College Navigator Website; institutions should check grammar and spelling of their entries.
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Coverage
Who to Include
Include all students enrolled for credit (enrolled in instructional activity, courses or programs, that can be applied
towards the requirements for a postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award), regardless of
whether or not they are seeking a degree or certificate. This includes:

•
•
•
•

Students enrolled for credit in off-campus centers
High school students taking regular college courses for credit
Students taking remedial courses if the student is degree-seeking for the purpose of student financial aid
determination
Students from overseas enrolled in for credit at your institution (e.g., online students)

Who to Exclude
Exclude students who are not enrolled for credit. For example, exclude:

•
•
•
•

Students enrolled exclusively in courses that cannot be applied towards a formal award
Students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses)
Students enrolled exclusively in Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
Students exclusively auditing classes

In addition, the following students should be excluded:

•
•

Any student studying abroad (e.g., at a foreign university) if their enrollment at the 'home' institution serves
as an administrative record
Students enrolled in any branch campus located in a foreign country

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Where to Get Help with Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
Phone: 1-877-225-2568
Email: ipedshelp@rti.org

Web Tutorials
You can also consult the IPEDS Website Trainings & Outreach page which contains several tutorials on IPEDS data
collection, a self-paced overview of IPEDS tools, and other valuable resources.

IPEDS Resource Page
The IPEDS Website Reporting Tools page contains frequently asked questions, a link to data tip sheets, tutorials,
taxonomies, information centers (e.g., academic libraries, average net price, human resources, race/ethnicity, etc.),
and other valuable information.
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Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Data collected through IPEDS will be accessible at the institution- and aggregate-levels.
At the institution-level, data will appear in the:

•
•
•
•

College Navigator Website
IPEDS Data Center
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
College Affordability and Transparency Center Website

At the aggregate-level, data will appear in:

•
•
•
•
•

IPEDS First Looks
IPEDS Table Library
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
The Digest of Education Statistics
The Condition of Education

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Reporting Directions
Screening Questions
Before entering any data, screening questions will need to be answered.
Part C Selection
Part C (Enrollment of Students by Residence) is optional this year. Indicate whether or not you will complete Part C of
the Fall Enrollment survey component this year.
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Reporting Persons by Racial/Ethnic Category (1997 OMB)
This information is being collected in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 and Sec. 421(a)(1) of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act. These instructions
correspond with the Final Guidance on Maintaining, Collecting, and Reporting Racial and Ethnic Data to the U.S.
Department of Education, published in the Federal Register on October 19, 2007.
Method of collection - Institutions must collect race and ethnicity information using a 2-question format. The first
question is whether the respondent is Hispanic/Latino. The second question is whether the respondent is from one or
more races from the following list: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native
Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and White. Institutions should allow students and staff to self-identify their race
and ethnicity. For further details on the guidance for collecting these data, please see the full Federal Register notice.
Method of reporting aggregate data - Institutions must report aggregate data to the U.S. Department of Education
using the NINE categories below. Racial/ethnic designations are requested only for United States citizens, resident
aliens, and other eligible non-citizens.

•

Hispanic or Latino, regardless of race

For Non-Hispanic/Latino individuals:

•
•
•
•
•
•

American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races

In addition, the following categories may be used:

•
•

Nonresident alien
Race and ethnicity unknown

Racial/ethnic descriptions - Racial/ethnic designations as used in this survey do not denote scientific definitions of
anthropological origins. The categories are:
•
•
•
•
•
•

Hispanic or Latino- A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish
culture or origin, regardless of race.
American Indian or Alaska Native- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South
America (including Central America) who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or
community attachment.
Asian- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian
Subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine
Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Black or African American- A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii,
Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
White - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

Other descriptive categories

•

•

Nonresident alien - A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country
on a visa or temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely. NOTE - Nonresident aliens are
to be reported separately, in the boxes provided, rather than included in any of the seven racial/ethnic
categories. Resident aliens and other eligible (for financial aid purposes) non-citizens who are not citizens or
nationals of the United States and who have been admitted as legal immigrants for the purpose of obtaining
permanent resident alien status (and who hold either an alien registration card (Form I-551 or I-151), a
Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), or an Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) with a notation that
conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee
or Cuban-Haitian) are to be reported in the appropriate racial/ethnic categories along with United States
citizens.
Race and ethnicity unknown - This category is used only if the person did not select EITHER a racial or
ethnic designation.

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Part A: Full-Time Undergraduate Students by Race/Ethnicity and Gender
On this screen, include all students enrolled for credit, full-time at the undergraduate level. The undergraduate level
includes students enrolled in undergraduate level courses, in 4 or 5-year bachelor's degree programs, associate's
degree programs, or any certificate programs below the baccalaureate level. Students who have already earned a
bachelor's degree but are taking undergraduate courses for credit should be included as undergraduates.

Full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students
In column 1, report undergraduate students who have no prior postsecondary experience and have enrolled fulltime with the intent to earn a degree, certificate, or other formal award. The following are also considered firsttime:

•
•

Students enrolled in the fall term who attended college for the first time in the prior summer session
(applicable to both academic and program reporters)
Students who entered with advanced standing (any college credits earned before graduation from high school)

In order to be considered degree or certificate-seeking, the student must be enrolled in courses for credit and be
recognized by the institution as seeking a degree or other formal award. Note: All students eligible to receive federal
student financial aid are to be considered degree/certificate-seeking. Dual enrolled high school students are not
degree/certificate-seeking students. 
Program Reporters: Include first-time students who entered your institution between August 1, 2015 and October
31, 2015.
Academic Reporters: Student counts reported in column 1 define the initial cohort for reporting graduation rates in
the IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) component to meet Student Right-to-Know reporting requirements. Students
reported in this group will become your GR cohort in the reporting year appropriate for your institution. The number of
students reported in column 1 will also appear in Part D to be used in determining the percentage of the
undergraduate entering class represented by the cohort.

Full-time, transfer-in degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column 2, report the total number of full-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students entering the
reporting institution for the first time but known to have previously attended a postsecondary institution at the
undergraduate level. Include students enrolled in the fall term who transferred into the institution the prior summer
term. These students may or may not have transferred credit(s).
Program Reporters: Include students who transferred into your institution between August 1, 2015 and October 31,
2015 and those who transferred in the prior summer term.
Academic Reporters: Include students who transferred into your institution as of the institution's official fall
reporting date or October 15, 2015 and those who transferred in the prior summer term.

Full-time, continuing degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column 3, report the total number of continuing (i.e., not first-time and not transfer-in) full-time degree/certificateseeking undergraduate students. These are students who are not new to the institution in the fall, but instead are
continuing their studies at the institution.

Full-time, non-degree/certificate-seeking full-time undergraduates
In column 5, report the total number of full-time non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates. These students are
enrolled for credit but not with the intent of earning a degree or other formal award. Note: High school students
enrolled in creditable courses prior to high school graduation are considered non-degree/certificate-seeking students.
Once you save the data by clicking the 'Verify and Save' button, the 'Total full-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates' (column 4) and 'Total, full-time undergraduate students' (column 6) will be calculated by the system
and display on the survey screen.
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Part A: Part-time Undergraduate Students
Report part-time students using the same definitions and instructions provided for full-time undergraduate students.
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Part A: Enrollment by Distance Education Status
On this screen, report all students reported on previous Part A screens who are:

•
•

Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses offered at your institution: Students who are
enrolled only in courses that are considered distance education courses at your institution.
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses offered at your institution: Students who are
enrolled in at least one course that is considered a distance education course, but are not enrolled exclusively
in distance education courses.

Note: Requirements for coming to campus for orientation, testing, or academic support services do not exclude a
course from being classified as exclusively distance education. Similarly, if a student is taking instructional portions of
their program entirely online, but are then required to complete a practicum, residency, or internship, the student can
still be considered enrolled in entirely education courses.
Not enrolled in any distance education courses offered at your institution: This number represents the
students who are not enrolled in any distance education courses at your institution. It will be calculated by subtracting
the (students enrolled exclusively in distance education + students enrolled in some but not all distance education
courses) from the total enrolled students from Part A, which is the totals for degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates
and non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates. 
Location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
If there are students reported as enrolled exclusively in distance education courses, further data on the location of
these distance education students will need to be reported. Report, by degree/certificate-seeking status, the number
of exclusively distance education students that are located in the same state/jurisdiction as the institution, in a
different state/jurisdiction than the institution, in the U.S. but the state/jurisdiction is unknown, and residing outside
the U.S.  Location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education should be their physical location or
current address, as of the institution's Fall reporting date. If this is not available, use the address on file for the
student. For students enlisted in the military on active duty, use the permanent address instead of the student's
physical location or current address.
The total students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses will be carried forward from earlier on the screen.
If the total students reported by location does not equal the total enrolled exclusively in distance education from
above, the “Location unknown/unreported” is calculated.
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Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender
Part B is mandatory this year. This part is required in odd-numbered years.
This distribution of students should include all students reported in Part A.

Enrollment by Age
Use institutional records to calculate student age.
Academic reporters: report student age as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters: report student age as of August 1, 2015.
The totals by gender for each attendance status (full- or part-time) and student level (undergraduate or graduate) will
be carried forward from the corresponding Part A screens. When the Part B and Part A totals do not agree, the "Age
unknown/unreported" is calculated.
Note: If the Part B student count total is larger than the total carried forward from Part A (resulting in a negative
value), a fatal error results. In this case, reexamine both the age data and comparable portion of Part A to identify the
error and make appropriate corrections.
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Part C: Residence of First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduate Students
Part C is optional this year. This part is required in even-numbered years only.
This distribution of students should include all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
(both full- and part-time) reported in Part A.

Recent High School Graduates Screening Question

Part C begins with a screening question to determine whether or not your institution has first-time degree/certificateseeking undergraduate students who enrolled within 12 months of graduating high school or receiving their GED. If the
answer is 'No', then only one column for all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates will display in Part C.
If the answer is 'Yes', then 2 columns will be reported in Part C, one for all first-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates and one for those first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates enrolled within 12 months of
graduating high school or receiving their GED. 

State of residence
Use the state identified by the student as his/her permanent address at the time of application to the institution. This
may be the legal residence of a parent or guardian, or the state in which a student has a driver's license or is
registered to vote. It is not necessarily the state in which the student's high school is located.

Residence of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column (1), report all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students, both full-time and parttime, by state of residence. The total line for column (1) will be carried forward from the total first-time
degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part A. If the sum of the students reported by state of
residence in column (1), lines 1-90, does not agree with the total first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates
from Part A, the "Residence unknown/unreported" (line 98) will be calculated.
Note: When the sum of students by state of residence is larger than the total carried forward from Part A (resulting in
a negative value calculated for the "Residence unknown/unreported" line), a fatal error results. In this case, reexamine
both the residence data and comparable section of Part A to identify the error and make appropriate corrections.
If your institution responded 'Yes' to the screening question, the subset of students from column (1) who enrolled
within 12 months of graduating high school or receiving their GED are to be reported again by their state of residence
in column (2).
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Part D: Total Undergraduate Entering Class
Program reporters and non-degree-granting institutions do not complete Part D.
Total entering class data are included to address concerns some institutions have raised about the cohort that is
defined by the IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) component. The GR cohort includes only full-time, first-time
degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students. For institutions with substantial part-time, transfer-in, and nondegree/certificate-seeking enrollment, this may result in graduation rates that are not representative of their typical
entering class.
The total undergraduate entering class is comprised of all first-time undergraduates (full-time and part-time), all
transfer-in undergraduates (full-time and part-time) and the subset of non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates
who are new to the institution in the Fall. To reach the total entering class total, Part D follows a line-by-line step
process.
Lines D1 - D4 are carried forward from Part A reporting.
In Line D5, report the subset of non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students displayed on line D4, who are
new to the institution in Fall 2015.
Line D6 will calculate the total undergraduate entering students. This is calculated as all first-time students (line D2)
+ all transfer-in students (line D3) + non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students new to the institution in
Fall 2015 (line D5).
After clicking 'Save', Line D7 will display the percentage of the undergraduate entering class that is represented by
the current GR cohort (the GR cohort is carried forward from Part A and displayed in Line D1). The percentage is
calculated as line D1/D6.
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Part E: Retention Rates for the First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Student Cohort
Retention rates examine the percentage of first-time degree/certificate seeking students enrolled in the fall of the prior
year that are either still enrolled in the fall of the current year or have completed their program in that time.

The retention cohorts, full-time and part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates from Fall 2014, are
preloaded from Part A of the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
On each retention screen (full-time cohort and part-time cohort screens), institutions must:

•
•
•

Verify the preloaded Fall 2014 cohort.
Attendance status (full- or part-time) should be based on the student's Fall 2014 attendance status.
Report any exclusions for the cohort (see below for allowable exclusions).
Report the total number of students retained from the Fall 2014 cohort.
Total students retained = students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015.

Academic reporters: Report students retained as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15,
2015.
Program reporters: Report students retained as of August 1, 2015.

Exclusions:
Institutions may report exclusions for the Fall 2014 cohort. Allowable exclusions are students who left the institution
for any of the following reasons:

•
•
•
•

Died or were totally and permanently disabled
To serve in the armed forces (including those called to active duty)
To serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g., Peace Corps)
To serve on official church missions

The system will compute an adjusted cohort by subtracting the student exclusions from the original cohort prior to
calculating the retention rate.
Retention rates will be computed by the system after clicking 'Save.' The retention rate is calculated as:
(Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled + Students from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their
program as of Fall 2015/Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort)*100.
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Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio
Graduate only institutions do not complete Part F.
Report the student-to-faculty ratio for undergraduate programs at your institution. A worksheet is available to help
determine your institution's ratio. Click on the link from the Part F screen to access the worksheet.

Worksheet for Less Than Four-Year Institutions and Four-Year Institutions without Graduate or
Professional Programs
The worksheet is designed to help institutions determine their student-to-faculty ratio. It is NOT mandatory that you
use this worksheet to calculate your student-to-faculty ratio. Data entered on the worksheet will NOT be collected or
saved. Make sure to print the screen in order to refer to the ratio calculation for your institution at a later time.
Please note: The logic used in this calculation is similar to that of item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.

FULL- AND PART-TIME STUDENT DATA:
All student data on the worksheet is either carried forward from Part A or a calculated field.
Lines F1 and F2. Total full-time and total part-time students.

The total number of full- and part-time students are carried forward from Part A.
Line F3. A full-time equivalent (FTE) of the part-time student count.
The FTE will be calculated as line F2 (total part-time student count) * 1/3.
Line F4. Total FTE students.
This is calculated as the sum of lines F1 (total full-time students) and F3 (FTE of part-time students). Line F4 is used in
the ratio calculation.

FULL-AND PART-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF DATA:
Lines F5 and F8 should be reported based on data your institution is reporting in the IPEDS Human Resources (HR)
survey component. Please work together with the appropriate staff at your institution to ensure that the data used on
this worksheet and reported in the HR component are the same.
In line F5, report the total number of full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component.
In line F8, report the total number of part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component.

Instructional Staff Exclusion for Non-Credit Instructors:
In line F6, report the number of full-time instructional staff reported in line F5 that are teaching exclusively noncredit courses.
In line F9, report the number of part-time instructional staff reported in line F8 that are teaching exclusively noncredit courses.
For institutions that have a large amount of non-credit activity, the above exclusions will better align the student data
with the instructional staff data being used in the ratio.

Part-Time Instructional Staff Addition:
In line F10, report the number of administrators or other staff NOT reported to IPEDS as instructors (and therefore
not included in the instructional staff count reported in line F8) that are teaching a credit course in the Fall.
For institutions that have administrators and other professionals on staff that are not reported to IPEDS as instructors
(because it is not their "primary function") but they teach credit courses, the above allowable addition will produce a
more accurate ratio.
With the above instructional staff exclusions and part-time instructional staff addition information above, the system
will compute the following on the worksheet:
Line F7. Total adjusted full-time instructional staff.
The adjusted full-time instructional staff is the total full-time instructional staff, excluding those teaching exclusively
non-credit classes. The system will calculate line F7 as line F5 (total full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR
component) minus line F6 (total full-time instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses).
Line F11. Total adjusted part-time instructional staff.
The adjusted part-time instructional staff is the total part-time instructional staff, excluding those teaching exclusively
non-credit classes, and adding those administrators and other staff teaching credit courses. The system will calculate
line F11 as line F8 (total part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component) minus line F9 (total part-time
instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses) + line F10 (administrators and other staff teaching credit
courses).
Line F12. Total FTE of adjusted part-time instructional staff.
The FTE will be calculated as line F11 (total adjusted part-time instructional staff) * 1/3.
Line F13. Total FTE of adjusted instructional staff.
This is calculated as the sum of lines F7 (total adjusted full-time instructional staff) and F12 (FTE of total adjusted part
-time instructional staff). Line F13 is used in the ratio calculation.
Line F14. Student-to-faculty ratio.

The ratio will be calculated by the system as line F4 (total adjusted FTE students) divided by line F13 (total adjusted
FTE instructional staff). The ratio will be displayed on the worksheet as xxx to 1.
The calculated ratio can then be entered onto the Part F (Student-to-Faculty Ratio) screen.
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date: 11/24/2015

Glossary
Term

Definition

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 (full-time, first-time; part-time-first-time; full-time, non-first-time;
and part-time, non-first-time) for which outcomes rates are calculated at 6 and 8 years.

American Indian or Alaska
Native

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) who
maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community attachment.

Asian

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian Subcontinent,
including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand,
and Vietnam.

Audit/auditing (a class)

Term used when a student elects to take a course, but does not wish to receive credit for the course toward a
degree or other formal award.

Black or African American

A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.

Branch institution

A campus or site of an educational institution that is not temporary, is located in a community beyond a reasonable
commuting distance from its parent institution, and offers full programs of study, not just courses.

Cohort

A specific group of students established for tracking purposes.

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).

Credit

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 formal award,
irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.

Credit course

A course that, if successfully completed, can be applied toward the number of courses required for achieving a
postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.

Degree/certificate-seeking
students

Students enrolled in courses for credit who are seeking a degree, certificate, or other formal award. This includes
students who:
   - received any type of federal financial aid, regardless of what courses they took at any time;
   - received any state or locally based financial aid with an eligibility requirement that the student be enrolled in a
degree, certificate, or transfer-seeking program; or
   - obtained a student visa to study at a U.S. postsecondary institution
High school students also enrolled in postsecondary courses for credit are not considered degree/certificate-seeking.

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.
Technologies used for instruction may include the following: Internet; one-way and two-way transmissions through
open broadcasts, closed circuit, cable, microwave, broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite or wireless communication
devices; audio conferencing; and video cassette, DVDs, and CD-ROMs, if the cassette, DVDs, and CD-ROMs are used
in a course in conjunction with the technologies listed above.

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.

Dual credit

A program through which high school students are enrolled in Advanced Placement (AP) courses, taught at their high
school, that fulfill high school graduation requirements and may earn the student college credits .

Dual enrollment

A program through which high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school.
Students are not required to apply for admission to the college in order to participate.

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 term 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 nondegree/certificate seeking undergraduates entering in the fall.

Exclusions

Those students who may be removed (deleted) from a cohort (or subcohort). For the Graduation Rates, Outcome
Measures , and Fall Enrollment retention rate reporting, students may be removed from a cohort if they left the
institution for one of the following reasons: death or total and permanent disability; service in the armed forces
(including those called to active duty); service with a foreign aid service of the federal government, such as the
Peace Corps; or service on official church missions.

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 term, and
students who entered with advanced standing (college credits earned before graduation from high school).

Full-time student

Undergraduate: A student enrolled for 12 or more semester credits, or 12 or more quarter credits, or 24 or more
contact hours a week each term. Graduate: A student enrolled for 9 or more semester credits, or 9 or more quarter
credits, or a student involved in thesis or dissertation preparation that is considered full-time by the institution.
Doctor's degree - Professional practice - as defined by the institution.

High school diploma or
recognized equivalent

A document certifying the successful completion of a prescribed secondary school program of studies, or any of the
following:
•recognized attainment of satisfactory scores on the GED or another state-authorized
examination

•recognized completion of homeschooling at the secondary level as defined by state law
•completion of secondary school education in a homeschool setting which qualifies for an
exemption from compulsory attendance requirements under state law, if state law does not
require a homeschooled student to receive credential for their education
Hispanic/Latino

A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless
of race.

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).

Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.

Non-degree-seeking student

A student enrolled in courses for credit who is not recognized by the institution as seeking a degree or formal award.

Non-first-time 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 enrollment from Fall Enrollment (EF) component.

Noncredit course

A course or activity having no credit applicable toward a degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award.

Nonresident alien

A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country on a visa or temporary basis
and does not have the right to remain indefinitely.

Off-campus centers
(extension centers)

Sites outside the confines of the parent institution where courses are offered that are part of an organized program
at the parent institution. The sites are not considered to be temporary but may be rented or made available to the
institution at no cost by another institution or an organization, agency, or firm.

Official fall reporting date

The date (in the fall) on which an institution must report fall enrollment data to either the state, its board of trustees
or governing board, or some other external governing body.

Part-time student

Undergraduate: A student enrolled for either less than 12 semester or quarter credits, or less than 24 contact hours
a week each term. Graduate: A student enrolled for less than 9 semester or quarter credits.

Race and ethnicity unknown

The category used to report students or employees whose race and ethnicity are not known.

Race/ethnicity

Categories developed in 1997 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that are 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. The designations are used to categorize U.S. citizens, resident aliens,
and other eligible non-citizens.
Individuals are asked to first designate ethnicity as:
   - Hispanic or Latino or
   - Not Hispanic or Latino
Second, individuals are asked to indicate all races that apply among the following:
   - American Indian or Alaska Native
   - Asian
   - Black or African American
   - Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
   - White

Remedial courses

Instructional courses designed for students deficient in the general competencies necessary for a regular
postsecondary curriculum and educational setting.

Residence

A person's permanent address determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For entering
freshmen, residence may be the legal residence of a parent or guardian.

Resident alien (and other
eligible non-citizens)

A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States but who has been admitted as a legal immigrant for the
purpose of obtaining permanent resident alien status (and who holds either an alien registration card (Form I-551 or
I-151), a Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), or an Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) with a notation that
conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee or
Cuban-Haitian).

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.

State of residence

A person's permanent address as determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For
entering freshmen, state of residence may be the legal state of residence of a parent or guardian.

State unknown

Status used when the reporting institution is unable to determine from existing records the home state or residence
of the student.

Student-to-faculty ratio

The ratio of FTE students to FTE instructional staff, i.e., students divided by staff.
Students enrolled in "stand-alone" graduate or professional programs and instructional staff teaching in these
programs are excluded from both full-time and part-time counts.
"Stand-alone" graduate or professional programs are those programs such as medicine, law, veterinary, dentistry,
social work, or public health, in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students (also referred to as
"independent" programs).

Each FTE value is equal to the number of full-time students/staff plus 1/3 the number of part-time students/staff.
Study abroad

Arrangement by which a student completes part of the college program studying in another country. Can be at a
campus abroad or through a cooperative agreement with some other U.S. college or an institution of another
country.

Summer session

A summer session is shorter than a regular session and is not considered part of the academic year. It is not the
third term of an institution operating on a trimester system or the fourth term of an institution operating on a
quarter calendar system. The institution may have two or more sessions occurring in the summer months. Some
schools, such as vocational and beauty schools, have year-round classes with no separate summer session.

Title IV institution

An institution that has a written agreement with the Secretary of Education that allows the institution to participate
in any of the Title IV federal student financial assistance programs (other than the State Student Incentive Grant
(SSIG) and the National Early Intervention Scholarship and Partnership (NEISP) programs).

Transfer-in 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 institution the prior summer term.  The student may transfer with or without credit.

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.

White

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

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2015-16 Survey Materials > FAQ

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment
Click one of the following questions to view the answer.
General
1) Who should I include in my enrollment reporting?
2) What is the reporting period/date for fall enrollment?
3) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
4) In the past I reported first-professional students on this component. Why are there no screens for reporting firstprofessional students?
5) My school is part of a consortium of schools. How do I report student enrollment? 
6) Do I include students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses) in Fall Enrollment?
Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender (Part A)
1) What is NOT considered "prior postsecondary experience" when reporting first-time students?
2) Where do I report students if I don't know whether or not they are first-time?
3) Where do I report undergraduate students who enrolled at my institution for the first time this fall (without prior
postsecondary experience), but earned college credits during the prior summer?
4) How do I treat new students who transferred into the institution the prior summer term and take courses in the fall? 
5) Does "continuing/returning student" include those students who have stopped out and re-entered the same institution? 
6) How do I report a student who earned college credit while in high school (a dual enrolled student) and has now graduated
high school and enrolled in my institution in the Fall?
7) Where do I report a high school student who is enrolled for credit at my institution (a dual enrolled student)?
8) If a student enrolled for credit has not indicated whether they intend to earn a degree or certificate, how do I determine
whether they are degree/certificate-seeking?
9) Where do I report students who are seeking a second baccalaureate degree?
10) How do I report an undergraduate student who took courses as a non-degree-seeking student and re-enrolls as a degreeseeking student at the same reporting institution? 
11) My institution has students for which gender is unknown. Since there is no place to report “gender unknown” on the IPEDS
data collection screens, how should we report these individuals?
12) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
13) How does enrollment in non-credit or zero-credit remedial/ESL and co-op courses count in the determination of a student's
full-time status?
14) In which race/ethnicity category do I report undocumented students?
Fall Enrollment in Selected Fields (Part A, 4-year institutions only)
1) What do I do if my institution does not offer any of the program areas listed on the CIP selection screen?
2) How do I report students in program areas that do not appear on the CIP selection screen?
3) How do I report undergraduates who have not yet declared a major?
4) How do we report a student that has majors falling under more than one of the CIP codes collected in Part A (i.e., 13.0000
Education and 27.0000 Mathematics)?
Distance Education
1) If a student is taking the instructional portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to complete a
practicum, residency, or internship, is the student considered enrolled in exclusively distance education courses?
2) What should I do if I do not know the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses?
3) How do I determine location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education?
4) Are U.S. jurisdictions or territories (like Guam, the U.S. Virgin Island, etc.) considered in the U.S. for distance education
location reporting?
5) We offer courses that combine distance education and traditional teaching methods (“hybrid” courses). How should students
enrolled in these courses be counted in the distance education portion of Fall Enrollment? 
Fall Enrollment by Age (Part B)
1) I am not able to enter a number in the “Age unknown/unreported” box. How do I report students whose ages are unknown?
2) My institution uses age range categories that differ from the ones IPEDS uses in Part B. What should I do?
Residence of First-Time Undergraduates (Part C)
1) When reporting students by residence (Part C), should I include students who completed a GED in the second column that
asks for numbers of students that graduated high school within 12 months?
2) Some first-time undergraduates at my institution are dependents whose parents are in foreign countries on a temporary
basis (e.g., military/diplomatic service). When reporting residence and migration data, what location do I use?
Total Undergraduate Entering Class (Part D)
1) What is the difference between the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort (GRS cohort) and the
undergraduate entering class calculated in Part D?
Retention Rates for First-Time Undergraduates (Part E)
1) How is the retention rate calculated?
2)

How do I report students who changed attendance status (part-time to full-time or full-time to part-time) between one fall
and the next?
3) Are students on a leave of absence from the institution considered retained?
4) For less-than-4-year institutions that have a student who completed a program and are still enrolled at the same institution
in another program, how should they count that student? 
Undergraduate Student-to-Faculty Ratio (Part F)
1) How do I calculate my institution's student-to-faculty ratio?
2) Can you provide an example of a stand-alone graduate or professional program (a program such as medicine, law,
veterinary, or dentistry in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students)?
3) My institution has graduate and/or doctors-professional practice programs but does not have any "stand-alone" programs.
What should I enter on the student and faculty exclusion line items related to these types of programs on the worksheet for
Part F?

Answers:
General
1) Who should I include in my enrollment reporting?
All students enrolled for credit should be reported. Credit is defined as “Recognition of attendance or performance in an
instructional activity (course or program) that can be applied by a recipient toward the requirements for a degree, diploma,
certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.”
Students who are not seeking a degree or certificate may be still be enrolled for credit. These students are to be reported in the
non-degree/certificate-seeking column.

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2) What is the reporting period/date for fall enrollment?
Fall enrollment is a count of students enrolled on a particular date in the Fall. Fall enrollment is often referred to as a "snapshot"
of the enrollment at an institution at a specific time in the Fall. The date/period used depends on whether the institution is an
academic reporter or a program reporter for IPEDS purposes.
Academic reporters: Report enrollment as of October 15 or as of the institution's official fall reporting date.
Program reporters: Report enrollment during the 3-month period of August 1 to October 31. If a student enrolls or remains
enrolled at any time during that period, the student is included in the fall enrollment counts.
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3) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
Students who are enrolled in your institution and attend classes in a foreign country should be included in your institution's
enrollment report if your institution provides instructional resources (classroom, instructors), even though the education occurs
abroad. Students who are enrolled in your institution and attend classes in a foreign country should NOT be included in your
enrollment report if:

•
•
•

The students are enrolled ONLY in courses offered by another institution;
The students are enrolled at a branch campus of your institution in a foreign country;
Your institution does not provide the instructional resources (i.e., classrooms, instructors), even if the
student pays tuition to your institution. Their enrollment at your institution serves only as an administrative
record. 

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4) In the past I reported first-professional students on this component. Why are there no screens for reporting
first-professional students?
Beginning with the 2009-10 collection year, institutions are required to use the new postbaccalaureate degree categories
(eliminating the first-professional category and reclassifying those programs). In parts A and B, all postbaccalaureate students
are to be reported as graduate students, including doctor's-professional practice students (formerly reported as firstprofessional). Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.
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5) My school is part of a consortium of schools. How do I report student enrollment?
For reporting students studying in consortium agreements, please refer to the Resource page
at http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/submit_data/Consortium_Cheatsheet.asp. 
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6) Do I include students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses) in Fall
Enrollment?
ESL has never been considered a postsecondary program by IPEDS.  Since it is considered non-postsecondary, students who
are ONLY enrolled in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses), regardless of whether or not
they are receiving Title-IV aid, should NOT be counted in enrollment. 
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Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender (Part A)
1)
What is NOT considered "prior postsecondary experience" when reporting first-time students?

•
•
•
•
•

Credit for military service/training from an association such as the American Council on Education, 
Credit from any non-credit courses, as defined by the institution, 
Credit received for completion of tests/assessments, 
Credit received before the student has earned a high school diploma (i.e., AP or dual enrollment credits), or
Credit for life experience.

Students with prior postsecondary experience credit from attending a military academic institution (e.g., Community College of
the Air Force, West Point, U.S. Naval Academy, etc.) would NOT be considered first-time students. 
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2)
Where do I report students if I don't know whether or not they are first-time?
If their status is not indicated directly and the student does not enroll with prior credits or transcripts from another institution,
then assume the student is first-time.
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3)
Where do I report undergraduate students who enrolled at my institution for the first time this fall (without
prior postsecondary experience), but earned college credits during the prior summer?
These students should be reported as first-time undergraduates. The definition of “first-time” allows for students to still be
classified as first-time if the college credit they have previously earned occurred in the summer immediately prior to enrollment.
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4)
How do I treat new students who transferred into the institution the prior summer term and take courses in
the fall?
For the Fall Enrollment survey, count the student as a "transfer-in," even if the student transferred into the institution during
the prior summer term and is not entering the institution for the first time in the fall. 
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5)
Does "continuing/returning student" include those students who have stopped out and re-entered the same
institution?
Yes, "continuing/returning student" is meant to capture students who are not first-time or transfer-in. This includes students
who have been continuously enrolled in the institution and those who have stopped out and re-enrolled, without having
transferred to another institution. 
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6)
How do I report a student who earned college credit while in high school (a dual enrolled student) and has
now graduated high school and enrolled in my institution in the Fall?
If the college credit was earned prior to the student graduating high school, then this student would be considered a first-time
student in the Fall. The definition of “first-time” allows for students to still be classified as first-time if the college credit they
have previously earned was prior to their high school graduation.
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7)
Where do I report a high school student who is enrolled for credit at my institution (a dual enrolled student)?
This student would be reported as non-degree/certificate-seeking. Prior to receipt of a high school diploma or recognized
equivalent (see glossary definition), a student is non-degree/certificate-seeking. After receipt of the high school diploma or
recognized equivalent, they can be classified as degree/certificate-seeking, if appropriate.
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8)
If a student enrolled for credit has not indicated whether they intend to earn a degree or certificate, how do I
determine whether they are degree/certificate-seeking?
If the student has not indicated any intent but is applying for Title IV federal financial aid, assume the student to be
degree/certificate-seeking.
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9)
Where do I report students who are seeking a second baccalaureate degree?
Report these students in the column labeled "Continuing" degree/certificate-seeking students (column 3). This column is
intended to capture all degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students who are not first-time and did not transfer-in to the
institution in that Fall.
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10) How do I report an undergraduate student who took courses as a non-degree-seeking student and re-enrolls
as a degree-seeking student at the same reporting institution?
This student should be reported as a "continuing/returning" student. IPEDS defines "continuing/returning students" as "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 firsttime and not transfer-in)."
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11) My institution has students for which gender is unknown. Since there is no place to report “gender unknown”
on the IPEDS data collection screens, how should we report these individuals?
These individuals are still to be reported to IPEDS, even though their gender is unknown. It is up to the institution to decide
how best to handle reporting individuals whose gender is unknown. However, a common method used is to allocate students
with gender unknown based on the known proportion of men to women.
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12) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
There has been no change to how these students should be reported. Foreign students living outside the U.S., such as a foreign
student living outside the U.S. who is enrolled in distance education at your institution, should be classified in the Race/Ethnicity
Unknown category. Only U.S. citizens are to be categorized in the specific Race/Ethnicity categories. The non-resident alien
category is reserved specifically for students that are in the U.S. under that specific legal status.
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13) How does enrollment in non-credit or zero-credit remedial/ESL and co-op courses count in the determination
of a student's full-time status?
Students in the following categories are considered degree-seeking in IPEDS, though they may be enrolled in courses not
creditable for an award:

•
•
•

Students enrolled in remedial courses that are not creditable toward an award but have been admitted into
an eligible Title-IV program and receive Title-IV aid
Students enrolled in ESL courses that are not creditable toward an award but have been admitted into an
eligible Title-IV program and receive Title-IV aid
Co-op students enrolled in courses that are not creditable toward an award but are required for award
attainment

In determination of the student's full-time status, credit or contact hours (up to one academic year's worth) of remedial and ESL
courses may be used in the determination of a student's full-time status if the remedial or ESL course is part of a program that
leads to a postsecondary award. In these cases, the remedial or ESL courses should count the same as the comparable fullcredit class. For co-op students, the work portion of a cooperative education program in which the amount of work performed is
equivalent to the academic workload of a full-time student will also count toward the determination of full-time status.
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14) In which race/ethnicity category do I report undocumented students?
Because the race and ethnicity designations are reported only for U.S. citizens and the "nonresident alien" category is a legal
status for students with specific types of visas, undocumented students would not be reported under any of these statuses.
Instead, they should be reported as "Race/ethnicity unknown." Please visit the race/ethnicity FAQ for more
information: https://surveys.nces.ed.gov/ipeds/visFaq_re.aspx. 
However, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) students are a particular group of undocumented students that have
been authorized by the Department of Homeland Security to be lawfully present in the U.S. for the duration of their DACA, and
as such, this status would allow them to be reported under the "nonresident alien" category. 
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Fall Enrollment in Selected Fields (Part A, 4-year institutions only)
1) What do I do if my institution does not offer any of the program areas listed on the CIP selection screen?
Select “None of the above” on the CIP selection screen and report all students enrolled for credit, regardless of field of
study, Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A.
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2) How do I report students in program areas that do not appear on the CIP selection screen?
The program areas on the CIP selection screen are the only fields for which enrollment data is collected separately. In addition
to reporting enrollment by the selected fields requested, report all students enrolled for credit (regardless of field of study) on
the "Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A.
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3) How do I report undergraduates who have not yet declared a major?
These students should only be reported on the Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A, where all
students enrolled for credit (regardless of field of study) are reported.
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4) How do we report a student that has majors falling under more than one of the CIP codes collected in Part A
(i.e., 13.0000 Education and 27.0000 Mathematics)?
Report the students as either full-time or part-time depending on their status at the institution. Then report them on the
corresponding CIP pages. The CIP pages are not an unduplicated count and students can be included on more than one page.  
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Distance Education
1) If a student is taking the instructional portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to
complete a practicum, residency, or internship, is the student considered enrolled in exclusively distance
education courses?
Yes, if the instructional portions are entirely online, the student is considered to be enrolled in exclusive distance education
course. 
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2) What should I do if I do not know the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses?
If you have no information about the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education, do not report them in any
of the location fields. The system will calculate the number of "Location Unknown" exclusively distance education enrollments. 
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3) How do I determine location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education?
Location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education should be their physical location or current address, as of
the institution's Fall reporting date. If this is not available, use the address on file for the student. For students enlisted in the
military on active duty, use the permanent address instead of the student's physical location. 
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4) Are U.S. jurisdictions or territories (like Guam, the U.S. Virgin Island, etc.) considered in the U.S. for distance
education location reporting?
Yes, Students located in a U.S. jurisdiction while they are enrolled in distance education courses should be reported as located
in the U.S.
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5) We offer courses that combine distance education and traditional teaching methods (“hybrid” courses). How
should students enrolled in these courses be counted in the distance education portion of Fall Enrollment?
Hybrid courses are not considered by IPEDS as distance education. Students enrolled in “hybrid” courses should be reported as
“not enrolled in any distance education courses.”
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Fall Enrollment by Age (Part B)
1) I am not able to enter a number in the “Age unknown/unreported” box. How do I report students whose ages
are unknown?
The number of students whose age is unknown will be computed by the data collection system. The difference between the sum
of students reported by age category in Part B and the corresponding total enrollment reported in Part A results in the number
of students whose age is unknown.
If this results in a negative number, a fatal error will appear and you will need to either correct your data or contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
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2) My institution uses age range categories that differ from the ones IPEDS uses in Part B. What should I do?
In order to have consistent data from all institutions, IPEDS must use standard age categories. Use the students' dates of birth
to report the enrollment by IPEDS age categories.
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Residence of First-Time Undergraduates (Part C)
1) When reporting students by residence (Part C), should I include students who completed a GED in the second
column that asks for numbers of students that graduated high school within 12 months?
If the student received the GED within the past 12 months, they should be included in the second column.
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2) Some first-time undergraduates at my institution are dependents whose parents are in foreign countries on a
temporary basis (e.g., military/diplomatic service). When reporting residence and migration data, what
location do I use?
The home state could be the student’s or parent’s official home state, the state where they are registered to vote or pay taxes,
or the state issuing their driver’s license. If no such information is available, they would be reported under “State
unknown”(57).
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Total Undergraduate Entering Class (Part D)
1) What is the difference between the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort (GRS cohort) and the
undergraduate entering class calculated in Part D?
In addition to the students in the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort, the total undergraduate entering class
includes part-time students of the same criteria as well as transfers-in and full- and part-time non-degree/certificate-seeking
students that are new to your institution in the Fall.
The entering class is intended to represent all students new to an institution in a given fall and provide context for the GRS
cohort. The percent of the entering class that is represented by the institution's GRS cohort is included on College Navigator as
a note to the graduation rate data displayed.
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Retention Rates for First-Time Undergraduates (Part E)
1) How is the retention rate calculated?
The retention rate is calculated as follows:
4-year Institutions:
first-time bachelor's degree-seeking students in Fall 2014 who are still enrolled in Fall 2015/(first-time bachelor's degreeseeking students in Fall 2014 - cohort exclusions)
2-year and Less-than-2-year Institutions:
(first-time students in Fall 2014 who are still enrolled in Fall 2015 + first-time students in Fall 2014 who completed their
program by Fall 2015)/(first-time students in Fall 2014 - cohort exclusions)
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2) How do I report students who changed attendance status (part-time to full-time or full-time to part-time)
between one fall and the next?
Report students based on their attendance status in the fall the cohort was initially based on, even if that status changed in the
following fall.
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3) Are students on a leave of absence from the institution considered retained?
No. Students must be enrolled for credit at the institution in the Fall to be considered retained from the previous fall.
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4) For less-than-4-year institutions that have a student who completed a program and are still enrolled at the
same institution in another program, how should they count that student?
The institution should count that student as "retained" only once. Do NOT count that student twice, once for having completed
the program and another time for still being enrolled. 
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Undergraduate Student-to-Faculty Ratio (Part F)
1) How do I calculate my institution's student-to-faculty ratio?
A worksheet has been provided to guide the process of calculating the student-to-faculty ratio for your institution. The
worksheet can be accessed from the Part F screen in the Data Collection System.
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2) Can you provide an example of a stand-alone graduate or professional program (a program such as medicine,
law, veterinary, or dentistry in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students)?

An example of a program that would fall into this category (typically a doctor's-professional practice program) is a school of
medicine that only awards degrees/certificates at the graduate level and therefore its faculty exclusively (or in some cases
almost exclusively) teach graduate students. Programs that are "stand-alone" graduate programs may have some
undergraduate students enrolled in their courses, however a "stand-alone" graduate program would only award
degrees/certificates at the graduate level. An example of a graduate program that would not meet this criteria is a school of
business that has an undergraduate and graduate program and therefore enrolls both types of students and awards
degrees/certificates at both levels. Further, the faculty would teach a mix of undergraduate and graduate students. Excluding
“stand-alone” graduate programs is intended to make the student-to-faculty ratio closer to an undergraduate student-to-faculty
ratio than it would be if these programs were included in the calculation, without overburdening institutions.
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3) My institution has graduate and/or doctors-professional practice programs but does not have any "standalone" programs. What should I enter on the student and faculty exclusion line items related to these types of
programs on the worksheet for Part F?
If your institution does not have any "stand-alone" graduate or professional programs, then enter 0 for students and 0 for
faculty in the lines for these types of programs. Most institutions do not have these types of graduate or professional programs,
so entering 0 in those lines will be fairly common.
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2015-16 Survey Materials > Narrative Edits

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment for 2-year degree-granting institutions
Edit specifications for the 2015-16 IPEDS Web-Based Data Collection
Fall Enrollment (EF) Component
Applicable to 2-year degree-granting institutions
NOTE: The specifications in this document apply to the institutions listed above. Some sections and parts may not
apply to your particular institution. Please read the specifications carefully to determine which sections and/or parts
apply to your institution.
All screens must be completed in order to lock the survey.

Screening Question
Part A: Enrollment of Students by Race/Ethnicity
Part B: Enrollment of Students by Age
Part C: Residence
Part D: Total Undergraduate Entering Class
Part E: Retention Rates
Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio

Screening Question

You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is shown.

Part Selection

Completion of Part C: Residence is optional for this reporting year. Before continuing, you must indicate the following:

•

Do you wish to complete Part B this year?
◦ No (If this option is selected, then Part C will not be displayed.)
◦ Yes (If this option is selected, then you will be required to complete all screens in Part C.)

Part A: Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender
Full-Time Degree-granting Undergraduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported full-time undergraduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of First-time, Transfer-in, and Continuing full-time undergraduate degree/certificateseeking students, as well as the number of full-time undergraduate Non-degree/non-certificate-seeking students, enrolled in
creditable courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the total number of undergraduate degree/certificate-seeking students, and the
grand total number of full-time undergraduate students (degree/certificate-seeking plus non-degree/non-certificate-seeking) enrolled for
credit by race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand total (men +
women) enrolled for credit by student type.

The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•

•

•

•

•
•
•

•

•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total, full-time undergraduate students must be greater than 0.
If your institution reported that it enrolls full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part B of
the IC Header survey, you must report students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are
receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part
B of the IC Header survey, you are not expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is enrolled
and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If you reported First-time students on this screen, you are also expected to report Transfer-in and/or Continuing
students.
Note:
◦ For Academic Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time in the fall of the current year (or the summer immediately preceding).
◦ For Program Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time between August 1 and October 31 of the current year.
For each gender category, if the total number of Transfer-in students is greater than 0, then the number of
Continuing students should also be greater than 0. If this is not the case, then you must confirm that the specified
values are correct.
If the percent of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category
is between 20 percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category
is greater than 80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.
For each gender category, the total number of First-time students is expected to be within a certain range of the
prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is less than or equal to 25, then the
current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is between 26 and 100, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is between 101 and 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is greater than 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Part-Time Degree-granting Undergraduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported part-time undergraduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of First-time, Transfer-in, and Continuing part-time undergraduate degree/certificateseeking students, as well as the number of part-time undergraduate Non-degree/non-certificate-seeking students, enrolled in
creditable courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the total number of undergraduate degree/certificate-seeking students, and the
grand total number of part-time undergraduate students (degree/certificate-seeking plus non-degree/non-certificate-seeking) enrolled for
credit by race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand total (men +
women) enrolled for credit by student type.

The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•

•

•

•

•
•
•

•

•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total, part-time undergraduate students must be greater than 0.
If your institution reported that it enrolls part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part B of
the IC Header survey, you must report students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are
receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in
Part B of the IC Header survey, you are not expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is
enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If you reported First-time students on this screen, you are also expected to report Transfer-in and/or Continuing
students.
Note:
◦ For Academic Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time in the fall of the current year (or the summer immediately preceding).
◦ For Program Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time between August 1 and October 31 of the current year.
For each gender category, if the total number of Transfer-in students is greater than 0, then the number of
Continuing students should also be greater than 0. If this is not the case, then you must confirm that the specified
values are correct.
If the percent of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown
category is between 20 percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown
category is greater than 80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.
For each gender category, the total number of First-time students is expected to be within a certain range of the
prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is less than or equal to 25, then the
current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is between 26 and 100, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is between 101 and 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time students reported in the prior year is greater than 500, then the current
year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total degree/certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 1
On this screen, you must report the number of Degree/Certificate-seeking and Non-Degree/Certificate-seeking undergraduate
students enrolled at the institution for each of the following categories:

•
•

Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses

Based on the data entered, the system will calculate  the number of students not enrolled in any distance education
courses by degree/certificate-seeking status (Degree/Certificate Seeking, Non-degree/Certificate Seeking), as applicable to
your institution. The value is calculated by subtracting the (students enrolled exclusively in distance education + students
enrolled in some but not all distance education courses) from the total enrolled students from Part A which are displayed for
your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•

•

If your institution reported offering distance education opportunities in this year's Institutional Characteristics survey,
then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses and Enrolled
in some but not all distance education courses across all status options is expected to be greater than 0.
If your institution reported NOT offering distance education opportunities in this year's Institutional Characteristics
survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
and Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses across all status options is expected to be 0.
If your institution reported that all programs are offered via distance education in this year's Institutional
Characteristics survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled in some but not all distance
education courses and Not enrolled in any distance education courses is expected to be 0.

Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 2
On this screen, you must report the number of Degree/Certificate-seeking and Non-Degree/Certificate-seeking undergraduate
students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses for each of the following location categories:

•
•
•
•

Located in the state/jurisdiction of [state/jurisdiction where institution is located]
Located in the U.S. but not in [state/jurisdiction where institution is located]
Located in the U.S. but state unknown
Located outside the U.S.

For each degree/certificate seeking status, the total number of students Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses from
Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 1 is displayed for your reference. Based on the data entered, the system will calculate
the number of students whose location is unknown/unreported.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•

•

For each degree-seeking status, if the Total Students exclusively enrolled in distance education is greater than
or equal to 5 and you report all students under the same location category, than an explanation error will occur.
For each degree-seeking status, the calculated value for Location unknown/unreported cannot be a negative
number. Please correct your values so that the total of each status is not greater than the preloaded Total students
exclusively enrolled in distance education from Distance Education, Page 1.
For each applicable enrollment and degree-seeking status, the calculated value for Location unknown/unreported
is not expected to be equal to the corresponding Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education.

Fall Enrollment Summary
This screen displays a summary of the data reported in Part A of this survey, including Total full-time students, Total part-time
students, and Grand total, all students enrolled at the institution by race/ethnicity and gender. 
The system will perform the following edit on the data entered:

•

The calculated Grand Total (men + women) calculated for Grand total, all students must be greater than 0.

•

The current year racial/ethnic distribution of Men is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year racial/ethnic
distribution, otherwise an explanation must be provided.
Note: These distributions are calculated by finding the absolute value of the current year percentage for men minus
the corresponding prior year percentage for men from each race/ethnicity category. If the sum of the absolute values
across all race/ethnicity categories (excluding the White category) is greater than 30, then an explanation error will
occur. For example, in Table 1 (shown below) the sum of the Current year minus prior year absolute values
across all applicable race/ethnicity categories is 40. Because this number is greater than 30, an explanation error will
occur.
Table 1

Race/ethnicity

Nonresident Alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian/Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total
•

Current year
percentage
of men
6
10
1
8
25
6

Prior year
percentage
of men
14
9
3
6
10
4

Current year minus
prior year absolute
value
8
1
2
2
15
2

50
4
0
--

46
6
8
--

-2
8
40

As with the distribution of Men explained previously, the current year racial/ethnic distribution of Women is expected
to be within a 30% range of the prior year racial/ethnic distribution, otherwise an explanation must be provided.

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Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender
In Part B you must report the number of students enrolled for credit at the institution by age distribution and
gender for each of the following student types, as applicable (based on enrollment reported in the IC Header
survey):
•
•

Full-time undergraduate
Part-time undergraduate

For each applicable student type, the system will calculate the total number of students reported in Part B by gender and subtract this
value from the corresponding total from Part A to determine the number of students with Age unknown/unreported.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for each applicable student type:

•

•

For each gender category, the number of full-time undergraduate students with Age unknown/unreported cannot
be negative.
Note: If this number is less than 0, it is because the sum of men and women from all age groups is greater than the
number of students reported for the corresponding student type in Part A. Corrections must be made to the data in
one or both parts to resolve the fatal error that will occur.
For each gender category, the number of students with Age unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to
20% of the number of students reported for the corresponding student type in Part A.

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Part C: Residence
Applicable to institutions that answered Yes to the Part Selection screening question at the beginning
of the survey
Part C Screening Question
You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is shown.

•

Did any of the first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part A enroll within 12 months
of graduating from high school or receiving their GED?
◦ No
◦ Yes

The system will perform the following edit on the data entered:

•

If your institution reported that you enroll full-time, first-time degree/certificate seeking undergraduate students in
Part B of the IC Header survey, then you are expected to respond Yes to the screening question above.

First-time Residence (3 screens)
Applicable to institutions that answered Yes to the 'Part C Screening Question'
On these screens you must report the number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students enrolled in the institution
(column 1), and the number of these students who enrolled within 12 months of graduating from high school or receiving their GED
(column 2) by State of residence when student was first admitted. This includes all states and US territories, along with additional
"State Unknown" and "Foreign Countries" categories, each with its own unique 2-digit FIPS Code.
On the final screen in Part C, the system will calculate the number of students with Residence unknown/unreported (FIPS Code 98)
by subtracting the sum of all students entered in column 1 from the total number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate
students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•
•
•

•
•
•

For each FIPS Code, the number of students reported in column 2 must be less than or equal to the number of
students reported in column 1.
The sum of all students entered in column 2 must be greater than 0.
The sum of all students entered in column 2 must be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of students
entered in column 1.
The number of students with Residence unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
Note: You must report state of residence for the maximum number of students possible. If you are unable to provide
at least 20% of residences, you must enter an explanation.
The total number of First-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part C cannot
exceed the number of total First-time undergraduate students reported in Part A.
The number of students from State Unknown (FIPS Code 57) is expected to be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
If your institutions is a Public institution, then the total number of first-time, degree/certificate seeking undergraduate
students in your institution’s "home state" is expected to be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of firsttime, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

First-time Residence (3 screens)
Applicable to institutions that answered No to the 'Part C Screening Question'
On these screens you must report the number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students enrolled in the institution
(column 1) by State of residence when student was first admitted. This includes all states and US territories, along with additional
"State Unknown" and "Foreign Countries" categories, each with its own unique 2-digit FIPS Code.
On the final screen in Part C, the system will determine the number of students with Residence unknown/unreported (FIPS Code 98)
by subtracting the sum of all students entered in column 1 from the total number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate
students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•
•
•

The number of students with Residence unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
Note: You must report state of residence for the maximum number of students possible. If you are unable to provide
at least 20% of residences, you must enter an explanation.
The total number of First-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates students reported in Part C cannot
exceed the number of total First-time undergraduate students reported in Part A.
The number of students from State Unknown (FIPS Code 57) is expected to be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
If your institutions is a Public institution, then the total number of first-time, degree/certificate seeking undergraduate
students in your institution’s "home state" is expected to be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of firsttime, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

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Part D: Total Undergraduate Entering Class
Applicable to academic institutions
On this screen, several data items from Part A of this survey are preloaded for your reference. This includes:

•
•
•
•

Line
Line
Line
Line

D1: The number of full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates reported (your GR cohort).
D2: The total number of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) reported.
D3: The total number of transfer-in degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) reported.
D4: The total number of non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates (full-time + part-time) reported.

You must report the following information for line D5:

•

Of the total non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates displayed on line D4, the number that are new to the
institution in the Fall 2015.

Based on this additional data, the system will determine the Total entering students at the undergraduate level (Line D6) by summing
lines D2, Line D3, and Line D5. The percentage of those students who are represented by the GR cohort (Line D7) is calculated as Line D1
divided by Line D6.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for Line D5:

•
•
•

The number of students entered for line D5 is expected to be greater than 0. If this is not the case, then you must
confirm that the data entered are correct.
The number of students entered for line D5 must be less than or equal to the number of students in line D4.
The number of students entered for line D5 should not be equal to those in line D1 since this would indicate that the
institution’s entering class is 100% of the GR cohort. If the institution’s entering class is 100% of the GR cohort, then
you must confirm that this is correct.

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Part E: Retention Rates
In Part E, you must report the retention rates for the Full-time, first-time cohort and the Part-time, first-time cohort.
Note: Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program reporters
report retention data on students enrolled in the institution at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based on
August 1, 2015.

Full-time, first-time cohort retention
You must report the number of students in the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E1), as well as any Exclusions from the
cohort (E2). Once the screen is saved, the system will display the difference between the two in the Adjusted cohort (E3) field.
In addition, the number of Students from Fall 2014 still enrolled plus students from Fall 2014 who completed their program as
of Fall 2015 (E4) must be reported in order to determine the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (E5) percentage.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•

The Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E1) is expected to be within a certain range of the Prior year data, as
outlined below:
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is less than 25, then the current year amount must be between 0 and plus 10 of
that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is between 25 and 99, then the current year amount must be within a 30%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is between 100 and 499, then the current year amount must be within a 20%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is greater than or equal to 500, then the current year amount must be within a
10% range of that amount.
The full-time, first-time cohort entered must be less than or equal to the total number of full-time, first-time students
reported in last year's Fall Enrollment survey component.

•
•
•
•
•
•

•

•

If the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort is greater than 0, then the Exclusions from the cohort must be less
than 50% of this value.
If the Adjusted cohort is greater than 0 and E1 is greater than 5, then the number of Students from Fall 2014
cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 is expected to be greater than 0.
The number of Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E4) must be less than or equal to
the Adjusted cohort.
The number of students reported for E4 is expected to be greater than or equal to 15% of the Adjusted cohort.
If the number of students reported for E4 is equal to the Adjusted cohort, then you must confirm a retention rate of
100% for that cohort.
If you reported enrollment for full-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are expected to report full-time, first-time students on this
screen. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
If you did not report enrollment for full-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are not expected to report full-time, first-time students on
this screen. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
The value reported for E5 is expected to be within plus or minus 15% of the prior year retention rate.

Part-time, first-time cohort retention
You must report the number of students in the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E6), as well as any Exclusions from the
cohort (E7). Once the screen is saved, the system will display the difference between the two in the Adjusted cohort (E8) field.
In addition, the number of Students from Fall 2014 still enrolled plus students from Fall 2014 who completed their program as
of Fall 2015 (E9) must be reported in order to determine the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (E10)
percentage.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•
•
•
•
•
•

•

•

The Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E6) is expected to be within a certain range of the Preloaded cohort,
as outlined below:
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is less than 25, then the current year amount must be between 0 and plus 10 of
that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is between 25 and 99, then the current year amount must be within a 30%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is between 100 and 499, then the current year amount must be within a 20%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is greater than or equal to 500, then the current year amount must be within a
10% range of that amount.
The part-time, first-time cohort entered must be less than or equal to the total number of part-time, first-time
students reported in last year's Fall Enrollment survey component.
If the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort is greater than 0, then the Exclusions from the cohort must be less
than 50% of this value.
If the Adjusted cohort is greater than 0 and E6 is greater than 5, then the number of Students from Fall 2014
cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 is expected to be greater than 0.
The number of Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E9) must be less than or equal to
the Adjusted cohort.
If the number of students reported for E9 is equal to the Adjusted cohort, then you must confirm a retention rate of
100% for that cohort.
If you reported enrollment for part-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are expected to report part-time, first-time students on this
screen. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
If you did not report enrollment for part-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are not expected to report part-time, first-time students on
this screen. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
The value reported for E10 is expected to be within plus or minus15% of the prior year retention rate.

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Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio
On this screen, you must report your institution's Student-to-faculty ratio (e.g., student-to-instructional staff ratio) for Fall 2015 using
the ratio format provided. Additional resources are available, including the prior year student-to-faculty ratio, and a worksheet for
assistance in determining your institution’s student-to-faculty ratio.
Note: The student-to-faculty ratio and any accompanying context provided on this screen will be displayed on College Navigator.

The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•
•

The ratio entered here is expected to be greater than 0 to 1.
If the ratio entered is greater than 50 to 1, then a fatal error will occur.
The ratio entered must be within a certain range of the prior year amount, as outlined below:
◦ If the prior year amount entered is between 0 and 10 to 1, then the current year amount must be within 5
integers of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount entered is greater than 10 to 1, then the current year amount must be within a 50%
range of that amount.

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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or ipedshelp@rti.org

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Form

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment for public 2-year and less-than-2-year non-degree-granting
institutions
Overview 
Fall Enrollment Overview
The Fall Enrollment component collects student enrollment counts by level of student, enrollment status, gender and
race/ethnicity. In addition, first-time student retention rates and the student-to-faculty ratio are collected. Every other
year data on residence of first-time undergraduates is required and in opposite years, enrollment by student age is
required to be reported.
Institutions operating on a traditional academic year calendar (semester, trimester, quarter, or 4-1-4) report Fall
enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or October 15. Institutions operating on a calendar that
differs by program or that enrolls students on a continuous basis (referred to as program reporters) report Fall
enrollment as students enrolled any time during the period August 1 and October 31.
Data Reporting Reminders:
•Part B, Enrollment of students by age, is required this year.
•Part C, Residence of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates, is optional this year.

Resources:
To download the survey materials for this component: Survey Materials
To access your prior year data submission for this component: Reported Data
If you have questions about completing this survey, please contact the IPEDS Help Desk at 1-877-225-2568.

Part Selection 
Completion of Part C (Residence of First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates) is optional this year.
Do you wish to complete Part C this year?
If you select 'No', you will skip Part C.
If you select 'Yes', you will be expected to complete the Part C screens.
No, I will not complete Part C
Yes, I will complete Part C

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Full-Time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Full-time UndergraduateStudents
Race/Ethnicity Reporting Reminder:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only

Men
Enrolled for credit

First-time, certificateseeking

Other certificateseeking

Non-certificate-seeking

Total,
full-time
undergraduate
students

First-time, certificateseeking

Other certificateseeking

Non-certificate-seeking

Total,
full-time
undergraduate
students

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska
Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Total men prior year
Women
Enrolled for credit

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska
Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Total women prior year
Grand total (men+women)
Grand total (men+women) prior
year

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Part-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Part-time Undergraduate Students
Race/Ethnicity Reporting Reminder:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only

Men
Enrolled for credit

First-time, certificateseeking

Other certificateseeking

Non-certificate-seeking

Total,
part-time
undergraduate
students

First-time, certificateseeking

Other certificateseeking

Non-certificate-seeking

Total,
part-time
undergraduate
students

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska
Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Total men prior year
Women
Enrolled for credit

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska
Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Total women prior year
Grand total (men+women)
Grand total (men+women) prior
year

Part A - Fall Enrollment Summary 
Fall Enrollment Summary
Men
Students enrolled for credit

Total full-time
students

Total part-time
students

Grand total,
all students

Total full-time
students

Total part-time
students

Grand total,
all students

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Women
Students enrolled for credit
Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Grand Total (men+women)

Part A - Fall Enrollment by Distance Education Status 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Undergraduate Students
Degree/Certificate Seeking Non-Degree/Certificate Seeking
Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses
Not enrolled in any distance education courses
Total (from prior part A screens)
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part A - Fall Enrollment by Distance Education Status 
Of those students exclusively enrolled in distance education
courses, report the number that are:
Located in
Located in the U.S. but not in
Located in the U.S. but state/jurisdiction unknown
Located outside the U.S.
Location unknown/unreported
Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education (from
section above)

Undergraduate Students
Degree/Certificate
Non-Degree/Certificate
Seeking
Seeking

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Full-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total full-time undergraduate students (from part A)

Full-time Undergraduate Students
Men
Women

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Part-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total part-time undergraduate students (from part A)

Part-time Undergraduate Students
Men
Women

Part C - Screening Question 
Did any of your first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (reported in Part A) enroll within 12
months of graduating high school or receiving their GED?
No, we do not have any first-time students who enrolled within 12 months of their high school
graduation.
Yes, we have first-time students who enrolled within 12 months of their high school graduation.
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS Code
Of students in column 1, those
Total first-time
was first admitted
who enrolled within 12 months
degree/certificate-seeking
of high school graduation
undergraduates
or receiving their GED
(1)
(2)
Alabama
01
Alaska

02

Arizona

04

Arkansas

05

California

06

Colorado

08

Connecticut

09

Delaware

10

District of Columbia

11

Florida

12

Georgia

13

Hawaii

15

Idaho

16

Illinois

17

Indiana

18

Iowa

19

Kansas

20

Kentucky

21

Louisiana

22

Maine

23

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS Code
Total first-time
Of students in column 1, those
was first admitted
degree/certificate-seeking
who enrolled within 12 months
undergraduates
of high school graduation
(1)
or receiving their GED
(2)
Maryland
24
Massachusetts

25

Michigan

26

Minnesota

27

Mississippi

28

Missouri

29

Montana

30

Nebraska

31

Nevada

32

New Hampshire

33

New Jersey

34

New Mexico

35

New York

36

North Carolina

37

North Dakota

38

Ohio

39

Oklahoma

40

Oregon

41

Pennsylvania

42

Rhode Island

44

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS
Total first-time
Of students in column 1, those
was first admitted
Code degree/certificate-seeking who enrolled within 12 months of
undergraduates
high school graduation
(1)
or receiving their GED
(2)
South Carolina
45
South Dakota

46

Tennessee

47

Texas

48

Utah

49

Vermont

50

Virginia

51

Washington

53

West Virginia

54

Wisconsin

55

Wyoming

56

State Unknown

57

American Samoa

60

Federated States of Micronesia

64

Guam

66

Marshall Islands

68

Northern Marianas

69

Palau

70

Puerto Rico

72

Virgin Islands

78

Foreign Countries

90

Residence unknown/unreported
Total first-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates (from Part A)

98

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part E - First-Time Student Cohort Retention Rates (Full-time) 
Retention Rates
Full-time, First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Cohort from Fall 2014
The Fall 2014 cohort is preloaded based on data reported in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program
reporters determine the cohort with enrollment any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based
on August 1, 2015.
The retention rate is calculated by the system after clicking "Save" on the screen. Exclusions are subtracted from the
original cohort and the resulting adjusted cohort is used for calculating the retention rate.
Retention Data Reporting Reminders:
•
Include only full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students in this cohort.
•
Determine full-time using Fall 2014 attendance status (e.g. if a student was full-time in Fall 2014, report them in
the full-time cohort regardless of Fall 2015 status).
•
If there are no students to report in the cohort, enter zero. Do not leave the field blank.
•
Report in the exclusions box (line E2) the number of students from the cohort who left the institution for any of
the following reasons: died or were totally and permanently disabled; to serve in the armed forces (including
those called to active duty); to serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g. Peace Corps);
or to serve on official church missions.
Preloaded
cohort

Prior year
data (Fall
2013
cohort)

FULL-TIME, FIRST-TIME COHORT RETENTION:
E1
Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort
E2

Exclusions from the Fall 2014 cohort

E3
Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort (line E1 - line E2)
E4
Students from Fall 2014 cohort who are still enrolled + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015
E5
Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (line E4 / line
E3)
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the
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%

%

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part E - First-Time Student Cohort Retention Rates (Part-time) 
Retention Rates
Part-time, First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Cohort from Fall 2014
The Fall 2014 cohort is preloaded based on data reported in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program
reporters determine the cohort with enrollment any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based
on August 1, 2015.
The retention rate is calculated by the system after clicking "Save" on the screen. Exclusions are subtracted from the
original cohort and the resulting adjusted cohort is used for calculating the retention rate.
Retention Data Reporting Reminders:
•
Include only part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students in this cohort.
•
Determine part-time using Fall 2014 attendance status (e.g. if a student was part-time in Fall 2014, report them
in the part-time cohort regardless of their Fall 2015 status).
•
If there are no students to report in the cohort, enter zero. Do not leave the field blank.
•
Report in the exclusions box (line E7) the number of students from the cohort who left the institution for any of
the following reasons: died or were totally and permanently disabled; to serve in the armed forces (including
those called to active duty); to serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g. Peace Corps);
or to serve on official church missions.

Preloaded
cohort

Prior year
data (Fall
2013
cohort)

PART-TIME, FIRST-TIME COHORT RETENTION:
E6
Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort
E7

Exclusions from the Fall 2014 cohort

E8
Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort (line E6 - line E7)
E9
Students from Fall 2014 cohort who are still enrolled + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015
E10
Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (line E9 / line
E8)
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%

%

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part F - Student-to-Faculty Ratio 
Please provide your institution's student-to-faculty ratio (i.e., student-to-instructional staff) for undergraduate
programs for Fall 2015. The student-to-faculty ratio and any accompanying context that is provided will be
displayed on College Navigator.
Note: Logic in this item is similar to item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.

Click here to use a worksheet to help you determine the student-to-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio

to 1

Student-to-faculty ratio prior year

to 1

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You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part F - Less Than Four-Year Institutions and Four Year-Institutions Without Graduate
Programs Student-to-Faculty Ratio Worksheet 
This worksheet is designed to help you determine your institution's student-to-faculty ratio.
Data entered on this worksheet will NOT be collected or saved. Therefore, please PRINT this screen if you
would like to refer to the ratio calculation for your institution at a later time.
Note: The logic used for this calculation is similar to item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.
Students, Fall 2015
F1 Total full-time students from Part A
F2 Total part-time students from Part A
F3 Full-time equivalent of part-time students
(Line F2 * 1/3)
F4 Total full-time equivalent students
(Line F1 + F3)
Instructional Staff, Fall 2015
FULL-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF:
F5 Number of full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR survey component
Full-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion (Line F6):
F6 Full-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion:
Of the number of full-time instructional staff reported in Line F5, the number teaching
exclusively non-credit courses
F7 Total adjusted full-time instructional staff
(Line F5 - F6)
PART-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF:
F8 Number of part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR survey component
Part-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion (Line F9):
F9 Of the number of part-time instructional staff reported in Line F8, the number teaching
exclusively non-credit courses
Part-Time Instructional Staff Addition (Line F10):
F10 Number of administrators, or other staff not reported to IPEDS as instructors, that are
teaching a credit course(s) in the Fall
F11 Total adjusted part-time instructional staff
(Line F8 - F9 + F10)
F12 Full-time equivalent of adjusted part-time instructional staff
(Line F11 * 1/3)
F13 Total full-time equivalent instructional staff
(Line F7 + F12)
F14 Student-to-faculty ratio
(Line F4/F13)

to 1

U.S. Department of Education
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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or ipedshelp@rti.org

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Instructions

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment Full Instructions

Purpose of Survey
Changes in Reporting
General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
Context Boxes

Coverage
Who To Include
Who To Exclude

Where to Get Help For Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
AIR Website
IPEDS Website Resources

Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Institution Level
Aggregate Level

Reporting Directions
Screening Questions
Reporting Individuals by Racial/Ethnic Categories
Part A: Fall Enrollment by Level, Attendance Status, Race/Ethnicity, and Gender
Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age
Part C: Residence of First-Time Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates
Part E: Retention Rates for First-Time Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates
Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio

Purpose of Survey
The purpose of the Fall Enrollment component of IPEDS is to collect enrollment data on all students enrolled for credit
in courses/programs that could lead to awards ranging from postsecondary certificates of less than 1 year to doctoral
degrees. Fall enrollment data are collected by level of student, attendance status, race/ethnicity, and gender. In
addition, the Fall Enrollment component collects data on the institution's undergraduate entering class, first-time
student retention rates, and the student-to-faculty ratio. Every other year data on enrollment by nine selected fields of
study are collected, as is residency of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students. In opposite years,
enrollment by student age is collected.
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Changes in Reporting
Enrollment by age will be mandatory this year. Enrollment by residence is optional.
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General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
For institutions operating on a traditional academic year calendar (semester, trimester, quarter, or 4-1-4), fall
enrollment should be reported as of the institution's official fall reporting date or October 15.
For institutions operating on an "other academic calendar," a calendar that differs by program, or enrolls students on a
continuous basis (referred to as program reporters), fall enrollment is reported for students enrolled any time during
the period August 1 and October 31.

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Context Boxes
Context boxes are provided to allow institutions to provide more information regarding survey component items. Note
that some context boxes are posted on the College Navigator Website, which is the college search tool offered by
NCES. NCES will review entries in these context boxes for applicability and appropriateness before posting them on the
College Navigator Website; institutions should check grammar and spelling of their entries.
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Coverage
Who to Include
Include all students enrolled for credit (enrolled in instructional activity, courses or programs, that can be applied
towards the requirements for a postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award), regardless of
whether or not they are seeking a degree or certificate. This includes:

•
•
•
•

Students enrolled for credit in off-campus centers
High school students taking regular college courses for credit
Students taking remedial courses if the student is degree-seeking for the purpose of student financial aid
determination
Students from overseas enrolled in for credit at your institution (e.g., online students)

Who to Exclude
Exclude students who are not enrolled for credit. For example, exclude:

•
•
•
•

Students enrolled exclusively in courses that cannot be applied towards a formal award
Students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses)
Students enrolled exclusively in Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
Students exclusively auditing classes

In addition, the following students should be excluded:

•
•

Any student studying abroad (e.g., at a foreign university) if their enrollment at the 'home' institution serves
as an administrative record
Students enrolled in any branch campus located in a foreign country

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Where to Get Help with Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
Phone: 1-877-225-2568
Email: ipedshelp@rti.org

Web Tutorials
You can also consult the IPEDS Website Trainings & Outreach page which contains several tutorials on IPEDS data
collection, a self-paced overview of IPEDS tools, and other valuable resources.

IPEDS Resource Page
The IPEDS Website Reporting Tools page contains frequently asked questions, a link to data tip sheets, tutorials,
taxonomies, information centers (e.g., academic libraries, average net price, human resources, race/ethnicity, etc.),
and other valuable information.
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Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Data collected through IPEDS will be accessible at the institution- and aggregate-levels.
At the institution-level, data will appear in the:

•
•
•
•

College Navigator Website
IPEDS Data Center
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
College Affordability and Transparency Center Website

At the aggregate-level, data will appear in:

•
•
•
•
•

IPEDS First Looks
IPEDS Table Library
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
The Digest of Education Statistics
The Condition of Education

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Reporting Directions
Screening Questions
Before entering any data, screening questions will need to be answered.
Part C Selection
Part C (Enrollment of Students by Residence) is optional this year. Indicate whether or not you will complete Part C of
the Fall Enrollment survey component this year.
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Reporting Persons by Racial/Ethnic Category (1997 OMB)
This information is being collected in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 and Sec. 421(a)(1) of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act. These instructions
correspond with the Final Guidance on Maintaining, Collecting, and Reporting Racial and Ethnic Data to the U.S.
Department of Education, published in the Federal Register on October 19, 2007.
Method of collection - Institutions must collect race and ethnicity information using a 2-question format. The first
question is whether the respondent is Hispanic/Latino. The second question is whether the respondent is from one or
more races from the following list: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native
Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and White. Institutions should allow students and staff to self-identify their race
and ethnicity. For further details on the guidance for collecting these data, please see the full Federal Register notice.
Method of reporting aggregate data - Institutions must report aggregate data to the U.S. Department of Education
using the NINE categories below. Racial/ethnic designations are requested only for United States citizens, resident
aliens, and other eligible non-citizens.

•

Hispanic or Latino, regardless of race

For Non-Hispanic/Latino individuals:

•
•
•
•
•
•

American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races

In addition, the following categories may be used:

•
•

Nonresident alien
Race and ethnicity unknown

Racial/ethnic descriptions - Racial/ethnic designations as used in this survey do not denote scientific definitions of
anthropological origins. The categories are:
•
•
•
•
•
•

Hispanic or Latino- A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish
culture or origin, regardless of race.
American Indian or Alaska Native- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South
America (including Central America) who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or
community attachment.
Asian- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian
Subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine
Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Black or African American- A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii,
Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
White - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

Other descriptive categories

•

•

Nonresident alien - A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country
on a visa or temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely. NOTE - Nonresident aliens are
to be reported separately, in the boxes provided, rather than included in any of the seven racial/ethnic
categories. Resident aliens and other eligible (for financial aid purposes) non-citizens who are not citizens or
nationals of the United States and who have been admitted as legal immigrants for the purpose of obtaining
permanent resident alien status (and who hold either an alien registration card (Form I-551 or I-151), a
Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), or an Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) with a notation that
conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee
or Cuban-Haitian) are to be reported in the appropriate racial/ethnic categories along with United States
citizens.
Race and ethnicity unknown - This category is used only if the person did not select EITHER a racial or
ethnic designation.

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Part A - Full-Time Undergraduate Students by Race/Ethnicity and Gender
On this screen, include all students enrolled for credit, full-time at the undergraduate level. The undergraduate level
includes students enrolled in undergraduate level courses or any certificate programs below the baccalaureate level.
Students who have already earned a bachelor's degree but are taking undergraduate courses for credit should be
included as undergraduates.

Full-time, first-time certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column 1, report undergraduate students who have no prior postsecondary experience and have enrolled fulltime with the intent to earn a certificate or other formal award. The following are also considered first-time:

•
•

Students enrolled in the fall term who attended college for the first time in the prior summer
session (applicable to both academic and program reporters)
Students who entered with advanced standing (any college credits earned before graduation from high school)

In order to be considered certificate-seeking, the student must be enrolled in courses for credit and be recognized by
the institution as seeking a certificate or other formal award. Dual enrolled high school students are not considered
certificate-seeking. Note: All students eligible to receive federal student financial aid are to be considered certificateseeking.
Program Reporters: Include first-time students who entered your institution between August 1, 2015 and October
31, 2015.
Academic Reporters: Student counts reported in column 1 define the initial cohort for reporting graduation rates on
the IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) component to meet Student Right-to-Know reporting requirements. Students
reported in this group will become your GR cohort in the reporting year appropriate for your institution.

Full-time, Other certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column 2, report the total number of all other (i.e. not first-time) full-time certificate-seeking undergraduate
students. This includes:

•
•

transfer-in certificate-seeking students
continuing certificate-seeking students (i.e. students not new to the institution in the fall, but instead are
continuing in their courses/program at the institution)

Full-time, Non-certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column 3, report the total number of full-time non-certificate-seeking undergraduates. These students are enrolled
for credit but not with the intention of earning a certificate or formal award. Note: High school students enrolled in
creditable courses prior to high school graduation are considered non-certificate-seeking students.
Once you save the data by clicking the 'Verify and Save' button, the 'Total full-time undergraduates' (column 4) will be
calculated by the system and display on the survey screen.
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Part A: Part-time Undergraduate Students
Report part-time students using the same definitions and instructions provided for full-time undergraduate students.
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Part A: Enrollment by Distance Education Status
On this screen, report all students reported on previous Part A screens who are:
•
•

Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses offered at your institution: Students who are
enrolled only in courses that are considered distance education courses at your institution.
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses offered at your institution: Students who are
enrolled in at least one course that is considered a distance education course, but are not enrolled exclusively
in distance education courses.

Note: Requirements for coming to campus for orientation, testing, or academic support services do not exclude a
course from being classified as exclusively distance education. Similarly, if a student is taking instructional portions of
their program entirely online, but are then required to complete a practicum, residency, or internship, the student can
still be considered enrolled in entirely education courses.
Not enrolled in any distance education courses offered at your institution: This number represents the
students who are not enrolled in any distance education courses at your institution. It will be calculated by subtracting
the (students enrolled exclusively in distance education + students enrolled in some but not all distance education
courses) from the total enrolled students from Part A, which is the totals for degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates
and non-degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates. 
Location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
If there are students reported as enrolled exclusively in distance education courses, further data on the location of
these distance education students will need to be reported. Report, by degree/certificate-seeking status, the number
of exclusively distance education students that are located in the same state/jurisdiction as the institution, in a
different state/jurisdiction than the institution, in the U.S. but the state/jurisdiction is unknown, and residing outside
the U.S.  Location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education should be their physical location or
current address, as of the institution's Fall reporting date. If this is not available, use the address on file for the
student. For students enlisted in the military on active duty, use the permanent address instead of the student's
physical location or current address.
The total students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses will be carried forward from earlier on the screen.
If the total students reported by location does not equal the total enrolled exclusively in distance education from
above, the “Location unknown/unreported” is calculated.
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Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender
Part B is mandatory this year. This part is required in odd-numbered years.
This distribution of students should include all students reported in Part A.

Enrollment by Age
Use institutional records to calculate student age.
Academic reporters: report student age as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters: report student age as of August 1, 2015.
The totals by gender for each attendance status (full- or part-time) and student level (undergraduate or graduate) will
be carried forward from the corresponding Part A screens. When the Part B and Part A totals do not agree, the "Age
unknown/unreported" is calculated.
Note: If the Part B student count total is larger than the total carried forward from Part A (resulting in a negative
value), a fatal error results. In this case, reexamine both the age data and comparable portion of Part A to identify the
error and make appropriate corrections.
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Part C: Residence of First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduate Students
Part C is optional this year. This part is required in even-numbered years only.
This distribution of students should include all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
(both full- and part-time) reported in Part A.

Recent High School Graduates Screening Question
Part C begins with a screening question to determine whether or not your institution has first-time degree/certificateseeking undergraduate students who enrolled within 12 months of graduating high school or receiving their GED. If the
answer is 'No', then only one column for all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates will display in Part C.
If the answer is 'Yes', then 2 columns will be reported in Part C, one for all first-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates and one for those first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates enrolled within 12 months of
graduating high school or receiving their GED. 

State of residence

Use the state identified by the student as his/her permanent address at the time of application to the institution. This
may be the legal residence of a parent or guardian, or the state in which a student has a driver's license or is
registered to vote. It is not necessarily the state in which the student's high school is located.

Residence of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
In column (1), report all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students, both full-time and parttime, by state of residence. The total line for column (1) will be carried forward from the total first-time
degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part A. If the sum of the students reported by state of
residence in column (1), lines 1-90, does not agree with the total first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates
from Part A, the "Residence unknown/unreported" (line 98) will be calculated.
Note: When the sum of students by state of residence is larger than the total carried forward from Part A (resulting in
a negative value calculated for the "Residence unknown/unreported" line), a fatal error results. In this case, reexamine
both the residence data and comparable section of Part A to identify the error and make appropriate corrections.
If your institution responded 'Yes' to the screening question, the subset of students from column (1) who enrolled
within 12 months of graduating high school or receiving their GED are to be reported again by their state of residence
in column (2).
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Part E: Retention Rates for the First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Student Cohort
Retention rates examine the percentage of first-time degree/certificate seeking students enrolled in the fall of the prior
year that are either still enrolled in the fall of the current year or have completed their program in that time.
The retention cohorts, full-time and part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates from Fall 2014, are
preloaded from Part A of the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
On each retention screen (full-time cohort and part-time cohort screens), institutions must:

•
•
•

Verify the preloaded Fall 2014 cohort.
Attendance status (full- or part-time) should be based on the student's Fall 2014 attendance status.
Report any exclusions for the cohort (see below for allowable exclusions).
Report the total number of students retained from the Fall 2014 cohort.
Total students retained = students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015.

Academic reporters: Report students retained as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15,
2015.
Program reporters: Report students retained as of August 1, 2015.

Exclusions:
Institutions may report exclusions for the Fall 2014 cohort. Allowable exclusions are students who left the institution
for any of the following reasons:

•
•
•
•

Died or were totally and permanently disabled
To serve in the armed forces (including those called to active duty)
To serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g., Peace Corps)
To serve on official church missions

The system will compute an adjusted cohort by subtracting the student exclusions from the original cohort prior to
calculating the retention rate.
Retention rates will be computed by the system after clicking 'Save.' The retention rate is calculated as:
(Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled + Students from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their
program as of Fall 2015/Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort)*100.

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Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio
Graduate only institutions do not complete Part F.
Report the student-to-faculty ratio for undergraduate programs at your institution. A worksheet is available to help
determine your institution's ratio. Click on the link from the Part F screen to access the worksheet.

Worksheet for Less Than Four-Year Institutions and Four-Year Institutions without Graduate or
Professional Programs
The worksheet is designed to help institutions determine their student-to-faculty ratio. It is NOT mandatory that you
use this worksheet to calculate your student-to-faculty ratio. Data entered on the worksheet will NOT be collected or
saved. Make sure to print the screen in order to refer to the ratio calculation for your institution at a later time.
Please note: The logic used in this calculation is similar to that of item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.

FULL- AND PART-TIME STUDENT DATA:
All student data on the worksheet is either carried forward from Part A or a calculated field.
Lines F1 and F2. Total full-time and total part-time students.
The total number of full- and part-time students are carried forward from Part A.
Line F3. A full-time equivalent (FTE) of the part-time student count.
The FTE will be calculated as line F2 (total part-time student count) * 1/3.
Line F4. Total FTE students.
This is calculated as the sum of lines F1 (total full-time students) and F3 (FTE of part-time students). Line F4 is used in
the ratio calculation.

FULL-AND PART-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF DATA:
Lines F5 and F8 should be reported based on data your institution is reporting in the IPEDS Human Resources (HR)
survey component. Please work together with the appropriate staff at your institution to ensure that the data used on
this worksheet and reported in the HR component are the same.
In line F5, report the total number of full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component.
In line F8, report the total number of part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component.

Instructional Staff Exclusion for Non-Credit Instructors:
In line F6, report the number of full-time instructional staff reported in line F5 that are teaching exclusively noncredit courses.
In line F9, report the number of part-time instructional staff reported in line F8 that are teaching exclusively noncredit courses.
For institutions that have a large amount of non-credit activity, the above exclusions will better align the student data
with the instructional staff data being used in the ratio.

Part-Time Instructional Staff Addition:
In line F10, report the number of administrators or other staff NOT reported to IPEDS as instructors (and therefore
not included in the instructional staff count reported in line F8) that are teaching a credit course in the Fall.

For institutions that have administrators and other professionals on staff that are not reported to IPEDS as instructors
(because it is not their "primary function") but they teach credit courses, the above allowable addition will produce a
more accurate ratio.
With the above instructional staff exclusions and part-time instructional staff addition information above, the system
will compute the following on the worksheet:
Line F7. Total adjusted full-time instructional staff.
The adjusted full-time instructional staff is the total full-time instructional staff, excluding those teaching exclusively
non-credit classes. The system will calculate line F7 as line F5 (total full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR
component) minus line F6 (total full-time instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses).
Line F11. Total adjusted part-time instructional staff.
The adjusted part-time instructional staff is the total part-time instructional staff, excluding those teaching exclusively
non-credit classes, and adding those administrators and other staff teaching credit courses. The system will calculate
line F11 as line F8 (total part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component) minus line F9 (total part-time
instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses) + line F10 (administrators and other staff teaching credit
courses).
Line F12. Total FTE of adjusted part-time instructional staff.
The FTE will be calculated as line F11 (total adjusted part-time instructional staff) * 1/3.
Line F13. Total FTE of adjusted instructional staff.
This is calculated as the sum of lines F7 (total adjusted full-time instructional staff) and F12 (FTE of total adjusted part
-time instructional staff). Line F13 is used in the ratio calculation.
Line F14. Student-to-faculty ratio.
The ratio will be calculated by the system as line F4 (total adjusted FTE students) divided by line F13 (total adjusted
FTE instructional staff). The ratio will be displayed on the worksheet as xxx to 1.
The calculated ratio can then be entered onto the Part F (Student-to-Faculty Ratio) screen.
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date: 11/24/2015

Glossary
Term

Definition

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 (full-time, first-time; part-time-first-time; full-time, non-first-time;
and part-time, non-first-time) for which outcomes rates are calculated at 6 and 8 years.

American Indian or Alaska
Native

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) who
maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community attachment.

Asian

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian Subcontinent,
including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand,
and Vietnam.

Audit/auditing (a class)

Term used when a student elects to take a course, but does not wish to receive credit for the course toward a
degree or other formal award.

Black or African American

A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.

Branch institution

A campus or site of an educational institution that is not temporary, is located in a community beyond a reasonable
commuting distance from its parent institution, and offers full programs of study, not just courses.

Cohort

A specific group of students established for tracking purposes.

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).

Credit

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 formal award,
irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.

Credit course

A course that, if successfully completed, can be applied toward the number of courses required for achieving a
postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.

Degree/certificate-seeking
students

Students enrolled in courses for credit who are seeking a degree, certificate, or other formal award. This includes
students who:
   - received any type of federal financial aid, regardless of what courses they took at any time;
   - received any state or locally based financial aid with an eligibility requirement that the student be enrolled in a
degree, certificate, or transfer-seeking program; or
   - obtained a student visa to study at a U.S. postsecondary institution
High school students also enrolled in postsecondary courses for credit are not considered degree/certificate-seeking.

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.
Technologies used for instruction may include the following: Internet; one-way and two-way transmissions through
open broadcasts, closed circuit, cable, microwave, broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite or wireless communication
devices; audio conferencing; and video cassette, DVDs, and CD-ROMs, if the cassette, DVDs, and CD-ROMs are used
in a course in conjunction with the technologies listed above.

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.

Dual credit

A program through which high school students are enrolled in Advanced Placement (AP) courses, taught at their high
school, that fulfill high school graduation requirements and may earn the student college credits .

Dual enrollment

A program through which high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school.
Students are not required to apply for admission to the college in order to participate.

Exclusions

Those students who may be removed (deleted) from a cohort (or subcohort). For the Graduation Rates, Outcome
Measures , and Fall Enrollment retention rate reporting, students may be removed from a cohort if they left the
institution for one of the following reasons: death or total and permanent disability; service in the armed forces
(including those called to active duty); service with a foreign aid service of the federal government, such as the
Peace Corps; or service on official church missions.

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 term, and
students who entered with advanced standing (college credits earned before graduation from high school).

Full-time student

Undergraduate: A student enrolled for 12 or more semester credits, or 12 or more quarter credits, or 24 or more
contact hours a week each term. Graduate: A student enrolled for 9 or more semester credits, or 9 or more quarter
credits, or a student involved in thesis or dissertation preparation that is considered full-time by the institution.
Doctor's degree - Professional practice - as defined by the institution.

High school diploma or
recognized equivalent

A document certifying the successful completion of a prescribed secondary school program of studies, or any of the
following:
•recognized attainment of satisfactory scores on the GED or another state-authorized
examination
•recognized completion of homeschooling at the secondary level as defined by state law
•completion of secondary school education in a homeschool setting which qualifies for an
exemption from compulsory attendance requirements under state law, if state law does not
require a homeschooled student to receive credential for their education

Hispanic/Latino

A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless
of race.

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).

Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.

Non-degree-seeking student

A student enrolled in courses for credit who is not recognized by the institution as seeking a degree or formal award.

Non-first-time 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 enrollment from Fall Enrollment (EF) component.

Noncredit course

A course or activity having no credit applicable toward a degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award.

Nonresident alien

A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country on a visa or temporary basis
and does not have the right to remain indefinitely.

Off-campus centers
(extension centers)

Sites outside the confines of the parent institution where courses are offered that are part of an organized program
at the parent institution. The sites are not considered to be temporary but may be rented or made available to the
institution at no cost by another institution or an organization, agency, or firm.

Official fall reporting date

The date (in the fall) on which an institution must report fall enrollment data to either the state, its board of trustees
or governing board, or some other external governing body.

Part-time student

Undergraduate: A student enrolled for either less than 12 semester or quarter credits, or less than 24 contact hours
a week each term. Graduate: A student enrolled for less than 9 semester or quarter credits.

Race and ethnicity unknown

The category used to report students or employees whose race and ethnicity are not known.

Race/ethnicity

Categories developed in 1997 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that are 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. The designations are used to categorize U.S. citizens, resident aliens,
and other eligible non-citizens.
Individuals are asked to first designate ethnicity as:
   - Hispanic or Latino or
   - Not Hispanic or Latino
Second, individuals are asked to indicate all races that apply among the following:
   - American Indian or Alaska Native
   - Asian
   - Black or African American
   - Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
   - White

Remedial courses

Instructional courses designed for students deficient in the general competencies necessary for a regular
postsecondary curriculum and educational setting.

Residence

A person's permanent address determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For entering
freshmen, residence may be the legal residence of a parent or guardian.

Resident alien (and other
eligible non-citizens)

A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States but who has been admitted as a legal immigrant for the
purpose of obtaining permanent resident alien status (and who holds either an alien registration card (Form I-551 or
I-151), a Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), or an Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) with a notation that
conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee or
Cuban-Haitian).

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.

State of residence

A person's permanent address as determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For
entering freshmen, state of residence may be the legal state of residence of a parent or guardian.

State unknown

Status used when the reporting institution is unable to determine from existing records the home state or residence
of the student.

Student-to-faculty ratio

The ratio of FTE students to FTE instructional staff, i.e., students divided by staff.
Students enrolled in "stand-alone" graduate or professional programs and instructional staff teaching in these
programs are excluded from both full-time and part-time counts.
"Stand-alone" graduate or professional programs are those programs such as medicine, law, veterinary, dentistry,
social work, or public health, in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students (also referred to as
"independent" programs).
Each FTE value is equal to the number of full-time students/staff plus 1/3 the number of part-time students/staff.

Study abroad

Arrangement by which a student completes part of the college program studying in another country. Can be at a
campus abroad or through a cooperative agreement with some other U.S. college or an institution of another
country.

Summer session

A summer session is shorter than a regular session and is not considered part of the academic year. It is not the
third term of an institution operating on a trimester system or the fourth term of an institution operating on a
quarter calendar system. The institution may have two or more sessions occurring in the summer months. Some
schools, such as vocational and beauty schools, have year-round classes with no separate summer session.

Title IV institution

An institution that has a written agreement with the Secretary of Education that allows the institution to participate
in any of the Title IV federal student financial assistance programs (other than the State Student Incentive Grant
(SSIG) and the National Early Intervention Scholarship and Partnership (NEISP) programs).

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.

White

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

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2015-16 Survey Materials > FAQ

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment
Click one of the following questions to view the answer.
General
1) Who should I include in my enrollment reporting?
2) What is the reporting period/date for fall enrollment?
3) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
4) In the past I reported first-professional students on this component. Why are there no screens for reporting firstprofessional students?
5) My school is part of a consortium of schools. How do I report student enrollment? 
6) Do I include students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses) in Fall Enrollment?
Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender (Part A)
1) What is NOT considered "prior postsecondary experience" when reporting first-time students?
2) Where do I report students if I don't know whether or not they are first-time?
3) Where do I report undergraduate students who enrolled at my institution for the first time this fall (without prior
postsecondary experience), but earned college credits during the prior summer?
4) How do I treat new students who transferred into the institution the prior summer term and take courses in the fall? 
5) Does "continuing/returning student" include those students who have stopped out and re-entered the same institution? 
6) How do I report a student who earned college credit while in high school (a dual enrolled student) and has now graduated
high school and enrolled in my institution in the Fall?
7) Where do I report a high school student who is enrolled for credit at my institution (a dual enrolled student)?
8) If a student enrolled for credit has not indicated whether they intend to earn a degree or certificate, how do I determine
whether they are degree/certificate-seeking?
9) Where do I report students who are seeking a second baccalaureate degree?
10) How do I report an undergraduate student who took courses as a non-degree-seeking student and re-enrolls as a degreeseeking student at the same reporting institution? 
11) My institution has students for which gender is unknown. Since there is no place to report “gender unknown” on the IPEDS
data collection screens, how should we report these individuals?
12) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
13) How does enrollment in non-credit or zero-credit remedial/ESL and co-op courses count in the determination of a student's
full-time status?
14) In which race/ethnicity category do I report undocumented students?
Fall Enrollment in Selected Fields (Part A, 4-year institutions only)
1) What do I do if my institution does not offer any of the program areas listed on the CIP selection screen?
2) How do I report students in program areas that do not appear on the CIP selection screen?
3) How do I report undergraduates who have not yet declared a major?
4) How do we report a student that has majors falling under more than one of the CIP codes collected in Part A (i.e., 13.0000
Education and 27.0000 Mathematics)?
Distance Education
1) If a student is taking the instructional portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to complete a
practicum, residency, or internship, is the student considered enrolled in exclusively distance education courses?
2) What should I do if I do not know the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses?
3) How do I determine location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education?
4) Are U.S. jurisdictions or territories (like Guam, the U.S. Virgin Island, etc.) considered in the U.S. for distance education
location reporting?
5) We offer courses that combine distance education and traditional teaching methods (“hybrid” courses). How should students
enrolled in these courses be counted in the distance education portion of Fall Enrollment? 
Fall Enrollment by Age (Part B)
1) I am not able to enter a number in the “Age unknown/unreported” box. How do I report students whose ages are unknown?
2) My institution uses age range categories that differ from the ones IPEDS uses in Part B. What should I do?
Residence of First-Time Undergraduates (Part C)
1) When reporting students by residence (Part C), should I include students who completed a GED in the second column that
asks for numbers of students that graduated high school within 12 months?
2) Some first-time undergraduates at my institution are dependents whose parents are in foreign countries on a temporary
basis (e.g., military/diplomatic service). When reporting residence and migration data, what location do I use?
Total Undergraduate Entering Class (Part D)
1) What is the difference between the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort (GRS cohort) and the
undergraduate entering class calculated in Part D?
Retention Rates for First-Time Undergraduates (Part E)
1) How is the retention rate calculated?
2)

How do I report students who changed attendance status (part-time to full-time or full-time to part-time) between one fall
and the next?
3) Are students on a leave of absence from the institution considered retained?
4) For less-than-4-year institutions that have a student who completed a program and are still enrolled at the same institution
in another program, how should they count that student? 
Undergraduate Student-to-Faculty Ratio (Part F)
1) How do I calculate my institution's student-to-faculty ratio?
2) Can you provide an example of a stand-alone graduate or professional program (a program such as medicine, law,
veterinary, or dentistry in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students)?
3) My institution has graduate and/or doctors-professional practice programs but does not have any "stand-alone" programs.
What should I enter on the student and faculty exclusion line items related to these types of programs on the worksheet for
Part F?

Answers:
General
1) Who should I include in my enrollment reporting?
All students enrolled for credit should be reported. Credit is defined as “Recognition of attendance or performance in an
instructional activity (course or program) that can be applied by a recipient toward the requirements for a degree, diploma,
certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.”
Students who are not seeking a degree or certificate may be still be enrolled for credit. These students are to be reported in the
non-degree/certificate-seeking column.

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2) What is the reporting period/date for fall enrollment?
Fall enrollment is a count of students enrolled on a particular date in the Fall. Fall enrollment is often referred to as a "snapshot"
of the enrollment at an institution at a specific time in the Fall. The date/period used depends on whether the institution is an
academic reporter or a program reporter for IPEDS purposes.
Academic reporters: Report enrollment as of October 15 or as of the institution's official fall reporting date.
Program reporters: Report enrollment during the 3-month period of August 1 to October 31. If a student enrolls or remains
enrolled at any time during that period, the student is included in the fall enrollment counts.
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3) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
Students who are enrolled in your institution and attend classes in a foreign country should be included in your institution's
enrollment report if your institution provides instructional resources (classroom, instructors), even though the education occurs
abroad. Students who are enrolled in your institution and attend classes in a foreign country should NOT be included in your
enrollment report if:

•
•
•

The students are enrolled ONLY in courses offered by another institution;
The students are enrolled at a branch campus of your institution in a foreign country;
Your institution does not provide the instructional resources (i.e., classrooms, instructors), even if the
student pays tuition to your institution. Their enrollment at your institution serves only as an administrative
record. 

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4) In the past I reported first-professional students on this component. Why are there no screens for reporting
first-professional students?
Beginning with the 2009-10 collection year, institutions are required to use the new postbaccalaureate degree categories
(eliminating the first-professional category and reclassifying those programs). In parts A and B, all postbaccalaureate students
are to be reported as graduate students, including doctor's-professional practice students (formerly reported as firstprofessional). Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.
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5) My school is part of a consortium of schools. How do I report student enrollment?
For reporting students studying in consortium agreements, please refer to the Resource page
at http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/submit_data/Consortium_Cheatsheet.asp. 
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6) Do I include students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses) in Fall
Enrollment?
ESL has never been considered a postsecondary program by IPEDS.  Since it is considered non-postsecondary, students who
are ONLY enrolled in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses), regardless of whether or not
they are receiving Title-IV aid, should NOT be counted in enrollment. 
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Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender (Part A)
1)
What is NOT considered "prior postsecondary experience" when reporting first-time students?

•
•
•
•
•

Credit for military service/training from an association such as the American Council on Education, 
Credit from any non-credit courses, as defined by the institution, 
Credit received for completion of tests/assessments, 
Credit received before the student has earned a high school diploma (i.e., AP or dual enrollment credits), or
Credit for life experience.

Students with prior postsecondary experience credit from attending a military academic institution (e.g., Community College of
the Air Force, West Point, U.S. Naval Academy, etc.) would NOT be considered first-time students. 
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2)
Where do I report students if I don't know whether or not they are first-time?
If their status is not indicated directly and the student does not enroll with prior credits or transcripts from another institution,
then assume the student is first-time.
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3)
Where do I report undergraduate students who enrolled at my institution for the first time this fall (without
prior postsecondary experience), but earned college credits during the prior summer?
These students should be reported as first-time undergraduates. The definition of “first-time” allows for students to still be
classified as first-time if the college credit they have previously earned occurred in the summer immediately prior to enrollment.
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4)
How do I treat new students who transferred into the institution the prior summer term and take courses in
the fall?
For the Fall Enrollment survey, count the student as a "transfer-in," even if the student transferred into the institution during
the prior summer term and is not entering the institution for the first time in the fall. 
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5)
Does "continuing/returning student" include those students who have stopped out and re-entered the same
institution?
Yes, "continuing/returning student" is meant to capture students who are not first-time or transfer-in. This includes students
who have been continuously enrolled in the institution and those who have stopped out and re-enrolled, without having
transferred to another institution. 
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6)
How do I report a student who earned college credit while in high school (a dual enrolled student) and has
now graduated high school and enrolled in my institution in the Fall?
If the college credit was earned prior to the student graduating high school, then this student would be considered a first-time
student in the Fall. The definition of “first-time” allows for students to still be classified as first-time if the college credit they
have previously earned was prior to their high school graduation.
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7)
Where do I report a high school student who is enrolled for credit at my institution (a dual enrolled student)?
This student would be reported as non-degree/certificate-seeking. Prior to receipt of a high school diploma or recognized
equivalent (see glossary definition), a student is non-degree/certificate-seeking. After receipt of the high school diploma or
recognized equivalent, they can be classified as degree/certificate-seeking, if appropriate.
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8)
If a student enrolled for credit has not indicated whether they intend to earn a degree or certificate, how do I
determine whether they are degree/certificate-seeking?
If the student has not indicated any intent but is applying for Title IV federal financial aid, assume the student to be
degree/certificate-seeking.
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9)
Where do I report students who are seeking a second baccalaureate degree?
Report these students in the column labeled "Continuing" degree/certificate-seeking students (column 3). This column is
intended to capture all degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students who are not first-time and did not transfer-in to the
institution in that Fall.
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10) How do I report an undergraduate student who took courses as a non-degree-seeking student and re-enrolls
as a degree-seeking student at the same reporting institution?
This student should be reported as a "continuing/returning" student. IPEDS defines "continuing/returning students" as "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 firsttime and not transfer-in)."
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11) My institution has students for which gender is unknown. Since there is no place to report “gender unknown”
on the IPEDS data collection screens, how should we report these individuals?
These individuals are still to be reported to IPEDS, even though their gender is unknown. It is up to the institution to decide
how best to handle reporting individuals whose gender is unknown. However, a common method used is to allocate students
with gender unknown based on the known proportion of men to women.
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12) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
There has been no change to how these students should be reported. Foreign students living outside the U.S., such as a foreign
student living outside the U.S. who is enrolled in distance education at your institution, should be classified in the Race/Ethnicity
Unknown category. Only U.S. citizens are to be categorized in the specific Race/Ethnicity categories. The non-resident alien
category is reserved specifically for students that are in the U.S. under that specific legal status.
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13) How does enrollment in non-credit or zero-credit remedial/ESL and co-op courses count in the determination
of a student's full-time status?
Students in the following categories are considered degree-seeking in IPEDS, though they may be enrolled in courses not
creditable for an award:

•
•
•

Students enrolled in remedial courses that are not creditable toward an award but have been admitted into
an eligible Title-IV program and receive Title-IV aid
Students enrolled in ESL courses that are not creditable toward an award but have been admitted into an
eligible Title-IV program and receive Title-IV aid
Co-op students enrolled in courses that are not creditable toward an award but are required for award
attainment

In determination of the student's full-time status, credit or contact hours (up to one academic year's worth) of remedial and ESL
courses may be used in the determination of a student's full-time status if the remedial or ESL course is part of a program that
leads to a postsecondary award. In these cases, the remedial or ESL courses should count the same as the comparable fullcredit class. For co-op students, the work portion of a cooperative education program in which the amount of work performed is
equivalent to the academic workload of a full-time student will also count toward the determination of full-time status.
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14) In which race/ethnicity category do I report undocumented students?
Because the race and ethnicity designations are reported only for U.S. citizens and the "nonresident alien" category is a legal
status for students with specific types of visas, undocumented students would not be reported under any of these statuses.
Instead, they should be reported as "Race/ethnicity unknown." Please visit the race/ethnicity FAQ for more
information: https://surveys.nces.ed.gov/ipeds/visFaq_re.aspx. 
However, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) students are a particular group of undocumented students that have
been authorized by the Department of Homeland Security to be lawfully present in the U.S. for the duration of their DACA, and
as such, this status would allow them to be reported under the "nonresident alien" category. 
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Fall Enrollment in Selected Fields (Part A, 4-year institutions only)
1) What do I do if my institution does not offer any of the program areas listed on the CIP selection screen?
Select “None of the above” on the CIP selection screen and report all students enrolled for credit, regardless of field of
study, Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A.
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2) How do I report students in program areas that do not appear on the CIP selection screen?
The program areas on the CIP selection screen are the only fields for which enrollment data is collected separately. In addition
to reporting enrollment by the selected fields requested, report all students enrolled for credit (regardless of field of study) on
the "Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A.
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3) How do I report undergraduates who have not yet declared a major?
These students should only be reported on the Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A, where all
students enrolled for credit (regardless of field of study) are reported.
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4) How do we report a student that has majors falling under more than one of the CIP codes collected in Part A
(i.e., 13.0000 Education and 27.0000 Mathematics)?
Report the students as either full-time or part-time depending on their status at the institution. Then report them on the
corresponding CIP pages. The CIP pages are not an unduplicated count and students can be included on more than one page.  
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Distance Education
1) If a student is taking the instructional portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to
complete a practicum, residency, or internship, is the student considered enrolled in exclusively distance
education courses?
Yes, if the instructional portions are entirely online, the student is considered to be enrolled in exclusive distance education
course. 
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2) What should I do if I do not know the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses?
If you have no information about the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education, do not report them in any
of the location fields. The system will calculate the number of "Location Unknown" exclusively distance education enrollments. 
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3) How do I determine location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education?
Location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education should be their physical location or current address, as of
the institution's Fall reporting date. If this is not available, use the address on file for the student. For students enlisted in the
military on active duty, use the permanent address instead of the student's physical location. 
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4) Are U.S. jurisdictions or territories (like Guam, the U.S. Virgin Island, etc.) considered in the U.S. for distance
education location reporting?
Yes, Students located in a U.S. jurisdiction while they are enrolled in distance education courses should be reported as located
in the U.S.
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5) We offer courses that combine distance education and traditional teaching methods (“hybrid” courses). How
should students enrolled in these courses be counted in the distance education portion of Fall Enrollment?
Hybrid courses are not considered by IPEDS as distance education. Students enrolled in “hybrid” courses should be reported as
“not enrolled in any distance education courses.”
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Fall Enrollment by Age (Part B)
1) I am not able to enter a number in the “Age unknown/unreported” box. How do I report students whose ages
are unknown?
The number of students whose age is unknown will be computed by the data collection system. The difference between the sum
of students reported by age category in Part B and the corresponding total enrollment reported in Part A results in the number
of students whose age is unknown.
If this results in a negative number, a fatal error will appear and you will need to either correct your data or contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
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2) My institution uses age range categories that differ from the ones IPEDS uses in Part B. What should I do?
In order to have consistent data from all institutions, IPEDS must use standard age categories. Use the students' dates of birth
to report the enrollment by IPEDS age categories.
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Residence of First-Time Undergraduates (Part C)
1) When reporting students by residence (Part C), should I include students who completed a GED in the second
column that asks for numbers of students that graduated high school within 12 months?
If the student received the GED within the past 12 months, they should be included in the second column.
Back to top
2) Some first-time undergraduates at my institution are dependents whose parents are in foreign countries on a
temporary basis (e.g., military/diplomatic service). When reporting residence and migration data, what
location do I use?
The home state could be the student’s or parent’s official home state, the state where they are registered to vote or pay taxes,
or the state issuing their driver’s license. If no such information is available, they would be reported under “State
unknown”(57).
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Total Undergraduate Entering Class (Part D)
1) What is the difference between the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort (GRS cohort) and the
undergraduate entering class calculated in Part D?
In addition to the students in the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort, the total undergraduate entering class
includes part-time students of the same criteria as well as transfers-in and full- and part-time non-degree/certificate-seeking
students that are new to your institution in the Fall.
The entering class is intended to represent all students new to an institution in a given fall and provide context for the GRS
cohort. The percent of the entering class that is represented by the institution's GRS cohort is included on College Navigator as
a note to the graduation rate data displayed.
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Retention Rates for First-Time Undergraduates (Part E)
1) How is the retention rate calculated?
The retention rate is calculated as follows:
4-year Institutions:
first-time bachelor's degree-seeking students in Fall 2014 who are still enrolled in Fall 2015/(first-time bachelor's degreeseeking students in Fall 2014 - cohort exclusions)
2-year and Less-than-2-year Institutions:
(first-time students in Fall 2014 who are still enrolled in Fall 2015 + first-time students in Fall 2014 who completed their
program by Fall 2015)/(first-time students in Fall 2014 - cohort exclusions)
Back to top
2) How do I report students who changed attendance status (part-time to full-time or full-time to part-time)
between one fall and the next?
Report students based on their attendance status in the fall the cohort was initially based on, even if that status changed in the
following fall.
Back to top
3) Are students on a leave of absence from the institution considered retained?
No. Students must be enrolled for credit at the institution in the Fall to be considered retained from the previous fall.
Back to top
4) For less-than-4-year institutions that have a student who completed a program and are still enrolled at the
same institution in another program, how should they count that student?
The institution should count that student as "retained" only once. Do NOT count that student twice, once for having completed
the program and another time for still being enrolled. 
Back to top
Undergraduate Student-to-Faculty Ratio (Part F)
1) How do I calculate my institution's student-to-faculty ratio?
A worksheet has been provided to guide the process of calculating the student-to-faculty ratio for your institution. The
worksheet can be accessed from the Part F screen in the Data Collection System.
Back to top
2) Can you provide an example of a stand-alone graduate or professional program (a program such as medicine,
law, veterinary, or dentistry in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students)?

An example of a program that would fall into this category (typically a doctor's-professional practice program) is a school of
medicine that only awards degrees/certificates at the graduate level and therefore its faculty exclusively (or in some cases
almost exclusively) teach graduate students. Programs that are "stand-alone" graduate programs may have some
undergraduate students enrolled in their courses, however a "stand-alone" graduate program would only award
degrees/certificates at the graduate level. An example of a graduate program that would not meet this criteria is a school of
business that has an undergraduate and graduate program and therefore enrolls both types of students and awards
degrees/certificates at both levels. Further, the faculty would teach a mix of undergraduate and graduate students. Excluding
“stand-alone” graduate programs is intended to make the student-to-faculty ratio closer to an undergraduate student-to-faculty
ratio than it would be if these programs were included in the calculation, without overburdening institutions.
Back to top
3) My institution has graduate and/or doctors-professional practice programs but does not have any "standalone" programs. What should I enter on the student and faculty exclusion line items related to these types of
programs on the worksheet for Part F?
If your institution does not have any "stand-alone" graduate or professional programs, then enter 0 for students and 0 for
faculty in the lines for these types of programs. Most institutions do not have these types of graduate or professional programs,
so entering 0 in those lines will be fairly common.
Back to top

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2015-16 Survey Materials > Narrative Edits

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment for public non-degree-granting institutions
Edit specifications for the 2015-16 IPEDS Web-Based Data Collection
Fall Enrollment (EF) Component
Applicable to public non-degree-granting institutions
NOTE: The specifications in this document apply to the institutions listed above. Some sections and parts may not
apply to your particular institution. Please read the specifications carefully to determine which sections and/or parts
apply to your institution.
All screens must be completed in order to lock the survey.

Screening Question
Part A: Enrollment of Students by Race/Ethnicity
Part B: Enrollment of Students by Age
Part C: Residence
Part E: Retention Rates
Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio

Screening Question

You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is shown.

Part Selection

Completion of Part C: Residence is optional for this reporting year. Before continuing, you must indicate the following:

•

Do you wish to complete Part B this year?
◦ No (If this option is selected, then Part C will not be displayed.)
◦ Yes (If this option is selected, then you will be required to complete all screens in Part C.)

Part A: Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender
Full-Time Undergraduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported full-time undergraduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of First-time certificate-seeking, Other certificate-seeking, and Non-certificateseeking full-time undergraduate students enrolled in creditable courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender
category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the grand total number of full-time undergraduate students (degree/certificateseeking + non-degree/non-certificate-seeking) enrolled for credit by race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand total (men +
women) enrolled for credit by student type.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•

•

•

•
•
•

•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total full-time undergraduate students must be greater than 0.
If your institution reported that it enrolls full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part B of
the IC Header survey, you must report students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are
receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part
B of the IC Header survey, you are not expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is enrolled
and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If you reported First-time certificate-seeking students on this screen, you are also expected to report Other
certificate-seeking and/or Non-certificate-seeking students.
Note:
◦ For Academic Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time in the fall of the current year (or the summer immediately preceding).
◦ For Program Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time between August 1 and October 31 of the current year.
If the percent of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category
is between 20 percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category
is greater than 80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.
For each gender category, the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Part-Time Undergraduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported part-time undergraduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of First-time certificate-seeking, Other certificate-seeking, and Non-certificateseeking part-time undergraduate students enrolled in creditable courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender
category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the grand total number of part-time undergraduate students (degree/certificateseeking + non-degree/non-certificate-seeking) enrolled for credit by race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand total (men +
women) enrolled for credit by student type.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•

•

•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total part-time undergraduate students must be greater than 0.
If your institution reported that it enrolls part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part B of
the IC Header survey, you must report students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are
receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in
Part B of the IC Header survey, you are not expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is
enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If you reported First-time certificate-seeking students on this screen, you are also expected to report Other
certificate-seeking and/or Non-certificate-seeking students.
Note:
◦ For Academic Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time in the fall of the current year (or the summer immediately preceding).
◦ For Program Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time between August 1 and October 31 of the current year.

•
•
•

•

If the percent of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown
category is between 20 percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown
category is greater than 80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.
For each gender category, the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 1
On this screen, you must report the number of Degree/Certificate-seeking and Non-Degree/Certificate-seeking undergraduate
students enrolled at the institution for each of the following categories:

•
•

Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses

Based on the data entered, the system will calculate  the number of students not enrolled in any distance education
courses by degree/certificate-seeking status (Degree/Certificate Seeking, Non-degree/Certificate Seeking), as applicable to
your institution. The value is calculated by subtracting the (students enrolled exclusively in distance education + students
enrolled in some but not all distance education courses) from the total enrolled students from Part A which are displayed for
your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•

•

If your institution reported offering distance education opportunities in this year's Institutional Characteristics survey,
then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses and Enrolled
in some but not all distance education courses across all status options is expected to be greater than 0.
If your institution reported NOT offering distance education opportunities in this year's Institutional Characteristics
survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
and Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses across all status options is expected to be 0.
If your institution reported that all programs are offered via distance education in this year's Institutional
Characteristics survey, then the total number of students reported for Not enrolled in any distance education
courses is expected to be 0.

Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 2
On this screen, you must report the number of Degree/Certificate-seeking and Non-Degree/Certificate-seeking undergraduate
students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses for each of the following location categories:

•
•
•
•

Located in the state/jurisdiction of [state/jurisdiction where institution is located]
Located in the U.S. but not in [state/jurisdiction where institution is located]
Located in the U.S. but state unknown
Located outside the U.S.

For each degree/certificate seeking status, the total number of students Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses from
Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 1 is displayed for your reference. Based on the data entered, the system will calculate
the number of students whose location is unknown/unreported.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•

•

For each degree-seeking status, if the Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education is greater than
or equal to 5 and you report all students under the same location category, then an explanation error will occur.
For each degree-seeking status, the calculated value for Location unknown/unreported cannot be negative. Please
correct your values so that the total of each status is not greater than the preloaded Total students exclusively
enrolled in distance education from Distance Education, Page 1.
For each degree-seeking status, the calculated value for Location unknown/unreported is not expected to be equal
to the corresponding Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education.

Fall Enrollment Summary
This screen displays a summary of the data reported in Part A of this survey, including Total full-time students, Total part-time
students, and Grand total, all students enrolled at the institution by race/ethnicity and gender. 
The system will perform the following edit on the data entered:

•
•

The calculated Grand Total (men + women) calculated for Grand total, all students must be greater than 0.
The current year racial/ethnic distribution of Men is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year racial/ethnic
distribution, otherwise an explanation must be provided.
Note: These distributions are calculated by finding the absolute value of the current year percentage for men minus
the corresponding prior year percentage for men from each race/ethnicity category. If the sum of the absolute values
across all race/ethnicity categories (excluding the White category) is greater than 30, then an explanation error will
occur. For example, in Table 1 (shown below) the sum of the Current year minus prior year absolute values
across all applicable race/ethnicity categories is 40. Because this number is greater than 30, an explanation error will
occur.
Table 1

Race/ethnicity

Nonresident Alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian/Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total
•

Current year
percentage
of men
6
10
1
8
25
6

Prior year
percentage
of men
14
9
3
6
10
4

Current year minus
prior year absolute
value
8
1
2
2
15
2

50
4
0
--

46
6
8
--

-2
8
40

As with the distribution of Men explained previously, the current year racial/ethnic distribution of Women is expected
to be within a 30% range of the prior year racial/ethnic distribution, otherwise an explanation must be provided.

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Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender
In Part B you must report the number of students enrolled for credit at the institution by age distribution and
gender for each of the following student types (as applicable based on enrollment reported in the IC Header
survey):
•
•

Full-time undergraduate
Part-time undergraduate

For each applicable student type, the system will calculate the total number of students reported in Part B by gender and subtract this
value from the corresponding total from Part A to determine the number of students with Age unknown/unreported.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for each applicable student type:

•

•

For each gender category, the number of full-time undergraduate students with Age unknown/unreported cannot
be negative.
Note: If this number is less than 0, it is because the sum of men and women from all age groups is greater than the
number of students reported for the corresponding student type in Part A. Corrections must be made to the data in
one or both parts to resolve the fatal error that will occur.
For each gender category, the number of students with Age unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to
20% of the number of students reported for the corresponding student type in Part A.

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Part C: Residence
Applicable to institutions that answered Yes to the Part Selection screening question at the beginning
of the survey
Part C Screening Question
You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is shown.

•

Did any of the first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part A enroll within 12 months
of graduating from high school or receiving their GED?
◦ No
◦ Yes

The system will perform the following edit on the data entered:

•

If your institution reported that you enroll full-time, first-time degree/certificate seeking undergraduate students in
Part B of the IC Header survey, then you are expected to respond Yes to the screening question above.

First-time Residence (3 screens)
Applicable to institutions that answered Yes to the 'Part C Screening Question'
On these screens you must report the number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students enrolled in the institution
(column 1), and the number of these students who enrolled within 12 months of graduating from high school or receiving their GED
(column 2) by State of residence when student was first admitted. This includes all states and US territories, along with additional
"State Unknown" and "Foreign Countries" categories, each with its own unique 2-digit FIPS Code.
On the final screen in Part C, the system will calculate the number of students with Residence unknown/unreported (FIPS Code 98)
by subtracting the sum of all students entered in column 1 from the total number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate
students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•
•
•

•
•
•

For each FIPS Code, the number of students reported in column 2 must be less than or equal to the number of
students reported in column 1.
The sum of all students entered in column 2 must be greater than 0.
The sum of all students entered in column 2 must be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of students
entered in column 1.
The number of students with Residence unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
Note: You must report state of residence for the maximum number of students possible. If you are unable to provide
at least 20% of residences, you must enter an explanation.
The total number of First-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part C cannot
exceed the number of total First-time undergraduate students reported in Part A.
The number of students from State Unknown (FIPS Code 57) is expected to be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The total number of first-time, degree/certificate seeking undergraduate students in your institution’s "home state" is
expected to be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

First-time Residence (3 screens)
Applicable to institutions that answered No to the 'Part C Screening Question'

On these screens you must report the number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students enrolled in the institution
(column 1) by State of residence when student was first admitted. This includes all states and US territories, along with additional
"State Unknown" and "Foreign Countries" categories, each with its own unique 2-digit FIPS Code.
On the final screen in Part C, the system will determine the number of students with Residence unknown/unreported (FIPS Code 98)
by subtracting the sum of all students entered in column 1 from the total number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate
students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•
•
•

The number of students with Residence unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
Note: You must report state of residence for the maximum number of students possible. If you are unable to provide
at least 20% of residences, you must enter an explanation.
The total number of First-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part C cannot
exceed the number of total First-time undergraduate students reported in Part A.
The number of students from State Unknown (FIPS Code 57) is expected to be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The total number of first-time, degree/certificate seeking undergraduate students in your institution’s "home state" is
expected to be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

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Part E: Retention Rates
In Part E, you must report the retention rates for the Full-time, first-time cohort and the Part-time, first-time cohort.
Note: Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program reporters
report retention data on students enrolled in the institution at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based on
August 1, 2015.

Full-time, first-time cohort retention
You must report the number of students in the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E1), as well as any Exclusions from the
cohort (E2). Once the screen is saved, the system will display the difference between the two in the Adjusted cohort (E3) field.
In addition, the number of Students from Fall 2014 still enrolled plus students from Fall 2014 who completed their program as
of Fall 2015 (E4) must be reported in order to determine the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (E5) percentage.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•
•
•
•
•
•
•

The Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E1) is expected to be within a certain range of the Prior year data, as
outlined below:
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is less than 25, then the current year amount must be between 0 and plus 10 of
that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is between 25 and 99, then the current year amount must be within a 30%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is between 100 and 499, then the current year amount must be within a 20%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is greater than or equal to 500, then the current year amount must be within a
10% range of that amount.
The full-time, first-time cohort entered must be less than or equal to the total number of full-time, first-time students
reported in last year's Fall Enrollment survey component.
If the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort is greater than 0, then the Exclusions from the cohort must be less
than 50% of this value.
If the Adjusted cohort is greater than 0 and E1 is greater than 5, then the number of Students from Fall 2014
cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 is expected to be greater than 0.
The number of Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E4) must be less than or equal to
the Adjusted cohort.
The number of students reported for E4 is expected to be greater than or equal to 15% of the Adjusted cohort.
If the number of students reported for E4 is equal to the Adjusted cohort, then you must confirm a retention rate of
100% for that cohort.
If you reported enrollment for full-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are expected to report full-time, first-time students on this
screen. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.

•

•

If you did not report enrollment for full-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are not expected to report full-time, first-time students on
this screen. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
The value reported for E5 is expected to be within plus or minus 15% of the prior year retention rate.

Part-time, first-time cohort retention
You must report the number of students in the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E6), as well as any Exclusions from the
cohort (E7). Once the screen is saved, the system will display the difference between the two in the Adjusted cohort (E8) field.
In addition, the number of Students from Fall 2014 still enrolled plus students from Fall 2014 who completed their program as
of Fall 2015 (E9) must be reported in order to determine the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (E10)
percentage.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•
•
•
•
•
•

•

•

The Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E6) is expected to be within a certain range of the Preloaded cohort,
as outlined below:
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is less than 25, then the current year amount must be between 0 and plus 10 of
that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is between 25 and 99, then the current year amount must be within a 30%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is between 100 and 499, then the current year amount must be within a 20%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is greater than or equal to 500, then the current year amount must be within a
10% range of that amount.
The part-time, first-time cohort entered must be less than or equal to the total number of part-time, first-time
students reported in last year's Fall Enrollment survey component.
If the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort is greater than 0, then the Exclusions from the cohort must be less
than 50% of this value.
If the Adjusted cohort is greater than 0 and E6 is greater than 5, then the number of Students from Fall 2014
cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 is expected to be greater than 0.
The number of Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E9) must be less than or equal to
the Adjusted cohort.
If the number of students reported for E9 is equal to the Adjusted cohort, then you must confirm a retention rate of
100% for that cohort.
If you reported enrollment for part-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are expected to report part-time, first-time students on this
screen. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
If you did not report enrollment for part-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are not expected to report part-time, first-time students on
this screen. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
The value reported for E10 is expected to be within plus or minus 15% of the prior year retention rate.

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Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio
On this screen, you must report your institution's Student-to-faculty ratio (e.g., student-to-instructional staff ratio) for Fall 2015 using
the ratio format provided. Additional resources are available, including the prior year student-to-faculty ratio, and a worksheet for
assistance in determining your institution’s student-to-faculty ratio.
Note: The student-to-faculty ratio and any accompanying context provided on this screen will be displayed on College Navigator.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•
•

The ratio entered here is expected to be greater than 0 to 1.
If the ratio entered is greater than 50 to 1, then a fatal error will occur.
The ratio entered must be within a certain range of the prior year amount, as outlined below:
◦ If the prior year amount entered is between 0 and 10 to 1, then the current year amount must be within 5
integers of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount entered is greater than 10 to 1, then the current year amount must be within a 50%
range of that amount.

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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or ipedshelp@rti.org

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Form

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment for private 2-year and less-than-2-year non-degree-granting
institutions
Overview 
Fall Enrollment Overview
The Fall Enrollment component collects student enrollment counts by level of student, enrollment status, gender and
race/ethnicity. In addition, first-time student retention rates and the student-to-faculty ratio are collected. Every other
year data on residence of first-time undergraduates is required and in opposite years, enrollment by student age is
required to be reported.
Institutions operating on a traditional academic year calendar (semester, trimester, quarter, or 4-1-4) report Fall
enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or October 15. Institutions operating on a calendar that
differs by program or that enrolls students on a continuous basis (referred to as program reporters) report Fall
enrollment as students enrolled any time during the period August 1 and October 31.

Data Reporting Reminders:
•Part B, Enrollment of students by age, is required this year.
•Part C, Residence of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates, is optional this year.
Resources:
To download the survey materials for this component: Survey Materials
To access your prior year data submission for this component: Reported Data
If you have questions about completing this survey, please contact the IPEDS Help Desk at 1-877-225-2568.

Part Selection 
Completion of Part C (Residence of First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates) is optional this year.
Do you wish to complete Part C this year?
If you select 'No', you will skip Part C.
If you select 'Yes', you will be expected to complete the Part C screens.
No, I will not complete Part C
Yes, I will complete Part C

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Full-Time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Full-time UndergraduateStudents
Race/Ethnicity Reporting Reminder:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only

Men
Enrolled for credit

First-time, certificate-seeking

All Other

Total,
full-time
undergraduate
students

First-time, certificate-seeking

All Other

Total,
full-time
undergraduate
students

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Total men prior year
Women
Enrolled for credit

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Total women prior year
Grand total (men+women)
Grand total (men+women) prior year

Part A - Fall Enrollment for Part-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Part-time Undergraduate Students
Race/Ethnicity Reporting Reminder:
•Report Hispanic/Latino individuals of any race as Hispanic/Latino
•Report race for non-Hispanic/Latino individuals only

Men
Enrolled for credit

First-time, certificate-seeking

All Other

Total,
part-time
undergraduate
students

First-time, certificate-seeking

All Other

Total,
part-time
undergraduate
students

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Total men prior year
Women
Enrolled for credit

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Total women prior year
Grand total (men+women)
Grand total (men+women) prior year

Part A - Fall Enrollment Summary 
Fall Enrollment Summary
Men
Students enrolled for credit

Total full-time
students

Total part-time
students

Grand total,
all students

Total full-time
students

Total part-time
students

Grand total,
all students

Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total men
Women
Students enrolled for credit
Nonresident alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total women
Grand Total (men+women)

Part A - Fall Enrollment by Distance Education Status 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
All Undergraduate Students
Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses
Not enrolled in any distance education courses
Total (from prior part A screens)
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part A - Fall Enrollment by Distance Education Status 
All Undergraduate
Students
Of those students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses, report the
number that are:
Located in
Located in the U.S. but not in
Located in the U.S. but state/jurisdiction unknown
Located outside the U.S.
Location unknown/unreported
Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education (from section above)

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Full-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total full-time undergraduate students (from part A)

Full-time Undergraduate Students
Men
Women

Part B - Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender for Part-time Undergraduate Students 
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Age
Under 18
18-19
20-21
22-24
25-29
30-34
35-39
40-49
50-64
65 and over
Age unknown/unreported
Total part-time undergraduate students (from part A)

Part-time Undergraduate Students
Men
Women

Part C - Screening Question 
Did any of your first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (reported in Part A) enroll within 12
months of graduating high school or receiving their GED?
No, we do not have any first-time students who enrolled within 12 months of their high school
graduation.
Yes, we have first-time students who enrolled within 12 months of their high school graduation.
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS Code
Of students in column 1, those
Total first-time
was first admitted
who enrolled within 12 months
degree/certificate-seeking
of high school graduation
undergraduates
or receiving their GED
(1)
(2)
Alabama
01
Alaska

02

Arizona

04

Arkansas

05

California

06

Colorado

08

Connecticut

09

Delaware

10

District of Columbia

11

Florida

12

Georgia

13

Hawaii

15

Idaho

16

Illinois

17

Indiana

18

Iowa

19

Kansas

20

Kentucky

21

Louisiana

22

Maine

23

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS Code
Total first-time
Of students in column 1, those
was first admitted
degree/certificate-seeking
who enrolled within 12 months
undergraduates
of high school graduation
(1)
or receiving their GED
(2)
Maryland
24
Massachusetts

25

Michigan

26

Minnesota

27

Mississippi

28

Missouri

29

Montana

30

Nebraska

31

Nevada

32

New Hampshire

33

New Jersey

34

New Mexico

35

New York

36

North Carolina

37

North Dakota

38

Ohio

39

Oklahoma

40

Oregon

41

Pennsylvania

42

Rhode Island

44

Part C - Residence of First-time Undergraduates 
NOTE: These data are optional this year.
Academic reporters report enrollment as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters report students enrolled at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2015.
Enter at least one zero, where applicable, to verify that the screen has not been skipped.
State of residence when student
FIPS
Total first-time
Of students in column 1, those
was first admitted
Code degree/certificate-seeking who enrolled within 12 months of
undergraduates
high school graduation
(1)
or receiving their GED
(2)
South Carolina
45
South Dakota

46

Tennessee

47

Texas

48

Utah

49

Vermont

50

Virginia

51

Washington

53

West Virginia

54

Wisconsin

55

Wyoming

56

State Unknown

57

American Samoa

60

Federated States of Micronesia

64

Guam

66

Marshall Islands

68

Northern Marianas

69

Palau

70

Puerto Rico

72

Virgin Islands

78

Foreign Countries

90

Residence unknown/unreported
Total first-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates (from Part A)

98

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part E - First-Time Student Cohort Retention Rates (Full-time) 
Retention Rates
Full-time, First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Cohort from Fall 2014
The Fall 2014 cohort is preloaded based on data reported in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program
reporters determine the cohort with enrollment any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based
on August 1, 2015.
The retention rate is calculated by the system after clicking "Save" on the screen. Exclusions are subtracted from the
original cohort and the resulting adjusted cohort is used for calculating the retention rate.
Retention Data Reporting Reminders:
•
Include only full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students in this cohort.
•
Determine full-time using Fall 2014 attendance status (e.g. if a student was full-time in Fall 2014, report them in
the full-time cohort regardless of Fall 2015 status).
•
If there are no students to report in the cohort, enter zero. Do not leave the field blank.
•
Report in the exclusions box (line E2) the number of students from the cohort who left the institution for any of
the following reasons: died or were totally and permanently disabled; to serve in the armed forces (including
those called to active duty); to serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g. Peace Corps);
or to serve on official church missions.
Preloaded
cohort

Prior year
data (Fall
2013
cohort)

FULL-TIME, FIRST-TIME COHORT RETENTION:
E1
Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort
E2

Exclusions from the Fall 2014 cohort

E3
Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort (line E1 - line E2)
E4
Students from Fall 2014 cohort who are still enrolled + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015
E5
Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (line E4 / line
E3)
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%

%

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part E - First-Time Student Cohort Retention Rates (Part-time) 
Retention Rates
Part-time, First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Cohort from Fall 2014
The Fall 2014 cohort is preloaded based on data reported in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program
reporters determine the cohort with enrollment any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based
on August 1, 2015.
The retention rate is calculated by the system after clicking "Save" on the screen. Exclusions are subtracted from the
original cohort and the resulting adjusted cohort is used for calculating the retention rate.
Retention Data Reporting Reminders:
•
Include only part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students in this cohort.
•
Determine part-time using Fall 2014 attendance status (e.g. if a student was part-time in Fall 2014, report them
in the part-time cohort regardless of their Fall 2015 status).
•
If there are no students to report in the cohort, enter zero. Do not leave the field blank.
•
Report in the exclusions box (line E7) the number of students from the cohort who left the institution for any of
the following reasons: died or were totally and permanently disabled; to serve in the armed forces (including
those called to active duty); to serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g. Peace Corps);
or to serve on official church missions.

Preloaded
cohort

Prior year
data (Fall
2013
cohort)

PART-TIME, FIRST-TIME COHORT RETENTION:
E6
Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort
E7

Exclusions from the Fall 2014 cohort

E8
Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort (line E6 - line E7)
E9
Students from Fall 2014 cohort who are still enrolled + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015
E10
Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (line E9 / line
E8)
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context
notes
will
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posted
the
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Navigator.
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description.

%

%

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part F - Student-to-Faculty Ratio 
Please provide your institution's student-to-faculty ratio (i.e., student-to-instructional staff) for undergraduate
programs for Fall 2015. The student-to-faculty ratio and any accompanying context that is provided will be
displayed on College Navigator.
Note: Logic in this item is similar to item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.

Click here to use a worksheet to help you determine the student-to-faculty ratio
Student-to-faculty ratio

to 1

Student-to-faculty ratio prior year

to 1

Image
description.
These
context
notes
will
be on
posted
the College
Navigator.
End of image
description.

You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

These context notes will be posted on the College Navigator website, and should be written to be understood
by students and parents.

Part F - Less Than Four-Year Institutions and Four Year-Institutions Without Graduate
Programs Student-to-Faculty Ratio Worksheet 
This worksheet is designed to help you determine your institution's student-to-faculty ratio.
Data entered on this worksheet will NOT be collected or saved. Therefore, please PRINT this screen if you
would like to refer to the ratio calculation for your institution at a later time.
Note: The logic used for this calculation is similar to item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.
Students, Fall 2015
F1 Total full-time students from Part A
F2 Total part-time students from Part A
F3 Full-time equivalent of part-time students
(Line F2 * 1/3)
F4 Total full-time equivalent students
(Line F1 + F3)
Instructional Staff, Fall 2015
FULL-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF:
F5 Number of full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR survey component
Full-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion (Line F6):
F6 Full-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion:
Of the number of full-time instructional staff reported in Line F5, the number teaching
exclusively non-credit courses
F7 Total adjusted full-time instructional staff
(Line F5 - F6)
PART-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF:
F8 Number of part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR survey component
Part-Time Instructional Staff Exclusion (Line F9):
F9 Of the number of part-time instructional staff reported in Line F8, the number teaching
exclusively non-credit courses
Part-Time Instructional Staff Addition (Line F10):
F10 Number of administrators, or other staff not reported to IPEDS as instructors, that are
teaching a credit course(s) in the Fall
F11 Total adjusted part-time instructional staff
(Line F8 - F9 + F10)
F12 Full-time equivalent of adjusted part-time instructional staff
(Line F11 * 1/3)
F13 Total full-time equivalent instructional staff
(Line F7 + F12)
F14 Student-to-faculty ratio
(Line F4/F13)

to 1

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IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or ipedshelp@rti.org

NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Instructions

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment Full Instructions

Purpose of Survey
Changes in Reporting
General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
Context Boxes

Coverage
Who To Include
Who To Exclude

Where to Get Help For Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
AIR Website
IPEDS Website Resources

Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Institution Level
Aggregate Level

Reporting Directions
Screening Questions
Reporting Individuals by Racial/Ethnic Categories
Part A: Fall Enrollment by Level, Attendance Status, Race/Ethnicity, and Gender
Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age
Part C: Residence of First-Time Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates
Part E: Retention Rates for First-Time Certificate-Seeking Undergraduates
Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio

Purpose of Survey
The purpose of the Fall Enrollment component of IPEDS is to collect enrollment data on all students enrolled for credit
in courses/programs that could lead to awards ranging from postsecondary certificates of less than 1 year to doctoral
degrees. Fall enrollment data are collected by level of student, attendance status, race/ethnicity, and gender. In
addition, the Fall Enrollment component collects data on the institution's undergraduate entering class, first-time
student retention rates, and the student-to-faculty ratio. Every other year data on enrollment by nine selected fields of
study are collected, as is residency of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students. In opposite years,
enrollment by student age is collected.
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Changes in Reporting
Enrollment by age will be mandatory this year. Enrollment by residence is optional.
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General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
For institutions operating on a traditional academic year calendar (semester, trimester, quarter, or 4-1-4), fall
enrollment should be reported as of the institution's official fall reporting date or October 15.
For institutions operating on an "other academic calendar," a calendar that differs by program, or enrolls students on a
continuous basis (referred to as program reporters), fall enrollment is reported for students enrolled any time during
the period August 1 and October 31.

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Context Boxes
Context boxes are provided to allow institutions to provide more information regarding survey component items. Note
that some context boxes are posted on the College Navigator Website, which is the college search tool offered by
NCES. NCES will review entries in these context boxes for applicability and appropriateness before posting them on the
College Navigator Website; institutions should check grammar and spelling of their entries.
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Coverage
Who to Include
Include all students enrolled for credit (enrolled in instructional activity, courses or programs, that can be applied
towards the requirements for a postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award), regardless of
whether or not they are seeking a degree or certificate. This includes:

•
•
•
•

Students enrolled for credit in off-campus centers
High school students taking regular college courses for credit
Students taking remedial courses if the student is degree-seeking for the purpose of student financial aid
determination
Students from overseas enrolled in for credit at your institution (e.g., online students)

Who to Exclude
Exclude students who are not enrolled for credit. For example, exclude:

•
•
•
•

Students enrolled exclusively in courses that cannot be applied towards a formal award
Students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses)
Students enrolled exclusively in Continuing Education Units (CEUs)
Students exclusively auditing classes

In addition, the following students should be excluded:

•
•

Any student studying abroad (e.g., at a foreign university) if their enrollment at the 'home' institution serves
as an administrative record
Students enrolled in any branch campus located in a foreign country

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Where to Get Help with Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
Phone: 1-877-225-2568
Email: ipedshelp@rti.org

Web Tutorials
You can also consult the IPEDS Website Trainings & Outreach page which contains several tutorials on IPEDS data
collection, a self-paced overview of IPEDS tools, and other valuable resources.

IPEDS Resource Page
The IPEDS Website Reporting Tools page contains frequently asked questions, a link to data tip sheets, tutorials,
taxonomies, information centers (e.g., academic libraries, average net price, human resources, race/ethnicity, etc.),
and other valuable information.
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Where the Reported Data Will Appear
Data collected through IPEDS will be accessible at the institution- and aggregate-levels.
At the institution-level, data will appear in the:

•
•
•
•

College Navigator Website
IPEDS Data Center
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
College Affordability and Transparency Center Website

At the aggregate-level, data will appear in:

•
•
•
•
•

IPEDS First Looks
IPEDS Table Library
IPEDS Data Feedback Reports
The Digest of Education Statistics
The Condition of Education

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Reporting Directions
Screening Questions
Before entering any data, screening questions will need to be answered.
Part C Selection
Part C (Enrollment of Students by Residence) is optional this year. Indicate whether or not you will complete Part C of
the Fall Enrollment survey component this year.
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Reporting Persons by Racial/Ethnic Category (1997 OMB)
This information is being collected in compliance with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Title IX of the
Education Amendments of 1972 and Sec. 421(a)(1) of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act. These instructions
correspond with the Final Guidance on Maintaining, Collecting, and Reporting Racial and Ethnic Data to the U.S.
Department of Education, published in the Federal Register on October 19, 2007.
Method of collection - Institutions must collect race and ethnicity information using a 2-question format. The first
question is whether the respondent is Hispanic/Latino. The second question is whether the respondent is from one or
more races from the following list: American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native
Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, and White. Institutions should allow students and staff to self-identify their race
and ethnicity. For further details on the guidance for collecting these data, please see the full Federal Register notice.
Method of reporting aggregate data - Institutions must report aggregate data to the U.S. Department of Education
using the NINE categories below. Racial/ethnic designations are requested only for United States citizens, resident
aliens, and other eligible non-citizens.

•

Hispanic or Latino, regardless of race

For Non-Hispanic/Latino individuals:

•
•
•
•
•
•

American Indian or Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
White
Two or more races

In addition, the following categories may be used:

•
•

Nonresident alien
Race and ethnicity unknown

Racial/ethnic descriptions - Racial/ethnic designations as used in this survey do not denote scientific definitions of
anthropological origins. The categories are:
•
•
•
•
•
•

Hispanic or Latino- A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish
culture or origin, regardless of race.
American Indian or Alaska Native- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South
America (including Central America) who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or
community attachment.
Asian- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian
Subcontinent, including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine
Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Black or African American- A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander- A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii,
Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.
White - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

Other descriptive categories

•

•

Nonresident alien - A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in this country
on a visa or temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely. NOTE - Nonresident aliens are
to be reported separately, in the boxes provided, rather than included in any of the seven racial/ethnic
categories. Resident aliens and other eligible (for financial aid purposes) non-citizens who are not citizens or
nationals of the United States and who have been admitted as legal immigrants for the purpose of obtaining
permanent resident alien status (and who hold either an alien registration card (Form I-551 or I-151), a
Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), or an Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) with a notation that
conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee
or Cuban-Haitian) are to be reported in the appropriate racial/ethnic categories along with United States
citizens.
Race and ethnicity unknown - This category is used only if the person did not select EITHER a racial or
ethnic designation.

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Part A - Full-Time Undergraduate Students by Race/Ethnicity and Gender
On this screen, include all students enrolled for credit, full-time at the undergraduate level. The undergraduate level
includes students enrolled in undergraduate level courses or any certificate programs below the baccalaureate level.
Students who have already earned a bachelor's degree but are taking undergraduate courses for credit should be
included as undergraduates.

Full-time, first-time certificate-seeking students
In column 1, report undergraduate students who have no prior postsecondary experience and have enrolled fulltime with the intent to earn a certificate or other formal award. The following are also considered first-time:

•
•

Students enrolled in the fall term who attended college for the first time in the prior summer
session (applicable to both academic and program reporters)
Students who entered with advanced standing (any college credits earned before graduation from high school)

In order to be considered certificate-seeking, the student must be enrolled in courses for credit and be recognized by
the institution as seeking a certificate or other formal award. Note: All students eligible to receive federal student
financial aid are to be considered certificate-seeking. Dual enrolled high school students are not considered certificateseeking 
Program Reporters: Include first-time students who entered your institution between August 1, 2015 and October
31, 2015.
Academic Reporters: Student counts reported in column 1 define the initial cohort for reporting graduation rates on
the IPEDS Graduation Rates (GR) component to meet Student Right-to-Know reporting requirements. Students
reported in this group will become your GR cohort in the reporting year appropriate for your institution.

All other full-time undergraduate students
In column 2, report the total number of all other (i.e. not first-time) full-time undergraduate students enrolled for
credit. This includes:

•
•
•

students transferring-in to your institution
continuing certificate-seeking students (i.e. students not new to the institution in the fall, but instead are
continuing in their courses/program at the institution)
non-certificate-seeking students (i.e. students enrolled for credit, but not intending to earn a certificate or
formal award or high school students with dual enrollment)

Once you save the data by clicking the 'Verify and Save' button, the 'Total full-time undergraduates' (column 3) will be
calculated by the system and display on the survey screen.
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Part A: Part-time Undergraduate Students
Report part-time students using the same definitions and instructions provided for full-time undergraduate students.
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Part A: Enrollment by Distance Education Status
On this screen, report all students reported on previous Part A screens who are:
•
•

Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses offered at your institution: Students who are
enrolled only in courses that are considered distance education courses at your institution.
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses offered at your institution: Students who are
enrolled in at least one course that is considered a distance education course, but are not enrolled exclusively
in distance education courses.

Note: Requirements for coming to campus for orientation, testing, or academic support services do not exclude a
course from being classified as being exclusively distance education. Similarly, if a student is taking instructional
portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to complete a practicum, residency, or internship, the
student can still be considered enrolled in entirely education courses.

Not enrolled in any distance education courses offered at your institution: This number represents the
students who are not enrolled in any distance education courses at your institution. It will be calculated by subtracting
the (students enrolled exclusively in distance education + students enrolled in some but not all distance education
courses) from the total enrolled students from Part A, which is the total undergraduates. 
Location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
If there are students reported as enrolled exclusively in distance education courses, further data on the location of
these distance education students will need to be reported. Report the number of exclusively distance education
students that are located in the same state/jurisdiction as the institution, in a different state/jurisdiction than the
institution, in the U.S. but the state/jurisdiction is unknown, and residing outside the U.S.  Location for those students
enrolled exclusively in distance education should be their physical location or current address, as of the institution's
Fall reporting date. If this is not available, use the address on file for the student. For students enlisted in the military
on active duty, use the permanent address instead of the student's physical location or current address.
The total students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses will be carried forward from earlier on the screen.
If the total students reported by location does not equal the total enrolled exclusively in distance education from
above, the “Location unknown/unreported” is calculated.
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Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender
Part B is mandatory this year. This part is required in odd-numbered years.
This distribution of students should include all students reported in Part A.

Enrollment by Age
Use institutional records to calculate student age.
Academic reporters: report student age as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15, 2015.
Program reporters: report student age as of August 1, 2015.
The totals by gender for each attendance status (full- or part-time) and student level (undergraduate or graduate) will
be carried forward from the corresponding Part A screens. When the Part B and Part A totals do not agree, the "Age
unknown/unreported" is calculated.
Note: If the Part B student count total is larger than the total carried forward from Part A (resulting in a negative
value), a fatal error results. In this case, reexamine both the age data and comparable portion of Part A to identify the
error and make appropriate corrections.
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Part C: Residence of First-time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Undergraduate Students
Part C is optional this year. This part is required in even-numbered years only.
This distribution of students should include all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students
(both full- and part-time) reported in Part A.

Recent High School Graduates Screening Question
Part C begins with a screening question to determine whether or not your institution has first-time degree/certificateseeking undergraduate students who enrolled within 12 months of graduating high school or receiving their GED. If the
answer is 'No', then only one column for all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates will display in Part C.
If the answer is 'Yes', then 2 columns will be reported in Part C, one for all first-time degree/certificate-seeking
undergraduates and one for those first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates enrolled within 12 months of
graduating high school or receiving their GED. 

State of residence
Use the state identified by the student as his/her permanent address at the time of application to the institution. This
may be the legal residence of a parent or guardian, or the state in which a student has a driver's license or is
registered to vote. It is not necessarily the state in which the student's high school is located.

Residence of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students

In column (1), report all first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students, both full-time and parttime, by state of residence. The total line for column (1) will be carried forward from the total first-time
degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part A. If the sum of the students reported by state of
residence in column (1), lines 1-90, does not agree with the total first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates
from Part A, the "Residence unknown/unreported" (line 98) will be calculated.
Note: When the sum of students by state of residence is larger than the total carried forward from Part A (resulting in
a negative value calculated for the "Residence unknown/unreported" line), a fatal error results. In this case, reexamine
both the residence data and comparable section of Part A to identify the error and make appropriate corrections.
If your institution responded 'Yes' to the screening question, the subset of students from column (1) who enrolled
within 12 months of graduating high school or receiving their GED are to be reported again by their state of residence
in column (2).
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Part E: Retention Rates for the First-Time Degree/Certificate-Seeking Student Cohort
Retention rates examine the percentage of first-time degree/certificate seeking students enrolled in the fall of the prior
year that are either still enrolled in the fall of the current year or have completed their program in that time.
The retention cohorts, full-time and part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates from Fall 2014, are
preloaded from Part A of the prior year Fall Enrollment survey component.
On each retention screen (full-time cohort and part-time cohort screens), institutions must:

•
•
•

Verify the preloaded Fall 2014 cohort.
Attendance status (full- or part-time) should be based on the student's Fall 2014 attendance status.
Report any exclusions for the cohort (see below for allowable exclusions).
Report the total number of students retained from the Fall 2014 cohort.
Total students retained = students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 + students
from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their program as of Fall 2015.

Academic reporters: Report students retained as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15,
2015.
Program reporters: Report students retained as of August 1, 2015.

Exclusions:
Institutions may report exclusions for the Fall 2014 cohort. Allowable exclusions are students who left the institution
for any of the following reasons:

•
•
•
•

Died or were totally and permanently disabled
To serve in the armed forces (including those called to active duty)
To serve with a foreign aid service of the Federal Government (e.g., Peace Corps)
To serve on official church missions

The system will compute an adjusted cohort by subtracting the student exclusions from the original cohort prior to
calculating the retention rate.
Retention rates will be computed by the system after clicking 'Save.' The retention rate is calculated as:
(Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled + Students from Fall 2014 cohort who completed their
program as of Fall 2015/Adjusted Fall 2014 cohort)*100.
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Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio

Graduate only institutions do not complete Part F.
Report the student-to-faculty ratio for undergraduate programs at your institution. A worksheet is available to help
determine your institution's ratio. Click on the link from the Part F screen to access the worksheet.

Worksheet for Less Than Four-Year Institutions and Four-Year Institutions without Graduate or
Professional Programs
The worksheet is designed to help institutions determine their student-to-faculty ratio. It is NOT mandatory that you
use this worksheet to calculate your student-to-faculty ratio. Data entered on the worksheet will NOT be collected or
saved. Make sure to print the screen in order to refer to the ratio calculation for your institution at a later time.
Please note: The logic used in this calculation is similar to that of item I-2 from the Common Data Set data collection.

FULL- AND PART-TIME STUDENT DATA:
All student data on the worksheet is either carried forward from Part A or a calculated field.
Lines F1 and F2. Total full-time and total part-time students.
The total number of full- and part-time students are carried forward from Part A.
Line F3. A full-time equivalent (FTE) of the part-time student count.
The FTE will be calculated as line F2 (total part-time student count) * 1/3.
Line F4. Total FTE students.
This is calculated as the sum of lines F1 (total full-time students) and F3 (FTE of part-time students). Line F4 is used in
the ratio calculation.

FULL-AND PART-TIME INSTRUCTIONAL STAFF DATA:
Lines F5 and F8 should be reported based on data your institution is reporting in the IPEDS Human Resources (HR)
survey component. Please work together with the appropriate staff at your institution to ensure that the data used on
this worksheet and reported in the HR component are the same.
In line F5, report the total number of full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component.
In line F8, report the total number of part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component.

Instructional Staff Exclusion for Non-Credit Instructors:
In line F6, report the number of full-time instructional staff reported in line F5 that are teaching exclusively noncredit courses.
In line F9, report the number of part-time instructional staff reported in line F8 that are teaching exclusively noncredit courses.
For institutions that have a large amount of non-credit activity, the above exclusions will better align the student data
with the instructional staff data being used in the ratio.

Part-Time Instructional Staff Addition:
In line F10, report the number of administrators or other staff NOT reported to IPEDS as instructors (and therefore
not included in the instructional staff count reported in line F8) that are teaching a credit course in the Fall.
For institutions that have administrators and other professionals on staff that are not reported to IPEDS as instructors
(because it is not their "primary function") but they teach credit courses, the above allowable addition will produce a
more accurate ratio.
With the above instructional staff exclusions and part-time instructional staff addition information above, the system
will compute the following on the worksheet:
Line F7. Total adjusted full-time instructional staff.

The adjusted full-time instructional staff is the total full-time instructional staff, excluding those teaching exclusively
non-credit classes. The system will calculate line F7 as line F5 (total full-time instructional staff as reported on the HR
component) minus line F6 (total full-time instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses).
Line F11. Total adjusted part-time instructional staff.
The adjusted part-time instructional staff is the total part-time instructional staff, excluding those teaching exclusively
non-credit classes, and adding those administrators and other staff teaching credit courses. The system will calculate
line F11 as line F8 (total part-time instructional staff as reported on the HR component) minus line F9 (total part-time
instructional staff teaching exclusively non-credit courses) + line F10 (administrators and other staff teaching credit
courses).
Line F12. Total FTE of adjusted part-time instructional staff.
The FTE will be calculated as line F11 (total adjusted part-time instructional staff) * 1/3.
Line F13. Total FTE of adjusted instructional staff.
This is calculated as the sum of lines F7 (total adjusted full-time instructional staff) and F12 (FTE of total adjusted part
-time instructional staff). Line F13 is used in the ratio calculation.
Line F14. Student-to-faculty ratio.
The ratio will be calculated by the system as line F4 (total adjusted FTE students) divided by line F13 (total adjusted
FTE instructional staff). The ratio will be displayed on the worksheet as xxx to 1.
The calculated ratio can then be entered onto the Part F (Student-to-Faculty Ratio) screen.
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date: 11/24/2015

Glossary
Term

Definition

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 (full-time, first-time; part-time-first-time; full-time, non-first-time;
and part-time, non-first-time) for which outcomes rates are calculated at 6 and 8 years.

American Indian or Alaska
Native

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America (including Central America) who
maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community attachment.

Asian

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian Subcontinent,
including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand,
and Vietnam.

Audit/auditing (a class)

Term used when a student elects to take a course, but does not wish to receive credit for the course toward a
degree or other formal award.

Black or African American

A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.

Branch institution

A campus or site of an educational institution that is not temporary, is located in a community beyond a reasonable
commuting distance from its parent institution, and offers full programs of study, not just courses.

Cohort

A specific group of students established for tracking purposes.

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).

Credit

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 formal award,
irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.

Credit course

A course that, if successfully completed, can be applied toward the number of courses required for achieving a
postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.

Degree/certificate-seeking
students

Students enrolled in courses for credit who are seeking a degree, certificate, or other formal award. This includes
students who:
   - received any type of federal financial aid, regardless of what courses they took at any time;
   - received any state or locally based financial aid with an eligibility requirement that the student be enrolled in a
degree, certificate, or transfer-seeking program; or
   - obtained a student visa to study at a U.S. postsecondary institution
High school students also enrolled in postsecondary courses for credit are not considered degree/certificate-seeking.

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.
Technologies used for instruction may include the following: Internet; one-way and two-way transmissions through
open broadcasts, closed circuit, cable, microwave, broadband lines, fiber optics, satellite or wireless communication
devices; audio conferencing; and video cassette, DVDs, and CD-ROMs, if the cassette, DVDs, and CD-ROMs are used
in a course in conjunction with the technologies listed above.

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.

Dual credit

A program through which high school students are enrolled in Advanced Placement (AP) courses, taught at their high
school, that fulfill high school graduation requirements and may earn the student college credits .

Dual enrollment

A program through which high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school.
Students are not required to apply for admission to the college in order to participate.

Exclusions

Those students who may be removed (deleted) from a cohort (or subcohort). For the Graduation Rates, Outcome
Measures , and Fall Enrollment retention rate reporting, students may be removed from a cohort if they left the
institution for one of the following reasons: death or total and permanent disability; service in the armed forces
(including those called to active duty); service with a foreign aid service of the federal government, such as the
Peace Corps; or service on official church missions.

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 term, and
students who entered with advanced standing (college credits earned before graduation from high school).

Full-time student

Undergraduate: A student enrolled for 12 or more semester credits, or 12 or more quarter credits, or 24 or more
contact hours a week each term. Graduate: A student enrolled for 9 or more semester credits, or 9 or more quarter
credits, or a student involved in thesis or dissertation preparation that is considered full-time by the institution.
Doctor's degree - Professional practice - as defined by the institution.

High school diploma or
recognized equivalent

A document certifying the successful completion of a prescribed secondary school program of studies, or any of the
following:
•recognized attainment of satisfactory scores on the GED or another state-authorized
examination
•recognized completion of homeschooling at the secondary level as defined by state law
•completion of secondary school education in a homeschool setting which qualifies for an
exemption from compulsory attendance requirements under state law, if state law does not
require a homeschooled student to receive credential for their education

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).

Native Hawaiian or Other
Pacific Islander

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.

Non-degree-seeking student

A student enrolled in courses for credit who is not recognized by the institution as seeking a degree or formal award.

Non-first-time 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 enrollment from Fall Enrollment (EF) component.

Noncredit course

A course or activity having no credit applicable toward a degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award.

Off-campus centers
(extension centers)

Sites outside the confines of the parent institution where courses are offered that are part of an organized program
at the parent institution. The sites are not considered to be temporary but may be rented or made available to the
institution at no cost by another institution or an organization, agency, or firm.

Official fall reporting date

The date (in the fall) on which an institution must report fall enrollment data to either the state, its board of trustees
or governing board, or some other external governing body.

Part-time student

Undergraduate: A student enrolled for either less than 12 semester or quarter credits, or less than 24 contact hours
a week each term. Graduate: A student enrolled for less than 9 semester or quarter credits.

Race and ethnicity unknown

The category used to report students or employees whose race and ethnicity are not known.

Race/ethnicity

Categories developed in 1997 by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) that are 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. The designations are used to categorize U.S. citizens, resident aliens,
and other eligible non-citizens.
Individuals are asked to first designate ethnicity as:
   - Hispanic or Latino or
   - Not Hispanic or Latino
Second, individuals are asked to indicate all races that apply among the following:
   - American Indian or Alaska Native
   - Asian
   - Black or African American
   - Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander
   - White

Remedial courses

Instructional courses designed for students deficient in the general competencies necessary for a regular
postsecondary curriculum and educational setting.

Residence

A person's permanent address determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For entering
freshmen, residence may be the legal residence of a parent or guardian.

Resident alien (and other
eligible non-citizens)

A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States but who has been admitted as a legal immigrant for the
purpose of obtaining permanent resident alien status (and who holds either an alien registration card (Form I-551 or
I-151), a Temporary Resident Card (Form I-688), or an Arrival-Departure Record (Form I-94) with a notation that
conveys legal immigrant status such as Section 207 Refugee, Section 208 Asylee, Conditional Entrant Parolee or
Cuban-Haitian).

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.

State of residence

A person's permanent address as determined by such evidence as a driver's license or voter registration. For
entering freshmen, state of residence may be the legal state of residence of a parent or guardian.

State unknown

Status used when the reporting institution is unable to determine from existing records the home state or residence
of the student.

Student-to-faculty ratio

The ratio of FTE students to FTE instructional staff, i.e., students divided by staff.
Students enrolled in "stand-alone" graduate or professional programs and instructional staff teaching in these
programs are excluded from both full-time and part-time counts.
"Stand-alone" graduate or professional programs are those programs such as medicine, law, veterinary, dentistry,
social work, or public health, in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students (also referred to as
"independent" programs).
Each FTE value is equal to the number of full-time students/staff plus 1/3 the number of part-time students/staff.

Study abroad

Arrangement by which a student completes part of the college program studying in another country. Can be at a
campus abroad or through a cooperative agreement with some other U.S. college or an institution of another
country.

Summer session

A summer session is shorter than a regular session and is not considered part of the academic year. It is not the
third term of an institution operating on a trimester system or the fourth term of an institution operating on a
quarter calendar system. The institution may have two or more sessions occurring in the summer months. Some
schools, such as vocational and beauty schools, have year-round classes with no separate summer session.

Title IV institution

An institution that has a written agreement with the Secretary of Education that allows the institution to participate
in any of the Title IV federal student financial assistance programs (other than the State Student Incentive Grant
(SSIG) and the National Early Intervention Scholarship and Partnership (NEISP) programs).

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.

White

A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

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NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > FAQ

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment
Click one of the following questions to view the answer.
General
1) Who should I include in my enrollment reporting?
2) What is the reporting period/date for fall enrollment?
3) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
4) In the past I reported first-professional students on this component. Why are there no screens for reporting firstprofessional students?
5) My school is part of a consortium of schools. How do I report student enrollment? 
6) Do I include students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses) in Fall Enrollment?
Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender (Part A)
1) What is NOT considered "prior postsecondary experience" when reporting first-time students?
2) Where do I report students if I don't know whether or not they are first-time?
3) Where do I report undergraduate students who enrolled at my institution for the first time this fall (without prior
postsecondary experience), but earned college credits during the prior summer?
4) How do I treat new students who transferred into the institution the prior summer term and take courses in the fall? 
5) Does "continuing/returning student" include those students who have stopped out and re-entered the same institution? 
6) How do I report a student who earned college credit while in high school (a dual enrolled student) and has now graduated
high school and enrolled in my institution in the Fall?
7) Where do I report a high school student who is enrolled for credit at my institution (a dual enrolled student)?
8) If a student enrolled for credit has not indicated whether they intend to earn a degree or certificate, how do I determine
whether they are degree/certificate-seeking?
9) Where do I report students who are seeking a second baccalaureate degree?
10) How do I report an undergraduate student who took courses as a non-degree-seeking student and re-enrolls as a degreeseeking student at the same reporting institution? 
11) My institution has students for which gender is unknown. Since there is no place to report “gender unknown” on the IPEDS
data collection screens, how should we report these individuals?
12) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
13) How does enrollment in non-credit or zero-credit remedial/ESL and co-op courses count in the determination of a student's
full-time status?
14) In which race/ethnicity category do I report undocumented students?
Fall Enrollment in Selected Fields (Part A, 4-year institutions only)
1) What do I do if my institution does not offer any of the program areas listed on the CIP selection screen?
2) How do I report students in program areas that do not appear on the CIP selection screen?
3) How do I report undergraduates who have not yet declared a major?
4) How do we report a student that has majors falling under more than one of the CIP codes collected in Part A (i.e., 13.0000
Education and 27.0000 Mathematics)?
Distance Education
1) If a student is taking the instructional portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to complete a
practicum, residency, or internship, is the student considered enrolled in exclusively distance education courses?
2) What should I do if I do not know the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses?
3) How do I determine location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education?
4) Are U.S. jurisdictions or territories (like Guam, the U.S. Virgin Island, etc.) considered in the U.S. for distance education
location reporting?
5) We offer courses that combine distance education and traditional teaching methods (“hybrid” courses). How should students
enrolled in these courses be counted in the distance education portion of Fall Enrollment? 
Fall Enrollment by Age (Part B)
1) I am not able to enter a number in the “Age unknown/unreported” box. How do I report students whose ages are unknown?
2) My institution uses age range categories that differ from the ones IPEDS uses in Part B. What should I do?
Residence of First-Time Undergraduates (Part C)
1) When reporting students by residence (Part C), should I include students who completed a GED in the second column that
asks for numbers of students that graduated high school within 12 months?
2) Some first-time undergraduates at my institution are dependents whose parents are in foreign countries on a temporary
basis (e.g., military/diplomatic service). When reporting residence and migration data, what location do I use?
Total Undergraduate Entering Class (Part D)
1) What is the difference between the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort (GRS cohort) and the
undergraduate entering class calculated in Part D?
Retention Rates for First-Time Undergraduates (Part E)
1) How is the retention rate calculated?
2)

How do I report students who changed attendance status (part-time to full-time or full-time to part-time) between one fall
and the next?
3) Are students on a leave of absence from the institution considered retained?
4) For less-than-4-year institutions that have a student who completed a program and are still enrolled at the same institution
in another program, how should they count that student? 
Undergraduate Student-to-Faculty Ratio (Part F)
1) How do I calculate my institution's student-to-faculty ratio?
2) Can you provide an example of a stand-alone graduate or professional program (a program such as medicine, law,
veterinary, or dentistry in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students)?
3) My institution has graduate and/or doctors-professional practice programs but does not have any "stand-alone" programs.
What should I enter on the student and faculty exclusion line items related to these types of programs on the worksheet for
Part F?

Answers:
General
1) Who should I include in my enrollment reporting?
All students enrolled for credit should be reported. Credit is defined as “Recognition of attendance or performance in an
instructional activity (course or program) that can be applied by a recipient toward the requirements for a degree, diploma,
certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity's unit of measurement.”
Students who are not seeking a degree or certificate may be still be enrolled for credit. These students are to be reported in the
non-degree/certificate-seeking column.

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2) What is the reporting period/date for fall enrollment?
Fall enrollment is a count of students enrolled on a particular date in the Fall. Fall enrollment is often referred to as a "snapshot"
of the enrollment at an institution at a specific time in the Fall. The date/period used depends on whether the institution is an
academic reporter or a program reporter for IPEDS purposes.
Academic reporters: Report enrollment as of October 15 or as of the institution's official fall reporting date.
Program reporters: Report enrollment during the 3-month period of August 1 to October 31. If a student enrolls or remains
enrolled at any time during that period, the student is included in the fall enrollment counts.
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3) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
Students who are enrolled in your institution and attend classes in a foreign country should be included in your institution's
enrollment report if your institution provides instructional resources (classroom, instructors), even though the education occurs
abroad. Students who are enrolled in your institution and attend classes in a foreign country should NOT be included in your
enrollment report if:

•
•
•

The students are enrolled ONLY in courses offered by another institution;
The students are enrolled at a branch campus of your institution in a foreign country;
Your institution does not provide the instructional resources (i.e., classrooms, instructors), even if the
student pays tuition to your institution. Their enrollment at your institution serves only as an administrative
record. 

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4) In the past I reported first-professional students on this component. Why are there no screens for reporting
first-professional students?
Beginning with the 2009-10 collection year, institutions are required to use the new postbaccalaureate degree categories
(eliminating the first-professional category and reclassifying those programs). In parts A and B, all postbaccalaureate students
are to be reported as graduate students, including doctor's-professional practice students (formerly reported as firstprofessional). Even though Teacher Preparation certificate programs may require a bachelor's degree for admission, they are
considered subbaccalaureate undergraduate programs, and students in these programs are undergraduate students.
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5) My school is part of a consortium of schools. How do I report student enrollment?
For reporting students studying in consortium agreements, please refer to the Resource page
at http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/submit_data/Consortium_Cheatsheet.asp. 
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6) Do I include students enrolled only in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses) in Fall
Enrollment?
ESL has never been considered a postsecondary program by IPEDS.  Since it is considered non-postsecondary, students who
are ONLY enrolled in ESL programs (programs comprised exclusively of ESL courses), regardless of whether or not
they are receiving Title-IV aid, should NOT be counted in enrollment. 
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Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender (Part A)
1)
What is NOT considered "prior postsecondary experience" when reporting first-time students?

•
•
•
•
•

Credit for military service/training from an association such as the American Council on Education, 
Credit from any non-credit courses, as defined by the institution, 
Credit received for completion of tests/assessments, 
Credit received before the student has earned a high school diploma (i.e., AP or dual enrollment credits), or
Credit for life experience.

Students with prior postsecondary experience credit from attending a military academic institution (e.g., Community College of
the Air Force, West Point, U.S. Naval Academy, etc.) would NOT be considered first-time students. 
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2)
Where do I report students if I don't know whether or not they are first-time?
If their status is not indicated directly and the student does not enroll with prior credits or transcripts from another institution,
then assume the student is first-time.
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3)
Where do I report undergraduate students who enrolled at my institution for the first time this fall (without
prior postsecondary experience), but earned college credits during the prior summer?
These students should be reported as first-time undergraduates. The definition of “first-time” allows for students to still be
classified as first-time if the college credit they have previously earned occurred in the summer immediately prior to enrollment.
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4)
How do I treat new students who transferred into the institution the prior summer term and take courses in
the fall?
For the Fall Enrollment survey, count the student as a "transfer-in," even if the student transferred into the institution during
the prior summer term and is not entering the institution for the first time in the fall. 
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5)
Does "continuing/returning student" include those students who have stopped out and re-entered the same
institution?
Yes, "continuing/returning student" is meant to capture students who are not first-time or transfer-in. This includes students
who have been continuously enrolled in the institution and those who have stopped out and re-enrolled, without having
transferred to another institution. 
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6)
How do I report a student who earned college credit while in high school (a dual enrolled student) and has
now graduated high school and enrolled in my institution in the Fall?
If the college credit was earned prior to the student graduating high school, then this student would be considered a first-time
student in the Fall. The definition of “first-time” allows for students to still be classified as first-time if the college credit they
have previously earned was prior to their high school graduation.
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7)
Where do I report a high school student who is enrolled for credit at my institution (a dual enrolled student)?
This student would be reported as non-degree/certificate-seeking. Prior to receipt of a high school diploma or recognized
equivalent (see glossary definition), a student is non-degree/certificate-seeking. After receipt of the high school diploma or
recognized equivalent, they can be classified as degree/certificate-seeking, if appropriate.
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8)
If a student enrolled for credit has not indicated whether they intend to earn a degree or certificate, how do I
determine whether they are degree/certificate-seeking?
If the student has not indicated any intent but is applying for Title IV federal financial aid, assume the student to be
degree/certificate-seeking.
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9)
Where do I report students who are seeking a second baccalaureate degree?
Report these students in the column labeled "Continuing" degree/certificate-seeking students (column 3). This column is
intended to capture all degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students who are not first-time and did not transfer-in to the
institution in that Fall.
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10) How do I report an undergraduate student who took courses as a non-degree-seeking student and re-enrolls
as a degree-seeking student at the same reporting institution?
This student should be reported as a "continuing/returning" student. IPEDS defines "continuing/returning students" as "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 firsttime and not transfer-in)."
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11) My institution has students for which gender is unknown. Since there is no place to report “gender unknown”
on the IPEDS data collection screens, how should we report these individuals?
These individuals are still to be reported to IPEDS, even though their gender is unknown. It is up to the institution to decide
how best to handle reporting individuals whose gender is unknown. However, a common method used is to allocate students
with gender unknown based on the known proportion of men to women.
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12) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
There has been no change to how these students should be reported. Foreign students living outside the U.S., such as a foreign
student living outside the U.S. who is enrolled in distance education at your institution, should be classified in the Race/Ethnicity
Unknown category. Only U.S. citizens are to be categorized in the specific Race/Ethnicity categories. The non-resident alien
category is reserved specifically for students that are in the U.S. under that specific legal status.
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13) How does enrollment in non-credit or zero-credit remedial/ESL and co-op courses count in the determination
of a student's full-time status?
Students in the following categories are considered degree-seeking in IPEDS, though they may be enrolled in courses not
creditable for an award:

•
•
•

Students enrolled in remedial courses that are not creditable toward an award but have been admitted into
an eligible Title-IV program and receive Title-IV aid
Students enrolled in ESL courses that are not creditable toward an award but have been admitted into an
eligible Title-IV program and receive Title-IV aid
Co-op students enrolled in courses that are not creditable toward an award but are required for award
attainment

In determination of the student's full-time status, credit or contact hours (up to one academic year's worth) of remedial and ESL
courses may be used in the determination of a student's full-time status if the remedial or ESL course is part of a program that
leads to a postsecondary award. In these cases, the remedial or ESL courses should count the same as the comparable fullcredit class. For co-op students, the work portion of a cooperative education program in which the amount of work performed is
equivalent to the academic workload of a full-time student will also count toward the determination of full-time status.
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14) In which race/ethnicity category do I report undocumented students?
Because the race and ethnicity designations are reported only for U.S. citizens and the "nonresident alien" category is a legal
status for students with specific types of visas, undocumented students would not be reported under any of these statuses.
Instead, they should be reported as "Race/ethnicity unknown." Please visit the race/ethnicity FAQ for more
information: https://surveys.nces.ed.gov/ipeds/visFaq_re.aspx. 
However, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) students are a particular group of undocumented students that have
been authorized by the Department of Homeland Security to be lawfully present in the U.S. for the duration of their DACA, and
as such, this status would allow them to be reported under the "nonresident alien" category. 
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Fall Enrollment in Selected Fields (Part A, 4-year institutions only)
1) What do I do if my institution does not offer any of the program areas listed on the CIP selection screen?
Select “None of the above” on the CIP selection screen and report all students enrolled for credit, regardless of field of
study, Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A.
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2) How do I report students in program areas that do not appear on the CIP selection screen?
The program areas on the CIP selection screen are the only fields for which enrollment data is collected separately. In addition
to reporting enrollment by the selected fields requested, report all students enrolled for credit (regardless of field of study) on
the "Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A.
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3) How do I report undergraduates who have not yet declared a major?
These students should only be reported on the Full-time and Part-time Enrollment by Race/Ethnicity screens of Part A, where all
students enrolled for credit (regardless of field of study) are reported.
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4) How do we report a student that has majors falling under more than one of the CIP codes collected in Part A
(i.e., 13.0000 Education and 27.0000 Mathematics)?
Report the students as either full-time or part-time depending on their status at the institution. Then report them on the
corresponding CIP pages. The CIP pages are not an unduplicated count and students can be included on more than one page.  
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Distance Education
1) If a student is taking the instructional portions of their program entirely online, but are then required to
complete a practicum, residency, or internship, is the student considered enrolled in exclusively distance
education courses?
Yes, if the instructional portions are entirely online, the student is considered to be enrolled in exclusive distance education
course. 
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2) What should I do if I do not know the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education courses?
If you have no information about the location of students enrolled exclusively in distance education, do not report them in any
of the location fields. The system will calculate the number of "Location Unknown" exclusively distance education enrollments. 
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3) How do I determine location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education?
Location for those students enrolled exclusively in distance education should be their physical location or current address, as of
the institution's Fall reporting date. If this is not available, use the address on file for the student. For students enlisted in the
military on active duty, use the permanent address instead of the student's physical location. 
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4) Are U.S. jurisdictions or territories (like Guam, the U.S. Virgin Island, etc.) considered in the U.S. for distance
education location reporting?
Yes, Students located in a U.S. jurisdiction while they are enrolled in distance education courses should be reported as located
in the U.S.
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5) We offer courses that combine distance education and traditional teaching methods (“hybrid” courses). How
should students enrolled in these courses be counted in the distance education portion of Fall Enrollment?
Hybrid courses are not considered by IPEDS as distance education. Students enrolled in “hybrid” courses should be reported as
“not enrolled in any distance education courses.”
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Fall Enrollment by Age (Part B)
1) I am not able to enter a number in the “Age unknown/unreported” box. How do I report students whose ages
are unknown?
The number of students whose age is unknown will be computed by the data collection system. The difference between the sum
of students reported by age category in Part B and the corresponding total enrollment reported in Part A results in the number
of students whose age is unknown.
If this results in a negative number, a fatal error will appear and you will need to either correct your data or contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
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2) My institution uses age range categories that differ from the ones IPEDS uses in Part B. What should I do?
In order to have consistent data from all institutions, IPEDS must use standard age categories. Use the students' dates of birth
to report the enrollment by IPEDS age categories.
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Residence of First-Time Undergraduates (Part C)
1) When reporting students by residence (Part C), should I include students who completed a GED in the second
column that asks for numbers of students that graduated high school within 12 months?
If the student received the GED within the past 12 months, they should be included in the second column.
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2) Some first-time undergraduates at my institution are dependents whose parents are in foreign countries on a
temporary basis (e.g., military/diplomatic service). When reporting residence and migration data, what
location do I use?
The home state could be the student’s or parent’s official home state, the state where they are registered to vote or pay taxes,
or the state issuing their driver’s license. If no such information is available, they would be reported under “State
unknown”(57).
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Total Undergraduate Entering Class (Part D)
1) What is the difference between the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort (GRS cohort) and the
undergraduate entering class calculated in Part D?
In addition to the students in the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort, the total undergraduate entering class
includes part-time students of the same criteria as well as transfers-in and full- and part-time non-degree/certificate-seeking
students that are new to your institution in the Fall.
The entering class is intended to represent all students new to an institution in a given fall and provide context for the GRS
cohort. The percent of the entering class that is represented by the institution's GRS cohort is included on College Navigator as
a note to the graduation rate data displayed.
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Retention Rates for First-Time Undergraduates (Part E)
1) How is the retention rate calculated?
The retention rate is calculated as follows:
4-year Institutions:
first-time bachelor's degree-seeking students in Fall 2014 who are still enrolled in Fall 2015/(first-time bachelor's degreeseeking students in Fall 2014 - cohort exclusions)
2-year and Less-than-2-year Institutions:
(first-time students in Fall 2014 who are still enrolled in Fall 2015 + first-time students in Fall 2014 who completed their
program by Fall 2015)/(first-time students in Fall 2014 - cohort exclusions)
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2) How do I report students who changed attendance status (part-time to full-time or full-time to part-time)
between one fall and the next?
Report students based on their attendance status in the fall the cohort was initially based on, even if that status changed in the
following fall.
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3) Are students on a leave of absence from the institution considered retained?
No. Students must be enrolled for credit at the institution in the Fall to be considered retained from the previous fall.
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4) For less-than-4-year institutions that have a student who completed a program and are still enrolled at the
same institution in another program, how should they count that student?
The institution should count that student as "retained" only once. Do NOT count that student twice, once for having completed
the program and another time for still being enrolled. 
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Undergraduate Student-to-Faculty Ratio (Part F)
1) How do I calculate my institution's student-to-faculty ratio?
A worksheet has been provided to guide the process of calculating the student-to-faculty ratio for your institution. The
worksheet can be accessed from the Part F screen in the Data Collection System.
Back to top
2) Can you provide an example of a stand-alone graduate or professional program (a program such as medicine,
law, veterinary, or dentistry in which faculty teach virtually only graduate-level students)?

An example of a program that would fall into this category (typically a doctor's-professional practice program) is a school of
medicine that only awards degrees/certificates at the graduate level and therefore its faculty exclusively (or in some cases
almost exclusively) teach graduate students. Programs that are "stand-alone" graduate programs may have some
undergraduate students enrolled in their courses, however a "stand-alone" graduate program would only award
degrees/certificates at the graduate level. An example of a graduate program that would not meet this criteria is a school of
business that has an undergraduate and graduate program and therefore enrolls both types of students and awards
degrees/certificates at both levels. Further, the faculty would teach a mix of undergraduate and graduate students. Excluding
“stand-alone” graduate programs is intended to make the student-to-faculty ratio closer to an undergraduate student-to-faculty
ratio than it would be if these programs were included in the calculation, without overburdening institutions.
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3) My institution has graduate and/or doctors-professional practice programs but does not have any "standalone" programs. What should I enter on the student and faculty exclusion line items related to these types of
programs on the worksheet for Part F?
If your institution does not have any "stand-alone" graduate or professional programs, then enter 0 for students and 0 for
faculty in the lines for these types of programs. Most institutions do not have these types of graduate or professional programs,
so entering 0 in those lines will be fairly common.
Back to top

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2015-16 Survey Materials > Narrative Edits

date: 11/24/2015

Fall Enrollment for private non-degree-granting institutions
Edit specifications for the 2015-16 IPEDS Web-Based Data Collection
Fall Enrollment (EF) Component
Applicable to private non-degree-granting institutions
NOTE: The specifications in this document apply to the institutions listed above. Some sections and parts may not
apply to your particular institution. Please read the specifications carefully to determine which sections and/or parts
apply to your institution.
All screens must be completed in order to lock the survey.

Screening Question
Part A: Enrollment of Students by Race/Ethnicity
Part B: Enrollment of Students by Age
Part C: Residence
Part E: Retention Rates
Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio

Screening Question

You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is shown.

Part Selection

Completion of Part C: Residence is optional for this reporting year. Before continuing, you must indicate the following:

•

Do you wish to complete Part B this year?
◦ No (If this option is selected, then Part C will not be displayed.)
◦ Yes (If this option is selected, then you will be required to complete all screens in Part C.)

Part A: Fall Enrollment by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity and Gender
Full-Time Private non-degree-granting Undergraduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported full-time undergraduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of First-time certificate-seeking and All other full-time undergraduate students enrolled
in creditable courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the grand total number of full-time undergraduate students enrolled for credit by
race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand total (men +
women) enrolled for credit by student type.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total, full-time undergraduate students must be greater than 0.

•

•

•

•
•
•

•

If your institution reported that it enrolls full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part B of
the IC Header survey, you must report students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are
receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part
B of the IC Header survey, you are not expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is enrolled
and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If you reported First-time certificate-seeking students on this screen, you are also expected to report students in
the All Other category.
Note:
◦ For Academic Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time in the fall of the current year (or the summer immediately preceding).
◦ For Program Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time between August 1 and October 31 of the current year.
If the percent of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category
is between 20 percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category
is greater than 80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.
For each gender category, the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, full-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Part-Time Private non-degree-granting Undergraduate Students
Applicable to institutions that reported part-time undergraduate student enrollment in the IC Header survey
On this screen, you must report the number of First-time certificate-seeking and All other part-time undergraduate students enrolled
in creditable courses at the institution for each applicable race/ethnicity and gender category.
Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the grand total number of part-time undergraduate students enrolled for credit by
race/ethnicity and gender.
In addition, for each column of data, the system will calculate the total number of men, total number of women, and grand total (men +
women) enrolled for credit by student type.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•

•

•

•

The calculated grand total (men + women) for Total, part-time undergraduate students must be greater than 0.
If your institution reported that it enrolls part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in Part B of
the IC Header survey, you must report students of this type here. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are
receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If your institution reported that it does not enroll part-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduates in
Part B of the IC Header survey, you are not expected to report this type of student here. If this type of student is
enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS Help Desk for assistance.
If you reported First-time certificate-seeking students on this screen, you are also expected to report students in
the All Other category.
Note:
◦ For Academic Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time in the fall of the current year (or the summer immediately preceding).
◦ For Program Reporters: Students should ONLY be considered First-time if they enrolled in the institution for
the first time between August 1 and October 31 of the current year.
If the percent of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown
category is between 20 percent and 80 percent, then an explanation is required.

•
•

•

If the percent of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown
category is greater than 80 percent, then a fatal error will occur.
For each gender category, the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the total number of First-time certificate-seeking students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.
For each gender category, the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the prior year value, as outlined below:
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is less than or equal
to 25, then the current year value is expected to be between 1 and 30.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 26 and
100, then the current year value is expected to be within a 50% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is between 101 and
500, then the current year value is expected to be within a 40% range of the prior year value.
◦ If the number of Total, part-time undergraduate students reported in the prior year is greater than 500,
then the current year value is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year value.

Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 1
On this screen, you must report the number of All undergraduate Students enrolled at the institution for each of the following
categories:

•
•

Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses

Based on the data entered, the system will calculate  the number of students not enrolled in any distance education
courses by degree/certificate-seeking status (Degree/Certificate Seeking, Non-degree/Certificate Seeking), as applicable to
your institution. The value is calculated by subtracting the (students enrolled exclusively in distance education + students
enrolled in some but not all distance education courses) from the total enrolled students from Part A which are displayed for
your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•

•

If your institution reported offering distance education opportunities in this year's Institutional Characteristics survey,
then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses and Enrolled
in some but not all distance education courses is expected to be greater than 0.
If your institution reported NOT offering distance education opportunities in this year's Institutional Characteristics
survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses and
Enrolled in some but not all distance education courses is expected to be 0.
If your institution reported that all programs are offered via distance education in this year's Institutional
Characteristics survey, then the total number of students reported for Enrolled in some but not all distance
education courses and Not enrolled in any distance education courses is expected to be 0.

Fall Enrollment by Distance Education, Page 2
On this screen, you must report the number of All undergraduate Students exclusively enrolled in distance education courses for each
of the following location categories:

•
•
•
•

Located in the state/jurisdiction of [state/jurisdiction where institution is located]
Located in the U.S. but not in [state/jurisdiction where institution is located]
Located in the U.S. but state unknown
Located outside the U.S.

The total number of students Enrolled exclusively in distance education courses from Fall Enrollment by Distance Education,
Page 1 is displayed for your reference. Based on the data entered, the system will calculate the number of students whose location is
unknown/unreported.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•

•

If  the Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education is greater than or equal to 5  and you report All
Undergraduate Students in the same location category, then an explanation error will occur.
The calculated value for Location unknown/unreported cannot be negative. Please correct your values so that the
total is not greater than the preloaded Total students exclusively enrolled in distance education from Distance
Education, Page 1.
The calculated value for Location unknown/unreported is not expected to be equal to the corresponding Total
students exclusively enrolled in distance education.

Fall Enrollment Summary
This screen displays a summary of the data reported in Part A of this survey, including Total full-time students, Total part-time
students, and Grand total, all students enrolled at the institution by race/ethnicity and gender. 
The system will perform the following edit on the data entered:

•
•

The calculated Grand Total (men + women) calculated for Grand total, all students must be greater than 0.
The current year racial/ethnic distribution of Men is expected to be within a 30% range of the prior year racial/ethnic
distribution, otherwise an explanation must be provided.
Note: These distributions are calculated by finding the absolute value of the current year percentage for men minus
the corresponding prior year percentage for men from each race/ethnicity category. If the sum of the absolute values
across all race/ethnicity categories (excluding the White category) is greater than 30, then an explanation error will
occur. For example, in Table 1 (shown below) the sum of the Current year minus prior year absolute values
across all applicable race/ethnicity categories is 40. Because this number is greater than 30, an explanation error will
occur.
Table 1

Race/ethnicity

Nonresident Alien
Hispanic/Latino
American Indian/Alaska Native
Asian
Black or African American
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific
Islander
White
Two or more races
Race and ethnicity unknown
Total
•

Current year
percentage
of men
6
10
1
8
25
6

Prior year
percentage
of men
14
9
3
6
10
4

Current year minus
prior year absolute
value
8
1
2
2
15
2

50
4
0
--

46
6
8
--

-2
8
40

As with the distribution of Men explained previously, the current year racial/ethnic distribution of Women is expected
to be within a 30% range of the prior year racial/ethnic distribution, otherwise an explanation must be provided.

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Part B: Fall Enrollment by Age and Gender
In Part B you must report the number of students enrolled for credit at the institution by age distribution and
gender for each of the following student types (as applicable based on enrollment reported in the IC Header
survey):
•
•

Full-time undergraduate
Part-time undergraduate

For each applicable student type, the system will calculate the total number of students reported in Part B by gender and subtract this
value from the corresponding total from Part A to determine the number of students with Age unknown/unreported.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for each applicable student type:

•

For each gender category, the number of full-time undergraduate students with Age unknown/unreported cannot
be negative.
Note: If this number is less than 0, it is because the sum of men and women from all age groups is greater than the
number of students reported for the corresponding student type in Part A. Corrections must be made to the data in
one or both parts to resolve the fatal error that will occur.

•

For each gender category, the number of students with Age unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to
20% of the number of students reported for the corresponding student type in Part A.

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Part C: Residence
Applicable to institutions that answered Yes to the Part Selection screening question at the beginning
of the survey
Part C Screening Question
You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is shown.

•

Did any of the first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part A enroll within 12 months
of graduating from high school or receiving their GED?
◦ No
◦ Yes

The system will perform the following edit on the data entered:

•

If your institution reported that you enroll full-time, first-time degree/certificate seeking undergraduate students in
Part B of the IC Header survey, then you are expected to respond Yes to the screening question above.

First-time Residence (3 screens)
Applicable to institutions that answered Yes to the 'Part C Screening Question'
On these screens you must report the number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students enrolled in the institution
(column 1), and the number of these students who enrolled within 12 months of graduating from high school or receiving their GED
(column 2) by State of residence when student was first admitted. This includes all states and US territories, along with additional
"State Unknown" and "Foreign Countries" categories, each with its own unique 2-digit FIPS Code.
On the final screen in Part C, the system will calculate the number of students with Residence unknown/unreported (FIPS Code 98)
by subtracting the sum of all students entered in column 1 from the total number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate
students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•
•
•

•
•

For each FIPS Code, the number of students reported in column 2 must be less than or equal to the number of
students reported in column 1.
The sum of all students entered in column 2 must be greater than 0.
The sum of all students entered in column 2 must be greater than or equal to 20% of the total number of students
entered in column 1.
The number of students with Residence unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
Note: You must report state of residence for the maximum number of students possible. If you are unable to provide
at least 20% of residences, you must enter an explanation.
The total number of First-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part C cannot
exceed the number of total First-time undergraduate students reported in Part A.
The number of students from State Unknown (FIPS Code 57) is expected to be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

First-time Residence (3 screens)
Applicable to institutions that answered No to the 'Part C Screening Question'
On these screens you must report the number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students enrolled in the institution
(column 1) by State of residence when student was first admitted. This includes all states and US territories, along with additional
"State Unknown" and "Foreign Countries" categories, each with its own unique 2-digit FIPS Code.
On the final screen in Part C, the system will determine the number of students with Residence unknown/unreported (FIPS Code 98)
by subtracting the sum of all students entered in column 1 from the total number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate
students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•
•

The number of students with Residence unknown/unreported must be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time, degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.
Note: You must report state of residence for the maximum number of students possible. If you are unable to provide
at least 20% of residences, you must enter an explanation.
The total number of First-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students reported in Part C cannot
exceed the number of total First-time undergraduate students reported in Part A.
The number of students from State Unknown (FIPS Code 57) is expected to be less than or equal to 20% of the total
number of first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students (full-time and part-time) reported in Part A.

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Part E: Retention Rates
In Part E, you must report the retention rates for the Full-time, first-time cohort and the Part-time, first-time cohort.
Note: Academic reporters report retention data as of the institution's official fall reporting date or as of October 15. Program reporters
report retention data on students enrolled in the institution at any time between August 1 and October 31, 2014 and retention based on
August 1, 2015.

Full-time, first-time cohort retention
You must report the number of students in the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E1), as well as any Exclusions from the
cohort (E2). Once the screen is saved, the system will display the difference between the two in the Adjusted cohort (E3) field.
In addition, the number of Students from Fall 2014 still enrolled plus students from Fall 2014 who completed their program as
of Fall 2015 (E4) must be reported in order to determine the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (E5) percentage.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•
•
•
•
•
•
•

•

•

The Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E1) is expected to be within a certain range of the Prior year data, as
outlined below:
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is less than 25, then the current year amount must be between 0 and plus 10 of
that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is between 25 and 99, then the current year amount must be within a 30%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is between 100 and 499, then the current year amount must be within a 20%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E1 is greater than or equal to 500, then the current year amount must be within a
10% range of that amount.
The full-time, first-time cohort entered must be less than or equal to the total number of full-time, first-time students
reported in last year's Fall Enrollment survey component.
If the Full-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort is greater than 0, then the Exclusions from the cohort must be less
than 50% of this value.
If the Adjusted cohort is greater than 0 and E1 is greater than 5, then the number of Students from Fall 2014
cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 is expected to be greater than 0.
The number of Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E4) must be less than or equal to
the Adjusted cohort.
The number of students reported for E4 is expected to be greater than or equal to 15% of the Adjusted cohort.
If the number of students reported for E4 is equal to the Adjusted cohort, then you must confirm a retention rate of
100% for that cohort.
If you reported enrollment for full-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are expected to report full-time, first-time students on this
screen. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
If you did not report enrollment for full-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are not expected to report full-time, first-time students on
this screen. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
The value reported for E5 is expected to be within plus or minus 15% of the prior year retention rate.

Part-time, first-time cohort retention
You must report the number of students in the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E6), as well as any Exclusions from the
cohort (E7). Once the screen is saved, the system will display the difference between the two in the Adjusted cohort (E8) field.

In addition, the number of Students from Fall 2014 still enrolled plus students from Fall 2014 who completed their program as
of Fall 2015 (E9) must be reported in order to determine the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort retention rate (E10)
percentage.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•

•
•
•
•
•
•

•

•

The Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort (E6) is expected to be within a certain range of the Preloaded cohort,
as outlined below:
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is less than 25, then the current year amount must be between 0 and plus 10 of
that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is between 25 and 99, then the current year amount must be within a 30%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is between 100 and 499, then the current year amount must be within a 20%
range of that amount.
◦ If the preloaded cohort for E6 is greater than or equal to 500, then the current year amount must be within a
10% range of that amount.
The part-time, first-time cohort entered must be less than or equal to the total number of part-time, first-time
students reported in last year's Fall Enrollment survey component.
If the Part-time, first-time Fall 2014 cohort is greater than 0, then the Exclusions from the cohort must be less
than 50% of this value.
If the Adjusted cohort is greater than 0 and E6 is greater than 5, then the number of Students from Fall 2014
cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 is expected to be greater than 0.
The number of Students from Fall 2014 cohort still enrolled as of Fall 2015 (E9) must be less than or equal to
the Adjusted cohort.
If the number of students reported for E9 is equal to the Adjusted cohort, then you must confirm a retention rate of
100% for that cohort.
If you reported enrollment for part-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are expected to report part-time, first-time students on this
screen. If this type of student is not enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
If you did not report enrollment for part-time, first-time students in last year's Fall Enrollment survey or this year's
Institutional Characteristics Header component, then you are not expected to report part-time, first-time students on
this screen. If this type of student is enrolled and you are receiving this message in error, you may contact the IPEDS
Help Desk for assistance.
The value reported for E10 is expected to be within plus or minus 15% of the prior year retention rate.

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Part F: Student-to-Faculty Ratio
On this screen, you must report your institution's Student-to-faculty ratio (e.g., student-to-instructional staff ratio) for Fall 2015 using
the ratio format provided. Additional resources are available, including the prior year student-to-faculty ratio, and a worksheet for
assistance in determining your institution’s student-to-faculty ratio.
Note: The student-to-faculty ratio and any accompanying context provided on this screen will be displayed on College Navigator.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:

•
•
•

The ratio entered here is expected to be greater than 0 to 1.
If the ratio entered is greater than 50 to 1, then a fatal error will occur.
The ratio entered must be within a certain range of the prior year amount, as outlined below:
◦ If the prior year amount entered is between 0 and 10 to 1, then the current year amount must be within 5
integers of that amount.
◦ If the prior year amount entered is greater than 10 to 1, then the current year amount must be within a 50%
range of that amount.

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