OMB83C Memo

MEMORANDUM OMB # 1850-0582 v.19

DATE: September 7, 2016

TO: Robert Sivinski

Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget

FROM: Richard Reeves

Chief, Postsecondary Branch, Administrative Data Division, National Center for Education Statistics

THROUGH: Kashka Kubzdela

National Center for Education Statistics

SUBJECT: Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2016-19 FAQs Change Request (OMB# 1850-0582 v.19)

The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) is a web-based data collection system designed to collect basic data from all postsecondary institutions in the United States and the other jurisdictions. IPEDS enables the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) to report on key dimensions of postsecondary education such as student enrollment, degrees and other awards earned, tuition and fees, average net price, student financial aid, graduation rates, revenues and expenditures, faculty salaries, staff employed, and information on academic libraries. The IPEDS web-based data collection system was implemented in 2000-01 and collects basic data from approximately 7,300 postsecondary institutions in the United States and the other jurisdictions that are eligible to participate in Title IV Federal financial aid programs. All Title IV institutions are required to respond to IPEDS (Section 490 of the Higher Education Amendments of 1992 (HEA: P.L. 102-325)). IPEDS allows other (non-title IV) institutions to participate on a voluntary basis. Approximately 200 institutions elect to respond. IPEDS data are available to the public through the IPEDS website.

IPEDS 2016-2019 annual data collection was approved by the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) on August 8, 2016 (OMB# 1850-0582 v.18).

In the approved IPEDS 2016-2019 request documents (OMB# 1850-0582 v.18), NCES proposed revised Graduation Rates (GR) screens, to additionally collect, per the disclosure requirement specified in the HEA, as amended, the number of students, exclusions, and completers within 150% for 2 new cohorts of students receiving Pell Grants and for students receiving Subsidized Stafford Loans who did not receive a Pell Grant. Since OMB’s approval in August, NCES sought input from experts regarding this new collection and has developed instructions and FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions) for the revised screens (see table A below and the attached IPEDS 2016 GR Graduation Rates - 2016-08-30 document).

Additionally, NCES revised FAQs for:

The Fall Enrollment (EF) component to help institutions comply with the newly approved guidance on counting study abroad students (see table A below and the attached IPEDS 2016 GR Graduation Rates - 2016-08-30 document).

The Academic Libraries (AL) component to address comments received during the 60- and 30-day public comment periods and to aid the IPEDS keyholders at participating institutions in verifying the AL data submitted to NCES (see table A below and the attached IPEDS 2016 AL Academic Libraries - 2016-08-30 document).

The Finance (F) component to address feedback from the Help Desk following the changes last approved (see table A below and the attached IPEDS 2016 F Finance - 2016-08-30 document).

Given that the modifications described in this change request only provide clarifications to the IPEDS instructions, they do not affect the approved (OMB# 1850-0582 v.18) estimated burden nor the total cost to the federal government for the IPEDS 2016-17 data collection.

Table A below provides details of the revisions made to the instructions and FAQs.

Table A. Changes requested for IPEDS 2016-17

Survey Component and Original instruction/FAQ/ screen (where applicable)	Changed instruction/FAQ/screen (where applicable)	Change type (e.g., addition/ deletion/ rewording)
Graduation Rates	New FAQ. Who is considered a "recipient" of a Pell Grant or Subsidized Stafford Loan? For the purposes of the GR component, a recipient of a Pell Grant or Subsidized Stafford Loan is a student who receives and uses that award upon their entry into the institution.	Addition. Help with reporting of Pell and Stafford Loan cohorts.
Graduation Rates	New FAQ. If a student received their Pell Grant or Subsidized Stafford Loan after their initial entry into the institution, would they be counted as part of these subgroups? They would only be counted if they received and used their award upon entry. If they received and used it at any later time, they would not be part of these subgroups. They would be part of the calculated row - "Did not receive either a Pell Grant or Subsidized Stafford Loan".	Addition. Help with reporting of Pell and Stafford Loan cohorts.
Graduation Rates	New FAQ. If a student receives and uses their Pell Grant or Subsidized Stafford Loan upon entry into the institution, do they have to continue to receive this aid throughout their time at the institution to be counted as part of these subgroups? As long as the student receives and uses their aid upon entry, they do not have to continue to be awarded that aid during their time at the institution to be counted as part of these subgroups.	Addition. Help with reporting of Pell and Stafford Loan cohorts.
Graduation Rates (4-year institutions, bachelor’s cohort)	New Instruction. Section II – Bachelor’s or equivalent degree-seeking cohort - Graduation Rate for Pell recipients and recipients of a subsidized Stafford Loan who did not receive a Pell Grant. Report each student only once. Report the status of the 2010 subcohort of bachelor’s or equivalent degree-seeking students as of 150% of normal time to completion or August 31, 2016 (whichever was earlier) in terms of the number of completers. Report only for full-time, first-time students who were seeking a bachelor’s or equivalent degree upon entry. Do NOT include part-time students, students who transferred into your institution, or students who changed their program of study to a bachelor's level degree after their first semester. SPECIAL NOTE: In order to resolve a potential conflict between transfers-out and the mission of particular programs to prepare students for transfer to other institutions, institutions may count as completers those students who have successfully completed a transfer-preparatory program. Transfer-preparatory program is defined in 34 CFR Student Assistance General Provisions, Section 668.8(b)(1)(ii) as "the successful completion of at least a 2-year program that is acceptable for full credit toward a bachelor’s degree and qualifies a student for admission into the third year of a bachelor’s degree program." The Secretary considers this the equivalent of an associate’s degree, thus completers of transfer-preparatory programs (although they do not receive a "formal award") should be counted as completers of an at least 2 but less than 4 year program. Similarly, institutions may count as completers those students who have successfully completed the first three years of a 3-2 program and are eligible to enter another institution to complete the program (provided the program is acceptable for full credit towards a five-year bachelor's degree, and qualifies a student for admission into the fourth year of a five-year bachelor's degree program). As with a transfer-preparatory program, these students should be counted as completers of an at least 2 but less than 4 year program. In order to calculate a graduation rate that complies with Student Right-to-Know regulations, institutions may count as completers only those students who received their degree/certificate (or completed a transfer-preparatory program) within 150% of the normal time for program completion (normal time to completion is the amount of time necessary to complete all requirements for a program according to the institution's catalog). Do not count as completers students who receive their degree from another institution. For each of two different subcohorts - Bachelor's or equivalent degree-seeking students and Other degree/certificate-seeking students, data will be collected on those students who were recipients of a Pell Grant and those students who were recipients of a subsidized Stafford Loan that did not receive a Pell Grant. Recipients are defined as those students receiving and using their Pell Grant or Subsidized Stafford loan. These students must receive the award upon entry into the institution. If the student is a recipient of an award at a later point after entry, they would not be included in one of the subcohorts. Number of students in the cohort - The number of students in the bachelor's or equivalent degree-seeking subcohort will be preloaded from Section 1 of the GR form. Of those students, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students. Total exclusions - The number of exclusions in the bachelor's or equivalent degree-seeking subcohort will be preloaded from Section II of the GR form. Of those students reported as exclusions, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students. Completers of bachelor's or equivalent degrees - The number of students in the bachelor's or equivalent degree-seeking subcohort who completed a bachelor’s degree or equivalent program within 150% of normal time to completion will be preloaded from Section II of the GR form. Of those students reported as completers, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students.	Addition. Help with reporting of Pell and Stafford Loan cohorts.
Graduation Rates (4-year institutions, other degree-certificate cohort)	New instruction. Section III – Other Degree/Certificate-Seeking Subcohort - Pell recipients and recipients of a subsidized Stafford Loan who did not receive a Pell Grant. Report each student only once. Report the status of the 2010 subcohort of Other degree/certificate-seeking students as of 150% of normal time to completion or August 31, 2016 (whichever was earlier) in terms of the number of completers. Report only for full-time, first-time students who were seeking Other degree/certificate. Do NOT include part-time students, students who transferred into your institution. SPECIAL NOTE: In order to resolve a potential conflict between transfers-out and the mission of particular programs to prepare students for transfer to other institutions, institutions may count as completers those students who have successfully completed a transfer-preparatory program. Transfer-preparatory program is defined in 34 CFR Student Assistance General Provisions, Section 668.8(b)(1)(ii) as "the successful completion of at least a 2-year program that is acceptable for full credit toward a bachelor’s degree and qualifies a student for admission into the third year of a bachelor’s degree program." The Secretary considers this the equivalent of an associate’s degree, thus completers of transfer-preparatory programs (although they do not receive a "formal award") should be counted as completers of an at least 2 but less than 4 year program. Similarly, institutions may count as completers those students who have successfully completed the first three years of a 3-2 program and are eligible to enter another institution to complete the program (provided the program is acceptable for full credit towards a five-year bachelor's degree, and qualifies a student for admission into the fourth year of a five-year bachelor's degree program). As with a transfer-preparatory program, these students should be counted as completers of an at least 2 but less than 4 year program. In order to calculate a graduation rate that complies with Student Right-to-Know regulations, institutions may count as completers only those students who received their degree/certificate (or completed a transfer-preparatory program) within 150% of the normal time for program completion (normal time to completion is the amount of time necessary to complete all requirements for a program according to the institution's catalog). Do not count as completers students who receive their degree from another institution. For each of two different subcohorts - Bachelor's or equivalent degree-seeking students and Other degree/certificate-seeking students, data will be collected on those students who were recipients of a Pell Grant and those students who were recipients of a subsidized Stafford Loan that did not receive a Pell Grant. Recipients are defined as those students receiving and using their Pell Grant or Subsidized Stafford loan. These students must receive the award upon entry into the institution. If the student is a recipient of an award at a later point after entry, they would not be included in one of the subcohorts. Number of students in the cohort - The number of students in the Other degree/certificate-seeking subcohort will be preloaded from Section 1 of the GR form. Of those students, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students. Total exclusions - The number of exclusions in the Other degree/certificate-seeking subcohort will be preloaded from Section III of the GR form. Of those students reported as exclusions, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students. Completers of Other degree/ certificate - The number of students in the Other degree/ certificate-seeking subcohort who completed a Other degree/certificate program within 150% of normal time to completion will be preloaded from Section III of the GR form. Of those students reported as completers, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students.	Addition. Help with approved reporting of Pell and Stafford Loan cohorts.
Graduation Rates (2- and less-than-2-year institutions)	New instruction. Pell recipients and recipients of a subsidized Stafford Loan who did not receive a Pell Grant. Report each student only once. Report the status of the 2013 cohort of first-time, full-time degree/certificate-seeking students as of 150% of normal time to completion or August 31, 2016 (whichever was earlier) in terms of the number of completers. Report only for full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking students. Do NOT include part-time students or students who transferred into your institution. Count completers only once and indicate the highest award level attained. SPECIAL NOTE: In order to resolve a potential conflict between transfers-out and the mission of particular programs to prepare students for transfer to other institutions, institutions may count as completers those students who have successfully completed a transfer-preparatory program. Transfer-preparatory program is defined in 34 CFR Student Assistance General Provisions, Section 668.8(b)(1)(ii) as "the successful completion of at least a 2-year program that is acceptable for full credit toward a bachelor’s degree and qualifies a student for admission into the third year of a bachelor’s degree program." The Secretary considers this the equivalent of an associate’s degree, thus completers of transfer-preparatory programs (although they do not receive a "formal award") should be counted as completers of an at least 2 but less than 4 year program. Similarly, institutions may count as completers those students who have successfully completed the first three years of a 3-2 program and are eligible to enter another institution to complete the program (provided the program is acceptable for full credit towards a five-year bachelor's degree, and qualifies a student for admission into the fourth year of a five-year bachelor's degree program). As with a transfer-preparatory program, these students should be counted as completers of an at least 2 but less than 4 year program. In order to calculate a graduation rate that complies with Student Right-to-Know regulations, institutions may count as completers only those students who received their degree/certificate (or completed a transfer-preparatory program) within 150% of the normal time for program completion (normal time to completion is the amount of time necessary to complete all requirements for a program according to the institution's catalog). Do not count as completers students who receive their degree from another institution. For the first-time, full-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort, data will be collected on those students who were recipients of a Pell Grant and those students who were recipients of a subsidized Stafford Loan that did not receive a Pell Grant. Recipients are defined as those students receiving and using their Pell Grant or Subsidized Stafford loan. These students must receive the award upon entry into the institution. If the student is a recipient of an award at a later point after entry, they would not be included in one of the subcohorts. Number of students in the cohort - The number of students in the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort will be preloaded from the GR form. Of those students, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students. Total exclusions - The number of exclusions in the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort will be preloaded from the GR form. Of those students reported as exclusions, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students. Number of students completing within 150% or normal time - The number of students in the full-time, first-time degree/certificate-seeking cohort who completed within 150% of normal time to completion will be preloaded from the GR form. Of those students reported as completers, report the number of students who received a Pell Grant and the number of students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan but DID NOT receive a Pell Grant. These two categories will be mutually exclusive. The total of these two subcohorts must be less than or equal to the total of all students.	Addition. Help with approved reporting of Pell and Stafford Loan cohorts.
Graduation Rates	New row added to grid on Pell screens. Did not receive either a Pell Grant or a Subsidized Stafford Loan (calculated)	Addition. Clarifies there are students that do not fit in the new sub-groups.
Fall Enrollment	New FAQ. My institution’s freshman study abroad students were excluded from the prior year first-time enrollment count. How can I add these students back into the prior year’s first-time cohort for the current year’s retention calculation? Freshman study abroad students can be added to the first-time cohort. Report in the inclusion box first-time bachelor’s degree-/certificate-seeking study abroad students who were excluded from the first-time cohort but who have re-enrolled at the institution their second year.	Addition. Added to clarify study abroad students.
Fall Enrollment	New FAQ. Sophomore study abroad students have been excluded from my fall enrollment count because they are taking classes in a foreign country. How can I include them as part of my retention calculation? Sophomore study abroad students are considered part of the retained cohort even though they may not be included in the institution’s fall enrollment count. Count these students in the retained cohort.	Addition. Added to clarify study abroad students.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. Why does the survey ask for title count for reporting physical book collection and no longer asking for volume? For the 2016-17 collection, NCES asks that you now report physical book collections by counting titles, not volumes. This will ensure that the definition for physical books aligns with the definitions of other collection counts (i.e. media, serials) collected for IPEDS.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. What is the difference between a database and a discovery system? A database is a collection of electronically stored data or unit records (facts, bibliographic data, and texts) with a common user interface and software for the retrieval and manipulation of the data. The data or records are usually collected with a particular intent and relate to a defined topic. A discovery system consists of an interface directed toward the users of a library to find materials in its collections and subsequently to gain access to items of interest through the appropriate mechanisms. Discovery systems tend to be independent from the specific applications that libraries implement to manage resources, such as integrated library systems, library services platforms, repository platforms, or electronic resource management systems. In most cases they provide access to multiple types of materials, independently of the management platform involved. Discovery systems provide an interface with search and retrieval capabilities, often with features such as relevancy-based ordering of search results, facets presented that can be selected to narrow results according to specific categories, contributors, or date ranges, and tools to identify related materials or to refine search queries. Examples of discovery systems can be found at http://librarytechnology.org/discovery/.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. What is a physical serial and how do I report physical serials in collection and circulation? A serial is a publication in any medium issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designations and intended to be continued indefinitely. This definition includes, in any physical format, periodicals, newspapers, and annuals (reports, yearbooks, etc.); the journals, memoirs, proceedings, transactions, etc. of societies; and numbered monographic series. In physical serials collection, report the number of physical serial titles that are accessible through the library’s catalog or discovery system. Report serial titles, not subscriptions. If possible, report the count of only those de-duplicated or otherwise unique serial titles searchable through the library’s catalog or discovery system. If possible, do not include earlier title changes; however, do not worry about removing them if it is not possible/feasible. Also, include physical serials when reporting circulation counts.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. How do we report reserves and renewals? For the 2016-17 collection, NCES asks that you report in circulation of physical items the physical print reserve circulation. This way the initial circulation count will reflect all physical-print circulation of content whether it is part of the regular print collection or the reserve print collection. However, this will NOT include renewals or equipment circulation counts because the practice of lending equipment varies from library to library considerably in terms of what the equipment (ranging from bicycles to cords) is, making any comparison difficult.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. Where are print photographs reported? Print photographs are reported as graphic materials within physical media.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. How are physical circulations reported? Report the total number of times physical ITEMS (e.g. volumes) are checked out from the general and reserve collections. Include only initial checkouts (circulation), not renewals. Exclude interlibrary loan lending and borrowing. Include transactions of books, media, and serials. Do not include transactions of equipment or computers. However, circulation of electronic reading devices (e.g., Kindles) can be included if the device is pre-loaded with e-books. For example, if a customer checks out a Kindle that is pre-loaded with 20 e-books, then that transaction counts as 1 physical circulation, not 20 electronic/digital circulation.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. What is a digital/electronic serial and how do I report physical serials in collection and circulation? An e-serial is a periodical publication that is published in digital form to be displayed on a computer screen. Report the number of e-serial titles that are accessible through the library’s catalog or discovery system. Include open access (OA) titles if the individual titles are searchable through the library’s catalog or discovery system, except do not count e-serial titles from HathiTrust, Center for Research Libraries, Internet Archive, and similar collections unless the library owns the digitized item and it is accessible under current copyright law. If possible, report the count of only those de-duplicated or otherwise unique serial titles searchable through the library’s catalog or discovery system. If possible include ceased titles. If possible, do not count earlier title changes; however, do not worry about removing them if it is not possible/feasible. A source for counting e-serials may be a library- or vendor-developed A-Z title list of e-journals. Do NOT report digital/electronic serials in digital and electronic usage/circulation counts.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. Where are institutional repositories reported? IPEDS asks that you do NOT report data on institutional repositories in the AL survey.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. What are some suggestions for obtaining title counts for digital/electronic circulation? If you have titles in your knowledge base in your link resolver integrated into your discovery tool, this can be an easy way to get title counts for the digital/electronic collections (e-books, e-serials, and e-media) of the AL survey. If your link resolver is not complete for e-books or e-multimedia, it might be better to rely on getting the title counts through catalog records or other means.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries	New FAQ. What are the basic steps for obtaining COUNTER Reports for Digital/Electronic Circulation? First, identify where you should collect your electronic and digital circulation data. Some options are: • Publishers that host their own content (e.g., Elsevier on ScienceDirect) • Publishers that use a third-party platform to host content (e.g., Royal Society on Highwire) • Aggregators that license content from a wide variety of publishers and offer it through a database (e.g., Academic Search Complete on EBSCOhost). Second, obtain a list of providers and identify how to obtain reports from each provider. An example of basic steps for this process are as follows: • Compile spreadsheet of providers. • Identify administrative URLs and login information needed to collect statistics. • Identify formats and reports to collect under each provider: • Serials - JR 1 (not necessary for IPEDS 2016-2017) • Books - BR 1 • Books - BR 2 • Multimedia - MR 1 • Identify providers where you need to contact vendor or where statistics are unavailable. • Work your way through the list, recording the Reporting Period Total in your spreadsheet. • Provide IPEDS with one total sum of all digital/electronic Reporting Period Totals obtained through all providers.	Addition. For clarification.
Academic Libraries: Deleted FAQ. Why do you no longer request a title count for the physical book collection? This has been done for many years. Beginning with the 2014-15, NCES requested a volume count only to simplify reporting. This change seemed logical in view of the recent focus on access rather than on ownership.	No replacement.	Deletion. No longer necessary.
Academic Libraries: Reworded 2015-16 FAQ. Are music sheets collected? Old. Bound volumes of music sheets are collected under the category of "Physical Books". Digital music sheets are not collected.	New. Include physical and digital/electronic music scores if searchable by title through the library catalog or discovery system.	Rewording. For clarification.
Finance: Reworded instruction. Old. Why does operation and maintenance of plant appear as both a row and column in Part C (expenses and other deductions)? In the new aligned form for GASB institutions, operation and maintenance of plant appear as both a row and column in Part C (expenses and other deductions). The row and column are designed to be used to show how the institution distributes operation and maintenance (O&M) of plant expenses. The total row and column have zeroes for O&M. Consequently, the cell where the O&M column and row intersect should be a negative number equal to the total O&M expenses of the institution.	New. Operation and maintenance (O&M) of plant used to appear as both a functional and natural expense category in Part C (expenses and other deductions). Beginning with the 2016-17 collection, it only appears as a natural expense category. How do I report the O&M that was allocated as a function (e.g., salaries and wages on O&M, benefits on O&M, depreciation on O&M, interest on O&M)? O&M is no longer reported as a functional expense category. As such, any previously reported figure for the Total O&M functional expense figure should be allocated to the other functions (e.g., Total O&M as a function should be distributed among instruction, research, public service, etc.) in part C-1. The NACUBO guidance provides methods for allocating O&M among the functions. O&M in salaries and wages, O&M in benefits, O&M in depreciation, O&M in interest, and O&M in other natural classifications should be excluded from totals of those categories and reported in the O&M natural expense category found in part C-2. For example, benefits spent on O&M should be reported in line 19-4 (not 19-3) of Part C-2. O&M as a natural classification category (line 19-4) should include the total amount of operation and maintenance of plant expenses allocated to all the functions listed on lines 01-14 in Part C-1.	Rewording. Old question no longer applicable.

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