College Affordability and Transparency Explanation Form (CATEF)

The Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE) is seeking a renewed three-year clearance for the College Affordability and Transparency Explanation Form (CATEF) data collection. OPE has collected this information since 2011-12 and the collection of information through CATEF is required by §132 of the Higher Education Act of 1965 as amended (HEA), 20 U.S.C. § 1015a with the goal of increasing the transparency of college tuition prices for consumers. This submission is for the 2017-18, 2018-19, and 2019-20 collection years. CATEF collects follow-up information from institutions that appear on the tuition and fees and/or net price increase College Affordability and Transparency Center (CATC) Lists for being in the five percent of institutions in their institutional sector that have the highest increases, expressed as a percentage change, over the three-year time period for which the most recent data are available. The information collected through CATEF is used to write a summary report for Congress which is also posted on the CATC website (accessible through the College Navigator).

The latest form for College Affordability and Transparency Explanation Form (CATEF) expires 2021-03-31 and can be found here.