Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2015-2016 Pension Liabilities Update

Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2015-2016 Pension Liabilities Update

IPEDS 2015 E12 12 Month Enrollment

Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) 2015-2016 Pension Liabilities Update

OMB: 1850-0582

Document [pdf]
Download: pdf | pdf
THIS SURVEY HAS NO NEW CHANGES AND IS NOT
SUBJECT TO CHANGE. THE FULL CONTENT OF THIS
DOCUMENT HAS BEEN PREVIOUSLY APPROVED ON
DEC 2013. THIS COLLECTION IS CURRENTLY OPEN.

12 Month Enrollment
Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System
(IPEDS)

This IPEDS 12 Month Enrollment data collection instrument is currently being
used for the 2015-16 data collection.

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

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

  
NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Form

date: 8/4/2015

12-month Enrollment for 4-year institutions
Overview screen 
12-month Enrollment Overview
The 12-Month Enrollment component collects unduplicated student enrollment counts and instructional activity data for
an entire 12-month period. Using the instructional activity data reported, a full-time equivalent (FTE) student
enrollment at the undergraduate and graduate level is estimated. Institutions with Doctor's-professional practice
students will also report the FTE enrollment of those students. NCES uses the FTE enrollment to produce indicators
such as expenses by function per FTE as reported in the IPEDS Data Feedback Report.
Data Reporting Reminders:
•

All institutions must now use the July 1 - June 30 reporting period. There is no longer the option of using the
September 1 - August 31 reporting period.

 
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.

Undergraduate Instructional Activity Type 
Undergraduate instructional activity data in Part B may be reported in units of contact hours or credit hours.
Which instructional activity units will you use to report undergraduate instructional activity?
Please note that any graduate level instructional activity must be reported in credit hours.
Contact hours
Credit hours
Both contact and credit hours (some undergraduate programs measured in contact hours and some measured
in credit hours)
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part A - Unduplicated Count 
12-month Unduplicated Count by Race/Ethnicity and Gender
July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015
Race/Ethnicity Reporting Reminder:
•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.

Graduate Student Reporting Reminder:
•Report all postbaccalaureate degree and certificate students as graduate students, including any doctor's-professional
practice students (formerly first-professional)

Men
Students enrolled for credit
Nonresident alien

Undergraduate students 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
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
Total women prior year
Grand total (2014-15)
Prior year data:
Unduplicated headcount (2013-14)
Total enrollment Fall 2014

Undergraduate students Graduate students

NOTE: Grand total (2014-15) calculated above is expected to be greater
than Total enrollment Fall 2014.

Part B - Instructional Activity 
12-month Instructional Activity
July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015
Instructional Activity Reporting Reminder:
•Instructional activity is used to calculate an IPEDS FTE based on the institution’s reported calendar system.
•Graduate credit hour activity should not include any doctor’s–professional practice activity, the total of those students’
FTE is entered separately instead.

FTE Reporting Reminder:
•Institutions need not report their own calculations of undergraduate or graduate FTE unless IPEDS FTE calculations
would be misleading for comparison purposes among all IPEDS reporting institutions.

2014-15 total
activity

Prior year
data

Instructional Activity
Undergraduate level:
Contact hour activity
Credit hour activity
Graduate level:
Credit hour activity
(Do not include doctor's-professional practice instructional activity here; the total FTE of
those students should be entered separately below)
Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) of Students
Doctor's-professional practice level:
Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate

Calendar system (as reported on the prior year IC Header survey component):
If the IPEDS calculated FTE estimates below are not reasonable, AND you have reported the correct instructional
activity hours above, enter your best FTE estimate in the "Institution reported FTE" column below and save the page.
This option should be used ONLY if the calculated estimate is not reasonable for your institution and IPEDS
comparisons.
Please provide your best estimate of undergraduate and graduate FTE for the 12-month reporting period only if the
calculated FTE estimate below is not reasonable for IPEDS comparison purposes:
Calculated FTE
Institution reported
Prior year FTE
2014-15
FTE 2014-15
2013-14
Undergraduate student FTE
Graduate student FTE
(excluding doctor's-professional practice student FTE)
Doctor's-professional practice student FTE
Total FTE student enrollment

 
U.S. Department of Education
Image description.
Department
Of
Education
End of image
description.

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy

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

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

  
NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Instructions

date: 8/4/2015

12-Month 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 Question
Reporting Individuals by Racial/Ethnic Categories
Part A: Unduplicated Count by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity, and Gender
Part B: Instructional Activity and Full-Time Equivalent Enrollment

Purpose of Survey
The purpose of the 12-Month Enrollment component of IPEDS is to collect unduplicated enrollment counts of all
students enrolled for credit and instructional activity data in postsecondary institutions for an entire 12-month period.
Data are collected by level of student and by race/ethnicity and gender. Instructional activity is collected as total credit
and/or contact hours attempted at the undergraduate, graduate, and doctor's professional levels. Using the
instructional activity data reported, a full-time equivalent (FTE) student enrollment at the undergraduate and graduate
level is estimated.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Changes in Reporting

•

There are no changes to the 12-Month Enrollment (E12) component for the 2015-16 collection.

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
The 12-month reporting period is July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Where to Get Help with Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
Phone: 1-877-225-2568
Email: [email protected]

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

IPEDS Resource Page
The IPEDS Resource Page (located on the IPEDS homepage) contains frequently asked questions, a link to the IPEDS
Glossary, data tip sheets, an archive of survey instruments, information on the race/ethnicity categories, and other
valuable information.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Reporting Directions
Screening Question
Before entering any data, a screening question will need to be answered.
Instructional Activity Units.
Select which units your institution will use to report undergraduate instructional activity for this component.
Institutions are given the option to report undergraduate instructional activity in contact hours, credit hours, or a
combination of the two.
Contact hours are a unit of measure that represent an hour of scheduled instruction given to students, sometimes
referred to as a clock hour. Credit hours are a unit of measure representing the equivalent of approximately one hour
of instruction per week over the entire term. Select the method that best describes the units used to measure
instructional activity at your institution.
The option for both contact and credit hours should only be used if some programs are measured in contact hours
while others are measured in credit hours. If your institution measures courses or programs in a unit of measure other
than standard credit or contact hours, select credit hours and convert the instructional activity offered to credit hour
equivalents for reporting in Part B of this component.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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.

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Part A: Unduplicated Count by Student Level, Gender, and Race/Ethnicity
Report all students enrolled for credit at any time during the July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015 reporting period. Students
are reported by gender, race/ethnicity, and their level of standing with the institution.
Number of Students Enrolled for Credit: The number of students enrolled for credit at the close of the official add
period for each program. If there is no official add period, report as of the 15th day of each regular program, and the
5th day of each short program.
To determine the unduplicated 12-month enrollment, count each student only once during the 12-month period. For
example: If a student enrolls in the fall term, drops out in winter, but enrolls again in spring, count that student once.
Student Level Reporting Reminders:

•
•
•
•

Students who already hold a baccalaureate degree but are enrolled as an undergraduate for additional
undergraduate courses should be reported as undergraduate students
Students admitted with graduate standing should be counted as graduate students, even if they are taking
some undergraduate courses
If a student's level (undergraduate or graduate) changes during the 12-month period, count the student at
his/her highest level enrolled. For example: If a student is an undergraduate in the fall and a graduate student
in the spring, count the student as a graduate student.
Doctor's-professional practice students (formerly called first-professional students) should be counted in the
graduate student enrollment counts for Part A.

To provide context, two prior year enrollment totals are displayed at the bottom of the screen. The first is the total 12month unduplicated count reported last year (2013-14). The second is the total fall enrollment from Fall 2014, as
reported on the Fall Enrollment survey component. Since the Fall 2014 enrollment falls within the 12-month period
currently being reported (2014-15), the 12-month unduplicated count must be greater than or equal to the Fall 2014
total enrollment.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Part B: Instructional Activity and Full-Time Equivalent Enrollment
Report the total contact hour and/or credit hour activity attempted during the 12-month period of July 1, 2014 - June
30, 2015. The instructional activity data reported will be used to calculate full-time equivalent (FTE) student
enrollment at the institution.

Reporting Contact Hour Activity
To determine the contact hour activity for a course, multiply the contact hour value of the course by the number of
students enrolled in the course for credit. When computing total contact hour activity for the institution, include all
courses offered for credit (see the IPEDS Glossary for the definition of "credit course") that are measured in contact or
clock hours, do not convert credit hour activity into contact hour activity.
Contact Hour Activity of a Course = Course Contact Hour Value * Number of Students Enrolled for Credit
Contact Hour Value of a Course: The contact hour value of a course is the number of hours per week that the
course meets multiplied by the number of weeks the course is given. For example, a 3-week real estate licensure
course that meets 15 hours per week has a value of 45 contact hours.
Number of Students Enrolled for Credit: The number of students enrolled for credit at the close of the official add
period for each program. If there is no official add period, report as of the 15th day of each regular program, and the
5th day of each short program.

Example Calculation: Total contact hour activity for Institution ABC.
Institution ABC offers 3 courses during the July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015 reporting period:

•
•
•

Course 1 is a 50-week course with 30 contact hours per week and 10 students.
Course 2 is a 20-week course with 35 contact hours per week and 5 students.
Course 3 is a 15-week course with 20 contact hours per week and 10 students.

Compute the contact hour activity for each course:

•
•
•

Course 1: 50 * 30 * 10 = 15,000 hours
Course 2: 20 * 35 * 5 = 3,500 hours
Course 3: 15 * 20 * 10 = 3,000 hours

Compute the total contact hour activity for the institution by summing the contact hour activity for all courses offered
for credit that are measured in terms of contact or clock hours:

•

15,000 hours + 3,500 hours + 3,000 hours = 21,500 hours

Note: If a course does not start and end within the same 12-month reporting period, the contact hour activity
reported should be only for the number of weeks which fall within the July 1 - June 30 period. For example, if only 40
weeks of a 64 week course (which meets 15 hours per week and has an enrollment of 30 students) falls within the 12month period, the contact hour activity for this course would be computed as follows: 40 weeks x 15 hours per week x
30 students = 18,000 contact hours.

Reporting Credit Hour Activity
To determine the credit hour activity for a course, multiply the credit hour value of the course by the number of
students enrolled in the course for credit (see the IPEDS Glossary for the definition of "credit course"). When
computing total credit hour activity for the institution, include only those courses offered for credit that are measured
in credit hours, do not convert contact hour activity into credit hour activity.
Credit Hour Activity of a Course = Course Credit Hour Value * Number of Students Enrolled for Credit
Number of Students Enrolled for Credit: The number of students enrolled for credit at the close of the official add
period for each term. If there is no official add period, report as of the 15th day of each regular term and the 5th day
of each summer or short term.
Example Calculation: Total credit hour activity for Institution DEZ.
Institution DEZ offers 3 courses during the July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015 reporting period:

•
•
•

Course 1 is a 3 credit hour course with 20 students.
Course 2 is a 5 credit hour course with 10 students.
Course 3 is a 4 credit hour course with 15 students.

Compute the credit hour activity for each course:

•
•
•

Course 1: 3*20 = 60 hours
Course 2: 5*10 = 50 hours
Course 3: 4*15 = 60 hours

Compute the total credit hour activity for the institution by summing the credit hour activity for all courses offered for
credit and measured in credit hours:

•

60 hours + 50 hours + 60 hours = 170 hours

Report credit hour activity by course level, if applicable to your institution.  The level of each course (undergraduate or
graduate) should be the level of the course as designated by the institution. If there are courses that cannot be
assigned to a single level (i.e., if some courses serve both undergraduate and graduate students), partition the
enrollment in the course based on the level of the student. For example, a 3-credit course has 5 graduate students
and 10 undergraduate students enrolled. The total credit hour activity for the course is 45 hours (3x15). The
undergraduate credit hour activity for the course is 30 hours (3x10), and the graduate credit hour activity for the
course is 15 hours (3x5).
Note: If a course does not start and end within the same 12-month reporting period, report all credit hour activity for
the course in the 12-month period in which the course began. Because course enrollment counts (necessary for
calculating total credit hour activity) are typically taken at the close of the official add/drop period for a course, this
date can also be used as the course start date for the purposes of determining the appropriate 12-month period. If
there is no official add/drop period, the 15th day of a regular term and the 5th day of a summer or short term can be
used.
Graduate Level Instructional Activity Reporting Reminder: Be sure to exclude doctor's-professional
practice activity (formerly first-professional) from the graduate level instructional activity.
If your institution has doctor's-professional practice students but does not see the section to report them on their
survey screens, you must contact the IPEDS Help Desk.
Once you have entered the instructional activity information, then click "save" and the FTE student enrollment will be
calculated and appear on the screen.

Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Calculation
Full-time equivalent (FTE) student enrollment, by level (undergraduate and graduate) will be calculated for the
institution using the instructional activity data reported in Part B. This total FTE student count will be used in
computing indicators such as expenses by function per FTE and revenues per FTE, which are reported on the IPEDS
Data Feedback Report (DFR). A FTE student is a unit of measurement intended to represent one student enrolled fulltime for one academic year.
Calculated Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Estimate. After entering the instructional activity, the FTE estimate will be
calculated as follows:

•
•

•

For institutions reporting contact or clock hours, the number of contact hours is divided by 900. For
example, the FTE for Institution ABC would be 1150/900, or approximately 1 student.
For institutions operating on a Quarter calendar system (as reported in the prior year IC Header survey
component), undergraduate credit hours are divided by 45, and graduate credit hours are divided by 36. If
Institution DEZ from the example above was an undergraduate program on the quarter system, the FTE would
be 170/45, or approximately 4 students.
For institutions operating on a semester, 4-1-4 Plan, or other calendar type (as reported in the prior
year IC Header survey component), undergraduate credit hours are divided by 30, and graduate credit hours
are divided by 24. If Institution DEZ was an undergraduate program on the one of these systems, the FTE
would be 170/30, or approximately 6 students.

If these calculated estimates are not reasonable for the institution, please double check the credit and/or contact
hours reported to ensure their accuracy. If the instructional activity data reported are inaccurate, then the calculated
FTE estimate will also be inaccurate.
After double checking the instructional activity data reported, if the FTE count estimated for the institution is still not
reasonable, the system will allow you to enter more accurate FTE data for the institution in the "Institution reported
FTE" column below. This option should be used ONLY if the system calculated estimates are not reasonable for the
institution and would be misleading for comparison purposes among all IPEDS reporting institutions.

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

date: 8/4/2015

Glossary
Term

Definition

12-month enrollment (E12)

These data were collected in the Enrollment component prior to the 2007 IPEDS collection. Data are collected for the
entire 12-month academic year, while enrollment data collected in the Fall Enrollment component are fall data.
Institutions report an unduplicated head count for the total number of students by gender, race/ethnicity, and level
(undergraduate, graduate, first-professional) enrolled throughout the reporting period. Students included are those
enrolled in any courses leading to a degree or other formal award, as well as those enrolled in courses that are part
of a terminal vocational or occupational program. Institutions also report the total instructional activity for the same
12-month period for both undergraduate and graduate programs. Instructional activity data are reported in units of
contact hours (sometimes referred to as clock hours) or credit hours.

12-month period

A 12-month period defined by an institution for reporting a full year of activity (usually either July 1 through June 30
or September 1 through August 31). This time period should be consistent across all IPEDS data collections and from
year-to-year.

4-1-4 (calendar system)

The 4-1-4 calendar usually consists of 4 courses taken for 4 months, 1 course taken for 1 month, and 4 courses
taken for 4 months. There may be an additional summer session.

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.

Calculation of FTE students
(using instructional activity)

The number of FTE students is calculated based on the credit and/or contact hours reported by the institution on the
IPEDS 12-month enrollment (E12) component and the institution's calendar system, as reported on the IC Header
component. The following table indicates the level of instructional activity used to convert the credit and/or contact
hours reported to an indicator of full-time equivalents (FTE students):

•

•

Quarter calendar system
◦ Enrollment level (One FTE over 12-month period)
▪
Undergraduate 45 credit hours, 900 contact hours
▪
Graduate 36 credit hours
Semester/trimester/4-1-4 plan/other calendar system
◦ Enrollment level (one FTE over 12-month period)
▪
Undergraduate 30 credit hours 900 contact hours
▪
Graduate 24 credit hours

For institutions with continuous enrollment programs, FTE is determined by dividing the number of contact hours
attempted by 900.
The total 12-month FTE is generated by summing the estimated or reported undergraduate FTE and the estimated or
reported graduate FTE and reported Doctor's Professional Practice FTE.
Calendar system

The method by which an institution structures most of its courses for the academic year.

Clock hour

A unit of measure that represents an hour of scheduled instruction given to students. Also referred to as contact
hour.

Contact hour

A unit of measure that represents an hour of scheduled instruction given to students. Also referred to as clock hour.

Contact hour activity

The provision of coursework to students which can be measured in terms of contact or clock hours .

Continuous basis

A calendar system classification that is used by institutions that allow students to enroll/start classes at any time
during the year. For example, a cosmetology school or a word processing school might allow students to enroll and
begin studies at various times, with no requirement that classes begin on a certain date.

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.

Credit hour

A unit of measure representing the equivalent of an hour (50 minutes) of instruction per week over the entire term.
It is applied toward the total number of credit hours needed for completing the requirements of a degree, diploma,
certificate, or other formal award.

Credit hour activity

The provision of coursework to students which can be measured in terms of credit hours.

Differs by program (calendar
system)

A calendar system classification that is used by institutions that have occupational/vocational programs of varying
lengths. These schools may enroll students at specific times depending on the program desired. For example, a
school might offer a 2-month program in January, March, May, September, and November; and a 3-month program
in January, April, and October.

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.

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 the
attainment of satisfactory scores on the GED or another state specified examination.

Hispanic/Latino

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

Instructional activity

The total number of credit and contact hours all students are engaged in during the specified period.

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.

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.

Other academic calendar
system

Category used to describe "non-traditional" calendar systems at 4-year and 2-year degree-granting institutions.
These can include schools that offer primarily on-line courses or "one course at a time."

Quarter (calendar system)

A calendar system in which the academic year consists of 3 sessions called quarters of about 12 weeks each. The
range may be from 10 to 15 weeks as defined by the institution. There may be an additional quarter in the summer.

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.

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).

Semester (calendar system)

A calendar system that consists of two sessions called semesters during the academic year with about 15 weeks for
each semester of instruction. There may be an additional summer session.

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).

Trimester (calendar system)

An academic year consisting of 3 terms of about 15 weeks each.

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.

Unduplicated count

The sum of students enrolled for credit with each student counted only once during the reporting period, regardless
of when the student enrolled.

White

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

 
U.S. Department of Education
Image description.
Department
Of
Education
End of image
description.

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy

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

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

  
NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > FAQ

date: 8/4/2015

12-month 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 for 12-month enrollment?
3) What is the difference between 12-month enrollment and Fall enrollment?
4) In the past I reported first-professional student enrollment separately in Part A. Why is there no column for reporting firstprofessional students?
5) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
Unduplicated Count (Part A)
1) Why does the total 12-month enrollment need to be larger than the corresponding prior year fall enrollment?
2) How do I report a student who changes enrollment levels during the 12-month period?
3) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
4) 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?
Instructional Activity and FTE (Part B)
1) How do I report instructional activity for courses that start in one 12-month reporting period and end in the next 12-month
reporting year?
2) Instructional activity in doctor's-professional practice programs is measured differently from other graduate programs. How
should I report the activity for these programs?
3) How is the estimate of full-time equivalent (FTE) students calculated?
4) The calculated FTE is not a reasonable estimate for my institution. What should I do?

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
postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity’s unit of measurement."
Back to top
2) What is the reporting period for 12-month enrollment?
The reporting period for the 12-month enrollment component is July 1 - June 30. In the past, institutions had the option to
report using the July 1 - June 30 period or the September 1 - August 31 period. Since the 2011-12 collection year,
institutions have been required to use the July 1 - June 30 reporting period.
Back to top
3) What is the difference between 12-month enrollment and Fall enrollment?
12-month enrollment is a cumulative unduplicated headcount of enrollment over the full 12-month period beginning July 1 and
ending June 30.  In contrast, 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 an institution's enrollment at a specific time.
Back to top
4) In the past I reported first-professional student enrollment separately in Part A. Why is there no column for
reporting first-professional students?
Since the 2010-11 collection year, institutions have been required to use the new postbaccalaureate degree categories
(eliminating the first-professional category and reclassifying those programs). In part A, all postbaccalaureate students are to
be reported as graduate students (including students formerly reported as first-professional).
In Part B, Doctor's-professional practice activity (formerly first-professional) will be reported separately from the graduate
instructional activity.  FTE for these programs should be reported as defined by the institution.
Back to top
5) 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.
Back to top
Unduplicated Count (Part A)
1) Why does the total 12-month enrollment need to be larger than the corresponding prior year fall enrollment?

The 12-month unduplicated count must be equal to or greater than the corresponding prior year fall enrollment. Since Fall 2014
lies within the 12-month period currently being reported on the 12-Month Enrollment survey component (2014-15), the 12month unduplicated count must be equal to or greater than the Fall 2014 reported enrollments.
Back to top
2) How do I report a student who changes enrollment levels during the 12-month period?
Students should be reported at their highest level of enrollment. For example, a student enrolled as an undergraduate in the fall
and then as a graduate student in the spring should be reported as a graduate student on the 12-Month Enrollment Survey
component.
Back to top
3) 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 with the new race/ethnicity reporting method. 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.
Back to top
4) 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.
Back to top
Instructional Activity and FTE (Part B)
1) How do I report instructional activity for courses that start in one 12-month reporting period and end in the
next 12-month reporting year?
If a course does not start and end within the same 12-month reporting period, report that activity using the following
guidelines:
Contact Hour Reporting:
Report only the activity for the number of weeks that fall within the 12-month period being reported on. For example, if only 40
weeks of a 64 week course occurred before the June 30 end of the current reporting period, then report only those 40 weeks
worth of activity. Next year, report the 24 weeks worth of activity for that course that occurred after July 1. For guidance on
calculating total contact hour activity, refer to the 12-month Enrollment survey component instructions.
Credit Hour Reporting:
Report all activity for a course in the 12-month period in which the course began. Because course enrollment counts (necessary
for calculating total credit hour activity) are typically taken at the close of the official add/drop period for a course, this date can
also be used as the course start date for the purposes of determining the appropriate 12-month period. If there is no official
add/drop period, the 15th day of a regular term and the 5th day of a summer or short term can be used.
Back to top
2) Instructional activity in doctor's-professional practice programs is measured differently from other graduate
programs. How should I report the activity for these programs?
Starting with the 2012-13 data collection, institutions now report the FTE for doctor's-professional practice (DPP) programs as a
separate amount in Part B.  This DPP FTE amount will then be summed with the undergraduate and graduate FTE amounts to
create the total FTE enrollment for the institution.
Back to top
3) How is the estimate of full-time equivalent (FTE) students calculated?
The FTE enrollment estimate is calculated based on the total credit and/or contact hours reported in Part B and the institution's
calendar system, as reported on the prior year Institutional Characteristics (IC) component. The following method is used to
convert the credit and/or contact hours reported to an indicator of full-time equivalent students:
Contact Hour Reporters: Contact hours are divided by 900
Quarter Calendar System: Undergraduate credit hours are divided by 45 and graduate credit hours are divided by 36
Semester/Trimester/4-1-4 Plan/Other Calendar System: Undergraduate credit hours are divided by 30 and graduate
credit hours are divided by 24.
Doctor's-professional practice (DPP) FTE student enrollment is reported by the institution, based on the institution's definition of
a full-time equivalent DPP student.  This amount is then added to the undergraduate and graduate FTE amounts to create a
total FTE student enrollment count.
Back to top
4) The calculated FTE is not a reasonable estimate for my institution. What should I do?
First, double check the instructional activity data reported on the Part B screen. If your instructional activity data is accurate
and the FTE calculation is not providing a reasonable FTE estimate for your institution, there is the option to report a more
accurate FTE in Part B. This option should be used ONLY if the system calculation is not a reasonable estimate for your
institution and would be misleading for comparison purposes among all IPEDS reporting institutions.
If a more accurate FTE is provided and an edit is received on that data entry, make sure to detail the methodology used to
arrive at the reported FTE and explain why this is a better measure for the institution.
Back to top

 

U.S. Department of Education
Image description.
Department
Of
Education
End of image
description.

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy

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

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

  
NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Narrative Edits

date: 8/4/2015

12-month Enrollment for all institutions
Edit specifications for the 2015-16 IPEDS Web-Based Data Collection
12-month Enrollment (E12) Component
Applicable to all institutions
NOTE: The specifications in this document apply to all institutions completing the IPEDS 12-month Enrollment
component. 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 in this survey must be completed in order to lock the survey.

Screening Question: Undergraduate Instructional Activity
Part A: 12-month Unduplicated Count
Part B: 12-month Instructional Activity and FTE

Screening Question: Undergraduate Instructional Activity Type
Applicable to all institutions with undergraduate student enrollment
You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is
shown.
Undergraduate instructional activity can be reported in units of contact hours, credit hours, or both. You must choose one of
the following options:
•
•
•

Contact hours
Credit hours
Both contact and credit hours (some undergraduate programs measured in contact hours and some measured in
credit hours)

Note: All graduate student instructional activity must be reported in credit hours with the exception of Doctor's-professional
practice students which are only reported as a full-time equivalent (FTE) estimate.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•

If your institution indicated in the prior year Institutional Characteristics survey that its largest programs are
measured in contact hours, but you have indicated that instructional activity will be reported in Credit hours, then an
explanation is required.
If your institution indicated in the prior year Institutional Characteristics survey that its largest programs are
measured in credit hours, but you have indicated that instructional activity will be reported in Contact hours, then an
explanation is required.

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Part A: 12-month Unduplicated Count

On this screen, you must enter your institution's 12-month unduplicated student count by race/ethnicity and gender for the
July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015 reporting period. Columns are displayed for Undergraduate students and/or Graduate
Students, as applicable to your institution. For existing institutions, the available columns are based on the student levels
reported by your institution in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey. For new institutions, the available columns are based on
the levels of enrollment selected in Part C of the IC Header survey.

Undergraduate students
Applicable to all institutions with undergraduate student enrollment
In the Undergraduate students column, enter the 12-month unduplicated count of undergraduate students at the institution
by race/ethnicity and gender. Prior year amounts are displayed for Total men and Total women. Additionally, the
Unduplicated headcount (2013-14) and Total enrollment Fall 2014 values are displayed for your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•

•
•

•
•

If your institution reported undergraduate students in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey (which is part of the 12month period currently being reported) or indicated in Part C of the IC Header survey that your institution offered
undergraduate enrollment during 2014-15, then the Grand Total (2014-15) calculated for Undergraduate
students must be greater than 0.
The Grand total (2014-15) 12-month unduplicated count of Undergraduate students must be greater than
the Total enrollment Fall 2014 value (the corresponding total from the prior year Fall Enrollment survey).
The Grand total (2014-15) 12-month unduplicated count of Undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the Unduplicated headcount (2013-14) value (the prior year unduplicated headcount), as outlined
below:
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 1 and 25, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 50% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 26 and 100, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 40% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 101 and 500, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 30% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is greater than 500, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 20% range of that number.
If the percent of Undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category (men plus
women) is between 20% and 80 %, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category (men plus
women) is greater than or equal to 80%, then a fatal error will occur.

•

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.  If you have both Undergraduate and Graduate students, the
total will be used for this calculation. 

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

Graduate students
Applicable to all institutions with Graduate student enrollment
In the Graduate students column, enter the 12-month unduplicated count of graduate students at the institution by
race/ethnicity and gender. Prior year amounts are displayed for Total men and Total women. Additionally, the
Unduplicated headcount (2013-14) and Total enrollment Fall 2014 values are displayed for your reference. 
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•

•
•

•
•

If your institution reported graduate students in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey (which is part of the 12-month
period currently being reported) or indicated in Part C of the IC Header survey that your institution offered graduate
enrollment during 2014-15, then the Grand Total (2014-15) calculated for Graduate students must be greater
than 0.
The Grand total (2014-15) 12-month unduplicated count of Graduate students must be greater than the Total
enrollment Fall 2014 value (the corresponding total from the prior year Fall Enrollment survey).
The Grand total (2014-15) 12-month unduplicated count of Graduate students is expected to be within a certain
range of the Unduplicated headcount (2013-14) value (the prior year unduplicated headcount), as outlined below:
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 1 and 25, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 50% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 26 and 100, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 40% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 101 and 500, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 30% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is greater than 500, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 20% range of that number.
If the percent of Graduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category (men plus women) is
between 20% and 80%, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Graduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category (men plus women) is
greater than or equal to 80%, then a fatal error will occur.

•

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. If you have both Undergraduate and Graduate students, the
total will be used for this calculation.
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

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Part B: 12-month Instructional Activity and FTE
In this portion of the survey component, screens are generated based on the levels of enrollment offered by your institution.
This may include undergraduate, graduate, and doctor's-professional practice (for 4-year institutions only). For existing
institutions, the levels of enrollment displayed are based on the student levels reported by your institution in the prior year
Fall Enrollment survey. For new institutions, the available columns are based on the levels of enrollment selected in Part C of
the IC Header survey.  Undergraduate Instructional Activity is reported by contact hours and/or credit hours based on
the response selected in the Screening Question. Your institution's calendar system, as reported in the prior year IC Header
survey, is displayed for your reference.
Note: The 12-month Instructional Activity screen is broken into two “screen sections.” Once the first "12-month
Instructional Activity" section is saved, the "FTE" section will appear.

Section 1: 12-month Instructional Activity
In the first section, begin by entering the 2014-15 total activity for the following student levels, as applicable to your
institution:
Undergraduate level:
•
•

Contact hour activity
Credit hour activity

Graduate level:

•

Credit hour activity (Do not include Doctor's-professional practice instructional activity here; the total FTE of those
students should be entered separately below.)

If your institution offered a Doctor's-professional practice degree in 2014-15, then you must also provide the Full-Time
Equivalent (FTE) of Students for that level:
Doctor's-professional practice level:
•

Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate

Note: For existing institutions, the Prior year data amounts are preloaded for your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for institutions that enroll Undergraduate students:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

•

You must enter a number greater than 0 for each of the available activity levels. If the available options are not
applicable to your institution, then you must correct your response to the screening question.
If your institution selected "Contact hours" in the screening question, then the total Contact hour activity over the
12-month period must be between 270 and 900 times the Grand total number of Undergraduate students
reported in Part A of this survey.
If your institution selected "Contact hours" or "Both" in the screening question and the current year Undergraduate
Contact hour activity is equal to the value listed in the corresponding Prior year data column, then a fatal error
will occur.
If your institution selected "Credit hours" or "Both" in the screening question and the current year Undergraduate
Credit hour activity is equal to the value listed in the corresponding Prior year data column, then a fatal error will
occur.
If your institution selected "Credit hours" in the screening question and your institution's predominant calendar system
is Quarter, then the total Undergraduate Credit hour activity over the 12-month period must be between 14 and
45 times the Grand total number of Undergraduate students reported in Part A of this survey.
If your institution selected "Credit hours" in the screening question and your institution's predominant calendar system
is NOT Quarter, then the total Undergraduate Credit hour activity over the 12-month period must be between 8
and 30 times the Grand total number of Undergraduate students reported in Part A of this survey.
If your institution selected "Both" in the screening question and your institution's predominant calendar system is
Quarter, then the sum of Undergraduate Contact hour activity divided by 900, and Undergraduate Credit hour
activity divided by 30, must be within a range of 30% to 100% of the Grand total number of Undergraduate
students reported in Part A of this survey. Note: If your institution's FTE enrollment is over 100%, make sure you
are reporting contact and credit hours separately and are not duplicating any counts.
If your institution selected "Both" in the screening question and your institution's predominant calendar system is NOT
Quarter, then the sum of Undergraduate Contact hour activity divided by 900, and Undergraduate Credit hour
activity divided by 45, must be within a range of 30% to 100% of the Grand total number of Undergraduate
students reported in Part A of this survey. Note: If your institution's FTE enrollment is over 100%, make sure you
are reporting contact and credit hours separately and are not duplicating any counts.

The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for institutions that enroll Graduate students:
•
•
•

•

•
•

You must enter a number greater than 0 for Graduate Credit hour activity.
If the current year Graduate Credit hour activity is equal to the value listed in the corresponding Prior year data
column, then a fatal error will occur.
If your institution enrolls Doctor's-professional practice students and your institution's predominant calendar system is
Quarter, then the sum of Graduate Credit hour activity divided by 36, and the reported Doctor's-professional
practice FTE student estimate, must be within a range of 30% to 100% of the Grand total number of Graduate
students reported in Part A of this survey. 
If your institution enrolls Doctor's-professional practice students and your institution's predominant calendar system is
Semester, Trimester, 4-1-4, or Other academic calendar, then the sum of Graduate Credit hour activity divided by
24, and the reported Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate, must be within a range of 30% to 100% of
the Grand total number of Graduate students reported in Part A of this survey. 
If your institution does not enroll Doctor's-professional practice students and your institution's predominant calendar
system is Quarter, then the total Graduate Credit hour activity over the 12-month period must be between 11 and
36 times the Grand total number of Graduate students reported in Part A of this survey.
If your institution does not enroll Doctor's-professional practice students and your institution's predominant calendar
system is Semester, Trimester, 4-1-4, or Other academic calendar, then the total Graduate Credit hour activity
over the 12-month period must be between 7 and 24 times the Grand total number of Graduate students reported
in Part A of this survey.

The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for institutions that enroll Doctor's-professional
practice students:
•
•
•
•

The Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate must be greater than 0.
If your institution does not enroll graduate students other than Doctor's-professional practice students, then the
Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate must be greater than or equal to the total number of fulltime graduate students reported in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey.
The Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate must be less than or equal to the Grand Total number
of Graduate students reported in Part A of this survey.
The reported Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate must be within a certain range of the Prior
year data value, as outlined below:
◦ If the prior year Doctor's-professional practice FTE is less than or equal to 25, then the current year value
must be within plus or minus 8 of that value.
◦ If the prior year Doctor's-professional practice FTE is greater than 25, then the current year value must be
within a 30% range of that value.

Section 2: FTE
Upon saving the previous section, the system will estimate the FTE enrollment for Undergraduate and Graduate students, as
applicable to your institution. If the calculated FTE estimates provided are not reasonable AND you have reported the correct
instructional activity hours, then you may provide an Institution reported FTE. The Prior year FTE 2013-14 amounts are
displayed for your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered in this section:
•

For each student level, the Institution reported FTE is not expected to deviate from the Calculated FTE by more
than a certain percentage, as outlined below:
◦ If the institution reported FTE deviates from the calculated FTE by 20% to 75%, then an explanation is
required.
◦ If the institution reported FTE deviates from the calculated FTE by more than 75%, then a fatal error will
occur.

Note: Your institution's FTE enrollment should be calculated based on the total number of hours in which an average full-time
student is expected to enroll over a 12-month period. 
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

 
U.S. Department of Education
Image description.
Department
Of
Education
End of image
description.

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy

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

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

  
NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Form

date: 8/4/2015

12-month Enrollment for less-than-4-year institutions
Overview screen 
12-month Enrollment Overview
The 12-Month Enrollment component collects unduplicated student enrollment counts and instructional activity data
for an entire 12-month period. Using the instructional activity data reported, a full-time equivalent (FTE) student
enrollment is estimated. NCES uses the FTE enrollment to produce indicators such as expenses by function per FTE
as reported in the IPEDS Data Feedback Report.
Data Reporting Reminders:
•

All institutions must now use the July 1 - June 30 reporting period. There is no longer the option of using the
September 1 - August 31 reporting period.

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 the survey, please contact the IPEDS Help Desk at 1-877-225-2568.

Undergraduate Instructional Activity Type 
Undergraduate instructional activity data in Part B may be reported in units of contact hours or credit hours.
Which instructional activity units will you use to report undergraduate instructional activity?
Please note that any graduate level instructional activity must be reported in credit hours.
Contact hours
Credit hours
Both contact and credit hours (some undergraduate programs measured in contact hours and some measured
in credit hours)
You may use the space below to provide context for the data you've reported above.

Part A - Unduplicated Count 
12-month Unduplicated Count by Race/Ethnicity and Gender
July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015
Race/Ethnicity Reporting Reminder:
•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
Students enrolled for credit
Nonresident alien

Undergraduate 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
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
Total women prior year
Grand total (2014-15)
Prior year data:
Unduplicated headcount (2013-14)
Total enrollment Fall 2014
NOTE: Grand total (2014-15) calculated above is expected to be greater than Total
enrollment Fall 2014.

Undergraduate students

Part B - Instructional Activity 
12-month Instructional Activity
July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015
Instructional Activity Reporting Reminder:
•Instructional activity is used to calculate an IPEDS FTE based on the institution’s reported calendar system.

FTE Reporting Reminder:
•Institutions need not report their own calculations of undergraduate FTE unless IPEDS FTE calculations would be
misleading for comparison purposes among all IPEDS reporting institutions.

2014-15 total activity

Prior year data

Instructional Activity
Undergraduate level:
Contact hour activity
Credit hour activity

Calendar system (as reported on the prior year IC Header survey component):
If the IPEDS calculated FTE estimates below are not reasonable, AND you have reported the correct instructional
activity hours above, enter your best FTE estimate in the "Institution reported FTE" column below and save the page.
This option should be used ONLY if the calculated estimate is not reasonable for your institution and IPEDS
comparisons.
Please provide your best estimate of undergraduate FTE for the 12-month reporting period only if the calculated FTE
estimate below is not reasonable for IPEDS comparison purposes:
Calculated FTE
Institution reported
Prior year FTE
2014-15
FTE 2014-15
2013-14
Undergraduate student FTE

 
U.S. Department of Education
Image description.
Department
Of
Education
End of image
description.

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy

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

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

  
NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Instructions

date: 8/4/2015

12-Month 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 Question
Reporting Individuals by Racial/Ethnic Categories
Part A: Unduplicated Count by Student Level, Race/Ethnicity, and Gender
Part B: Instructional Activity and Full-Time Equivalent Enrollment

Purpose of Survey
The purpose of the 12-Month Enrollment component of IPEDS is to collect unduplicated enrollment counts of all
students enrolled for credit and instructional activity data in postsecondary institutions for an entire 12-month period.
Data are collected by level of student and by race/ethnicity and gender. Instructional activity is collected as total credit
and/or contact hours attempted at the undergraduate, graduate, and doctor's professional levels. Using the
instructional activity data reported, a full-time equivalent (FTE) student enrollment at the undergraduate and graduate
level is estimated.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Changes in Reporting

•

There are no changes to the 12-Month Enrollment (E12) component for the 2015-16 collection.

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

General Instructions
Reporting Period Covered
The 12-month reporting period is July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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)

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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 is serves
as an administrative record
Students enrolled in any branch campus located in a foreign country

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Where to Get Help with Reporting
IPEDS Help Desk
Phone: 1-877-225-2568
Email: [email protected]

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

IPEDS Resource Page

The IPEDS Resource Page (located on the IPEDS homepage) contains frequently asked questions, a link to the IPEDS
Glossary, data tip sheets, an archive of survey instruments, information on the race/ethnicity categories, and other
valuable information.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Reporting Directions
Screening Question
Before entering any data, a screening question will need to be answered.
Instructional Activity Units.
Select which units your institution will use to report undergraduate instructional activity for this component.
Institutions are given the option to report undergraduate instructional activity in contact hours, credit hours, or a
combination of the two.
Contact hours are a unit of measure that represent an hour of scheduled instruction given to students, sometimes
referred to as a clock hour. Credit hours are a unit of measure representing the equivalent of approximately one hour
of instruction per week over the entire term. Select the method that best describes the units used to measure
instructional activity at your institution.
The option for both contact and credit hours should only be used if some programs are measured in contact hours
while others are measured in credit hours. If your institution measures courses or programs in a unit of measure other
than standard credit or contact hours, select credit hours and convert the instructional activity offered to credit hour
equivalents for reporting in Part B of this component.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

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.

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Part A: Unduplicated Count by Gender and Race/Ethnicity
Report all students enrolled for credit at any time during the July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015 reporting period. Students
are reported by gender and race/ethnicity.
Number of Students Enrolled for Credit: The number of students enrolled for credit at the close of the official add
period for each program. If there is no official add period, report as of the 15th day of each regular program, and the
5th day of each short program.
To determine the unduplicated 12-month enrollment, count each student only once during the 12-month period.  For
example: If a student enrolls in the fall term, drops out in winter, but enrolls again in spring, count that student once.
Note: Students who already hold a baccalaureate degree but are enrolled as an undergraduate for additional
undergraduate courses should be reported as undergraduate students.
To provide context, two prior year enrollment totals are displayed at the bottom of the screen. The first is the total 12month unduplicated count reported from last year (2013-14). The second is the total fall enrollment from Fall 2014, as
reported on the Fall Enrollment survey component. Since the Fall 2014 enrollment falls within the 12-month period
currently being reported (2014-15), the 12-month unduplicated count must be greater than or equal to the Fall 2014
total enrollment.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Part B: Instructional Activity and Full-Time Equivalent Enrollment
Report the total contact hour and/or credit hour activity attempted during the 12-month period of July 1, 2014 - June
30, 2015. The instructional activity data reported will be used to calculate full-time equivalent (FTE) student
enrollment at the institution.

Reporting Contact Hour Activity
To determine the contact hour activity for a course, multiply the contact hour value of the course by the number of
students enrolled in the course for credit. When computing total contact hour activity for the institution, include all
courses offered for credit (see the IPEDS Glossary for the definition of "credit course") that are measured in contact or
clock hours, do not convert credit hour activity into contact hour activity.
Contact Hour Activity of a Course = Course Contact Hour Value * Number of Students Enrolled for Credit
Contact Hour Value of a Course: The contact hour value of a course is the number of hours per week that the
course meets multiplied by the number of weeks the course is given. For example, a 3-week real estate licensure
course that meets 15 hours per week has a value of 45 contact hours.
Number of Students Enrolled for Credit: The number of students enrolled for credit at the close of the official add
period for each program. If there is no official add period, report as of the 15th day of each regular program, and the
5th day of each short program.
Example Calculation: Total contact hour activity for Institution ABC.
Institution ABC offers 3 courses during the July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015 reporting period:

•
•
•

Course 1 is a 50-week course with 30 contact hours per week and 10 students.
Course 2 is a 20-week course with 35 contact hours per week and 5 students.
Course 3 is a 15-week course with 20 contact hours per week and 10 students.

Compute the contact hour activity for each course:

•
•
•

Course 1: 50 * 30 * 10 = 15,000 hours
Course 2: 20 * 35 * 5 = 3,500 hours
Course 3: 15 * 20 * 10 = 3,000 hours

Compute the total contact hour activity for the institution by summing the contact hour activity for all courses offered
for credit that are measured in terms of contact or clock hours:

•

15,000 hours + 3,500 hours + 3,000 hours = 21,500 hours

Note: If a course does not start and end within the same 12-month reporting period, the contact hour activity
reported should be only for the number of weeks which fall within the July 1 - June 30 period. For example, if only 40
weeks of a 64 week course (which meets 15 hours per week and has an enrollment of 30 students) falls within the 12month period, the contact hour activity for this course would be computed as follows: 40 weeks x 15 hours per week x
30 students = 18,000 contact hours.

Reporting Credit Hour Activity
To determine the credit hour activity for a course, multiply the credit hour value of the course by the number of
students enrolled in the course for credit (see the IPEDS Glossary for the definition of "credit course"). When
computing total credit hour activity for the institution, include only those courses offered for credit that are measured
in credit hours, do not convert contact hour activity into credit hour activity.
Credit Hour Activity of a Course = Course Credit Hour Value * Number of Students Enrolled for Credit
Number of Students Enrolled for Credit: The number of students enrolled for credit at the close of the official add
period for each term. If there is no official add period, report as of the 15th day of each regular term and the 5th day
of each summer or short term.
Example Calculation: Total credit hour activity for Institution DEZ.
Institution DEZ offers 3 courses during the July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015 reporting period:

•
•
•

Course 1 is a 3 credit hour course with 20 students.
Course 2 is a 5 credit hour course with 10 students.
Course 3 is a 4 credit hour course with 15 students.

Compute the credit hour activity for each course:
•
•
•

Course 1: 3*20 = 60 hours
Course 2: 5*10 = 50 hours
Course 3: 4*15 = 60 hours

Compute the total credit hour activity for the institution by summing the credit hour activity for all courses offered for
credit and measured in credit hours:

•

>60 hours + 50 hours + 60 hours = 170 hours

Note: If a course does not start and end within the same 12-month reporting period, report all credit hour activity for
the course in the 12-month period in which the course began. Because course enrollment counts (necessary for
calculating total credit hour activity) are typically taken at the close of the official add/drop period for a course, this
date can also be used as the course start date for the purposes of determining the appropriate 12-month period. If
there is no official add/drop period, the 15th day of a regular term and the 5th day of a summer or short term can be
used.

Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Calculation
Full-time equivalent (FTE) student enrollment will be calculated for the institution using the instructional activity data
(total contact hour and credit hour activity) reported in Part B. This FTE student count will be used in computing
indicators such as expenses by function per FTE and revenues per FTE, which are reported on the IPEDS Data
Feedback Report (DFR). A FTE student is a unit of measurement intended to represent one student enrolled full time
for one academic year.
Calculated Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) Estimate. After entering the instructional activity, the FTE estimate will be
calculated as follows:

•
•
•

For institutions reporting contact or clock hours, the number of contact hours is divided by 900. For
example, the FTE for Institution ABC would be 1150/900, or approximately 1 student.
For institutions operating on a Quarter calendar system (as reported in the prior year IC Header survey
component), undergraduate credit hours are divided by 45.  If Institution DEZ from the example above was an
undergraduate program on the quarter system, the FTE would be 170/45, or approximately 4 students.
For institutions operating on a semester, 4-1-4 Plan, or other calendar type (as reported in the prior
year IC Header survey component), undergraduate credit hours are divided by 30. If Institution DEZ was an
undergraduate program on the one of these systems, the FTE would be 170/30, or approximately 6 students.

If the calculated estimate is not reasonable for the institution, please double check the credit and/or contact hours
reported to ensure their accuracy. If the instructional activity data reported are inaccurate, then the calculated FTE
amount will also be inaccurate.
After double checking the instructional activity data reported, if the FTE estimated for the institution is still not
reasonable the system will allow you to enter more accurate FTE data for the institution in the "Institution reported
FTE" column. This option should be used ONLY if the system calculated estimate is not reasonable for the institution
and would be misleading for comparison purposes among all IPEDS reporting institutions.
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

date: 8/4/2015

Glossary
Term

Definition

12-month enrollment (E12)

These data were collected in the Enrollment component prior to the 2007 IPEDS collection. Data are collected for the
entire 12-month academic year, while enrollment data collected in the Fall Enrollment component are fall data.
Institutions report an unduplicated head count for the total number of students by gender, race/ethnicity, and level
(undergraduate, graduate, first-professional) enrolled throughout the reporting period. Students included are those
enrolled in any courses leading to a degree or other formal award, as well as those enrolled in courses that are part
of a terminal vocational or occupational program. Institutions also report the total instructional activity for the same
12-month period for both undergraduate and graduate programs. Instructional activity data are reported in units of
contact hours (sometimes referred to as clock hours) or credit hours.

12-month period

A 12-month period defined by an institution for reporting a full year of activity (usually either July 1 through June 30
or September 1 through August 31). This time period should be consistent across all IPEDS data collections and from
year-to-year.

4-1-4 (calendar system)

The 4-1-4 calendar usually consists of 4 courses taken for 4 months, 1 course taken for 1 month, and 4 courses
taken for 4 months. There may be an additional summer session.

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.

Calculation of FTE students
(using instructional activity)

The number of FTE students is calculated based on the credit and/or contact hours reported by the institution on the
IPEDS 12-month enrollment (E12) component and the institution's calendar system, as reported on the IC Header
component. The following table indicates the level of instructional activity used to convert the credit and/or contact
hours reported to an indicator of full-time equivalents (FTE students):

•

•

Quarter calendar system
◦ Enrollment level (One FTE over 12-month period)
▪
Undergraduate 45 credit hours, 900 contact hours
▪
Graduate 36 credit hours
Semester/trimester/4-1-4 plan/other calendar system
◦ Enrollment level (one FTE over 12-month period)
▪
Undergraduate 30 credit hours 900 contact hours
▪
Graduate 24 credit hours

For institutions with continuous enrollment programs, FTE is determined by dividing the number of contact hours
attempted by 900.
The total 12-month FTE is generated by summing the estimated or reported undergraduate FTE and the estimated or
reported graduate FTE and reported Doctor's Professional Practice FTE.
Calendar system

The method by which an institution structures most of its courses for the academic year.

Clock hour

A unit of measure that represents an hour of scheduled instruction given to students. Also referred to as contact
hour.

Contact hour

A unit of measure that represents an hour of scheduled instruction given to students. Also referred to as clock hour.

Contact hour activity

The provision of coursework to students which can be measured in terms of contact or clock hours .

Continuous basis

A calendar system classification that is used by institutions that allow students to enroll/start classes at any time
during the year. For example, a cosmetology school or a word processing school might allow students to enroll and
begin studies at various times, with no requirement that classes begin on a certain date.

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.

Credit hour

A unit of measure representing the equivalent of an hour (50 minutes) of instruction per week over the entire term.
It is applied toward the total number of credit hours needed for completing the requirements of a degree, diploma,
certificate, or other formal award.

Credit hour activity

The provision of coursework to students which can be measured in terms of credit hours.

Differs by program (calendar
system)

A calendar system classification that is used by institutions that have occupational/vocational programs of varying
lengths. These schools may enroll students at specific times depending on the program desired. For example, a
school might offer a 2-month program in January, March, May, September, and November; and a 3-month program
in January, April, and October.

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.

High school diploma or
recognized equivalent

A document certifying the successful completion of a prescribed secondary school program of studies, or the
attainment of satisfactory scores on the GED or another state specified examination.

Hispanic/Latino

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

Instructional activity

The total number of credit and contact hours all students are engaged in during the specified period.

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.

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.

Other academic calendar
system

Category used to describe "non-traditional" calendar systems at 4-year and 2-year degree-granting institutions.
These can include schools that offer primarily on-line courses or "one course at a time."

Quarter (calendar system)

A calendar system in which the academic year consists of 3 sessions called quarters of about 12 weeks each. The
range may be from 10 to 15 weeks as defined by the institution. There may be an additional quarter in the summer.

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.

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).

Semester (calendar system)

A calendar system that consists of two sessions called semesters during the academic year with about 15 weeks for
each semester of instruction. There may be an additional summer session.

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).

Trimester (calendar system)

An academic year consisting of 3 terms of about 15 weeks each.

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.

Unduplicated count

The sum of students enrolled for credit with each student counted only once during the reporting period, regardless
of when the student enrolled.

White

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

 
U.S. Department of Education
Image description.
Department
Of
Education
End of image
description.

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy

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

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

  
NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > FAQ

date: 8/4/2015

12-month 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 for 12-month enrollment?
3) What is the difference between 12-month enrollment and Fall enrollment?
4) In the past I reported first-professional student enrollment separately in Part A. Why is there no column for reporting firstprofessional students?
5) Should I report students who are studying abroad?
Unduplicated Count (Part A)
1) Why does the total 12-month enrollment need to be larger than the corresponding prior year fall enrollment?
2) How do I report a student who changes enrollment levels during the 12-month period?
3) How do I report foreign students living outside the U.S. who are enrolled in my institution?
4) 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?
Instructional Activity and FTE (Part B)
1) How do I report instructional activity for courses that start in one 12-month reporting period and end in the next 12-month
reporting year?
2) Instructional activity in doctor's-professional practice programs is measured differently from other graduate programs. How
should I report the activity for these programs?
3) How is the estimate of full-time equivalent (FTE) students calculated?
4) The calculated FTE is not a reasonable estimate for my institution. What should I do?

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
postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award, irrespective of the activity’s unit of measurement."
Back to top
2) What is the reporting period for 12-month enrollment?
The reporting period for the 12-month enrollment component is July 1 - June 30. In the past, institutions had the option to
report using the July 1 - June 30 period or the September 1 - August 31 period. Since the 2011-12 collection year,
institutions have been required to use the July 1 - June 30 reporting period.
Back to top
3) What is the difference between 12-month enrollment and Fall enrollment?
12-month enrollment is a cumulative unduplicated headcount of enrollment over the full 12-month period beginning July 1 and
ending June 30.  In contrast, 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 an institution's enrollment at a specific time.
Back to top
4) In the past I reported first-professional student enrollment separately in Part A. Why is there no column for
reporting first-professional students?
Since the 2010-11 collection year, institutions have been required to use the new postbaccalaureate degree categories
(eliminating the first-professional category and reclassifying those programs). In part A, all postbaccalaureate students are to
be reported as graduate students (including students formerly reported as first-professional).
In Part B, Doctor's-professional practice activity (formerly first-professional) will be reported separately from the graduate
instructional activity.  FTE for these programs should be reported as defined by the institution.
Back to top
5) 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.
Back to top
Unduplicated Count (Part A)
1) Why does the total 12-month enrollment need to be larger than the corresponding prior year fall enrollment?

The 12-month unduplicated count must be equal to or greater than the corresponding prior year fall enrollment. Since Fall 2014
lies within the 12-month period currently being reported on the 12-Month Enrollment survey component (2014-15), the 12month unduplicated count must be equal to or greater than the Fall 2014 reported enrollments.
Back to top
2) How do I report a student who changes enrollment levels during the 12-month period?
Students should be reported at their highest level of enrollment. For example, a student enrolled as an undergraduate in the fall
and then as a graduate student in the spring should be reported as a graduate student on the 12-Month Enrollment Survey
component.
Back to top
3) 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 with the new race/ethnicity reporting method. 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.
Back to top
4) 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.
Back to top
Instructional Activity and FTE (Part B)
1) How do I report instructional activity for courses that start in one 12-month reporting period and end in the
next 12-month reporting year?
If a course does not start and end within the same 12-month reporting period, report that activity using the following
guidelines:
Contact Hour Reporting:
Report only the activity for the number of weeks that fall within the 12-month period being reported on. For example, if only 40
weeks of a 64 week course occurred before the June 30 end of the current reporting period, then report only those 40 weeks
worth of activity. Next year, report the 24 weeks worth of activity for that course that occurred after July 1. For guidance on
calculating total contact hour activity, refer to the 12-month Enrollment survey component instructions.
Credit Hour Reporting:
Report all activity for a course in the 12-month period in which the course began. Because course enrollment counts (necessary
for calculating total credit hour activity) are typically taken at the close of the official add/drop period for a course, this date can
also be used as the course start date for the purposes of determining the appropriate 12-month period. If there is no official
add/drop period, the 15th day of a regular term and the 5th day of a summer or short term can be used.
Back to top
2) Instructional activity in doctor's-professional practice programs is measured differently from other graduate
programs. How should I report the activity for these programs?
Starting with the 2012-13 data collection, institutions now report the FTE for doctor's-professional practice (DPP) programs as a
separate amount in Part B.  This DPP FTE amount will then be summed with the undergraduate and graduate FTE amounts to
create the total FTE enrollment for the institution.
Back to top
3) How is the estimate of full-time equivalent (FTE) students calculated?
The FTE enrollment estimate is calculated based on the total credit and/or contact hours reported in Part B and the institution's
calendar system, as reported on the prior year Institutional Characteristics (IC) component. The following method is used to
convert the credit and/or contact hours reported to an indicator of full-time equivalent students:
Contact Hour Reporters: Contact hours are divided by 900
Quarter Calendar System: Undergraduate credit hours are divided by 45 and graduate credit hours are divided by 36
Semester/Trimester/4-1-4 Plan/Other Calendar System: Undergraduate credit hours are divided by 30 and graduate
credit hours are divided by 24.
Doctor's-professional practice (DPP) FTE student enrollment is reported by the institution, based on the institution's definition of
a full-time equivalent DPP student.  This amount is then added to the undergraduate and graduate FTE amounts to create a
total FTE student enrollment count.
Back to top
4) The calculated FTE is not a reasonable estimate for my institution. What should I do?
First, double check the instructional activity data reported on the Part B screen. If your instructional activity data is accurate
and the FTE calculation is not providing a reasonable FTE estimate for your institution, there is the option to report a more
accurate FTE in Part B. This option should be used ONLY if the system calculation is not a reasonable estimate for your
institution and would be misleading for comparison purposes among all IPEDS reporting institutions.
If a more accurate FTE is provided and an edit is received on that data entry, make sure to detail the methodology used to
arrive at the reported FTE and explain why this is a better measure for the institution.
Back to top

 

U.S. Department of Education
Image description.
Department
Of
Education
End of image
description.

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy

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

IPEDS Help Desk
(877) 225-2568 or [email protected]

  
NCES National Center for Education Statistics

2015-16 Survey Materials > Narrative Edits

date: 8/4/2015

12-month Enrollment for all institutions
Edit specifications for the 2015-16 IPEDS Web-Based Data Collection
12-month Enrollment (E12) Component
Applicable to all institutions
NOTE: The specifications in this document apply to all institutions completing the IPEDS 12-month Enrollment
component. 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 in this survey must be completed in order to lock the survey.

Screening Question: Undergraduate Instructional Activity
Part A: 12-month Unduplicated Count
Part B: 12-month Instructional Activity and FTE

Screening Question: Undergraduate Instructional Activity Type
Applicable to all institutions with undergraduate student enrollment
You must respond to the following screening question. The answer given here will determine which screens your institution is
shown.
Undergraduate instructional activity can be reported in units of contact hours, credit hours, or both. You must choose one of
the following options:
•
•
•

Contact hours
Credit hours
Both contact and credit hours (some undergraduate programs measured in contact hours and some measured in
credit hours)

Note: All graduate student instructional activity must be reported in credit hours with the exception of Doctor's-professional
practice students which are only reported as a full-time equivalent (FTE) estimate.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•
•

If your institution indicated in the prior year Institutional Characteristics survey that its largest programs are
measured in contact hours, but you have indicated that instructional activity will be reported in Credit hours, then an
explanation is required.
If your institution indicated in the prior year Institutional Characteristics survey that its largest programs are
measured in credit hours, but you have indicated that instructional activity will be reported in Contact hours, then an
explanation is required.

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Part A: 12-month Unduplicated Count

On this screen, you must enter your institution's 12-month unduplicated student count by race/ethnicity and gender for the
July 1, 2014 - June 30, 2015 reporting period. Columns are displayed for Undergraduate students and/or Graduate
Students, as applicable to your institution. For existing institutions, the available columns are based on the student levels
reported by your institution in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey. For new institutions, the available columns are based on
the levels of enrollment selected in Part C of the IC Header survey.

Undergraduate students
Applicable to all institutions with undergraduate student enrollment
In the Undergraduate students column, enter the 12-month unduplicated count of undergraduate students at the institution
by race/ethnicity and gender. Prior year amounts are displayed for Total men and Total women. Additionally, the
Unduplicated headcount (2013-14) and Total enrollment Fall 2014 values are displayed for your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•

•
•

•
•

If your institution reported undergraduate students in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey (which is part of the 12month period currently being reported) or indicated in Part C of the IC Header survey that your institution offered
undergraduate enrollment during 2014-15, then the Grand Total (2014-15) calculated for Undergraduate
students must be greater than 0.
The Grand total (2014-15) 12-month unduplicated count of Undergraduate students must be greater than
the Total enrollment Fall 2014 value (the corresponding total from the prior year Fall Enrollment survey).
The Grand total (2014-15) 12-month unduplicated count of Undergraduate students is expected to be within a
certain range of the Unduplicated headcount (2013-14) value (the prior year unduplicated headcount), as outlined
below:
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 1 and 25, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 50% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 26 and 100, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 40% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 101 and 500, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 30% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is greater than 500, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 20% range of that number.
If the percent of Undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category (men plus
women) is between 20% and 80 %, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Undergraduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category (men plus
women) is greater than or equal to 80%, then a fatal error will occur.

•

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.  If you have both Undergraduate and Graduate students, the
total will be used for this calculation. 

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

Graduate students
Applicable to all institutions with Graduate student enrollment
In the Graduate students column, enter the 12-month unduplicated count of graduate students at the institution by
race/ethnicity and gender. Prior year amounts are displayed for Total men and Total women. Additionally, the
Unduplicated headcount (2013-14) and Total enrollment Fall 2014 values are displayed for your reference. 
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered:
•

•
•

•
•

If your institution reported graduate students in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey (which is part of the 12-month
period currently being reported) or indicated in Part C of the IC Header survey that your institution offered graduate
enrollment during 2014-15, then the Grand Total (2014-15) calculated for Graduate students must be greater
than 0.
The Grand total (2014-15) 12-month unduplicated count of Graduate students must be greater than the Total
enrollment Fall 2014 value (the corresponding total from the prior year Fall Enrollment survey).
The Grand total (2014-15) 12-month unduplicated count of Graduate students is expected to be within a certain
range of the Unduplicated headcount (2013-14) value (the prior year unduplicated headcount), as outlined below:
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 1 and 25, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 50% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 26 and 100, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 40% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is between 101 and 500, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 30% range of that number.
◦ If the Unduplicated headcount value is greater than 500, then the Grand total value is expected to be
within a 20% range of that number.
If the percent of Graduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category (men plus women) is
between 20% and 80%, then an explanation is required.
If the percent of Graduate students reported in the Race and ethnicity unknown category (men plus women) is
greater than or equal to 80%, then a fatal error will occur.

•

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. If you have both Undergraduate and Graduate students, the
total will be used for this calculation.
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

Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

Part B: 12-month Instructional Activity and FTE
In this portion of the survey component, screens are generated based on the levels of enrollment offered by your institution.
This may include undergraduate, graduate, and doctor's-professional practice (for 4-year institutions only). For existing
institutions, the levels of enrollment displayed are based on the student levels reported by your institution in the prior year
Fall Enrollment survey. For new institutions, the available columns are based on the levels of enrollment selected in Part C of
the IC Header survey.  Undergraduate Instructional Activity is reported by contact hours and/or credit hours based on
the response selected in the Screening Question. Your institution's calendar system, as reported in the prior year IC Header
survey, is displayed for your reference.
Note: The 12-month Instructional Activity screen is broken into two “screen sections.” Once the first "12-month
Instructional Activity" section is saved, the "FTE" section will appear.

Section 1: 12-month Instructional Activity
In the first section, begin by entering the 2014-15 total activity for the following student levels, as applicable to your
institution:
Undergraduate level:
•
•

Contact hour activity
Credit hour activity

Graduate level:

•

Credit hour activity (Do not include Doctor's-professional practice instructional activity here; the total FTE of those
students should be entered separately below.)

If your institution offered a Doctor's-professional practice degree in 2014-15, then you must also provide the Full-Time
Equivalent (FTE) of Students for that level:
Doctor's-professional practice level:
•

Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate

Note: For existing institutions, the Prior year data amounts are preloaded for your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for institutions that enroll Undergraduate students:
•
•
•
•
•
•
•

•

You must enter a number greater than 0 for each of the available activity levels. If the available options are not
applicable to your institution, then you must correct your response to the screening question.
If your institution selected "Contact hours" in the screening question, then the total Contact hour activity over the
12-month period must be between 270 and 900 times the Grand total number of Undergraduate students
reported in Part A of this survey.
If your institution selected "Contact hours" or "Both" in the screening question and the current year Undergraduate
Contact hour activity is equal to the value listed in the corresponding Prior year data column, then a fatal error
will occur.
If your institution selected "Credit hours" or "Both" in the screening question and the current year Undergraduate
Credit hour activity is equal to the value listed in the corresponding Prior year data column, then a fatal error will
occur.
If your institution selected "Credit hours" in the screening question and your institution's predominant calendar system
is Quarter, then the total Undergraduate Credit hour activity over the 12-month period must be between 14 and
45 times the Grand total number of Undergraduate students reported in Part A of this survey.
If your institution selected "Credit hours" in the screening question and your institution's predominant calendar system
is NOT Quarter, then the total Undergraduate Credit hour activity over the 12-month period must be between 8
and 30 times the Grand total number of Undergraduate students reported in Part A of this survey.
If your institution selected "Both" in the screening question and your institution's predominant calendar system is
Quarter, then the sum of Undergraduate Contact hour activity divided by 900, and Undergraduate Credit hour
activity divided by 30, must be within a range of 30% to 100% of the Grand total number of Undergraduate
students reported in Part A of this survey. Note: If your institution's FTE enrollment is over 100%, make sure you
are reporting contact and credit hours separately and are not duplicating any counts.
If your institution selected "Both" in the screening question and your institution's predominant calendar system is NOT
Quarter, then the sum of Undergraduate Contact hour activity divided by 900, and Undergraduate Credit hour
activity divided by 45, must be within a range of 30% to 100% of the Grand total number of Undergraduate
students reported in Part A of this survey. Note: If your institution's FTE enrollment is over 100%, make sure you
are reporting contact and credit hours separately and are not duplicating any counts.

The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for institutions that enroll Graduate students:
•
•
•

•

•
•

You must enter a number greater than 0 for Graduate Credit hour activity.
If the current year Graduate Credit hour activity is equal to the value listed in the corresponding Prior year data
column, then a fatal error will occur.
If your institution enrolls Doctor's-professional practice students and your institution's predominant calendar system is
Quarter, then the sum of Graduate Credit hour activity divided by 36, and the reported Doctor's-professional
practice FTE student estimate, must be within a range of 30% to 100% of the Grand total number of Graduate
students reported in Part A of this survey. 
If your institution enrolls Doctor's-professional practice students and your institution's predominant calendar system is
Semester, Trimester, 4-1-4, or Other academic calendar, then the sum of Graduate Credit hour activity divided by
24, and the reported Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate, must be within a range of 30% to 100% of
the Grand total number of Graduate students reported in Part A of this survey. 
If your institution does not enroll Doctor's-professional practice students and your institution's predominant calendar
system is Quarter, then the total Graduate Credit hour activity over the 12-month period must be between 11 and
36 times the Grand total number of Graduate students reported in Part A of this survey.
If your institution does not enroll Doctor's-professional practice students and your institution's predominant calendar
system is Semester, Trimester, 4-1-4, or Other academic calendar, then the total Graduate Credit hour activity
over the 12-month period must be between 7 and 24 times the Grand total number of Graduate students reported
in Part A of this survey.

The system will perform the following edits on the data entered for institutions that enroll Doctor's-professional
practice students:
•
•
•
•

The Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate must be greater than 0.
If your institution does not enroll graduate students other than Doctor's-professional practice students, then the
Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate must be greater than or equal to the total number of fulltime graduate students reported in the prior year Fall Enrollment survey.
The Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate must be less than or equal to the Grand Total number
of Graduate students reported in Part A of this survey.
The reported Doctor's-professional practice FTE student estimate must be within a certain range of the Prior
year data value, as outlined below:
◦ If the prior year Doctor's-professional practice FTE is less than or equal to 25, then the current year value
must be within plus or minus 8 of that value.
◦ If the prior year Doctor's-professional practice FTE is greater than 25, then the current year value must be
within a 30% range of that value.

Section 2: FTE
Upon saving the previous section, the system will estimate the FTE enrollment for Undergraduate and Graduate students, as
applicable to your institution. If the calculated FTE estimates provided are not reasonable AND you have reported the correct
instructional activity hours, then you may provide an Institution reported FTE. The Prior year FTE 2013-14 amounts are
displayed for your reference.
The system will perform the following edits on the data entered in this section:
•

For each student level, the Institution reported FTE is not expected to deviate from the Calculated FTE by more
than a certain percentage, as outlined below:
◦ If the institution reported FTE deviates from the calculated FTE by 20% to 75%, then an explanation is
required.
◦ If the institution reported FTE deviates from the calculated FTE by more than 75%, then a fatal error will
occur.

Note: Your institution's FTE enrollment should be calculated based on the total number of hours in which an average full-time
student is expected to enroll over a 12-month period. 
Image
description.
Top of Page
End
of image
description.

 
U.S. Department of Education
Image description.
Department
Of
Education
End of image
description.

Software Provider Resources
Browsers Supported

Use of Cookies
Troubleshooting

Section 508 Compliance
NCES Privacy Policy


File Typeapplication/pdf
AuthorLe, Bao
File Modified2015-10-15
File Created2015-10-15

© 2024 OMB.report | Privacy Policy