VT Census Case Studies : National Student Clearinghouse

Brief Overall Description of the Dataset:

"NSC data includes all students who are enrolled in credit-bearing courses at participating institutions. These include: 1) Students who are enrolled full-time and part-time, 2) Students who are receiving financial aid, and those who are not receiving financial aid. 3) Students who attend on campus and on-line. 4) Students who are concurrently enrolled in more than one institution, and (in most cases) students who are dual-enrolled in college courses while still in high school. 5) Undergraduate and graduate students. 6) Degree-seeking, certificate-seeking, and non-degree-seeking. 7) Students who are enrolled during all terms, including the summer, and those in campus-based study-abroad programs. The data also keeps track of students when they transfer among colleges, even out of state, and when they stop-out and return, years later." 

Link: http://nscresearchcenter.org/workingwithourdata/

Date Inventory Completed: 5/26/15

Screening

• Is the data collected opinion-based (e.g., people’s attitudes, preferences, etc.)?
• Is the data collection recurring (must be collected at least annually)?
• Is there data available for 2013?
• Is the data available at least at the school level? No
• Can we access the data by August 15^th?

Purpose

• What is the purpose of the organization collecting the data?

“The Clearinghouse serves as a trusted agent to our participating institutions providing support for their compliance, administrative, student access, accountability, and analytical needs.”

• Why is it collected and how does the organization use it?

To provide postsecondary transcript services, to verify education and certifications for businesses and organizations, to help institutions meet compliance and assessment of financial aid programs, and for research for institutions, high schools, outreach and educational organizations.

• Who else uses the data?

Businesses, schools, and organizations that need to verify the academic credentials, professionals certifications, and college enrollment of U.S. college graduates, who may be applying for a job opportunity, graduate school or a product/service that requires proof of degree in order to qualify.

• Who do they sell the data to?

See above, plus student service providers (e.g., insurance companies) and students and alumni who pay for their transcripts.

Description

• What is the general topic of the data (1-2 words)?

Higher education student information

• What are the earliest and latest dates for which data is available?

2003-2014

• Is data collected and available periodically? 

Yes, the Clearinghouse receives enrollment information from its participating colleges and universities several times throughout a term.

• How soon after a reference period ends can a data source be prepared and provided? 

Less than a year.

Selectivity (conversely, the representativeness)

• What is the universe (e.g., population) that the data represents (consider inclusion/exclusion criteria)?

Currently, about 96% of all students who are enrolled in degree-granting institutions in the U.S. are attending schools that regularly send their data to NSC. This percentage has grown substantially over the past decade, but it varies by type of college and by state. It is highest among public institutions (99%), for example, and lowest among for-profit institutions (82%). Students enrolled in US military academies, tribal colleges, and very small institutions are not included.

Accessibility

• How is the data accessed? 

• Is it open data? Yes, broken down by state and type of institution (e.g., 4 year private, 2 year public), but not available at the school or individual level for nationwide data.

• Any legal, regulatory, or administrative restrictions on accessing the data source? FERPA; parents and eligible students may request that an institution not disclose directory information about them. The national directory information block rate is 4.65 percent (average for three selected years), with a great deal of variation among states and across institutional sectors. 

• • Cost? - One time or annual or project based payment? Yes, project-based.

Does this dataset appear to meet our needs for the Census study? NO

Explanation: