CIP Codes

The Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) provides a taxonomic scheme that supports the accurate tracking and reporting of fields of study and program completions activity. The current CIP code year is 2020.

For more information about CIP codes, visit the CIP User Site .

2010 vs. 2020 CIP Codes

The Clearinghouse released phase II of our CIP 2020 enhancement on February 27, 2021. We can now accept CIP Codes from the UNCHANGED, MOVED, DELETED, and NEW categories in the NCES 2020 CIP Code Lookup table for new and existing students at your institution. You can update to the 2020 CIP code values at your convenience.

NSLDS and FSA have not issued a formal deadline for this transition, although the 2020 NCES Look-Up Table values continue to be required for COD (Common Origination and Disbursement) and financial aid reporting. NSLDS still accepts 2010 values. Per the 2020 FSA Training Conference Session 4, Federal Update & Coming Attractions (slide 37), “2010 CIP codes may be reported until school is prepared to report new CIP Codes.”

For details about 2010 vs. 2020 codes, download our CIP Codes Crosswalk spreadsheet.

Converting 2010 CIP Codes to 2020

Visit the CIP User Site  to determine if a 2010 crosswalk or equivalent is available for your students’ 2020 programs. If you cannot find a 2010 equivalent for a 2020 program, contact us at schoolops@studentclearinghouse.org.

Linking 2020 CIP Codes to 2010

When the Clearinghouse receives a 2020 MOVED or DELETED CIP code from your institution, we will link it to the equivalent 2010 NCES Lookup Table value. A new warning code, 1900, will be logged for students with linked programs, and the list of students will appear in your Error Resolution Report. You can also access an audit trail of program linkages by downloading the Error Resolution Report prior to working or resolving any errors or warnings within your submission (watch our tutorial to learn how this report works).

Do not report duplicate MOVED CIP codes on a single submission as this could cause NSLDS SSCR error codes 80 and 81.

Once the linkage between the 2010 and 2020 CIP codes has been established, the Clearinghouse will report it to NSLDS as a 004 record. This functionality was released on February 27, 2021 along with the rest of the features in our Phase II CIP 2020 enhancement. Per NSLDS Newsletter 68, the 004 Record Type will notify NSLDS to link the 2010 and 2020 CIP Code values for MOVED and DELETED CIP codes within NSLDS. The historical program information for the student from the old CIP code value will be moved to the new value without your having to report a W (withdrawn) or X (never attended) status.

You can also change other program identifiers on records that require correction, including CIP codes, via the Error Resolution Report and Student Look-Up tab on our School Secure Site. Program identifier changes will also be reported to NSLDS as a 004 record, which will prompt the enrollment history to be moved from the old program to the new one.

For more on our CIP 2020 enhancement, see our Compliance Central Updates. Don’t forget to subscribe to receive alerts as updates are posted.

Reporting CIP Codes & Years

There are different dedicated fields for CIP Code and CIP Year. The NSLDS guide cites CIP year as one of the unique criteria for identifying an enrollment program. If the CIP code did not change from CIP year 2010 to CIP year 2020, and your institution has begun reporting CIP year 2020 values to the Clearinghouse, you can enter 2020 in the CIP Year field instead of 2010. If we do not receive 2020 in the CIP Year field, we will auto-remediate the CIP year for your convenience.

For more information NSLDS program enrollment criteria, download the NSLDS Enrollment Reporting Guide.

The enrollment reporting record is a “bundle” concept for the 150% Direct Loan Limit Regulations. For each student reported to the Clearinghouse, the bundle includes record types 001, 002, and 003:

001 Record Type – Campus Level
Overall enrollment status and permanent address
002 Record Type – Program Level
Unique program of enrollment (zero, one, or more programs)
003 Record Type – Email Address
Student contact email address

The 002 record type covers zero to one or more programs. You can report up to six unique programs for each student. The criteria for each unique program are:

  • OPEID
  • CIP year
  • CIP code
  • Credential level
  • Program length and measurement (weeks, months, or years)
  • Weeks in Title IV academic year (for measurement in weeks or months)

First-of-Term Submissions

If your institution doesn’t report the 2020 CIP code on a standard file submitted at the start of a term (First-of-Term submission), the equivalent 2010 CIP code, if eligible, could be treated as an unreported program and the program’s status updated to W. The program will not be reported out as an 004 record.

For unreported students on a First-of-Term submission, the missing student and all open programs in the student’s record will be updated to a W status. No errors will be flagged.

If an error 214 is flagged for an unreported student on a First-of-Term submission, and you would like to leave the 2010 CIP code in an open status, contact us at schoolops@studentclearinghouse.org.

Subsequent-of-Term Submissions

If your institution does not report the 2020 CIP codes on a standard file submitted during a term (Subsequent-of-Term submission), the equivalent 2010 CIP Code, if eligible, could be treated as an unreported program and an error 1568 logged. For errors 1568 that have been logged due to a missing 2010 CIP Code, you can update the program status to open or close. If you would like to leave the program in an open status and change the 2010 CIP code to its mapped 2020 value, contact us at schoolops@studentclearinghouse.org.

Any unreported students flagged with an error 208 could trigger program error 1701 if the unreported student’s record has a 2010 CIP code submitted with an open status. To resolve an error 1700 series flagged on an unreported student, contact us at schoolops@studentclearinghouse.org.

Errors & Warnings

Error Codes 80, 81 & 82

As part of phase III of our CIP 2020 enhancement, we plan to incorporate functionality to enable schools to correct SSCR error codes 80, 81, and 82 through our error correction application. In the meantime, you can contact us at auditresource@studentclearinghouse.org or schoolops@studentclearinghouse.org for assistance with these error codes.

Typically, NSLDS SSCR error code 82 occurs when your financial aid office reports 2020 CIP codes to NSLDS, but the enrollment file you report to the Clearinghouse still contains 2010 CIP codes. Error Code 82 should resolve once your institution begins reporting 2020 CIP codes to the Clearinghouse. In the meantime, you can certify the student’s record directly with NSLDS. However, this could cause NSLDS SSCR Error Code 32. Error Code 32 can occur when the Clearinghouse responds to 2010 CIP code information on your roster with a certification date older than the 2020 CIP code information provided to NSLDS. Once the Clearinghouse receives the 2020 CIP code information and updated certification date for these records, the NSLDS SSCR errors should resolve.

The Clearinghouse recently released an enhancement to ensure all unchanged CIP codes are reported to NSLDS with a 2020 CIP year. This enhancement should prevent and resolve NSLDS SSCR Error Code 82 for students whose CIP codes have not changed. For more information on NSLDS SSCR error codes, see NSLDS Errors.

If you have questions regarding Error Code 82 or any other NSLDS SSCR error, contact us at schoolops@studentclearinghouse.org.

1700 Series Error Codes

Error 1700 Series is flagged when a MOVED or DELETED CIP Code is reported in Enrollment Reporting. Once your institution converts to the 2020 CIP Codes in your enrollment reporting to the Clearinghouse, you should no longer see these errors flagged on your Error Resolution Report.

Warning Code 1900

With the recent release of phase II of our CIP 2020 enhancement, the Clearinghouse will flag a warning code 1900 for students with 2010 and 2020 CIP Codes linked per the crosswalk published by NCES. This will enable you to review the list of students on your Error Resolution Report. For audit tracking purposes, you can also download an Excel spreadsheet of students with warning 1900 (our tutorial shows you how).

For more information on, watch our Code 1900 tutorial.

Mid-Month NSLDS SSCR Roster Response

The phase II release of our enhancement includes a procedural change that will occur in the event an institution requests enrollment be pushed to NSLDS between its monthly roster distributions. This replaces the mid-month Roster Response process. Schools that report enrollment reflecting CIP 2020 values will now be required to request a new SSCR roster distribution from NSLDS for all roster re-process requests. This change prevents SSCR error codes 80 and 81, which could occur if NSLDS has received another 004 Record Type for the same unique program. The Clearinghouse is actively working with FSA and NSLDS on a long-term solution that will minimize any additional work this process requires from institutions.

NSLDS Enrollment Reporting Statistics Score

Whether or not the 2020 CIP codes will impact your institution’s NSLDS Enrollment Reporting Statistics score depends on whether the new aid disbursement within COD reflects 2020 values for continuously enrolled students whose CIP year value changed between 2010 and 2020. This varies from institution to institution. Converting to the 2020 values is unlikely to impact your NSLDS Enrollment Reporting Statistics score unless you receive SSCR error code 82 related to CIP year 2020. If you receive SSCR error code 82 and have questions, contact us at schoolops@studentclearinghouse.org.

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