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National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) Enrollment Reporting Statistics Scores rate the extent and quality of the enrollment reporting provided by institutions participating in Federal Student Aid programs.
Score Calculations
On the third Wednesday of each month, NSLDS calculates Enrollment Reporting Statistics Scores based on the data it accepts through its Student Status Confirmation Report (SSCR) process. The calculation utilizes the following fields:
- Start Date: The begin date for the evaluation period that produced the row of data.
- Evaluation Date: The date on which the period under evaluation ended and the evaluation was performed.
- Students in Portfolio: The number of students participating in the institution or its location’s portfolio on the Start Date.
- Students Certified: The number of students participating in the institution or its location’s portfolio at the Start Date who were certified at least once during the evaluation period.
- Students Certified with Program Enrollment: The number of students participating in the institution or its location’s portfolio at the Start Date who were certified at least once with program enrollment during the evaluation period.
- Percent Certified: The percentage of students in the institution or its location’s portfolio successfully certified during the evaluation period.
- Percent Certified with Program Enrollment: The percentage of students in the institution or its location’s portfolio successfully certified with program enrollment during the evaluation period.
For more information, see 8.1 Enrollment Reporting Statistics in the NSLDS Enrollment Reporting Guide.
Improving Your Score
If your institution receives a score below the 90% threshold for Percent Certified with Program Enrollment or Percent Programs Certified with CIP Year 2020, you could receive a compliance notice from Federal Student Aid (FSA).
To improve your score, ensure you are properly reporting program-level information to the Clearinghouse. If you have been reporting this information correctly, and the number of Students with Program Enrollment is correct but below 90%, FSA is developing a procedure to evaluate and determine if a custom threshold should be available for your institution.
Paying attention to the following can help you keep your score at 90% and above:
- Report Complete and Accurate Program-Level Data: Confirm that your institution is accurately reporting program-level information to the Clearinghouse.
- Reflect CIP Year 2020 CIP Codes: Submit program-level information reflecting CIP year 2020 values instead of CIP year 2010. See CIP Codes for more information.
- NSLDS Enrollment Roster Errors: Submit student enrollment updates related to NSLDS Enrollment Roster errors using the Clearinghouse’s NSLDS error response functionality. See NSLDS SSCR Errors for details.
- COD-Related Discrepancies: Certify students with new program data reported to NSLDS by the Common Origination and Disbursement (COD) system. Contact NSLDS to resolve COD-related discrepancies.
- Undeclared and Undecided Majors: Properly report CIP codes for students in degree-seeking programs who do not have declared majors (see the current NSLDS Enrollment Reporting Guide for more information).
- Student Behavior: If a large percentage of your students are not in degree-seeking programs, contact NSLDS to inquire about a custom score threshold.
- Consortium Agreements: Ensure students who are attending under consortium agreements are properly reported by their home institutions.
For more information, see our “Things that Can Keep You above NSLDS’s 90% Threshold” infographic.