Data Glossary

Data Terms

Academic Fiscal Year Runs from July 1st through June 30th
Academic Good Standing Students who meet a cumulative GPA of 2.0 or higher.
Academic Load Classification of number of credits a student is taking (full-time, three-quarters time, half-time, less than half-time).
Attrition The loss of students through means other than graduation.
Baseline Data  Initial collection of data which serves as a basis for comparison with the subsequently acquired data.
Career  Category for students based on if they are a graduate or undergraduate student.
Carnegie Classification  An institutional classification structure developed by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and used to identify groups of roughly comparable institutions.  Classifications are based on a number of characteristics, including highest degree awarded and level of research activity.  (Used in comparisons for NSSE and Great Colleges to Work For)
Census  Snapshot of enrollment numbers for the semester at a certain point in time (looking at both headcount and FTE).
Cohort A group of individuals whose progress is tracked by examining identified measurements at specified points in time.
Completer A student who receives a degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award. In order to be considered a completer, the degree/award must actually be conferred.
Conversion Rate  The rate at which a prospect or applicant converts into a matriculated student.
CIP Code A six-digit code in the form xx.xxxx developed by the National Center for Education Statistics to provide a taxonomic scheme that will support the accurate tracking, assessment, and reporting of fields of study and program completions activity.
Continuing Student A student who was enrolled at Peru State the previous semester (not including those starting in summer).
Demographics Statistical data relating to the population and particular groups within it.  (e.g. race/ethnicity, gender, first-generation)
Dual Enrollment (Early Entry) A program through which high school students enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school (either at their high school or online).
End of Term Enrollment  Snapshot of enrollment after the term has ended.
Ethnicity/Race Individuals are asked to first designate ethnicity as: Hispanic/Latino or Not Hispanic/Latino

 

Second, individuals are asked to indicate all races that apply among the following: American Indian or Alaska Native; Black or African American; Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander; White

Financial Aid Default Rate  The official 3-year cohort default rate; the percentage of a school’s borrowers who enter repayment on federal education loans during a particular federal fiscal year (FY) and default or meet other specified conditions prior to the end of the second following fiscal year.
First-Generation College Student A first-generation college student is defined as a student whose parent(s)/legal guardian(s) have not completed a bachelor’s degree.
First-time Student A student who has no prior post-secondary experience attending any institution for the first time at the undergraduate level. This includes students enrolled in academic or occupational programs. It also includes students enrolled in the fall term who attended college for the first time in the prior summer term, and students who entered with advanced standing (college credits earned before graduation from high school).
Full-time Equivalency  A single value providing a meaningful combination of full-time and part-time students.
Full-time Faculty  A single value providing a meaningful combination of full-time and part-time faculty.
Graduation Rate  The rate required for disclosure and/or reporting purposes under Student Right-to-Know Act. This rate is calculated as the total number of completers within 150% of normal time divided by the revised adjusted cohort.
Headcount  The total number of students currently enrolled.
Location Where a student takes majority of their classes (on-campus, off-campus, online)
Lower Division  Students who have accumulated a total number of credits that classify them as a freshman or sophomore.
Low-income  The bottom quintile by family income, such as family incomes below about $40,000, by Pell Grant eligibility, or families with incomes below 200% of the poverty line.
Non-resident 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
No Show  Students are considered “no shows” if they do not attend, log in to, and complete a scheduled assignment and/or have an instructional interaction in a course during the first two weeks of class (first week for eight week courses).
Overload Students that are enrolled in more than 18 credit hours in one semester.
Prior Learning  College credit awarded based on certain experiences and accomplishments outside of the normal college setting.
Probation  Students with a cumulative grade point average of 1.00-1.99 at the close of a semester, regardless of the number of attempted hours, are placed on academic probation.
Residency  Refers to if a student is a resident of the state of Nebraska.
Retention Rate  A measure of academic progress of a cohort of student from one term or year to the next.  Expressed as a percentage of the students who return each term or year.
Student Credit Hours (SCH)  The number of credit hours that students are either enrolled in or have completed
Transfer Students  A student entering the reporting institution for the first time but known to have previously attended a postsecondary institution at the same level.
Transfer-out Students  A student that leaves the reporting institution and enrolls at another institution.
Transient Student  Students taking credits at Peru State to complete a degree at another institution.
Upper Division  Students who have accumulated a total number of credits that classify them as a junior or senior.
Withdrawal  Students who have registered and then wish to withdraw from all courses after the semester start date and will receive zero credits on their transcripts.
Yield Rate  When a student, who is accepted to the college, matriculates.