Title page
Contents
Executive Summary 4
Acknowledgments 7
Chapter 1. Overview 13
1.1. Overview of Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System 13
1.1.1. Purpose and Scope 13
1.1.2. Statutory Requirements of IPEDS Data 13
1.1.3. History and Design of IPEDS 14
1.1.4. IPEDS Collection Schedule 15
1.1.5. Data Use and Data Release 15
1.2. Overview of Key Survey Components 16
1.2.1. Overview of Outcome Measures Survey Component 16
1.2.2. Overview of Graduation Rates Survey Component 18
1.2.3. Comparison of Outcome Measures and Graduation Rates Survey Components 20
Chapter 2. Survey Design 22
2.1. Outcome Measures Survey Component 22
2.2. Graduation Rates Survey Component 22
2.3. Respondent Universe 23
2.4. Statistical Methodology 27
Chapter 3. Outcome Measures and Graduation Rates Data Collection 28
3.1. Data Collection Design and System 28
3.1.1. Methods to Maximize Response Rates 28
3.2. Outcome Measures Data Collection Respondents 29
3.3. Graduation Rates Data Collection Respondents 30
3.3.1. Graduation Rates Survey Component 30
3.3.2. 200 Percent Graduation Rates Survey Component 33
Chapter 4. Post-Data Collection File Processing and Preparation 37
4.1. Data File Design and System 37
4.2. Post-Data Collection Editing 37
4.3. Imputations 38
Chapter 5. Outcome Measures and Graduation Rates Data Inconsistencies 39
5.1. Overview 39
5.2. Outcome Measures and Graduation Rates Data Inconsistency Letters 40
5.3. Data Collection Resubmission 51
5.4. Outcome Measures and Graduation Rates Inconsistencies-Final Data 53
5.5. Institutions With Data Inconsistencies 64
Appendix A - 2015-16 Outcome Measures Survey Component Forms and Instructions 69
Appendix B - 2015-16 Graduation Rates Survey Component Forms and Instructions 79
Appendix C - 2015-16 200 Percent Graduation Rates Survey Component Forms and Instructions 158
Appendix D - Letters to Institutions 183
Appendix E - Winter 2015-16 Data Collection Timeline 191
Appendix F - Pre- and Post-Letters' Comparison Tables 193
Appendix G - List of Institutions' Unit IDs With Remaining Data Inconsistencies 206
Table 1. Comparison of Outcome Measures (OM), Graduation Rates (GR), and 200 Percent Graduation Rates (GR200) survey components: 2015-16 collection 21
Table 2. Number and percentage distribution of Title IV institutions, by control of institution, level of institution, and region: 2015-16 25
Table 3. Number of Title IV institutions, number changing Title IV status, and percentage change, by level and control of institution: 2014-15 and 2015-16 26
Table 4. Data collection years for the Outcome Measures (OM), Graduation Rates (GR), and 200 Percent Graduation Rates (GR200) survey components: 2007 cohort 28
Table 5. Number of 4-year and 2-year Title IV degree-granting institutions that responded to the Outcome Measures survey component, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2015-16 29
Table 6. Number of 4-year Title IV degree-granting institutions that responded to the Graduation Rates survey component, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2013-14 31
Table 7. Number of 2-year Title IV degree-granting institutions that responded to the Graduation Rates survey component, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2010-11 32
Table 8. Number of 4-year Title IV degree-granting institutions that responded to the 200 Percent Graduation Rates survey component, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2015-16 33
Table 9. Number of 2-year Title IV degree-granting institutions that responded to the 200 Percent Graduation Rates survey component, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2011-12 35
Table 10. Number of 2-year Title IV degree-granting institutions that received Letter 1, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2015-16 40
Table 11. Number of 4-year Title IV bachelor's degree-granting institutions that received Letter 2, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection years 2013-14 and 2015-16 42
Table 12. Number of other 4-year institutions that received Letter 3, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2015-16 44
Table 13. Number of Title IV degree-granting institutions that received Letter 4, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2015-16 46
Table 14. Number of Title IV degree-granting institutions that received Letter 5, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2015-16 48
Table 15. Number of Title IV degree-granting institutions that received Letter 6, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Collection year 2015-16 50
Table 16. Number of institutions contacted for 2015-16 Prior Year Revision system changes and number and percentage changing data in responses to relevant items, by component changed and reason for contact 52
Table 17. Number of institutions contacted for 2015-16 Prior Year Revision system changes and number and percentage changing data in responses to relevant items resulting in resolution of the discrepancy, by component changed... 53
Table 18. Number of 2-year institutions that received Letter 1, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: 2015-16 Prior Year Revision system 54
Table 19. Number of 4-year Title IV bachelor's degree-granting institutions that received Letter 2, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: 2015-16 Prior Year Revision system 56
Table 20. Number of 4-year institutions that received Letter 3, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: 2015-16 Prior Year Revision system 57
Table 21. Number of Title IV degree-granting institutions that received Letter 4, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: 2015-16 Prior Year Revision system 59
Table 22. Number of institutions that received Letter 5, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: 2015-16 Prior Year Revision system 61
Table 23. Number of Title IV degree-granting institutions that received Letter 6, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: 2015-16 Prior Year Revision system 62
Table 24. List of institutions that received Letter 1 and did not resolve data inconsistencies, by Unit IDs: Collection year 2015-16 64
Table 25. List of institutions that received Letter 2 and did not resolve data inconsistencies, by Unit IDs: Collection year 2015-16 65
Table 26. List of institutions that received Letter 3 and did not resolve data inconsistencies, by Unit IDs: Collection year 2015-16 66
Table 27. List of institutions that received Letter 4 and did not resolve data inconsistencies, by Unit IDs: Collection year 2015-16 66
Table 28. List of institutions that received Letter 5 and did not resolve data inconsistencies, by Unit IDs: Collection year 2015-16 67
Table 29. List of institutions that received Letter 6 and did not resolve data inconsistencies, by Unit IDs: Collection year 2015-16 68
Table F-1. Number of 2-year Title IV degree-granting institutions, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Pre- and post-Letter 1 194
Table F-2. Number of 4-year Title IV bachelor's degree-granting institutions, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Pre- and post-Letter 2 196
Table F-3. Number of other than bachelor's degree-granting 4-year institutions, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Pre- and post-Letter 3 198
Table F-4. Number of Title IV degree-granting institutions, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Pre- and post-Letter 4 200
Table F-5. Number of institutions, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Pre- and post-Letter 5 202
Table F-6. Number of Title IV degree-granting institutions, by control of institution and selected institutional characteristics: Pre- and post-Letter 6 204
Table G. List of institutions' Unit IDs that received Letters and did not resolve inconsistencies in their data: Collection year 2015-16 207