Glossary

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Glossary

Institutional Research Glossary

Accelerated Program
An academic degree program in which students may complete in fewer than the usual number of years, most often by attending summer sessions and carrying extra courses during the regular academic term. UCCS offers a number of accelerated programs that allow students to earn both a baccalaureate and a master's degree in five years.

Admitted Student
Applicant who is offered admission to a degree or certificate-granting program at UCCS.

Admit Types
Admit Types are codes attached to student applications which represent types of admission criteria to facilitate the admissions process. Admit types are not used to determine a student's cohort assignment. Admit type codes are as follows:

DFODoctor First Time - No Prev CU
DFRDoctor Prev CU GR/UG Degree
DRDoctorate
DTNDoctor Prev Nondegree
FRFreshman
FRFFreshman First Time - No CU
FRNFreshman Prior CU Nondegree
FROFreshman Prior Other College
GGCGrad Gainful Employment Cert
GLEGrad COE Licensure Endorsement
GRGraduate
MAMasters
MFCMaster Other CU Inst Work
MFOMaster First Time - No Prev CU
MFRMaster Prev CU GR/UG Degree
MTNMaster Prev  Nondegree
NDNondegree
NFGNondegree Grad - No Prev CU
NFNNew First Time Non-Credit
NFUNondegree Undergrad - No CU
NRGRe-Admit Nondegree GR
NRURe-Admit Nondegree UG
RAReadmit
RGBRe-admit Grad Both
RGCRe-admit Grad CU Change
RGERe-admit Grad No Change
RUCRe-admit Undergrad CU Change
RUERe-admit Ugrd No Change
RUORe-admit Ugrd Outside Work
TRTransfer
TRBTransfer Prior CU & Other Clg
TRCTransfer From Other CU Inst
TRNTransfer Prior CU Nondegree
TROTr4ansfer First Time - No CU

Applicant
An individual who has fulfilled the institution's requirements to be considered for admission.

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Certificate Program
A recognized postsecondary credential that is conferred upon the satisfactory completion of a postsecondary education program. A recognized credential is one that is eligible for Title IV federal student aid. For IPEDS, there are several types of certificate programs:

  • Postsecondary Certificate: an award below the baccalaureate degree which requires less than 30 credit hours.
  • Postsecondary Certificate: an award below the baccalaureate degree which requires at least 30 but less than 60 credit hours.
  • Postsecondary Certificate: an award below the baccalaureate degree which requires at least 60 but less than 120 credit hours.
  • Post-baccalaureate Certificate: an award beyond the baccalaureate degree but does not meet the requirements of a master's degree.
  • Post-master's Certificate: an award beyond the master's degree but does not meet the requirements of a doctoral degree.          


Cohorts
Generally refers to new incoming first-year students in the fall unless otherwise specified. For reporting to IPEDS and most external organizations, the first year cohort is the number of incoming first-time full-time first-year degree-seeking students in the Fall term and may include Fall students who enrolled as such in the preceding summer term; the transfer cohort reflects incoming students who are new to UCCS but who have prior attendance records from another institution. Cohorts are usually bifurcated into full-time (12 or more attempted credits for undergrads; 9 or more attempted credits for graduate students) or part-time. Beginning in 2016-2017, the IPEDS cohorts include 8 subcohorts based on full-time/part-time, Pell/No Pell, Subsidized Loan/No Subsidized Loan, and First-Time/Non-First Time (which includes transfers). These subcohorts are evident in the IPEDS Outcomes Survey.

CIP Code
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. CIP was originally developed by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in 1980, with revisions occurring in 1985, 1990, and 2000. See the National Center for Education Statistics' CIP website for further information. Also refer to the UCCS Degree Crosswalk and the Colorado Department of Higher Education (CDHE) list of approved programs at https://highered.colorado.gov/Data/Degrees.aspx.

Common Application
The standard application form distributed by the non-profit organization called Common App which is dedicated to lowering barriers to higher education by providing a streamlined application process and form recognized by over 900 institutions.

Composition Type
Composition types are course attributes that describe how the course is made up. Composition types include but are not limited to: clinical, dissertation, field studies, independent study, internship, laboratory, lecture, main lab section, other, practicum, recitation, research, seminar, studio, and workshop.  

ClinicalClinical instruction involves working with clients who receive professional services from students serving under the direct supervision of a faculty member or program director.
DissertationA course section devoted to doctoral candidates to conduct an original investigation showing mature scholarship and critical judgement, demonstrating knowledge of research tools and methods, and required for graduation at the doctoral level.
Field StudiesInstructional activities conducted by faculty and designed to supplement or extend a course or classroom experience.
Independent StudyStudent projects or other required activities with minimal faculty direction for degree-seeking students.
InternshipA course for placement in business and industry environments that offers degree-seeking students professional-level experience and responsibility. The internship should be well supervised and carefully structured, based on learning objectives related to the student's discipline and established in cooperation with the student, employer, and faculty advisor.
LaboratoryInstructional activities conducted by the faculty member requiring student participation, experimentation, observation, and/or practice. Labs are often associated with a larger lecture course.
LectureA course in which the faculty member is responsible for delivery and provides formal presentation/communication to the students.
Main Lab SectionA stand-alone instructional activity under the supervision of a faculty member that requires student participation, experimentation, observation, or practice. A main lab section differs from a lab in that the main lab section stands alone and is not associated with another course.
PracticumPractical student work under the supervision of either a faculty member or professional in the student's field who has regular consultation with a faculty member.
RecitationA course in which the faculty member and the students are responsible for two-way communication of course materials designed for group discussion or student recitation. Recitations are often a smaller course section or breakout of a larger lecture course.
ResearchStudent research projects or activities with minimal faculty direction for degree-seeking students.Very similar to an independent study but specifically for research instruction.
SeminarA course focused on student presentations, discussions, practice, and/or research such as a capstone course.
StudioExperiential learning led by a faculty member in which students develop technical or creative skills related to the area of study. Studio courses are usually art studios or music studios.
ThesisA course section devoted to master's students which may be research or expository, critical or creative work, required for graduation at the master's level.
WorkshopA course focusing on experiential learning under the direct supervision of a faculty member in which the student uses facilities or equipment to develop skills in the area of study.


Concurrent Enrollment
Students enrolled for credit at UCCS wherein that credit is also recognized by another institution. This includes local high schools (often called high school concurrent or high school dual enrollment) and other CU institutions (often called CU Concurrent).


Contact Hour
A unit of measure that represents an amount of time for scheduled instructional activity (e.g. class time). Usually calculated for a course on a term basis. 


Credit Hour
The unit of measure for which a student enrolls. UCCS recognizes three types of credit: main campus (state-funded instruction), extended studies (cash-funded instruction), and non-credit. In the past, these categories had been referred to as C1, C2, and C3 respectively (with the C representing Colorado Springs and the numbers representing the type of credit). External reporting for IPEDS and SURDS includes credit-bearing hours attempted by students. Credit Hours may be further differentiated into taken units, earned units, and transfer units.

CU-Data

CU-Data is the CU branded name for Cognos. It is a web-based tool for accessing reports on UCCS student enrollment and is available through the MyUCCS employee portal under Quick Links. If you cannot see the CUSPG > Institutional Research folder when you login, then submit a request for access by (a) completing the CU:FERPA training course in Skillsoft and (b) emailing irdata@uccs.edu to request access to our user group.

Data Governance

A well-defined and communicated data governance structure and policy, with clearly established roles and responsibilities and a universally understood central repository for data definitions, standards, use and interpretation. Data governance defines processes, standards, and controls for data entry, use, and reporting to ensure efficient and effective operations. The purpose is to ensure institutional data are managed as university-wide assets to ensure efficient and effective operations and to facilitate reliable reporting, analytics, and decision support.

Degree-Seeking Status
A status tied to a student through his/her academic plan. Degree-seeking plans include those that award a degree (bachelor's, master's, or doctorate), all gainful employment certificates, certificates recognized by CDHE (see the list of approved programs), and all undergraduate plans except those specified as non-degree. Undecided, pre-professional, and university studies plans are considered degree-seeking. High school concurrent student plans are not degree-seeking plans.

Digital Measures
A purchased software program used by faculty to record their scholarly activities and manage faculty reviews. The Institutional Research Office purchased the software in 2015 and maintains the program for Academic Affairs. The program is now called Watermark Faculty Success.

Doctoral Degree -- Professional Practice
A doctor's degree conferred upon completion of a program providing the knowledge and skills required for professional practice. The degree is awarded based on at least six full-time equivalent academic years. These include the Doctorate in Nursing Practice and the Doctorate in Business Administration at UCCS. Other examples are Law (JD) and Medicine (MD). Professional practice doctoral degrees often require practice rather than a dissertation.

Doctoral Degree -- Research
A degree that requires advanced work beyond the master's level, including the preparation and defense of a dissertation based on original research or the planning and execution of an original project demonstrating substantial artistic or scholarly achievement.

Dual Enrollment
A program through which high school students may enroll in college courses while still enrolled in high school.

Ethnicity
As of 2010, race/ethnicity categories were changed in accordance with the Office of Management and Budget's Standards for Maintaining, Collecting, and Presenting Federal Data on Race and Ethnicity which was posted to the Federal Register by the U.S. Department of Education. New reporting categories include the following: Nonresident Alien, Hispanic, American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, White, and Two or More Races. Per the guidelines, an individual without U.S. citizenship and carrying a temporary visa will be categorized as a Nonresident Alien regardless of other race/ethnicity selections. An individual self-identifying as Hispanic will be categorized as Hispanic regardless of other race/ethnicity selections. And individual self-identifying as any combination among American Indian or Alaska Native, Asian, Black or African American, Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander, or White will be categorized as Two Plus. Note that the Two Plus category does not include Nonresident Alien or Hispanic.

IPEDS descriptions: 

Hispanic or Latino: A person of Cuban, Mexican, Puerto Rican, South or Central American, or other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race.

American Indian or Alaska Native: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of North and South America including Central America who maintains cultural identification through tribal affiliation or community attachment.

Asian: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian Subcontinent including, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Black of African American: A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa.

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Hawaii, Guam, Samoa, or other Pacific Islands.

White: A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, the Middle East, or North Africa.

First Generation Student
Defined as a student who reports that the highest level of their parent(s) is (a) not missing and (b) less than a four-year degree. A student with at least one parent who has earned a four-year degree is not a first generation student. When information about the highest education level of a parent is missing, the student's first generation status is unknown.

First-Time First-Year Student
A student attending any institution for the first time at the undergraduate level, including students enrolled in the fall term who attended the institution for the first time in the prior summer term. Also includes students whose prior enrollment at UCCS was in a non-degree seeking high school concurrent program. Generally, any student is deemed a first-time first-year student only once in their entire higher education career.

FTE
FTE or Full Time Equivalency is applied to students and employees in a variety of ways. The Colorado Department of Higher Education calculates Student FTE as the sum of reportable credit hours taken divided by 30 for undergraduates or divided by 24 for graduate-level students in a 12 month period. This measure assumes that a full-time undergraduate student takes 15 credit hours per term or 30 credit hours per year. For CDHE, reportable credit hours exclude placeholder courses and any credits paid via the employee tuition benefit. For some IPEDS reports, Student FTE is calculated as the number of full-time students plus 1/3 of the number of part-time students (with part-time defined as <12 hours for undergrads or <9 hours for graduate students). For employees, FTE generally refers to the full-time percent of the job (and most positions are benefits-eligible at 50%).

Graduation Rate
The graduate rate as reported to IPEDS is the most commonly understood and widely used definition. It is the percentage of the first-time full-time degree-seeking cohort who earn a baccalaureate degree within 6 years (or 150% of normal time of 4 years). IPEDS graduation rates are also calculated at the 8-year mark which is called the 200% Graduation Rate. IPEDS graduation rates may exclude students who died, were permanently disabled, deployed on active duty, or left for a mission.

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Instruction Modes
Each class section has an instruction mode that identifies how the course is delivered. Faculty identify the instruction mode to the Registrar via the course inventory form. Also consult current definitions per the Office of the Registrar at at https://registrar.uccs.edu/academic-scheduling/modes-of-instruction and additional examples provided by the UCCS Faculty Assembly. The instruction mode impacts online course fee administration as well as NC-SARA and IPEDS reporting; it can also influence student visa eligibility and some G.I. Bill benefits.

  • In Person. Course meets in person on campus in a classroom with a specified meeting pattern.
  • Hybrid 1. A course in which 50-99% of the instruction is delivered online and the rest is in person meeting on campus with a designated classroom and meeting pattern. These are often courses that require students to be on campus for some aspects of instruction like an exam. Is not assessed the online course fee. For the in-person components, students are expected to meet in the classroom.
  • Hybrid 2. Also called "blended," these are courses in which less than 50% of the instruction is delivered online and the majority of the instruction occurs on campus with a designated classroom and meeting pattern. It is not assessed the online course fee. For the in-person component, students are expected to meet in the classroom.
  • HyFlex. Course meets online and/or in person at the discretion of the instructor with in person meetings held in a classroom with a specified meeting pattern. Some students may be in the classroom in-person and some may engage remotely. The HyFlex mode allows for simultaneous in-person and online instruction during a class meeting.
  • Remote Asynchronous. Course meets entirely online without a designated classroom or meeting pattern. Asynchronous indicates the instruction is not meeting in real time. This mode is meant to identify courses that would otherwise have been scheduled in person but are meeting online due to the pandemic. Remote asynchronous courses do not carry the online course fee.
  • Remote Synchronous. Course meets online during the specified meeting pattern. Faculty are expected to deliver the course during the times specified in the meeting pattern and students are expected to login during those times. Synchronous indicates the course is meeting in real time over the internet. This mode is meant to identify courses that would otherwise have been scheduled in person but are meeting online due to the pandemic. Remote synchronous courses do not carry the online course fee.
  • Online. Course is delivered entirely online and carries a $100 online course fee. These are courses that were developed to be online and are not temporary in nature like the two remote instruction modes. With the Spring 2022 semester, this mode will transform into two new modes; one for online synchronous (has a scheduled meeting pattern) and one for online asynchronous (does not have a scheduled meeting pattern).
  • Candidate for Degree. Graduate-level thesis or dissertation hours that do not require a designated classroom or meeting pattern.
  • Independent Study. Individualized instruction in which the courses do not require a designated classroom or meeting pattern.

IPEDS
IPEDS is the abbreviation for the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. It is a system of interrelated surveys conducted annually by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). IPEDS gathers information from every college, university, and technical and vocational institution that participates in the federal student financial aid programs. The Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, requires that institutions that participate in federal student aid programs report data on enrollments, program completions, graduation rates, faculty and staff, finances, institutional prices, and student financial aid. These data are made available to students and parents through the College Navigator college search Web site and to researchers and others through the IPEDS Data Center. See more at https://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/about-ipeds.

ISIR
The Institutional Student Information Record (ISIR) is provided by the Department of Education to institutions; it contains information reported through the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and NSLDS (National Student Loan Data System). For more information see the ISIR Guide. Institutional Research uses ISIR data to validate certain student characteristics like first-generation status.

 

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Military Affiliation
Also see Veterans. A student is considered to be affiliated with the military if any of the following are true:

  • they are currently serving in the U.S. Armed Forces, including the National Guard, Reserves, and Reserve Officer Training Core (ROTC)
  • they formerly served in the U.S. Armed Forces, including the National Guard and Reserves (includes protected veterans and other veterans)
  • they self-identify as active duty, formerly served, or a military dependent
  • they are receiving military-related tuition assistance
  • they are enrolled in ROTC courses
  • their records are found in the DOD or VA databases
  • they have an active service indicator (determined by UCCS) as active duty, veteran, or family member of active duty/veteran 

Nonresident Alien
A person who is not a citizen or national of the United States and who is in the country on a visa or temporary basis and does not have the right to remain indefinitely. A student or employee who fits this description will be categorized as a nonresident alien for their race/ethnicity per federal definitions.

Online Education
Instructional credit delivered via the internet to students who are separated from the instructor and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students and the instructor synchronously or asynchronously.

Online "ODEE" Program
A degree or certificate program selected for inclusion in the marketing initiative led by the CU Office of Digital Education & Engagement (ODEE).

Online Program
A degree or certificate in which all coursework required for completion is able to be completed via online courses. An online degree or certificate may also be completed via other instruction modes.

Online Student
A student who is enrolled and is attempting to earn one or more online credits. A student is considered to be "online only" when 100% of their attempted credit hours are taken in the online instruction mode. 

Pell Grant
The Pell Grant is awarded to low-income undergraduate students. The amount of the award varies every year; the maximum for 2016-2017 was $5,815 per award year. Receipt of a Pell Grant is often used as a proxy to determine the number or percentage of students who are low-income. 

Plan
The CU-SIS term used to identify a student's academic plan. The plan is associated with a plan type that must be one of the following: major, minor, course of study, certificate, licensure, or additional major. For example, Asian Studies is a plan with a plan type of minor. Some plans are further differentiated by subplans that refer to a variety of options or tracks that are subsumed under the larger plan. The student's combination of career, program, plan, and subplan over time is often referred to as his or her plan stack. The plan is particularly important because it partially determines a student's tuition rate and financial aid eligibility.

Primary Plan
Within a student's plan stack, one plan is assigned primary status. The primary plan determines, among other factors, the tuition rate a student is charged.

Pronouns / Preferred Pronouns
Students are able to choose preferred pronouns via the UCCS Student Portal. Pronouns include: she/her/hers, he/him/his, they/them/theirs, ze/hir/hirs, and xe/xer/xers. To learn more about these options, visit the Registrar's website on Updating Personal Information. To learn more about pronouns and appropriate use, visit Pronouns 101 on the LGBTQ Resource Center's website. (As of Spring 2021, preferred pronouns are not yet available for faculty or staff.)

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Remedial Services
Instructional courses designed for students deficient in the general competencies necessary for a regular postsecondary curriculum and educational setting. At UCCS, we offer some remedial math courses through extended studies.

Retention Rate
The retention rate refers to the number of students in the cohort (see above) who enroll one year later in the following fall term. When alternative groups of students or measures are used, the outcome should be referred to as a persistence rate.

SAT Concordance Tables
In March of 2016, the College Board began administering a redesigned SAT exam resulting in new components and new scores. The redesigned total score is on the same scale (400-1600) with sections for Math (200-800) and Evidence-Based Reading & Writing (200-800), but scores from the redesigned SAT do not equate to scores on the current SAT.  Use the SAT Concordance Tablesto convert between current and redesigned SAT scores.

Sex
Colorado law (HB 19-1039 or "Jude's Law") allows Coloradans to designate their sex as male, female, or X (neither male nor female) on their driver's license, Colorado birth certificate, or Colorado state ID.

SURDS
An abbreviation for the Student Unit Record Data System managed by the Colorado Department of Higher Education. It is a series of interrelated data collections of student data that include individual student records (unlike IPEDS which only collects aggregated data). SURDS collects student data through several files: Enrollment, Undergraduate Applicant, Degrees Granted, Course Enrollment, Financial Aid, and Educator Preparation. Further documentation is available at http://highered.colorado.gov/Data/Docs.html.

Tableau
Tableau is an interactive data visualization software used by CU organizations to present data insights. UCCS uses both Tableau Public and Tableau Server for visualizations. Visit our Student Data page to see examples and links to those vizzes.

Teacher Certification Program
An academic program designed to prepare students to meet the requirements for certification as teachers in elementary, middle school, and secondary schools. The UCCS College of Education is authorized by the Colorado Department of Education to offer several teacher certification programs; see the list at the bottom of this page: https://ir.uccs.edu/institutionaldata/programs.

TOEFL
Test of English as a Foreign Language is designed to determine an applicant's ability to benefit from instruction in English. Sometimes required or recommended for admission.

Transfer Student
A student entering the institution for the first time but known to have previously attended a postsecondary institution as an undergraduate. The student may transfer with or without credit.

Tuition Residency & Exception
Tuition Residency is one of several combinations of a student's residency and tuition rate that is stored in CU-SIS. It tells us whether a student is charged a resident, non-resident, or extended studies tuition rate. The Tuition Residency Exception code provides further specification as to whether a student is charged an excepted rate (which is usually mandated by Colorado statute). Exceptions include but are not limited to: U.S. or Canadian military personnel and dependents, veterans and dependents, Olympic training center athletes, Western Regional Graduate Program students, Western Undergraduate Exchange students, and exchange program students.

Unduplicated Enrollment
A term used to indicate that a total count of students is counting each student only once. For example, a count of enrolled students for an entire year is considered a duplicated count if a student is enrolled in 3 semesters and counted 3 times; the count is considered unduplicated when said student is counted once throughout the entire year. 

Veteran
To align with the federal government, we define veterans as employees who are Protected Veterans or Other Veterans. Other Veterans are individuals who formerly served in the U.S. Armed Forces (including National Guard and Reserves) who might not meet the definition of Protected Veterans, such as retirees or those who may have been discharged for any reason. Protected Veterans are defined as follows:

This employer is a Government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974, as amended by the Jobs for Veterans Act of 2002, 38 U.S.C. 4212 (VEVRAA), which requires Government contractors to take affirmative action to employ and advance in employment: (1) disabled veterans; (2) recently separated veterans; (3) active duty wartime or campaign badge veterans; and (4) Armed Forces service medal veterans. These classifications are defined as follows:

  • A "disabled veteran" is one of the following:
    • a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or
    • a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.
  • A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.
  • An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.
  • An "Armed Forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985. 

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