Common Data Set

Summary of Significant Changes: 2017-2018

Changes to the 2017-2018 CDS document are highlighted in yellow in Sections B & C.

1. Graduation Rates Update in Section B

A significant overhaul of the way in which graduation rates are reported for bachelor’s and other equivalent programs has been implemented. No changes have been made to the reporting for two-year programs. Going forward, the CDS will ask you to disaggregate the cohorts that previously appeared in B4-B11 into the following four groups:

  • Students who received a Federal Pell Grant
  • Students who received a subsidized Stafford Loan who did not received a Pell Grant
  • Students who did not receive either a subsidized Stafford Loan or a Pell Grant
  • Total (all students regardless of Stafford Loan or Pell Grant status)

On the 2017-2018 CDS, this revised section appears as below:

Graduate Rates

The items in this section correspond to data elements collected by the IPEDS Web-based Data Collection System’s Graduation Rate Survey (GRS). For complete instructions and definitions of data elements, see the IPEDS GRS Forms and Instructions for the 2017-18 Survey.

In the following section for bachelor’s or equivalent programs, please disaggregate the Fall 2010 and Fall 2011 cohorts (formerly CDS B4-B11) into four groups:

  • Students who received a Federal Pell Grant*
  • Recipients of a subsidized Stafford Loan who did not receive a Pell Grant
  • Students who did not receive either a Pell Grant or a subsidized Stafford Loan
  • Total (all students, regardless of Pell Grant or subsidized loan status)

*Students who received both a Federal Pell Grant and a subsidized Stafford Loan should be reported in the "Recipients of a Federal Pell Grant" column.

For each graduation rate grid below, the numbers in the first three columns for Questions A-G should sum to the cohort total in the fourth column (formerly CDS B4-B11).

For Bachelor's or Equivalent Programs

Please provide data for the Fall 2011 cohort if available. If Fall 2011 cohort data are not available, provide data for the Fall 2010 cohort.

Fall 2011 Cohort

Recipients of a
Federal Pell
Grant

Recipients of a
Subsidized
Stafford Loan
who did not
receive a Pell
Grant

Students who
did not receive
either a Pell
Grant or a
subsidized
Stafford Loan

Total (sum of 3
columns to the
left)

A - Initial 2011 cohort of first-time, full-time, bachelor's (or equivalent) degree-seeking undergraduate students

(formerly B4)

B - Of the initial 2011 cohort, how many did not persist and did not graduate for the following reasons: deceased, permanently disabled, armed forces, foreign aid service of the federal government, or official church missions; total allowable exclusions

(formerly B5)

C - Final 2011 cohort, after adjusting for allowable exclusions

(formerly B6)

D - Of the initial 2011 cohort, how many completed the program in four years or less (by Aug. 31, 2015)

(formerly B7)

E - Of the initial 2011 cohort, how many completed the program in more than four years but in five years or less (after Aug. 31, 2015 and by Aug. 31, 2016)

(formerly B8)

F - Of the initial 2011 cohort, how many completed the program in more than five years but in six years or less (after Aug. 31, 2016 and by Aug. 31, 2017)

(formerly B9)

G - Total graduating within six years (sum of lines D, E, and F)

(formerly B10)

H - Six-year graduation rate for 2011 cohort (G divided by C)

% % % % (formerly B11)

Fall 2010 Cohort

Recipients of a
Federal Pell
Grant

Recipients of a
Subsidized
Stafford Loan
who did not
receive a Pell
Grant

Students who
did not receive
either a Pell
Grant or a
subsidized
Stafford Loan

Total (sum of 3
columns to the
left)

A - Initial 2010 cohort of first-time, full-time, bachelor's (or equivalent) degree-seeking undergraduate students

(formerly B4)

B - Of the initial 2010 cohort, how many did not persist and did not graduate for the following reasons: deceased, permanently disabled, armed forces, foreign aid service of the federal government, or official church missions; total allowable exclusions

(formerly B5)

C - Final 2010 cohort, after adjusting for allowable exclusions

(formerly B6)

D - Of the initial 2010 cohort, how many completed the program in four years or less (by Aug. 31, 2014)

(formerly B7)

E - Of the initial 2010 cohort, how many completed the program in more than four years but in five years or less (after Aug. 31, 2014 and by Aug. 31, 2015)

(formerly B8)

F - Of the initial 2010 cohort, how many completed the program in more than five years but in six years or less (after Aug. 31, 2015 and by Aug. 31, 2016)

(formerly B9)

G - Total graduating within six years (sum of lines D, E, and F)

(formerly B10)

H - Six-year graduation rate for 2010 cohort (G divided by C)

% % % % (formerly B11)

2. SAT Updates in Section C

Section C9 has been updated to reflect the changed structure and scoring of the SAT exam. Respondents have been provided instructions to convert Old SAT scores to New SAT scores using the College Board concordance tools and table. On the 2017-2018 CDS, this revised section appears as below:

C9. Percent and number of first-time, first-year (freshman) students enrolled in Fall 2017 who submitted national standardized (SAT/ACT) test scores. Include information for ALL enrolled, degree-seeking, first-time, first-year (freshman) students who submitted test scores. Do not include partial test scores (e.g., mathematics scores but not critical reading for a category of students) or combine other standardized test results (such as TOEFL) in this item. Do not convert SAT scores to ACT scores and vice versa.

Do convert Old SAT scores to New SAT scores using the College Board's concordance tools and tables (sat.org/concordance).

Percent Number
Submitting SAT scores  
Submitting ACT scores  

For each assessment listed below, report the score that represents the 25th percentile (the score that 25 percent of the freshman population scored at or below) and the 75th percentile score (the score that 25 percent scored at or above).


Assessment 25th Percentile 75th Percentile
SAT Evidence-Based Reading and Writing    
SAT Math    
SAT Essay    
ACT Composite    
ACT Math    
ACT English    
ACT Writing    

Percent of first-time, first-year (freshman) students with scores in each range:


Score Range SAT Evidence-Based
Reading and Writing
SAT Math
700-800
600-699
500-599
400-499
300-399
200-299
Totals should be = 100% 100.00% 100.00%

Score Range ACT Composite ACT English ACT Math
30-36
24-29
18-23
12-17
6-11
Below 6
Totals should be = 100% 100.00% 100.00% 100.00%
Last updated: 01/30/2023