Changes Coming to the IPEDS Report

New federal requirements for admissions data reporting are dramatically changing the compliance landscape for colleges and universities. The proposed IPEDS Admissions and Consumer Transparency Supplement (ACTS), requires yearly submittal of significantly more admissions, academic, and financial aid information for incoming freshman applicants as well as current undergraduate and graduate students as early as the 2025-2026 reporting cycle. These increases in reporting obligations bring with them a dramatic increase in government oversight and possible legal exposure.

What is Changing?

• Institutions will need to submit more detailed admissions, academic, and financial aid data…far beyond traditional acceptance rates and demographics.

• Regulatory agencies will audit this data carefully, looking for accuracy and consistency, and will analyze the data to investigate compliance with anti-discrimination laws.

• Admissions practices, including (and perhaps most importantly) decision criteria for enrollment and financial aid, will be under increased scrutiny.

How Berkshire Can Help

• Expanded Data Review and Clean-Up
  We work with your teams to map current data flows, identify gaps, and strengthen validation and reconciliation processes so your admissions data are accurate, defensible, and audit-ready.
• Proactive ACTS Data Analysis
  Enforcement agencies will be analyzing your submitted ACTS data for potential discrimination along the entire lifecycle, from application to enrollment to financial aid allocation and consideration of merit-based explanatory variables (and more). Berkshire will work with you to capture and analyze data at every stage of the process and provide results in an easily understandable format so institution leaders know of any potential problem areas in advance.

Why Act Now?

With increased federal focus on admissions transparency, institutions that invest early in data integrity, proactive analysis and clear communications will be better positioned to demonstrate compliance and withstand audits or inquiries.

Get Started Today

Contact Berkshire today to develop a specifically tailored action plan and implement the policies and controls your institution needs to confidently meet the newly proposed admissions reporting requirements.