Maintained for Historical Purposes

This resource is being maintained for historical purposes only and is not currently applicable.

(GEN-95-02) (GEN-95-02) 1995-96 INSTITUTION APPLICANT DATA SERVICE FOR FEDERAL TITLE IV STUDENT AID PROGRAMS.

DCLPublicationDate: 1/1/95
DCLID: GEN-95-2
AwardYear: 1995-1996
Summary: 1995-96 INSTITUTION APPLICANT DATA SERVICE FOR FEDERAL TITLE IV STUDENT AID PROGRAMS.


JANUARY 1995
ACTION LETTER # 7
GEN-95-2

SUMMARY: 1995-96 INSTITUTION APPLICANT DATA
SERVICE FOR FEDERAL TITLE IV STUDENT AID PROGRAMS
Dear Colleague:

The Department of Education makes applicant data from the Central
Processing System (CPS) available to your institution free of
charge. An institution may receive applicant data through this
service as well as through the Electronic Data Exchange. The
service available for 1995-96 is similar to that provided for
1994-95, with minor changes. This letter and the enclosures
describe the applicant data service and serves as a user's guide.
Please review this document in its entirety as it contains
updated information and instructions.

All institutions eligible to participate in any Title IV Federal
student aid program may request and receive applicant data
through this service. Three output formats are available for your
use: abbreviated format paper roster, full format paper roster,
and full format magnetic media on tape or cartridge. An
attractive feature of this service is that the full format paper
roster and the magnetic media data can qualify under the
Department's regulations as an Institutional Student Information
Record (ISIR) on which an award may be made. Please refer to
Enclosure A for more information. To assist you in using the full
roster and tape/cartridge data for award purposes, specifications
(format and guidelines) are included in Enclosure F for printing
hard copy output on which to obtain valid signatures.

Institutions which did not receive applicant data output for
award year 1994-95 and want to start receiving applicant data
with award year 1995-96 must submit an Option Request Form
(Enclosure B). If your institution currently receives applicant
data output for 1994-95, the format, media, and frequency of that
output will be "rolled" forward for 1995-96. You are not required
to resubmit a request for the 1995-96 award cycle, unless you
wish to alter your selection.

Enclosure A provides more detailed information concerning the
applicant data service, including the dates on which output will
be produced and mailed. So as not to schedule two mailouts on the
same calendar date, the 1995-96 production dates, in comparison
to the 1994-95 dates, have been shifted by one week.

Your first 1995-96 roster or tape/cartridge will be cumulative:
it will contain all applicants specifying your institution on
their latest official transaction since processing start up. Each
subsequent production will not be cumulative, but rather will
provide data only for those applicants who indicated your
institution and have submitted a transaction to the CPS
since your last roster or tape/cartridge was produced.

Enclosure A summarizes fields that have been added or deleted in
1995-96. A complete description of the data tape/cartridge
record format is given in Enclosure C. Please review
Enclosure C carefully for all specific field and data changes.
Changes have been made through-out the record layout. Note that
the tape/cartridge layout is very similar to the Institutional
Student Information Record (ISIR) layout received by Electronic
Data Exchange (EDE) users. Fields that are defined differently
on the two layouts are notated in Enclosure C. Current EDE
users will receive full specifications for the ESAR layout in
early January 1995. Sample abbreviated and full rosters are
provided in Enclosures G and H, respectively.

A significant addition to the applicant data service makes data
from the National Student Loan Data System (NSLDS) available for
your use. The Title IV and Guaranty Agency matches performed
in the past will now be incorporated into the NSLDS, and thus
have been eliminated from the 1995-96 record format. The full
format paper roster includes a page of NSLDS information for
every applicant with this data. The magnetic media tape/
cartridge output provides 1,582 bytes of NSLDS data.

A second significant addition provides data tape/cartridge users
with Highlight Flag fields. Each byte in this field corresponds
to a question on the Student Aid Report (SAR). In a correction
transaction, this field tells you which data elements were
highlighted on the SAR.

To assist institutions in the use of the roster and
tape/cartridge output, we have included detailed background
information in several enclosures. Enclosure D provides you with
detailed information about several fields; Degree/Certificate,
Course of Study, State Abbreviated Codes, Reject Reasons,
Correction/Highlight Flags, and NSLDS Loan Information.

Note that the applicant data service, EDE, and the Federal Pell
Grant Recipient Data Exchange (RDE) are separate and distinct
processes. The applicant data service provides you information
about applicants from the CPS via hard copy or tape/cartridge
media. RDE allows you to submit payment voucher data to the
Department on magnetic tape. EDE gives you the ability to
receive and transmit both applicant and payment information
electronically via a communication network. While you may use the
applicant data tapes/cartridges to build a database for use in
the RDE or EDE processes, a request to receive the applicant data
tapes/cartridges does not allow, nor prohibit, you to participate
in the RDE or EDE processes.

Please note that 1995-96 is the last processing cycle for which
you can request hardcopy rosters. Beginning in 1996-97
institutions can receive applicant information via electronic
transmission, tape, or cartridge, only! If you have any
questions concerning the applicant data service, please contact
the Customer Service Department for Applicant Data
Service, Federal Student Aid Programs, at (319) 339-6444.

Sincerely,



Leo Kornfeld
Senior Advisor to the Secretary


Enclosures


[[ The enclosures A through H are currently unavailable for viewing. Please
reference your paper document for additional information.]]