Data Resources

Available public data on higher education prices and finances often come with significant limitations.

One strand of the NTRN Project’s research identifies these limitations and develops data preparation and measurement techniques to address them. The data resource posts below offer guidance for fellow researchers on how to make better use of available data. Guidance frequently pairs with practical tools—such as measurement formulas, statistical software code, and prepared datasets—to help researchers utilize these approaches in their own work.

Data Resources

Introduction to IPEDS

This post introduces the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS), explores key measures relevant to the NTRN project that can be derived from IPEDS, and highlights three common challenges researchers face when working with this dataset.

NTRN Project Data Sets

This post introduces three IPEDS-based data sets developed for the NTRN project. Each data set includes identical variables covering finances, prices, and enrollments, but they differ in structure—allowing researchers to select the data configuration that best meets their needs.

Measuring Revenues Using IPEDS

This post examines how researchers can use IPEDS data to construct revenue measures, with special attention to net tuition revenue.

Measuring Expenditures Using IPEDS

This post explores how researchers can use IPEDS data to construct expenditure measures, including those related to instruction, research, and public service.

The IPEDS Unit of Observation Challenge

This post investigates a common challenge in working with IPEDS data: the presence of alternative units of observation. IPEDS observations may represent a Title IV institution, a campus within such an institution, or an administrative unit serving multiple institutions. This post also outlines practical methods researchers can use to address this challenge.

FY2023 MSI-Related Revenue Data Set

This post describes the NTRN Project supplementary data set containing FY2023 data on revenues from programs relating to Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs).

Adjusting IPEDS Finance Data to Account for the Introduction of the Aligned Form

This post outlines key changes to revenue and expenditure reporting that accompanied the introduction of the aligned form to the IPEDS Finance survey in the late 2000s. It also describes adjustments researchers can use to compare financial data across the pre- and post-alignment periods.

Deciding When to Collapse Title IV Institutions Under a Shared Administrative Unit

This post provides more detailed guidance on when and how to combine Title IV institutions that share the same IPEDS administrative unit observation. These recommendations were applied during the creation of the second NTRN data set.