When an institution begins its reporting efforts – let’s say after recently changing databases or reporting tools – one of the first steps usually taken is to replicate what they had before. Often, this means creating some type of file and distributing it to users....
Higher Education
The Problem with Self-Diagnosing when Requesting Data
When many of us get sick, we try self-diagnosing the problem. Maybe we look up information online. We may even go to a Web MD to find out what's wrong with this or that. Through this process we might find all sorts of symptoms we think we exhibit and conditions we...
Get to Know DaaS (Data-as-a-Service)
Before we dive into DaaS (Data-as-a-Service), let’s take a brief look at the present and the past. Today, information is everywhere. It’s in our television sets, our personal computers, our cell phones and even our smart watches. 50 years ago, these technologies...
Data Ingestion: Can One Size Really Fit All?
Many institutions find themselves storing their data in aging systems. Often, this leads to disorganized, disparate, inaccessible, or isolated data. These institutions are faced with the challenge of addressing their data and technology issues. In doing so, they may...
NCAA Compliance: Using Data to Help Keep Student Athletes Eligible
NCAA Compliance offices are crucial groups, dedicated to ensuring an institution’s compliance with NCAA regulations. They are tasked with applying those regulations to many areas, such as academic eligibility, financial aid, recruiting, personnel, and competition. As...
What Do National Rankings Mean to Colleges & Universities Anyway?
Every year, millions of high school students are faced with a decision that will shape the course of their lives. This decision will influence many things, such as their careers, earning potential, hobbies, and even their circle of friends. To many, it’s one of the...
When IPEDS Surveys Reveal New Data and Lead to Tough Choices
It's time to complete your IPEDS survey. It's a complex, daunting task. The Department of Education wants to get a clear picture of your Title IV compliance. And you want to give information that secures federal funding for your institution. While you know that IPEDS...
Best Practices for Building Tables (Simple, Pivot, and Otherwise)
You’re tasked with creating a report for a set of data. The goal is to create a report your audience can quickly and easily understand, so they can use it to make key business decisions. You look at the data and see that it contains rows and rows of information. What...
Visualizing Data in Higher Education: Must-Have, Nice-to-Have, Shouldn’t-Have
All departments within an institution of higher education have numerous sources and insane amounts of data. They utilize these sources and data to track and forecast institutional performance. The departments are responsible for planning, developing, governing, and...