Number of Degree-seeking Students
Operational characteristics, like the number of degree-seeking students, are variables that provide information about the context in which the institution operates. Institutions should report the most recent data available within the three years prior to the anticipated date of submission.
Definition: Degree-seeking students / students enrolled for credit
Consistent with U.S. IPEDS, students enrolled for credit include all students enrolled in courses or programs that can be applied towards the requirements for a postsecondary degree, diploma, certificate, or other formal award, regardless of whether or not they are seeking a degree or certificate. This includes:
Students enrolled for credit in off-campus centers
High school students taking regular college courses for credit
Students taking remedial courses if the student is degree-seeking for the purpose of student financial aid determination
Students from overseas enrolled in U.S. courses for credit (e.g., online students)
Graduate students enrolled for thesis credits, even when zero credits are awarded as these students are still enrolled and seeking their degree
This metric is looking for the total number of degree-seeking students registered with the institution:
For WikiRate researchers:
Institutions who report to the STARS program are listed on the STARS Participants & Reports website.
Use the institution Index, CTRL F, or Command F to search for the institution you want to research
By clicking on the hyperlinked name of the institution, you will be redirected to the page where all their STARS reports are listed. You can select either the most recent report, or one of the older reports to start tracking their performance over time.
NB: While the values in the reports might apply to different points in time (performance year, baseline year, most recent, etc.), the submission date of the report should be listed as the “year” on WikiRate. This is to ensure that reports of the same submission year can be compared. Any time specific information for the individual values should be included in the comment to that specific metric value.
To narrow down your search, navigate the reports’ index using the Reporting Category - Institutional Characteristics - and Credit Category - Institutional Characteristics - to finally select the Credit Title: Academics & Demographics.
You should now be on the report page that discloses the total number of degree-seeking students registered at the institution. To locate the exact value you can search the page using CTRL F or Command F with keywords like degree, credit, and student.
Always check the metric question and methodology for the unit of measure or currency - researchers may need to carry out calculations or conversions before entering the final metric value
Add comments to include details of simple or complex calculations or conversions made to determine the metric value and document any relevant contextual information
Further guidance on how to research values is available here, including detailed guidance on adding, editing and checking metric values.
STARS compliance guidance for institutions:
Sampling and Data Standards
Include all students enrolled for credit (undergraduate and graduate); reporting on a sample or subset of students is not allowed.