Financial Partners’ Journey

Through NSLDS

Pam Eliadis
and
Valerie Sherrer
Objectives
1. Identify how loan level data affects student eligibility
2. Specify how the flow of enrollment data impacts timely
conversion to repayment
3. Examine ways financial partners can improve NSLDS
Data Quality
4. Recognize what data reported to NSLDS impacts the
Cohort Default Rate
5. Define NSLDS Security rules and user responsibilities
6. Re-engineering NSLDS to Enhance Student Aid History
Management

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3
 Student Eligibility

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Student Eligibility
Loan level data that affect Student Eligibility:

• Loan Statuses
• Originations
• Disbursements
• Cancellations/Refunds
• Outstanding Balances

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Student Eligibility

Schools see eligibility information:

2. ISIR
3. NSLDS FAP Website

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Student Eligibility
Loan Status

• Default Status is based on Lender Claim Payment

• Rehabilitated Loans should be reported timely

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Student Eligibility
Aggregates

Aggregate Loan Limits are calculated for each student on

NSLDS to assist the FAA in determining student eligibility.

Three Major Variables:

• Net Loan Amounts (Guaranty minus Cancellations)
• Disbursements
• Outstanding Principal Balance

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Student Eligibility

Loan Status

Identification of Consolidation’s Underlying Loans:

4. Loan Status Code = PN, DN, PC, DP or PF
5. Loan Status Date within 210 days (before or
after) of the Consolidation Loan Date

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Student Eligibility
Originations

• Report Originations as they happen

• Helps Schools see pending aid for Transfer Students

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Student Eligibility
Cancellations/Refunds

Factor in determining the

Net Loan Amount for
aggregate calculation
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 Student Eligibility
• Disbursements

Factor in aggregate calculation

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 Student Eligibility
• Outstanding Principal and Interest Balance
Amounts

OPB factored in
aggregate
calculations, OIB
and Other Fees
are not
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 Enrollment
Reporting
2

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Enrollment Reporting
Impacts of Enrollment Reporting on Financial
Partners
• Enrollment Reporting Flow
• Changes to the Loan Status
• Impact on the Date Entered Repayment
• Effects of Non-Reported Enrollment Changes

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Enrollment Reporting
How do students get on a school’s roster?
• Reporting of a loan
• School adds them to a roster
• Reporting of an ACG or SMART Grant
(as of Jan. 2007)

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Enrollment Reporting Flow

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Enrollment Reporting
When student drops below half-time attendance:
Loan Status: IA to IG

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Enrollment Reporting
When student re-enters school:
Loan Status: RP to DA

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Enrollment Reporting
Impact on Date Entered Repayment (DER)
• Enrollment Effective Date used to drive DER
• DER is loan based, not student based
• GA Data Provider Instructions
• Grace = Separation + 6 months
• DER = Separation + 6 months + 1 day
• After entering repayment, DER does not
change

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Enrollment Reporting
• Possible Effects of Non-Reported
Enrollment Changes
– Loan converted to repayment early
– Loan entering repayment delayed
– Borrower enters grace period without
knowledge

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Enrollment Reporting
2006 IA/ID DA

Jan 260,389 65,378

Feb 282,469 82,381

Mar 294,921 91,004

Data Quality Monitoring
Apr 290,532 87,451

May 297,569 87,417

Inconsistencies between
Jun 281,140 73,435
enrollment and loan
statuses Jul 265,881 64,955

Aug 261,977 60,826

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Enrollment Reporting
• Effective Enrollment Reporting and usage:
– Reduces risk of default
– Minimizes technical defaults
• NSLDS:
– Maintains the official enrollment data
– Provides GA’s enrollment data weekly
– Instructs GA’s to inform Lender/Lender Servicers
timely

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 NSLDS Data
3 Quality

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NSLDS Data Quality
Examine how Financial Partners can improve
NSLDS Data Quality

• Timely reporting to GAs by lenders

• Accurate Contact information
• Accurate information

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NSLDS Data Quality
Benefits of Timely Reporting

• Timely reporting of information affecting student

eligibility
• New data reported quickly for decision making
• Effective program management and oversight

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NSLDS Data Quality
Accurate Contact Information

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NSLDS Data Quality
Accurate Contact Information

• Contact information displayed on NSLDS web

sites
• Contact Information used for the Interactive Voice
Response Unit for 1-800-4FEDAID

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NSLDS Data Quality

Accurate Information

• Resolve reporting errors

• Close unconsummated loans
• Report loan transfers

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NSLDS Data Quality
Accurate Information

Resolve reporting errors:

• Actively work reporting errors
• Analyze loan errors holistically
• Resolve for next submission

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NSLDS Data Quality
Accurate Information

Non-Closure of Unconsummated Loans:

• May cause GAs to “assume” the loan status
• Creates conflicting information

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NSLDS Data Quality
Accurate Information
Unconsummated Loan Aging

Assumed by the GA

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NSLDS Data Quality
GA Data Quality Measures

• Review Benchmark reports

• Data Integrity Improvement Plans
• Reconcile Fee Payment Backup Data
• Annual Reconciliation with NSLDS
• Research Reasonability Report variances

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NSLDS Data Quality
Accurate Information
Lender Held Loans
OPB Update in Last 60 Days

100
Percentage (%)

80
60 Average
40 Lowest
20
0
Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug
Month

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NSLDS Data Quality
Accurate Information
Jan 2006 12,708
Feb 2006 12,691
Mar 2006 12,714
Number of Identifier Apr 2006 12,623
Conflicts by Month May 2006 12,464
Jun 2006 12,601
Jul 2006 12,835
Aug 2006 13,208

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 Cohort Default
Rates
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Cohort Default Rates
Recognize what data reported to NSLDS impacts the
Cohort Default Rate (CDR)
• Formula
• Fields
• Rates
• Frequency
• Adjustments

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Cohort Default Rates

Borrowers who entered repayment in FY04 and

defaulted in FY04 & 05
divided by
Borrowers who entered repayment in FY04

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Cohort Default Rates
What NSLDS fields affect the CDR calculation?
• Date Entered Repayment (DER)
• Loan Type
• Date Claim Paid
• Claim Reason Code
• Loan Status Codes
• Student Identifiers

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Cohort Default Rates

Two Lender Calculations

• Originating Lender Rate
• Current Holder Rate

One GA Calculation

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Cohort Default Rates
How often are the CDRs Calculated?
• Draft Cohort Default Rate (CDR)
• Calculate January
• Publish February
• Official Cohort Default Rate (CDR)
• Calculate August
• Publish September

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Cohort Default Rates

CDR on the Web

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Cohort Default Rates
CDR on the Web

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 Cohort Default Rates
How do Financial Partners request an adjustment to their CDR?
Lenders:
• Data Correction to GA within 30 days of publication
• The GA has 15 days to respond
GA:
• GA has 45 days to submit data corrections
CDR Guide for GAs and Lenders:
http://www.ifap.ed.gov/drmaterials/FY04Cohortguide.html

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 NSLDS Security

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NSLDS Security
Define NSLDS Security rules and user responsibilities
• DCL Gen 05-06
• Audit Reports
• Data Mining
• User IDs

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NSLDS Security
Dear Colleague Letter GEN 05-06

• NSLDS may not be used for marketing purposes

• Student/Borrower’s permission is required
• Reminds users of Federal Student Aid’s
enforcement obligation

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NSLDS Security

Audit Reports
• Every student look-up is tracked by User ID
• Lender Audit Security Reports
– Requested by Destination Point Administrator
– Number of look-ups by user id
– Past 90 days

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NSLDS Security

No Dating Mining

• Completely Automated Public Turing Test to Tell

Computers and Humans Apart (CAPTCHA) tool

• Monitoring top 20 users and organizations

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NSLDS Security
User ID’s

• Will be disabled after 12 months of inactivity

• Cannot be shared with colleagues
• Obtain through FSAwebenroll.ed.gov

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 NSLDS
Re-engineering
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NSLDS Re-Engineering
• NSLDS Functionality
– Monitor aid eligibility through applicant pre-
screening, post-screening, and transfer monitoring
processes;
– Receive student enrollment updates from schools and
their servicers, process and store this information in the
Operational Data Store (ODS), and then distribute
relevant enrollment updates to interested trading
partners (i.e. lenders, lender/servicers, guaranty
agencies).

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NSLDS Re-Engineering
• NSLDS Functionality
– Manage the default rate processes including
calculation, distribution, and publishing of
default rates
– Provide aid-level calculation services and
provide SAHM operational reports and metrics
– Manage receipt of student, aid, and
organization data to provide an integrated
student view of financial aid history

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NSLDS Re-engineering
Goals for Re-Engineering
• Align with Federal Student Aid Data
Strategy Efforts
– Implement FFEL data flow changes to
facilitate design and implementation of
Information Framework(IF)/ Student Aid
History Management (SAHM)

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NSLDS Re-engineering
Goals for Re-Engineering
• Improve Data Usefulness:
– Data Timeliness
– Data Quality
– Program Monitoring and Oversight

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NSLDS Re-engineering
FFELP Community Benefits:
• Data source becomes responsible for reporting
• Using current industry data exchange formats and methods
(i.e. XML Schemas)
• Standardized reporting for all life-cycle stages (i.e
CommonLine)
• Reduced duplicative reporting among FFEL participants
• Interface Consistency

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NSLDS Re-engineering
Students, Parents, and Schools Benefits:
• Timely information for making eligibility
decisions
• Enhanced data integrity
• Program Information Parity

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NSLDS Re-engineering
FSA Benefits:
• Improved Customer Service to all constituents
• Facilitates better decision making
• Enhanced data integrity
• Improved oversight of FFEL Program
• Meets Target State Vision for the Enterprise

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NSLDS Re-engineering
Next Steps:
• Collaboration with community stakeholders
• Focus Groups being held in conjunction with
both Federal Student Aid conferences
• Definition of requirements

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Questions?

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Thank you!
We appreciate your feedback and comments.
We can be reached at:
• Phone: Valerie Sherrer 202-377-3554
Pam Eliadis at 202-377-3554
• Fax: 202-275-0913
• Email: valerie.sherrer@ed.gov
pam.eliadis@ed.gov

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