Frequently Asked Questions

EDUCAUSE Analytics Services provides higher education leaders with data on information technology practice and use. We collect data about institutions and their technology users (e.g., students, faculty) to help you identify peer institutions, research common technology solutions, benchmark resources, and gain insight on user needs. Our Analytics Services Portal is the online tool you use to contribute and access data until May 31, 2025.

Individuals at institutions of higher education with an EDUCAUSE login and defined roles can use the Analytics Services Portal.

Institutional data refers to any data collected or represented about an institution. Typically, these data are collected through the annual Core Data Service (CDS) survey, IPEDS, Technology Solutions Market Dashboard, or through Institutional Profiles.

User experience data refers to data collected through an EDUCAUSE survey from an institution’s technology user population (e.g., students, faculty).

• EDUCAUSE Primary Representative at an eligible institution or system office—Authorized by default to assign roles, contribute institutional data (Author), sign up for and administer user experience surveys (Survey Administrator), and review data.

• CDS Manager—CDS Managers are designated by the EDUCAUSE Primary Representative. They are authorized to assign the CDS Author role and contribute institutional data through the CDS survey. CDS managers are assigned to the Profile Manager role by default.

• Profile Manager—Profile managers are designated by the EDUCAUSE Primary Representative. They are authorized to assign the Profile Editor role and contribute institutional data through the Institutional Profile.

• CDS roles can be managed within the portal by going to “Manage CDS Roles.” Institutional Profile roles are managed on the Institutional Profile page by expanding the profile roles section.

• The EDUCAUSE Primary Representative, designated CDS Manager, or Profile Manager must accept the Analytics Services Appropriate Use Policy (AUP) on behalf of the institution or system office before data entry or access can begin.

• EDUCAUSE Primary Representative at an eligible institution or system office.

• Survey Administrators—Designated by the EDUCAUSE Primary Representative and authorized to sign up for and administer user experience surveys, assign the data & reports reviewer role, and review data.

• Survey Data & Reports Reviewers - Designated by the Primary Representative or Survey Administrator, this role can view the collected data for student and/or faculty user surveys.

• Roles can be managed on the Intent to Participate form or by contacting us at [email protected].

• The EDUCAUSE Primary Representative or designated Survey Administrator must accept the Analytics Services Appropriate Use Policy (AUP) on behalf of the institution or system office before survey administration can begin.

• Designated survey authors may contribute data through the CDS survey. Authors are assigned by Primary Representatives or CDS Managers and authorized to input data on behalf of the institution. The CDS survey can only have one author at a time.

• Primary Representatives, Profile Managers, and Profile Editors may contribute data through the Institutional Profile. Profile editors are assigned by the Primary Representative or Profile Manager and authorized to input Institutional Profile data on behalf of the institution.

• Survey Administrators—Designated by the EDUCAUSE Primary Representative and authorized to complete the Intent to Participate form administer user experience surveys, designate and authorize additional data and report reviewers, and review data.

• Survey Administrator role can be designated in the Intent to Participate form or by contacting us at [email protected].

All individuals with an EDUCAUSE profile at participating institutions may access and review institutional data. You must accept the Analytics Services Appropriate Use Policy (AUP) prior to reviewing institutional data.

Data and Report Reviewers—Designated by EDUCAUSE Primary Representative or Survey Administrator. Data and Reports Reviewers must accept the Analytics Services Appropriate Use Policy (AUP) prior to reviewing user experience data.

The institutional profile is focused on providing you with the data you need to identify the most appropriate institutional and IT peers for benchmarking. EDUCAUSE member institutions can document and maintain key characteristics about their institution and their IT organization within the Analytics Services Portal. Institutional profiles are prepopulated with existing CDS and Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) data where possible. This resource is open year-round for members to update as needed and when desired. Members at institutions with completed profiles gain immediate access to a network of peer institutions, as well as access to CDS data.

The institutional profile has two sections, the demographic profile and the technology profile. The profiles reach 100% completion status when all fields have a response that was submitted within the last year. Completion of the demographic profile is required for access to custom peer grouping, and CDS data. Completion of the technology profile is required to connect with peers about technology insights.

To gain access to CDS data your institution must complete the 2024 CDS survey and the demographic portion of the Institutional Profile. This will unlock access to the CDS data and the benchmark resources dashboards.

To see your previous responses, go to the Submit and Edit Responses page. In the section for each module, use the "View Responses" dropdown to view each survey module you've completed since 2015.

Sometimes authors want to go into a submitted survey and revise their previously submitted responses. On the Submit & Edit Responses page within the Analytics Services Portal, click “Revise Module” to update survey responses. If you choose to revise data, your originally submitted data will be kept intact until you submit a revision. New responses will be reflected in the View Responses > View Current Year Responses view of the survey within 24 hours.

Yes. Use the "View Responses" dropdown on the Submit and Edit Responses page in the Analytics Services Portal to access all current and previously submitted responses. Once your survey shows up as complete, a "View Current Year Responses" link will appear in the set of actions under “View Responses”.

EDUCAUSE uses aggregated data obtained from Analytics Services data collection efforts in professional publications, public documents, public presentations, and other forms or forums that serve its members’ needs and interests, and the needs and interests of the larger higher education and IT industries. Please visit our library to access summaries and presentations using Analytics Services data. EDUCAUSE also reserves the right to establish other data services, both stand-alone and collaborative, when such services would best advance the overall interests of the EDUCAUSE community.

The EDUCAUSE 2025 student survey is on-demand. Institutions will be able to sign-up for and deploy a survey to their student population during a survey window of their choosing, any time from July 29, 2025, through December 12, 2025. Institutions will be able to access time-stamped survey responses from their student and/or faculty population.

Although EDUCAUSE may use data collected through this on-demand service for research purposes as needed, the annual EDUCAUSE Student Study research will be conducted with a nationally representative sample of students using some of these data. The corresponding data collected from this nationally representative sample will be sent to participating institutions for benchmarking purposes in February 2026.

The student survey helps you explore your students’ technology experiences and satisfaction as well as examine six dimensions:

• Workforce skills and competencies
• Generative AI in teaching and learning
• Mental health and accessibility services
• Cybersecurity and privacy
• Course experiences
• Hybrid learning experiences

Survey instruments are made available for review and consideration prior to making a decision to participate. A copy of the survey instrument may be required for institutions that seek IRB approval.

Students participating in the 2025 EDUCAUSE student survey will be eligible to enter for a chance to win a gift card. Participation in the incentive opportunity is completely voluntary.

According to HHS regulation 45 CFR part 46, EDUCAUSE user study surveys are considered research involving human subjects (see Chart 01; Appendix A). This research, however, is eligible for IRB exemption under HHS regulations (see Chart 04; Appendix A):

• 45 CFR part 46.104(d)(2)(iii) - Research that only includes interactions involving educational tests (cognitive, diagnostic, aptitude, achievement), survey procedures, interview procedures, or observation of public behavior (including visual or auditory recording) if the information obtained is recorded by the investigator in such a manner that the identity of the human subjects cannot readily be ascertained, directly or through identifiers linked to the subjects.
• 45 CFR part 46.111(a)(7) - When appropriate, there are adequate provisions to protect the privacy of subjects and to maintain the confidentiality of data.

EDUCAUSE no longer requires explicit IRB approval to participate in user experience surveys. This research has been granted exemption through Advarra (Formerly Quorum Review IRB), an independent ethics and regulatory review service, on the basis of the following condition:

• Research conducted in established or commonly accepted educational settings, involving normal educational practices, such as (i) research on regular and special education instructional strategies, or (ii) research on the effectiveness of or the comparison among instructional techniques, curricula, or classroom management methods.
View the "Notice of Exemption Determination."

Some institutions may continue to seek IRB approval on their own. If you need more information about the project or need assistance completing your IRB application, you can contact [email protected] and request assistance.

If your institution decides to seek IRB approval for an EDUCAUSE-hosted survey, we recommend that you apply for an IRB Exemption because this research poses no more than minimal risk to subjects and all responses will be confidential. Institutional IRB review processes will generally require the following information:

• Principal investigator—survey administrators should list themselves as principal investigators for this research
• Research description—this research asks questions about students' experiences with and attitudes towards technology. The responses collected will help institutions understand how to use technology more effectively to benefit their students. Participating Institutions will gain access to data from their own students, as well as aggregated benchmarking data from a nationally representative sample.
• Methodology—institutions choose to participate and indicate their interest by filling out an Intent to Participate form. Each institution is responsible for distributing survey links to its students. Institutions are also provided with guidance on choosing a suitable sample size for their population.
• Confidentiality—Survey responses are completely confidential and are collected anonymously via the online survey platform Alchemer. Email addresses and other personally identifiable data will be removed from the data set prior to the researchers’ analysis. De-identified individual response data are stored on EDUCAUSE computers and/or in cloud-based storage systems and are accessible only by authorized individuals. Due to this method of data collection, researchers are unable to remove survey responses should students wish to withdraw them.
• Risk/benefit assessment—responding to the survey is voluntary and will not directly benefit students. If an individual does not wish to participate, there will be no penalty or loss of benefits, nor will it affect their standing at their college/university in any way.

Institutions may also require information about data ownership and security, data use, integrity of the survey software, and protocol. There are several open-ended questions in the survey. It is best not to include personally identifiable information in these responses. EDUCAUSE owns and maintains the data collected for the project. De-identified individual response data are stored on EDUCAUSE computers and/or in cloud-based storage systems. The data are stored indefinitely for use in analysis and benchmarking. Data is password-protected and accessible only by authorized individuals.

If you need more information about the project or need assistance completing your IRB application, you can contact [email protected] and request assistance.

Survey Administrators should begin with these steps:

1. Complete an Intent to Participate form for the 2025 student survey.
2. Develop a survey sampling plan.
3. Deploy surveys to your users (e.g., students).
4. Monitor response rates as they come in and send reminders to complete surveys as needed.

Survey Administrators should complete the Intent to Participate form. Additional questions can be directed to [email protected].

Most institutions that deploy EDUCAUSE user experience surveys use one of the following strategies for selecting users to survey:

• Survey all users: If your institution is small (i.e. fewer than 4,000 students) or if you do not have a way to select a sample of users to invite to participate, send the survey link to your entire user population.
• Survey some users randomly: Use the Sample Planning Calculator to determine how many users to include in your sample. The recommended number of invitees will be based on your anticipated response rate and desired margin of error.

You are responsible for deploying survey links to your users (e.g., students). You may want to consider the following methods to deploy survey links:

• E-mail
• Posting links to social media
• Posting links to an LMS
• Creating posters with QR codes and hanging them throughout campus

Feel free to use the best deployment strategy for your institution.

Response rates to EDUCAUSE user experience surveys tend to be around 10%. EDUCAUSE recommends the following steps to encourage survey response:

• Send a pre-survey notification about the forthcoming survey invitation and why it is important to respond. This can be via e-mail, a push notification, social media messaging, or other communication system.
• Send a highly customized invitation message asking users to participate in the survey. Provide explicit examples of how you plan to use the data to improve their experiences.
• Send at least two reminder messages and let users know that they are running out of time to contribute their responses. Survey administrators can monitor response rates at any time by accessing the Alchemer summary report that will be provided to them. Periodically checking response rates may help inform your decisions about what type of reminder(s) to send and when.
• Partner with one or more offices (IT, IR, academic affairs, student services, president/chancellor) to send a similar notification/reminders.
• General advertising—promote the survey in a campus newspaper, on your website, in online communications, and on posters to familiarize your users with the forthcoming survey. Be mindful not to share the survey link with users outside of your sampling plan.
• Involve student leaders and organizations—clubs, student government, student newspaper/radio/TV stations—to feature students talking about the survey.

Survey Administrators will receive a link to an Alchemer summary report for their institution. This summary report updates response counts as students complete their survey, providing the Survey Administrator with real time information about their survey campaign.

Visit our institutional participants page to review the list of institutions who participated in student and faculty surveys in 2024.

EDUCAUSE uses aggregated data obtained from the student survey data collection efforts in professional publications, public documents, public presentations, and other forms or forums that serve its members’ needs and interests, and the needs and interests of the larger higher education and IT industries. View publications and presentations based on Analytics Services data. EDUCAUSE also reserves the right to establish other data services, both stand-alone and collaborative, when such services would best advance the overall interests of the EDUCAUSE community.

A peer group is a subset of institutions. The Analytics Services Portal includes prebuilt peer groups provided by EDUCAUSE, which group institutions according to Carnegie Classification. You may also create your own custom peer groups based on institutional characteristics or by selecting specific institutions; these peer groups can also be shared with other individuals at your institution. Log in to the Analytics Services Portal. Select "Peer Groups" and in the drop-down menu select “Explore Peer Groups.”

Custom peer groups help you to connect with and benchmark against institutions most like your own. The Explore Peer Groups tool within the Analytics Services Portal allows you to create and save a list of institutions based on several institutional characteristics. Peer groups are then available throughout the Analytics Services Portal to filter data based on only the peers you’ve selected.

Institutions that complete the CDS survey and the demographic portion of their Institutional Profile have access to visually explore and download survey data using custom peer groups. If your institution completes your demographic profile and the CDS 2024 survey, you can access data and peer insights in the Analytics Services Portal in January 2025.

All individuals must accept the Appropriate Use Policy (AUP) before accessing CDS data. To do this, follow the instructions to accept the AUP within the Analytics Services Portal.

Individuals at participating institutions may access data completed by their institution in 2024 as well as all CDS data on record.

Go to the Submit and Edit Responses page in the portal. Use the "View Responses" dropdown to view each survey module you've completed since 2015.

IPEDS is the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. It is a system of interrelated surveys conducted annually by the U.S. Department's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). IPEDS gathers information from every college, university, and technical and vocational institution that participates in the federal student financial aid programs. The Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, requires that institutions that participate in federal student aid programs report data on enrollments, program completions, graduation rates, faculty and staff, finances, institutional prices, and student financial aid. These data are made available to students and parents through the College Navigator college search website and to researchers and others through the IPEDS Data Center.

EDUCAUSE is providing a subset of IPEDS data for the convenience of Core Data Service participants, including geographic region, sector, level, degree offerings, institutional category, revenues, expenses, net assets, endowment assets, student FTE/headcount, faculty FTE/headcount, and more. Because there is a delay in the public release of IPEDS data, we are not always able to provide data for the same time period as specified in the Core Data Service survey. For more information about how EDUCAUSE data aligns with IPEDS data, please review About EDUCAUSE Resource Benchmarks.

Institutions that deploy any of our user experience surveys gain access to de-identified data as well as aggregate-level benchmarks. If your institution participated in a user experience survey before 2025, contact us to access your data.

Individuals who have been designated as a Data & Report Reviewer may request their institution’s data by contacting us at [email protected].