January 15, 2013

High School Longitudinal Study of 

2009 (HSLS:09) 

2013 Update and Transcript Main 

Study 

High School Transcript Component 

Data Elements

Appendix 3

Request for OMB Review

OMB# 1850-0852 v.11

Submitted by

National Center for Education Statistics

U.S. Department of Education

Supporting Statement Request for OMB Review (SF83I) 3. High School Transcript Component Data Elements

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Course Catalog Data Elements

Course catalogs from HSLS:09 base year schools will be keyed and coded for the 

preparation of course offerings data to complement the transcript data files. The following 

information will be captured: 

School-level information

Catalog type and year 

Term system 

Grading system 

Credits equal to one Carnegie Unit – The schools will be asked how many credits 

a student would earn for taking a course that meets every day, one period a day, 

and all school-year long.

Credits required for each type of diploma

Course-level information

Course name, school-assigned course number, course department name 

State/district-assigned course number

Credits offered

Program type 

Term(s) course offered

Restricted enrollment, if applicable

Grade level(s) to which course is offered

Classification of Secondary School Courses (CSSC)

Transcript Data Elements

Information about the transcripts to be supplied by schools and entered includes:

Student-level information
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Sample member address

Participation in specialized programs 

Date sample member left school – The graduation or final withdrawal date.

Reason sample member left school (graduated, transferred, etc.)

Type of diploma received 

Cumulative grade point average

PSAT, SAT, ACT, AP, and/or SAT II test scores and date taken 

Coursetaking histories

Course name and school-assigned course number 

School year in which course was taken 

Grade level at time course taken

School at which course taken

Term in which course taken 

Number of credits received as reported on transcript

Raw course grade as reported on transcript

Standardized letter grade received

Classification of Secondary School Courses (CSSC) code 
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Transmittal Sheet Catalog

Course Catalog (Course Description) Transmittal Sheet

School ID: «School_ID»

Name of Sender: ____________________________________

Date: ___________________________

Telephone number: __________________________________

In order to properly code the transcript data we will receive for your students, we need to obtain a copy of your 

school’s course catalogs, bulletins, or other materials that describe the course offerings for each academic year listed 

below. 

<cat_yr_needed> <level>

<cat_yr_needed> <level>

<cat_yr_needed> <level>

<cat_yr_needed> <level>

Instructions: 

If the catalog(s) exist electronically, please send an e-mail to hsls@rti.org and either direct us to the catalog(s) online 

or send the catalog(s) as an attachment. If you need to send hard copy catalogs, please place check marks in the 

appropriate columns below to indicate the types of course catalogs you are sending for each year. Please do not send 

catalogs for which “not needed” appears. Please keep a copy of this completed sheet for your records and send the 

original to RTI with the catalogs using the FedEx materials provided.

Academic Year

Type of catalog provided (please place checks or comments as appropriate)

General Other type/program (please specify)

2009-2010

2010-2011

2011-2012

2012-2013
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Disclosure Notice

DISCLOSURE NOTICE

A copy of the transcript for this student has been provided to RTI International, a 

nonprofit research organization and agent for the U.S. Department of Education, 

National Center for Education Statistics. This disclosure statement fulfills the 

requirements of 34 CFR 99.32(a) pursuant to the Family Educational Rights and 

Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. 1232g).

The transcript was requested for the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 

(HSLS:09), a longitudinal study of fall 2009 ninth-grade students. NCES is 

authorized by federal law (20 U.S.C., § 9543) to conduct HSLS. RTI International 

is collecting data for this study for NCES. Responses and student record 

information may be used only for statistical purposes and will not be disclosed, or 

used, in identifiable form for any other purpose, except as required by law (ESRA 

2002, 20 U.S.C., § 9573). Data will be combined to produce statistical reports for 

Congress and others. No individual data (e.g., names or addresses) will be 

reported.

OMB # 1850-0852 

Expiration Date: <insert date> 
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Items Contained on the School Information Page

High School Longitudinal Study of 2009 (HSLS:09) Transcript Collection

School ID: «School_ID»

Preparer’s name ______________________________________ 

Preparer’s title ___________________________

Preparer’s e-mail address__________________________________

Preparer’s telephone number ____________________________ 

Date prepared _____________________

Your answers to the items below will help us analyze the transcripts. We ask that you visit the study website 

https://surveys.nces.ed.gov/HSLS:09 login with the study ID and password provided on the letter you received with 

this document, and complete this form online. If you are not able to access the study website, please complete this 

hardcopy form and fax to RTI at 877-254-1952 or 877-653-1239.

2. Please specify below your school’s grade scale (the percentage equivalent of each letter 

grade). Select Grade Scale 1, Grade Scale 2, or Other Grade Scale and then fill in the 

percentages your school uses.

Grade Scale 1 Grade Scale 2 Other Grade Scale

A= ____% to ____% A+= ____% to ____%

B= ____% to ____% A = ____% to ____%

C= ____% to ____% A- = ____% to ____%

D= ____% to ____% B+= ____% to ____%

F= ____% to ____% B = ____% to ____%

pass/satisfactory = ____% to ____% B- = ____% to ____%

fail/unsatisfactory= ____% to ____% C+= ____% to ____%

C = ____% to ____%

C- = ____% to ____%

D+= ____% to ____%

D = ____% to ____%

D- = ____% to ____%

F = ____% to ____%

pass/satisfactory = ____% to ____%

fail/unsatisfactory= ____% to ____%

2. If your school weights certain courses or programs (such as Advanced Placement or honors), 

please specify the system you use below.

3. Is any of the information below unavailable at your school and consequently not included on or 

with the transcripts you are providing? Check off each piece of information that is unavailable. 

Please attempt to retrieve any information not routinely included on transcripts at your school from 
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other sources, such as student records, and provide only the requested information by writing it on 

each student’s transcript photocopy or printout or by sending copies of additional documents.

Student-level information:

_____ Student address 

_____ Participation in specialized programs

_____ Date student left school (graduation date or final withdrawal date)

_____ Reason student left school (graduated, transferred, etc.)

_____ Type of diploma awarded (standard diploma, GED, certificate of 

attendance, etc.)

_____Cumulative GPA

_____ Standardized test scores for the PSAT, SAT/ACT, AP, and/or SAT subject tests

_____ Date taken for the PSAT, SAT/ACT, AP, and/or SAT subject tests

Coursetaking histories for grades 9 through 12* including:

_____ Course title 

_____ Course number

_____ School name where course was taken

_____ School year course was taken 

_____ Grade level course was taken

_____ Term course was taken

_____ Number of credits earned for each course taken

_____ Raw course grade/Standardized letter grade received

_____ Classification of Secondary School Courses (CSSC) code

*If coursetaking histories prior to 9th grade are available, we would be grateful for their inclusion as well. 

There is keen interest, in particular, in identifying students who have taken algebra or geometry prior to 9th

grade.

4. Please specify below how your school calculates Grade Point Average (GPA), including whether all 

courses are included in the calculation or only academic courses.

5. For 2012-2013, how many credits did a student in this school earn for a course that meets every day for a 

single class period throughout the school year (or is equivalent to such a course)? _______ credits. 

If this changed during the past four years, please also answer the question for each of the school years below:

2009-2010: _______ credits

2010-2011: _______ credits

2011-2012: _______ credits

6. Please specify below what term system your school uses (e.g., year, semesters, quarters, trimesters, etc.). 

7. Please send course catalogs, course descriptions, or equivalent documents for the school years 

listed below. Place a checkmark next to the school year(s) for which you are sending a course 

catalog. If you are unable to provide a course catalog, please provide a reason (such as “call Jane 

Doe in district office at (919) 555-1111”). If these catalogs are not available, please send master 
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teaching schedules, a catalog for the 2011-2012 school year, and/or course listings or similar 

documents. (If there are no catalogs listed below, please skip to item 8.)

«M_0910Catalog»

«M_1011Catalog»

«M_1112Catalog»

«M_1213Catalog»

8. Have there been substantial changes in your course offerings between 2009-2010 and the 2012-2013 school 

years? Please indicate yes or no, and, if yes, please explain.

9. Please indicate whether or not courses are available to your students in any of the ways listed below. If 

offered/available, also indicate whether your school’s course catalogs and transcripts include this 

information:

If available to your students

Available 

to your 

students? 

(Y/N)

Do your course 

catalogs include 

information 

identifying these 

courses? (Y/N)

Do your transcripts 

include information 

identifying these 

courses?

(Y/N)

Notes/Comments

Are there special symbols or 

abbreviations used to identify these 

courses in your course catalogs and on 

transcripts? If so, please list them below.

Courses taught offsite at career/technical 

or vocational center1

Courses provided at 

or by a postsecondary 

institution - for high 

school credit only

Courses provided at 

or by a postsecondary 

institution -

for dual credit2

Courses that are part 

of a tech-prep 

program3

Courses that are part 

of a career academy4

Courses taught online or via distance 

education

 

1 Typically provides career/technical instruction only; students attend part-time and receive their academic

instruction at a home high school.

2 A course taken which enables a student to earn both high school and college credit.

3 A course that can be taken as part of a program of integrated academic and vocational high school study linked to a 

related postsecondary program (e.g., 2+2 program).

4 A course taken as part of a school-within-a school program in which a curriculum that integrates academic and 

vocational courses is organized around broad career areas (e.g., health, transportation, information technology).
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If these courses are not included in your school’s standard course catalog, please send us course catalogs or lists 

(if available) that contain the courses (including the vocational center or other facility’s catalog if it has its own, 

as applicable). Please record how many of these catalogs (or lists) you are sending: __________.

10. Please place a checkmark next to the types of high school diplomas offered at your school (check all that 

apply) and indicate the total number of credits required for graduation for the different types. If this

information is in the course catalogs, please indicate which page the information is on: page_______.

Diploma Type Offered? # of Credits

Standard

Regents (NY State only)

Honors

Certificate of Merit

Vocational

Special Education

Certificate of Attendance

International Baccalaureate

Other (specify)

11. Please provide below (or on additional pages) any information about the transcripts or course catalogs 

you are providing that would be helpful in processing them, including keys to abbreviations on the 

transcripts.

Please call RTI toll-free at 1-866-253-1063 or e-mail us at hsls@rti.org if you have any questions/concerns. Thank 

you for your help. We appreciate your cooperation.