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Methodology for 2012 GE Informational Rates and  

2012 GE Informational Rates Variations Calculations

To inform the Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) for Gainful Employment, published in the

Federal Register on March 25, 2014 (Vol. 79, No. 57), the U.S. Department of Education has

posted on its website1 two data files containing informational debt‐to‐earnings rates (D/E rates)

and program cohort default rates (pCDR) for gainful employment (GE) programs:  

1. 2012 GE Informational Rates

2. 2012 GE Informational Rates Variations

  

Column Field Names Glossary

The following definitions are applicable to the column field names in both data files.   

FIELD NAME DEFINITION

OPEID

Identification number issued by the U.S. Department of

Education that identifies each postsecondary educational

institution (institution) that participates in the Federal student

financial assistance programs authorized under Title IV of the

Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended.

Institution   The name of the institution.  

City City where the main campus of the institution is located.

State

State (or "FC" for a foreign country) where the main campus of

the institution is located.

ZIP Code ZIP code where the main campus of the institution is located.

Sector and

Institution Type

Type of institution and its sector category, according to the

Department’s official records:

Private, Not‐For‐Profit ‐ less than 2 years

Private, Not‐For‐Profit ‐ 2 to 3 years

Private, Not‐For‐Profit ‐ 4 or more years

Proprietary  ‐ less than 2 years

Proprietary ‐ 2 to 3 years

                                                            

1 See https://www2.ed.gov/policy/highered/reg/hearulemaking/2012/gainfulemployment.html
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Proprietary ‐ 4 or more years

Public ‐ less than 2 years

Public ‐ 2 to 3 years

Public ‐ 4 or more years

CIP Code

The Classification of Instructional Program Code is a taxonomy

of instructional program classifications and descriptions

developed by the Department’s National Center for Educational

Statistics. The data files include a six digit CIP Code for each

program  (ex.: 010103 for six digit CIP Code 01.0103‐Agricultural

Economics).

CIP Name

The official CIP Name for the program’s CIP Code. Note that the

CIP Name may not be the same as the name assigned to the GE  

program by the institution (ex:, An institution offers a "Blood

Technician" undergraduate certificate program with CIP Code

511009.  The official CIP Name for that CIP Code is, "Phlebotomy

Technician/Phlebotomist.").  

Credential Level

As reported by the institution, the level of

degree/certificate/credential for the GE program:  

01 ‐ Undergraduate certificate (includes diploma)

02 ‐ Associate’s degree  

03 ‐ Bachelor’s degree

04 ‐ Post baccalaureate certificate (includes post‐graduate

certificate)  

05 ‐ Master’s degree  

06 ‐ Doctoral degree  

07 ‐ First professional degree, at the graduate level (e.g., M.D.,

D.D.S, J.D.)

Debt‐to‐Earnings Rates Calculations

D/E Completer

Count

Number of students in the 08/09 2012 D/E rates cohort

(students receiving title IV, HEA program funds who completed

a GE program between October 1, 2007, and September 30,

2009) for the program.

Annual Debt‐to‐Earnings Rate Calculation

Annual Earnings

Rate

The program’s Annual Loan Payment divided by its Annual

Earnings.
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Annual Loan

Payment

(Numerator)

The median annual loan payment of the students in the 08/09

2012 D/E rates cohort for the program.

Annual Earnings

(Denominator)

The higher of the mean or median earnings of the students in

the 08/09 2012 D/E rates cohort for the program.

Discretionary Debt‐to‐Earnings Rate Calculation

Discretionary

Income Rate

The program’s Annual Loan Payment divided by its Discretionary

Earnings.

Annual Loan

Payment

(Numerator)

The median annual loan payment of the students in the 08/09

2012 D/E rates cohort for the program.

Discretionary

Earnings

(Denominator)

The higher of the mean or median earnings of the students in

the 08/09 2012 D/E rates cohort for the program minus 150

percent of the Poverty Guideline for a single person residing in

the continental United States as published by the U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services.

Program Cohort Default Rate Calculation

pCDR Numerator

Number of borrowers in the 09 2012 pCDR cohort (borrowers

whose FFEL or Direct Loans entered repayment between

October 1, 2008 and September 30, 2009) for the program who

defaulted on their loans prior to October 1, 2011.

pCDR

Denominator

The number of borrowers in the 09 2012 pCDR cohort for the

program.  

Program Cohort

Default Rate

The program’s pCDR Numerator divided by its pCDR

Denominator.

   
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Methodology for 2012 GE Informational Rates Data File Calculations2

2012 GE Informational D/E Rates

annual earnings rate =    annual loan payment

annual earnings

discretionary income rate =                  annual loan payment               _

annual earnings − 1.5  Poverty Guideline

• Both the annual earnings rates and discretionary income rates (the D/E rates) were

calculated by program for students receiving title IV, HEA program funds who completed

the program between October 1, 2007 and September 30, 2009 (the 08/09 2012 D/E rates

cohort).  D/E rates for programs with fewer than 30 completers in the 08/09 2012 D/E rates

cohort are not included in the 2012 GE Informational Rates Data File.   The annual earnings

rate and discretionary income rate ratios are provided as percentages truncated two digits

after the decimal place.   

• The Social Security Administration (SSA) provided, at the program level, the 2011 calendar

year mean and median annual earnings of the 08/09 2012 D/E rates cohort.  Annual

earnings include wages, salaries, tips, and self‐employment income.  The higher of the mean

or median 2011 earnings was used as the annual earnings component of the annual

earnings rate and discretionary income rate calculations.   

• Annual loan payment was initially calculated by determining the median loan debt, by

program, for the 08/09 2012 D/E rates cohort and amortizing that median debt amount

over a 10‐year period for undergraduate certificate, associate’s degree, and post

baccalaureate certificate programs, 15‐year period for bachelor’s and master’s degree

programs, and 20‐year period for doctoral and first professional degree programs using an

annual interest rate of 6.8%.  Using the initial calculation, the annual loan payment was re‐

calculated with an interest rate of 5.42% which represents the average undergraduate and

graduate unsubsidized interest rate on Federal Direct Unsubsidized Loans for the six years

prior to the end of the applicable cohort period (October 1, 2007 to September 30, 2009).

The annual loan payment was truncated with no digits after the decimal place.

• Loan debt includes both FFEL and Direct Loans (except PLUS Loans made to parents or

Direct Unsubsidized loans that were converted from TEACH grants), private loans, and

institutional loans that a student received for attendance in the GE program.   

                                                            

2 The methodology used for the 2012 GE Informational Rates calculations departs slightly from the provisions of

the proposed regulations as provided in the gainful employment NPRM.
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• In cases where students completed multiple gainful employment programs at the same

institution, all loan debt was attributed to the highest credentialed program that the

student completed, and the student was not included in the calculation of rates for the

lower credentialed programs.           

• In calculating median annual loan payment, the loan debt associated with a student was

capped at an amount equivalent to the amount the student paid for tuition and fees if: 1)

tuition and fees information was provided by the institution, and 2) the amount of tuition

and fees was less than the student’s loan debt.  This tuition and fee cap applied to

approximately 15% of student records for the 08/09 2012 D/E rates cohort.   

• For the discretionary income rate calculations, the Poverty Guideline is the Federal Poverty

Guidelines for an individual person in the continental United States as issued by the U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services.  The 2013 Poverty Guideline was used for the

D/E rates calculations ($11,490).   

• Excluded from the calculations were students whose loans were in military deferment or

who were enrolled at an institution of higher education for any amount of time in the

calendar year for which earnings were retrieved or whose loans were discharged because of

disability or death.

2012 GE Informational pCDR

program cohort default rate  =    borrowers whose loans are in default    

         borrowers whose loans entered repayment

 The pCDR was calculated by program for students who entered repayment between

October 1, 2008 and September 30, 2009 (09 2012 pCDR cohort) on FFEL or Direct Loans

received for enrollment in the GE program.  pCDRs are provided as percentages truncated

to two digits after the decimal point.   

 Borrowers whose loans entered repayment is the number of students, by program, in the

09 2012 pCDR cohort.

 Borrowers whose loans are in default is the number of students, by program, in the 09

2012 pCDR cohort who defaulted on their FFEL or Direct Loans at any time within the first

three fiscal years of repayment.  For the 09 2012 pCDR cohort, this is the period between

October 1, 2008 and September 30, 2011.      

 For programs with less than 30 students in the 09 2012 pCDR cohort:

o Borrowers whose loans entered repayment also includes students who entered

repayment between October 1, 2006 and September 30, 2007 (the 2007 pCDR
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cohort) and October 1, 2007 and September 30, 2008 (the 2008 pCDR cohort) on

FFEL or Direct Loans received for enrollment in the GE program; and,

o Borrowers whose loans are in default also includes the number of students, by

program, in the 2007 and 2008 pCDR cohorts who defaulted on their FFEL or Direct

Loans at any time within the first three fiscal years of repayment.  For the 2007

pCDR cohort, this is the period between October 1, 2006 and September 30, 2009.  

For the 2008 pCDR cohort, this is the period between October 1, 2007 and

September 30, 2010.   

 pCDR rates were not calculated for programs with less than 30 total borrowers in the 07,

08, and 09 pCDR cohorts.   

   
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Methodology for 2012 GE Informational Rates Variations Data File Calculations

The 2012 GE Informational Rates Variations Data File provides four variations of the 2012 GE

Informational D/E Rates.  These alternative D/E rates were calculated using the same

methodology that was used to calculate the 2012 GE Informational D/E Rates, with the

following exceptions:  

Worksheet

D/E Rates minimum

program completer

count (n‐size) in

08/09 D/E rates

cohort

D/E Rates Amortization Schedule

1 30 10‐years for all credential levels

2 30 20‐years for all credential levels

3 10

10‐, 15‐, 20‐years depending on credential

level

4 15

10‐, 15‐, 20‐years depending on credential

level