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OMB Approval No.: 1840-NEW

Expiration Date: [TBD]

Veterans Upward Bound (VUB) Programs

General Instructions for Completing the Annual Performance Report

For Program Year 2012–13

1. What does this package contain?

This package contains the forms and instructions needed to prepare the annual performance 

report (APR) for the Veterans Upward Bound (VUB) program. The Department of Education 

uses the information conveyed in the performance report to assess a grantee’s progress in 

meeting its approved goals and objectives and to evaluate a grantee’s prior experience in 

accordance with the program regulations in 34 CFR 645.32. Grantees’ annual performance 

reports also provide information on the outcomes of projects’ work and of the VUB programs as 

a whole. In addition, APR data allows the Department to respond to the reporting requirements 

of the Government Performance and Results Act.

2. What are the legislative and regulatory authorities to collect this information?

 Title IV, Part A, Subpart 2, Chapter 1, Section 402A(c)(2) and Section 402C, of the 

Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended;

 The program regulations in 34 CFR Part 645; and 

 Sections 75.590 and 75.720 of the Education Department General Administrative 

Regulations (EDGAR).

3. Who must submit this data report? 

All grantees funded under the Veterans Upward Bound program must submit an annual

performance report as a condition of the grant award.

4. What period of time is covered in the report? For which participants should the grantee 

provide data? 

The report covers the 12-month project year for which the grant has been made. This information 

can be found in Block 6 of the Grant Award Notification. A grantee must report on all 

participants served in project year who met the eligibility criteria in 34 CFR 645.3 and the 

definition of a veteran in 645.6.

Extent to which prior participants must remain on projects’ data files: New objectives 

required by the Higher Education Opportunity Act 0f 2008 (HEOA), and on which prior 

experience points are based, affect the extent to which grantees must keep prior participants on 

the project file into the future. The new objectives also affect the extent to which grantees must 

attempt to gather ongoing information about these participants. Because the postsecondary

enrollment objective involves both the year the participant completes the VUB program and the 
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subsequent year, grantees need to continue to report on participants who complete the project 

even after their departure from the program. More notably, since calculating the HEOA’s 

objective on postsecondary completion involves a period of six years, grantees must keep prior 

participants who completed the VUB program on their files for six years after enrollment in a 

program of postsecondary education, whenever that enrollment might be. The following table 

provides reporting requirements for prior participants under varying circumstances.

Circumstances Of 

Prior Participant

Grantee must keep the 

participant on the project’s data 

file for...

Tracking period (that is, period during which 

grantee must attempt to gather ongoing 

information on the participant)

Completed VUB 

program and enrolled in 

a program of 

postsecondary education

Six years after enrolling in 

postsecondary education

Track until completion of postsecondary 

education. Note that, in cases in which a 

participant completes in less than six years, further 

tracking could yield valuable information—for 

example, news that the participant earned an 

additional degree—though completing one

program of postsecondary education is all that is 

needed for the participant to count towards the 

project’s PE objective.

Completed VUB 

program, but for a long 

period the participant 

shows no sign of 

enrolling in 

postsecondary education

For the enrollment objective, keep

the participant on the file through 

the project year following the 

project year in which the participant 

completed the VUB program. 

After that, keeping the participant 

on the file is at the project’s 

discretion, though if the 

participant eventually enrolls in 

PSE, the participant must be on 

the file and tracked for six years 

after enrollment.

Track to the extent possible through the project 

year following the project year in which the 

participant completed VUB. Tracking thereafter 

is at the project’s discretion, but it will 

presumably be to the project’s advantage to 

identify participants who completed the project, 

eventually enrolled, and completed their 

postsecondary program.

Participant who left 

VUB program without 

completing it

Because the postsecondary 

completion objective applies only 

to prior participants who completed 

the VUB program, there is no 

requirement to keep these 

individuals on the file. The grantee 

may leave the participant’s record 

on the file if the project wishes to 

do so.

No requirement. If a participant leaves the 

program and eventually returns, the project will 

need to restore his or her record to the data file.
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Note for projects that were awarded a grant under the 2007–12 cycle: In anticipation of the 

Department’s implementation of the HEOA requirements (particularly the postsecondary 

completion objective), the Department required grantees who were funded under the prior cycle 

to maintain on their files all participants with a scheduled completion year of 2007–08 or later. 

While projects will no longer need to establish scheduled completion years for new participants 

under the 2012–17 cycle, grantees must continue to report on participants whose inclusion was 

required in their 2011–12 APRs. Because projects have maintained these participant records, the 

Department will be able to use 2013–14 APR data to calculate the postsecondary completion 

objective for participants who completed the VUB program at any time and who enrolled in a 

program of postsecondary education during the 2008–09 reporting year. The participants in this 

group who completed their postsecondary program within six years (that is, by August 30, 2014) 

will count towards the project’s success in meeting its postsecondary completion objective. 

Similarly, the Department will calculate postsecondary completion using 2014–15 and 2015–16 

APR data for participants who completed their VUB program at any time and enrolled in 

postsecondary education during the 2009–10 and 2010–11 reporting years, respectively. (For 

further information on this process, please see the discussion of field #38.)

5. What years will be used to calculate prior experience points?

The Department will calculate PE points using data submitted in the 2013–14, 2014–15, and 

2015–16 APRs. 

6. What information must be submitted?

The report consists of two sections, and all grantees will be required to complete both sections: 

--Section I requests project-identifying data and information on the way in which the 

project has addressed the Competitive Preference Priorities announced for the 2012 grant 

competition.

--Section II contains detailed instructions for preparing a data file of information on individual 

participants. 

7. When must the report be filed?

The annual report is normally submitted electronically within 90 days after the end of each 12-

month grant (budget) period, which is November 30 for VUB projects. 

8. How may the report be submitted?

All VUB grantees must complete the APR online using our contractor’s Web application. The

entire report should be submitted via the World Wide Web. After the APR has been successfully 

submitted, the signatures of the project director and the certifying official for the grantee 

institution/agency must be obtained on Section I of the printed APR indicating that the 

information submitted electronically is accurate, complete, and readily verifiable. Once the form 

has been signed, it should be scanned so that it can be uploaded using the functionality on the 

APR site. If a grantee is unable to upload Section I, it may be faxed to 703-832-1360. Only

Section I should be faxed--not the entire report.
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Because the APR requests personal and confidential information on project participants, the 

secured Web site meets the Department of Education’s data security standards for sensitive data, 

including improved password and site access procedures. Further, to ensure that the data is 

accessible only to authorized individuals and protected from unauthorized use, a grantee must 

submit the participant-level data via the Web application; under no circumstances should a 

grantee transmit the data to the Department or the APR Help Desk via e-mail.

The Web application and instructions for completing and submitting the report online will be 

available on , at the following Web address: 

http://www.ed.gov/programs/trioveteransupbound/report.html (VUB)

The Web application that VUB grantees must use to submit the annual performance report has 

the following features:

 A Web form for completing Sections I and II, online. 

 Functionality to upload a file with the individual participant records (Section II) to the Web 

application using a CSV or XLS file format. 

 Functionality to view/delete/add participant data online.

Online data field validations and error checks. In order for a grantee to be able to submit the 

APR, all sections of the APR must pass the first level of data field validations. Following the 

initial submission of the participant data, additional data quality checks will be run. If any 

errors or data inconsistencies are found, the grantee will be informed of needed corrections 

that must be made prior to submitting the APR. 

 A print button to make a hard copy of the information entered online for Section I. 

 Functionality to download an electronic file with the individual participant records (Section 

II).

 A submit button to send the entire report to the Department.

 An e-mail confirmation that the report has been submitted (a valid e-mail address must be 

provided in Section I).

 A button to upload a signed copy of Section I only. Do not upload or fax in a copy of the 

entire report.

In a new feature, the online application will provide on an annual basis a report of PE 

points to be awarded once a grantee has successfully submitted an APR for one of the three 

years used for PE calculations (2013–14, 2014–15, and 2015–16). 

A project will receive confirmation when the report has been successfully submitted. If you do 

not receive an e-mail confirmation, contact the APR Help Desk. If for any reason, and prior to 
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the deadline date, you need to revise your performance report data after it has been submitted, 

please contact the APR Help Desk as soon as possible.

9. Who may be contacted for additional information concerning the submission of the 

performance report?

Please contact your program/grants specialist directly if you have questions regarding the 

performance report requirements. A state listing of program/grants specialists and contact 

information is available at the Web address provided above.

If you have technical problems accessing the Web site or using the Web application, please 

contact the APR Help Desk at (703) 846-8248 or via e-mail at: generaltrio@cbmiweb.com.

GETTING STARTED

Step 1—Access the Web site. To begin completing this report online, from the Department’s 

Web page you will need to click on https://trio.ed.gov/ub, a Web site hosted by our contractor to 

support submittal of annual performance reports.

Step 2--Registration. Once at the contractor's Web site (entitled "VUB Online, Program Year 

2012–13"), you will need to register to receive a user ID and temporary password; you may do 

so well in advance of actual submittal of reports. So as to allow time to resolve any problems 

that might occur with registration, we ask you to register as early as possible.

To register, click on "Register Here Each Year"; you will then enter the project director's first 

and last names and e-mail address and the project's PR award number (found on the Grant 

Award Notification). You will also be required to select and answer two security questions (to be 

used in the event that you need to use the “Forgot Password” function). If the project director’s 

information matches the data that the Department currently has on file, a user ID and temporary

password will be sent to the e-mail address on file. If discrepancies exist, you will be directed to 

a "Registration Failed" page; if necessary, your program specialist and the Help Desk will be 

sent an e-mail message requesting verification of data on the project. Verification will occur 

within 24 hours if the program specialist can readily confirm a change in project director or email address; if the program specialist has no prior knowledge of the change, it may take longer. 

Once the Help Desk has received verification from the program specialist, you will be notified to 

continue with registration.

Step 3—Set Password. Once you have your user ID and temporary password, you may enter 

them on the site in the top box of the left side of the page; click "Log in." You will be guided to 

select a new password, then to log in again. 

After three failed attempts to access the Web site, you will be required to reset your password and 

will need to contact the Help Desk for further assistance.

Step 4—Complete and Submit. Follow the instructions for completing and submitting the report 

via the World Wide Web.
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► Section I

New to the 2012–17 grant cycle, Section I is now divided into Parts 1 and 2. The first part 

covers, as in past years, the project’s identification and characteristics, along with certification 

and a warning statement. In Part 2, grantees provide information on how they have implemented 

the competitive preference priorities established for the 2012 grant competition.

► Section I, Part 1

Your PR award number will be automatically inserted into line 1 of Part 1. The system will also 

pre-populate most of the other data fields in Part 1. Please review the pre-populated fields, 

including the project director’s e-mail address, and update these fields as needed. You may

change the data in all fields except for the project’s PR award number, the grantee name, and the 

report period. Please provide information for any fields that are not pre-populated.

Part 1.B, the Certification, allows the grantee institution to certify that the information submitted 

electronically is accurate, complete, and readily verifiable to the best of your knowledge. 

Section I, Part 1 must be signed by both the project director and the certifying representative at 

the grantee institution and scanned so that it can be uploaded using the functionality on the APR 

site. If a grantee is unable to upload Section I, it may be faxed to (703) 832-1360. Only Section I 

should be faxed—not the entire report.

Any person who knowingly makes a false statement or misrepresentation on this report is 

subject to penalties, which may include fines, imprisonment, or both, under the United 

States Criminal Code and 20 U.S.C. 1097.

Further, federal funds or other benefits may be withheld under these programs unless this report 

is completed and filed as required by existing law (20 U.S.C. 1231a) and regulations (34 CFR 

75.590 and 75.720).

► Section I, Part 2: Competitive Preference Priorities

The 2012 VUB grant competition established two competitive preference priorities including databased decision-making and improving productivity. Section I, Part 2, asks projects whether they

addressed the competitive preference priorities; for each priority addressed, the grantee is to complete 

the text boxes with concise information about implementation. 

► Section II: Record Structure for Participant List

Rationale for Fields

The Department will use the data that grantees provide in Section II to assess the project’s 

progress in meeting its objectives and to evaluate the grantee’s prior experience. The data also 

allows the Department to respond to reporting requirements of the Government Performance and 
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Results Act (GPRA) and to assess the VUB program’s performance in light of the performance 

measures found in the instructions for the 2012 grant competition.

The following fields are new to the APR since the 2007–12 grant cycle and are not connected to

PE calculations. These fields were added to respond to specific changes in the HEOA:

#27 Served by Another Federal Program 

Similar to VUB, During Reporting Year

#17-19 High Risk Designations

#20 Academic Need

#50 Participant’s Name Change

Additionally, the APR includes a new field to allow the Department to determine progress 

towards one of the VUB performance measures:

#42 Postsecondary Remediation

Also new to the APR are four fields (#33–36) asking projects to indicate whether participants 

received services listed in §645.15 of the program regulations that projects may provide to 

participants. And finally, to respond to the performance measures that involve attainment of 

postsecondary credentials by varying periods of time, fields #43–48 provide a breakdown of 

certificates and degrees and their associated dates of accomplishment.

General Instructions for the Participant List 

(1) Who should be included on the annual data file?

Please see page 1 of these instructions for information on participants for whom the grantee 

should provide data. For the Veterans Upward Bound program, a participant is defined as an 

individual who enrolled in and participated in the educational programs offered by the project 

during the project year being reported. Be sure to include each participant—whether new, 

continuing, reentry, or prior-year—only once in the file the project submits for the reporting 

period.

(2) What are the data fields? 

The VUB APR contains 50 data fields of which three are project identifiers. The remaining 47

fields are student data fields and may or may not require updates as noted below.

Project Identifiers (pre-populated)

Field # Field Name

1 PR/Award Number

2 Batch Year
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3 Program Type

IMPORTANT: To avoid mismatches between 2012–13 APR data and the VUB system of 

records, identifying data for each participant in your APR file (except for new students) must

match the data in your 2011–12 APR, even if you have discovered errors or misspellings in last 

year’s APR. Identifying data includes SSN (Field #4), Last Name (Field #5), First Name (Field 

#6), and Date of Birth (Field #8). These and other fields that must not change from 

reporting year to reporting year are shown in the following table.

#4 Social Security Number

#5 Student’s Last Name

#6 Student’s First Name

#7 Student’s Middle Initial

#8 Student’s Date of Birth

#16 Eligibility 

#17-19 At Risk Fields

#20 Academic Need

#22 Date of First Project Service

#23 Educational Status at Date of First Project 

Service

#24 Employment Status at Date of First Project 

Service

For certain date fields and for the Postsecondary Education Enrollment Cohort field (#38), a 

grantee might initially enter “Not applicable,” but in a later reporting period enter a specific date 

(or cohort in the case of field #38). The specific data has been submitted in one year’s APR

must not change in subsequent years’ APRs. These fields are:

#30 Date of Last Project Service (Exceptions Allowed For 

Reentry Participants)

#31 VUB Educational Program Completion Year

#37 Date of First Postsecondary Enrollment
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#38 Postsecondary Education Enrollment Cohort

#44 Date of First Certificate/Diploma

#46 Date of First Associate Degree

#48 Date of First Bachelor’s Degree

Fields that need to be reviewed and updated annually, as needed: 

#25 Deceased or Incapacitated

#26 Participant Status

#27 Served By Another Federal Program Similar to 

VUB, During Reporting Year 

#28 Called To Active Duty

#29 Academic Improvement on Standardized Test 

Objective (Numerator)

#32 Reason for Leaving VUB Program 

#40 Source of Postsecondary Education Information 

#41 College Status At Beginning of Academic Year

#42 Postsecondary Remediation

#43 Certificate/Diploma Completed

#45 Associate Degree Attained

#47 Bachelor’s Degree Attained

#49 Length of Active Duty

#50 Participant’s Name Change
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(3) How should the date fields be formatted (i.e., fields # 8, 22, 30, 37, 44, 46, and 48)?

Please review carefully the Valid Field Content column to ensure that the data submitted is in the 

correct format. All date fields should be formatted as follows: two digits for month; two digits 

for day; two digits for century; and two digits for year. For the student’s date of birth (field 

#8), you are required to provide the full, precise date (month, day, and complete year). For 

other date fields, accuracy is important only for the month and year. If the day is unknown, use 

15. For example, a participant’s date of first project service of September 2008 would be 

formatted as follows: 09/15/2008. If the exact month or year is uncertain, use an estimate. If 

there is no basis for estimating the month, but the year is known or can be estimated, use 01 for 

the month (e.g., 01/15/2008). If there is no basis for estimating the year, use 00/00/0000 

(“Unknown”).

To ensure that the date is properly imported, always insert slashes and use the zero before onedigit months and days.

(4) How should “Not Applicable” and “Unknown” be reported?

With the exception of fields #7, 10–15, and 50, leaving a field blank is not an option. In general, 

the format for the data fields use “0” or a series of “0s” to allow a project to indicate 

“Unknown”; “9” or a series of “9s” indicates “Not Applicable, prior participants.” An “8” or a 

series of “8s” indicates “Not Applicable, participant has not yet completed the educational 

program offered by the project”. Since some exceptions to this practice were unavoidable, 

please observe the specific options stated for each field.

(5) Where are the objectives found?

The objectives for the program are found in the “Definitions That Apply” pages at the end of this 

document.
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SUPPLEMENTAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR SPECIFIC FIELDS

Project Identifiers

Field #1—PR/Award Number (pre-populated)

Once the grantee has successfully logged in to the VUB APR Web application, this field will be 

pre-populated for each participant record. 

Field #2—Batch Year (pre-populated)

Use the four-digit year provided on the form. This number will change with each year’s 

submission. The Batch Year designates the fiscal year funding for the project period reported. 

TRIO grants are forward-funded. Therefore, as an example, fiscal year 2012 funds are used to 

support project activities in the 2012–13 program year. Thus, the data file for Batch Year 2012 

will include information on project participants served or tracked during program year 2012–13.

Participants’ Demographic Information

Field #4---Social Security Number (SSN)

SSNs are very important as they allow the Department to match participant lists with the federal 

financial aid files for purposes of tracking participant outcomes. If a project does not know the 

SSN for a student, please enter “0s” rather than enter other forms of identification numbers. So 

as to allow participants’ records to match across years, this data must match your 2011–12 APR 

(except for students new in 2012–13). 

Fields #5–#8—Student Identifying Information

Please pay special attention to the required formatting for each field. So as to allow participants’ 

records to match across years, this data must match your 2011–12 APR (except for students new 

in 2012–13).

Fields #9–#14—Gender, Ethnicity (Hispanic) and Race

On October 19, 2007, ED released revised, Department-wide guidance on how institutions 

should collect and maintain data on race and ethnicity and on how they should report such data 

in the aggregate:

http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/other/2007-4/101907c.pdf ; or 

http://www.ed.gov/legislation/FedRegister/other/2007-4/101907c.html
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Because Veterans Upward Bound grantees report individual data, they should not follow the 

portions of the guidance that cover aggregate reporting; they must, however, collect and 

maintain data as indicated in the guidance. The Department required the new guidance to be 

implemented by the fall of 2010 for the 2010–11 school year, though grantees were encouraged 

to implement earlier, if possible. (Note that projects may leave the race and ethnicity fields 

blank for prior year participants who left the project before the project implemented the 

guidance.)

Collection procedures in the guidance require grantees to collect data on race and ethnicity on all 

participants using a two-part question: first, the grantee asks the respondent whether he or she is 

Hispanic/Latino; second, the grantee asks the respondent to select one or more races from the 

five racial groups listed. The grantee reports the responses in fields 10–15 of the APR. If, for 

example, a VUB participant identifies himself or herself as Hispanic, Asian, and White, entries 

for the fields would appear thus: 

Field 10: 1, Yes, participant is identified as Hispanic/Latino

Field 11: 2, No, participant is not identified as American Indian/Alaskan Native

Field 12: 1, Yes, participant is identified as Asian

Field 13: 2, No, participant is not identified as Black or African American

Field 14: 1, Yes, participant is identified as White

Field 15: 2, No, participant is not identified as Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander. 

If the participant declines to answer questions about race and ethnicity, the grantee should use 

observation, as discussed in the guidance. While grantees should make a good effort to collect 

data on race and ethnicity for all participants, if for some highly unusual reason the race and/or 

ethnicity of a particular student is unknown, as a last resort the grantee may leave the race and/or 

ethnicity fields blank. For further details on the guidance for collecting data, please see the full 

Federal Register notice. Grantees are responsible for implementing all relevant aspects of the 

guidance. Note that the Department encourages institutions to allow all current students to reidentify their race and ethnicity using OMB's 1997 standards (see page 59276 of the notice), but 

does not require institutions to do so. For definitions of the ethnicity and race categories, refer to 

the “Definitions That Apply” section of these instructions. 

Eligibility Information

Fields #16– Eligibility (At Time of Initial Selection)

The statute and regulations governing the Upward Bound programs require that an individual, at 

the time of initial selection for the project, must be a “low-income individual,” a “potential firstgeneration college student,” or “an individual who has a high risk for academic failure.” (These 
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terms are defined in the section on “Definitions That Apply.”) No less than two-thirds of the 

project’s participants each year must be low-income and potential first-generation college 

students or low-income, potential first-generation , and at high risk for academic failure; the 

remaining one-third must be low-income individuals, potential first-generation college students, 

or individuals who have a high risk for academic failure.

In field #16, please select the appropriate option for the criterion or criteria that apply to each 

participant. An individual participant might meet one, two, or all three criteria. 

Although a participant need only meet one of three criteria (low-income, potential firstgeneration college student, or at high risk for academic failure) to be eligible, the Department 

encourages projects to assess a participant’s eligibility using all three criteria and to report 

accordingly. For example, if a participant is low-income and potential first-generation, and if he 

or she meets at least one of the criteria for high-risk status, the project should select the new 

option “7” (low income, first generation, and at high risk).

Because the high-risk eligibility status is new to the 2012–17 grant cycle, the Department is 

aware that information on high risk would not be available for participants first served prior to 

the 2012–13 project year; further, the Department recognizes that projects may not have 

collected this information on all new participants first served in the 2012–13 or 2013-14 project 

years. Beginning with the 2014–15 project year, however, a project is expected to assess a 

new participant’s eligibility using all three criteria and to report accordingly.

By adding these new combinations of eligibility, the Department is in no way requiring or 

expecting projects to serve more participants that are at high risk. As noted above, the statute 

and regulations require that at least two-thirds of the participants an UB project serves each year 

be low-income individuals who are potential first-generation college students. Those individuals 

who have all three characteristics—that is, those who are low income, first generation, and at 

high risk for academic failure--would of course be counted in the two-thirds.

Fields #17–19—Evidence of High Risk Status for Academic Failure (At Initial Selection)

As indicated above, one criterion for eligibility in the Upward Bound programs is high risk for 

academic failure. The program regulations define a veteran at such risk as one who, at the time 

of initial selection, (a) has been out of high school or dropped out of a program of postsecondary

education for five or more years; (b) has scored on standardized tests below the level that 

demonstrates a likelihood of success in a program of postsecondary education; or (c) meets the 

definition of an individual with a disability as defined in §645.6(b). Information collected in 

fields #17–19 will indicate whether a participant is at high risk for academic failure, as so 

defined, and therefore eligible for services. In fields #17–19, please indicate “Yes,” “No,” or 

“Unknown” for each field. An individual participant might meet one, two, or all three criteria. 

As explained in the discussion of field #16 (above), as of the 2014–15 project year the 

Department expects projects to assess all new participants’ eligibility based on all three criteria; 

this will include determining if the participant has been out of school for five years, has low 

standardized test scores or is disabled, so as to be able to respond to fields #17–19 without 
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extensive use of the “Unknown” option. In 2012–13, of course, for any student coded in 

eligibility field #16 as 4 (high risk), 5 (low income and high risk), 6 (first generation and high 

risk), or 7 (met all three criteria), the project must indicate that the student was at high risk in at 

least one of fields #17, 18, or 19. If the project did not collect data on at-risk status for new 

participants in 2012–13 or 2013-14, the project should choose “Unknown” as necessary in fields

#17–19. Since grantees would not have collected data on these at-risk criteria for prior 

participants served before the 2012–17 cycle, option 9 (“Not applicable, prior or continuing 

participant served before 2012–17 cycle”) is provided in fields #17–18.

Regarding Field #18, also note that proficiency on standardized tests is used for two purposes in 

the APR: as a criterion for at-risk status here, and as a measure of the academic improvement PE 

objective in field #29. A project’s response for field #29 might change over several reporting 

periods, but for field #18, the response must not change once it is submitted.

For Field #19 (Disability), disability is defined in section 12102 of the Americans with 

Disabilities Act (42 U.S.C. 12101 et seq.) and is one of three criteria used to determine if a 

participant is “at high risk for academic failure”. In the prior APR, a VUB project was required 

to report on the disability status of a participant for demographic purposes. Therefore, in this 

new field, report on the disability status of all current year and prior-year participants.

Field #20 (Academic Need, At Initial Selection)

In accordance with 34 CFR 645.3(c), a project, in selecting individuals to participate in an VUB

program, must determine that an individual needs academic support if he or she is to pursue 

successfully a program of postsecondary education. Field #20 lists criteria (other than those 

listed in fields #17–19) commonly used by projects to determine an individual’s need for 

services; please choose whichever criterion was primary for the student. If the project has 

already indicated in fields #17–19 that a participant has academic need sufficient to demonstrate 

at-risk status for academic failure (as defined in the UB program regulations), the project should 

select option 1 in field #20, signifying that the student’s need was identified in those fields.

Fields Concerning Participation in VUB

Field # 21—Recruitment 

Please indicate how the participant came to your project.

Field #22 –Date of First Project Service

Do not use the date of acceptance into the project unless that is the same as the date of first 

service. Use the original month and year of service at this project even if the participant 

subsequently left and reentered. If the participant transferred from another VUB project, in this 

field give the month and year of first service at the project submitting the report. 
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For continuing and prior participants, use the date entered in the earlier APR, even if it was a 

date of entry that differed from the date of first service. Please note that accuracy is 

particularly important for this field.

Fields #23–25

Self-explanatory.

Field #26—Participant Status 

For each participant, the grantee must review the options available and select or update this field 

as appropriate. The participant status options, defined in Section II, for 2012–13 include: 

 New participant 

 Continuing participant 

 Reentry participant, previously served by project submitting report 

 Prior-year participant

 Unknown

Reference the “Definitions That Apply” section of these instructions for participant eligibility

requirements (as noted in 34 CFR 645.3) and the definition of a veteran (as noted in § 645.6). 

Fields #27--Served By Another Federal Program Similar to VUB

Self-explanatory.

Field# 28— Called To Active Duty

Select option 1 for an individual who was called to active duty during the 2012–13 project year 

as a current participant (that is, a new, continuing, or reentry participant). Select option 2 for 

prior-year participants who had been called to active duty and who served in the military during 

project year 2012–13. 

Field #29—Academic Improvement on Standardized Test 

This field refers to the first performance objective listed in the VUB application package for the 

2012 competition: applicants were required to indicate what percentage of participants who 

would complete their VUB program during each project year would improve their academic 

skills as measured by a standardized test taken before and after receiving services from the 

project. For all participants who completed their VUB program during the 2012–13 budget 
16

period, select among options 1, 2, 3, or 0. For those who did not complete the program during 

2012–13, select option 8 or 0. 

For participants coded with option 1 or 2, grantees should keep records of the test each 

participant took, the dates of administration, and the participant’s scores. Grantees should also 

document their rationale for determining whether a change in scores constituted improvement; 

such a rationale should presumably be based on the design and content of the test, on background 

information the test publisher provided about the test, and on the experience of the project with 

similar students using the test.

Field #30—Date of Last Project Service

If a veteran is still a participant in the VUB project, enter “8s” (“Not applicable, still in the 

educational program offered by the project”). Report a date of last service only for those 

participants who the project believes will not return. When reporting a date of last service, 

please do so regardless of the amount of time the veteran spent in the program. Providing these 

dates will allow the Department to obtain an accurate measure of the average length of time 

spent in the program. If a project omitted in last year’s report a date of last service for a given

participant who subsequently did not participate in the year on which the project is now 

reporting, please include that participant in this year’s report as a prior participant and record a 

date of last project service for him or her, even if the date occurred in the prior reporting period.

For those VUB participants who dropped out of the program, it would be best to use the date the 

participant last attended a program activity or received any kind of help from the project. This 

could include contacting a participant regarding attendance in project activities, providing 

advice, counseling, etc. If that information is not available, you may use the date the participant 

was no longer on the project’s active list.

For reentry participants, use 88/88/8888 (“Not applicable, participant is still in the program”) if 

the individual did not complete the program during the project year; enter a new date of last 

service if the student has again left the program or completed it.

Field #31--VUB Educational Program Completion Year 

Grantees should follow the instructions in Section II carefully, as this field is used for calculating 

performance measures and PE points for three objectives (academic improvement on 

standardized test, education program retention and completion, and postsecondary enrollment). 

Because this information was not collected on prior APRs, the grantee must report on 

participants who completed the VUB program prior to the 2011-12 project year as well as those 

participants that completed the VUB program in either the 2011-12 or 2012-13 project years.

Projects should determine completion years based on dates of their project years. For the 

majority of projects, which have September 1–August 31 project years, a participant must have 

completed the VUB program by August 31, 2013 to be counted in the 2012–13 completion year. 

For the projects with October 1 start dates, however, a participant must have completed the 

program by September 30, 2013 to belong in that completion year.
17

Field #32--Reason for Leaving VUB Program 

Self-explanatory.

Fields# 33–36—Select Project Services

Of the academic instruction and services required or permitted by the authorizing statute and 

implementing regulations, the APR requests data on four services and activities of special 

interest to the Department. Complete these fields only for those participants served by the 

project during the reporting period. If the participant received the service, select 1 = Yes; if not, 

select 2 = No. If the project did not offer the service, choose “8”; use 9, Not Applicable, for 

prior participants. Please refer to the section on “Definitions That Apply” for definitions of the 

services and activities.

Field #37 – Date of First Postsecondary School Enrollment

 Report the date of first postsecondary enrollment only for those VUB participants who have left 

the program (either successfully completing VUB or not). Do not use dates of any

postsecondary enrollment prior to participation in VUB. If the participant has begun taking 

postsecondary courses but is still participating in VUB, the participant should not be considered 

enrolled in postsecondary education.

You do not need to provide the exact day; you may use 15 (midpoint of the month). If exact 

month or year is uncertain, use an estimate. If there is no basis for estimating the month, but the 

year is known or can be estimated, use 01 for the month (e.g., 01/15/2013). If there is no basis 

for estimating the year, use 00/00/0000 ("Unknown").

Once the date of first postsecondary enrollment has been submitted in one year’s APR, the 

date must not change in a later reporting year.

Field #38-- Postsecondary Education Enrollment Cohort 

This field is used to establish the cohort of participants who will form the denominator for each 

project’s postsecondary completion objective and for relevant performance measures described 

in the 2012 VUB grant application instructions and listed in “Definitions That Apply.” Once 

established, data in this field will not be adjusted in later years. 

The postsecondary education enrollment cohort can be set for a participant only when he or 

she has both completed the VUB educational program at any time and enrolled in a program of 

postsecondary education, for the first time since completing the VUB program, during the 

project year. Thus, for the 2012–13 APR, participants who had completed the VUB program at 

any time and enrolled in postsecondary education in 2012–13 will be part of the 2012–13 

postsecondary education enrollment cohort. Once established, this field must not be adjusted in 

later years.
18

Establishing cohorts for participants in 2007–12 cycle: Grantees that were funded in the 

2007–12 grant cycle were directed during that period to maintain indefinitely on their APR file 

all participants with a scheduled completion year of 2007–08 or later and, to the extent possible, 

provide updated information on these participants’ academic progress. (Note: The scheduled 

completion year field was discontinued in the 2012–17 APR.) Because projects were required to

maintain these participant records on the APR, these grantees should thus have reliable records 

of participants who have finished the VUB program and, if applicable, the year in which the 

participants enrolled in a program of postsecondary education for the first time since completing 

the VUB program. Using this data as reported in the APRs, the Department has established a 

postsecondary enrollment cohort year for each prior participant who qualifies for one. For 

example, a participant who completed the VUB program in the 2010-11 project year and 

enrolled in postsecondary education in the fall 2011 will have a cohort of 2011; a participant who 

completed the program in 2009–10 and enrolled in fall 2011 will also have a cohort of 2011. 

Those who completed the VUB program but had not enrolled in postsecondary education by the 

end of the 2011-12 reporting year will be coded 7777. A code of 8888 will apply to participants 

still in the VUB educational program, and a code of 9999 will apply to participants who left 

VUB before completing the education program. 

At the start of the 2012–13 APR data collection, the Department will make available to grantees 

a downloadable Excel file that “crosswalks,” to the extent possible, the data grantees submitted 

in the 2011–12 APR to comparable data fields in the new 2012–13 APR; we will add to this file 

data for this field on prior participants’ postsecondary enrollment cohort years (or a code of 7777 

for participants who completed the VUB program but had not yet enrolled in postsecondary

education, a code of 8888 if the participant was still in the VUB program at the end of 2011-12, 

or of 9999 if the participant left the VUB before completing the education program). Because 

the postsecondary enrollment cohort year codes in the download file are derived from 

grantees’ own APRs, we will not allow any changes to those codes in the 2012–13 or 

subsequent years’ APRs for prior participants funded during the 2007–12 cycle. 

Please note that the Department will not allow grantees to change data reported in the previous 

grant cycle’s APRs, upon which we have based the 2007–12 cohorts. 

Therefore, the Department will be able to use 2013–14 APR data to calculate the postsecondary

completion objective for participants who finished the VUB program at any time and who 

enrolled in a program of postsecondary education during the 2008–09 academic year. 

Fields #39–41: 

Self-explanatory.

Field #42-- Postsecondary Remediation 

This information is needed for reporting on one of the performance measures described in the 

2012 VUB grant application instructions and listed in “Definitions That Apply.” Please provide 

data as available at the time the APR is submitted on participants in the 2012 postsecondary
19

education enrollment cohort (see field #38)—that is, those who completed the VUB educational 

program at any time and enrolled in a program of postsecondary education in project year 2012–

13. Select option 1 for members of the cohort who did not receive college-level math or English 

remediation in their first year of postsecondary education in the 2012–13 project year. For a 

definition of remediation, please see “Definitions That Apply.”

Fields #43–48-- Postsecondary Credentials Earned

The information in fields #43–48 will allow the Department to report on participants’ attainment 

of various kinds of credentials over varying lengths of time, as specified in the performance 

measures described in the 2012 VUB grant application instructions. Each type of credential is to 

be reported separately, as indicated in the fields.

If a participant has received more than one credential of a particular kind (e.g., more than one 

certificate), the project should report the date that the first certificate was completed. If a 

participant attained more than one kind of credential (e.g., an associate degree and a bachelor’s 

degree), each one should be shown in the report in the respective field.

In field #47 (Bachelor’s Degree Attained), for a student enrolled in a dual degree program (see 

“Definitions That Apply”) who has completed four years of postsecondary instruction, use 

option 1 (“Yes, attained bachelor’s degree”) to indicate that the student has accomplished the 

equivalent of a bachelor’s degree, though a degree was not awarded.

Field #49 –Length of Active Duty

This field is designed to gather data on the extent to which participants in the postsecondary 

enrollment cohort year that is six years prior to the reporting period (e.g., 2007–08 for the 2012-

13 reporting year) (field #38) were called to active duty, and on the duration of service of 

participants so called. The Department wishes to know to what extent this data might illuminate

patterns of postsecondary completion. 

Field #50—Participant’s Name Change (Optional)

If the participant changed his or her name and the project needs to use this information to help 

track the student, please enter the participant’s changed full name (i.e., first and last name). If 

the student has not changed his or her name from that provided in fields LastNM and FirstNM 

(fields 5 and 6), there is no need to complete this field; leave it blank. You will be able to update 

this field in subsequent reporting periods, if needed. 
20

DEFINITIONS THAT APPLY

Veterans Upward Bound

Veterans Upward Bound Standard Objectives From the 2012 Competition

Academic Improvement on Standardized Test: X% of participants who completed their VUB 

educational program during the project year will improve their academic performance as 

measured by a standardized test taken before and after receiving services from the project.

Education Program Retention and Completion: X_% of participants served during the 

project year will complete their VUB educational program by the end of the project year or 

remain enrolled in the program. 

Postsecondary Enrollment: X% of participants who completed their prescribed VUB 

educational program in the project year (e.g., 2011–12) will enroll in a program of postsecondary

education by the end of the next project year (e.g., 2012–13). 

Postsecondary Completion: X% of participants who completed the VUB educational 

program at any time and who enrolled in a program of postsecondary education in the project 

year (e.g., 2013–14) will complete a program of postsecondary education within six project years 

(e.g., by project year 2018–19).

Veterans Upward Bound Performance Measures From the 2012 Competition

The success of the VUB Program is measured by the percentage of VUB participants who enroll 

in and complete postsecondary education. The following performance measures have been 

developed to track progress toward achieving program success:

1. The percentage of VUB participants who enrolled in postsecondary education; 

2. The percentage of VUB participants who enrolled in a program of postsecondary

education and who attained either an associate degree within three years or a bachelor’s 

degree within six years;

3. The percentage of VUB participants who enrolled in a program of postsecondary

education and who in the first year of postsecondary education placed into college-level 

math and English without need for remediation;

4. The percentage of VUB participants who enrolled in a program of postsecondary

education and who graduated on time –- within four years for the bachelor’s degree and 

within two years for the associate degree;

5. The cost per successful participant.
21

Note: To assess the fifth performance measure on efficiency of the program, the Department 

will track the average cost, in Federal funds, of achieving a successful outcome, where success is 

defined as enrollment in postsecondary education by a VUB participant no later than one year 

after program completion. 

Veteran means a person who—

(1) Served on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces of the United States for a period 

of more than 180 days and was discharged or released under conditions other than 

dishonorable;

(2) Served on active duty as a member of the Armed Forces of the United States and was 

discharged or released because of a service connected disability;

(3) Was a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States and was 

called to active duty for a period of more than 30 days; or

(4) Was a member of a reserve component of the Armed Forces of the United States who 

served on active duty in support of a contingency operation (as that term is defined in 

section 101(a) (13) of title 10, United States Code) on or after September 11, 2001.

Ethnicity Category (Field #10)

Hispanic or Latino - A person of Mexican, Puerto Rican, Cuban, Central or South American, or 

other Spanish culture or origin, regardless of race. 

Race Categories (Fields #11–15)

American Indian or Alaska Native - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of 

North and South America (including Central America), and who maintains a tribal affiliation or 

community attachment.

Asian - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of the Far East, Southeast Asia, 

and the Indian subcontinent. This area includes, for example, Cambodia, China, India, Japan, 

Korea, Malaysia, Pakistan, the Philippine Islands, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Black or African American - A person having origins in any of the Black racial groups of 

Africa. 

White - A person having origins in any of the original peoples of Europe, North Africa, or the 

Middle East. 

Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander – A person having origins in any of the original 

peoples of Hawaii or other Pacific islands such as Samoa and Guam. 
22

Participant Eligibility (Fields #16–20)

Low-income individual means an individual whose family taxable income did not exceed 150 

percent of the poverty level amount in the calendar year preceding the year in which the 

individual initially participated in the project. The poverty level amount is determined using 

criteria of poverty established by the Bureau of the Census of the U.S. Department of Commerce.

First-generation college student means an individual neither of whose natural or adoptive 

parents received a baccalaureate degree; or a student who, prior to the age of 18, regularly 

resided with and received support from only one natural or adoptive parent and whose supporting 

parent did not receive a baccalaureate degree.

High risk for academic failure includes veterans who:

(1) Have been out of high school or dropped out of a program of postsecondary education for 

five or more years;

(2) Have on standardized tests scored beneath the level that demonstrates a likelihood of 

success in a program of postsecondary education; or

(3) Meet the definition of an individual with a disability as defined in §645.6(b).

Select Project Services (Fields #33–36)

Field #33 (Basic Skills Development): Intensive basic skills development in those academic 

subjects required for successful completion of a high school equivalency program and for 

admission to postsecondary education programs.

Field #34 (Short Term Courses): Short-term remedial or refresher courses for veterans who 

are high school graduates but who have delayed pursuing postsecondary education. If the grantee 

is an institution of higher education, these courses shall not duplicate courses otherwise available

to veterans at the institution.

Field #35 (Local Support): Assist veterans in securing support services from other locally 

available resources such as the Veterans Administration, State veterans agencies, veterans 

associations, and other State and local agencies that serve veterans.

Field #36 (Special Services): Provide special services, including mathematics and science 

preparation, to enable veterans to make the transition to postsecondary education.

Fields 37-48 (Postsecondary Enrollment and Completion)

Provide postsecondary enrollment information only for those VUB participants who have left the 

program (either successfully completing VUB or not). Do not use dates of any postsecondary 

enrollment (or degree completion) prior to participation in VUB. If the participant has begun 
23

taking postsecondary courses but is still participating in VUB (for example, if the student is 

taking postsecondary English courses but still completing preparatory work in other content 

areas in the VUB program), the participant should not be considered enrolled in postsecondary

education.

A participant is considered enrolled if he or she has completed registration requirements 

(excluding payment of tuition and fees) at the institution he or she is attending. If a participant 

has begun course work in postsecondary education but is still participating in VUB 

Postsecondary Remediation (Field #42) 

For the purpose of APR reporting, remedial education courses are defined as courses in reading, 

writing, or mathematics for college-level students lacking those skills necessary to perform 

college-level work at the level required by the institution.

Bachelor’s Degree Attained (Field #47)

A dual degree program is a program of study that awards an individual both the bachelor’s and 

a graduate degree upon successful completion of the program of study. For a student enrolled in 

such a program who has completed four years of postsecondary instruction, in field #47 grantees 

may use option 1 (“Yes, attained bachelor’s degree”) to indicate that the student has 

accomplished the equivalent of a bachelor’s degree, though a degree was not yet awarded.