The NIAD-QE University Quality Assurance Forum 2023 entitled “Data Science of Higher Education: Toward the Construction and Promotion of Data Infrastructure” was held on September 26, 2023, and about 440 participants joined virtually from across Japan and abroad.

The forum began with the opening address by FUKUDA Hideki. Ph.D., President of NIAD-QE, followed by keynote speeches by Dr. Christopher A. Cody, Principal Researcher/IPEDS Project Director at American Institutes for Research (AIR), Dr. Roman Ruiz, Senior Researcher/IPEDS Deputy Project Director at AIR, and Mr. Dan Cook, Deputy Director of Data and Innovation at HESA (part of Jisc), UK. The three speakers gathered with panelists at the forum venue in Tokyo and gave presentations on data infrastructure and management each in the US and UK.

Dr. Cody and Dr. Ruiz delivered a speech to kick-off the forum. They presented an overview of IPEDS from its history to current data collection system and introduced survey components and variation in data collected by institutional characteristics—Institutions eligible for federal student aid programs are required to report to IPEDS—, Keyholders and coordinators who collaborate with each other to ensure timely and accurate data collection and submission, and 3-year cyclical research and development process for data collection. IPEDS communicates with institutions by distributing weekly reminder, providing free online community, and releasing updates through SNS to improve the information. Funding IPEDS training center—one of the key resources IPEDS funds, publishing "The Data Feedback Report" annually, and providing web-based resource pages and various data tools designed for users with a range of experience levels and analysis needs were also introduced within what IPEDS offers to data reporters and users.

Mr. Cook presented an overview of HESA’s responsibilities with an introduction of UK context and a merger between HESA and Jisc. HESA is the highly trusted main data collector supporting the governments and the Higher Education sector with administrative data collections about higher education across the whole UK, where each nation is governed separately, and education policy is devolved independently. Mr. Cook introduced methods and tools HESA uses to obtain data and help providers create or improve their data, and technology support by a properly-staffed help-desk that offers definitive support to submitting data. Mr. Cook pointed out at the end that HESA’s main challenge for the future is reducing complexity and optimizing for efficiency while maintaining and protecting HESA’s core business activities—administrative data collection, open data publication, and graduate outcomes—in an increasingly volatile cyber security environment.

Following the Keynote presentations, the panelists, Mr. NAKAMURA Shintaro, Inspector at Higher Education Bureau, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Prof. SUGITANI Yumiko from College of Education, Psychology and Human Studies, Aoyama Gakuin University (AGU), and Prof. KURAKAWA Kei from Research Department, also Executive Director of Center for Japanese College and University Portraits at NIAD-QE, delivered brief presentations which provided an opportunity to highlight the current status and challenges on constructing higher education information infrastructure in Japan. The panel discussion started with an introductory presentation by the moderator, Prof. MORI Rie from Research Department of NIAD-QE, and was centered on the topics of: how data is used or expected to be used in the US and UK by Policy makers, institutional research, and individuals who wish to participate in higher education; how private information such as students’ individual data is collected in the US and UK; and the possible concerns about negative impact of higher education institution ranking made by third-party from the publication of collected data. Questions from the audience were also shared at the discussion, and the speakers exchanged their perspectives sharing more detailed operation procedures of data quality management from each of their countries.

The forum ended successfully with the closing remarks by Dr. MITSUISHI Mamoru, Vice-President of NIAD-QE.

Go to University Quality Assurance Forum 2022