[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 171 (Wednesday, September 2, 2020)]
[Notices]
[Page 54539]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-19423]



[[Page 54539]]

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DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

[Docket No.: 1850-0631]


Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request; 2020/
22 Beginning Postsecondary Students (BPS:20/22) Field Test

AGENCY: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), Department of 
Education (ED).

ACTION: Notice.

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SUMMARY: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, ED is 
proposing a new information collection.

DATES: Interested persons are invited to submit comments on or before 
November 2, 2020.

ADDRESSES: To access and review all the documents related to the 
information collection listed in this notice, please use http://www.regulations.gov by searching the Docket ID number ED-2020-SCC-0142. 
Comments submitted in response to this notice should be submitted 
electronically through the Federal eRulemaking Portal at http://www.regulations.gov by selecting the Docket ID number or via postal 
mail, commercial delivery, or hand delivery. If the regulations.gov 
site is not available to the public for any reason, ED will temporarily 
accept comments at [email protected]. Please include the docket ID 
number and the title of the information collection request when 
requesting documents or submitting comments. Please note that comments 
submitted by fax or email and those submitted after the comment period 
will not be accepted. Written requests for information or comments 
submitted by postal mail or delivery should be addressed to the 
Director of the Strategic Collections and Clearance Governance and 
Strategy Division, U.S. Department of Education, 400 Maryland Ave. SW, 
LBJ, Room 6W208B, Washington, DC 20202-8240.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For specific questions related to 
collection activities, please contact Carrie Clarady, 202-245-6347.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Department of Education (ED), in 
accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA) (44 U.S.C. 
3506(c)(2)(A)), provides the general public and Federal agencies with 
an opportunity to comment on proposed, revised, and continuing 
collections of information. This helps the Department assess the impact 
of its information collection requirements and minimize the public's 
reporting burden. It also helps the public understand the Department's 
information collection requirements and provide the requested data in 
the desired format. ED is soliciting comments on the proposed 
information collection request (ICR) that is described below. The 
Department of Education is especially interested in public comment 
addressing the following issues: (1) Is this collection necessary to 
the proper functions of the Department; (2) will this information be 
processed and used in a timely manner; (3) is the estimate of burden 
accurate; (4) how might the Department enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information to be collected; and (5) how might the 
Department minimize the burden of this collection on the respondents, 
including through the use of information technology. Please note that 
written comments received in response to this notice will be considered 
public records.
    Title of Collection: 2020/22 Beginning Postsecondary Students 
(BPS:20/22) Field Test.
    OMB Control Number: 1850-0631.
    Type of Review: A new information collection.
    Respondents/Affected Public: Individuals or Households.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Responses: 7,568.
    Total Estimated Number of Annual Burden Hours: 1,226.
    Abstract: The 2020/22 Beginning Postsecondary Students Field Test 
(BPS:20/22) is conducted by the National Center for Education 
Statistics, part of the Institute of Education Sciences, within the 
Department of Education, and is part of the Beginning Postsecondary 
Students Longitudinal Study data collection program at https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/bps/. The Sample Collection will begin 03/01/21 and 
end 06/30/21.
    BPS is designed to follow a cohort of students who enroll in 
postsecondary education for the first time during the same academic 
year, irrespective of the date of high school completion. The study 
collects data on students' persistence in and completion of 
postsecondary education programs; their transition to employment; 
demographic characteristics; and changes over time in their goals, 
marital status, income, and debt, among other indicators. Data from BPS 
are used to help researchers and policymakers better understand how 
financial aid influences persistence and completion, what percentages 
of students complete various degree programs, what are the early 
employment and wage outcomes for certificate and degree attainers, and 
why students leave school.
    BPS:20/22 will be a nationally-representative sample of 
approximately 37,000 students who were first-time beginning students 
during the 2019-20 academic year. The BPS:20/22 field test will include 
approximately 3,700 students who first began in the 2018-19 academic 
year. These students will be asked to complete a survey and 
administrative data will also be collected for them. Administrative 
data matching will be conducted with sources including the National 
Student Loan Data System (NSLDS), containing federal loan and grant 
files; the Central Processing System (CPS), which houses and processes 
data contained in the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) 
forms; the National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) which provides 
enrollment and degree verification; vendors of national undergraduate, 
graduate, and professional student admission tests; and possible other 
administrative data sources such as the Veterans Benefits 
Administration (VBA). These data will be obtained through file 
matching/downloading.
    This submission covers BPS:20/22 field test materials and 
procedures required for conducting the student survey and for matching 
data to administrative records. Following the field test study in 2021, 
NCES will provide the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) with a 
memorandum summarizing any changes planned for the full-scale data 
collection, and a revised OMB package. The materials that will be used 
in the BPS:20/22 full-scale study will be based upon the field test 
materials included in this submission. Additionally, this submission is 
designed to adequately justify the need for and overall practical 
utility of the full study, presenting the overarching plan for all of 
the phases of the data collection and providing as much detail about 
the measures to be used as is available at the time of this submission. 
As part of this submission, NCES is publishing a notice in the Federal 
Register allowing first a 60- and then a 30-day public comment period. 
Field test materials, procedures, and results will inform the full-
scale study. After completion of the field test, NCES will publish a 
notice in the Federal Register allowing additional 30-day public 
comment period on the final details of the BPS:20/22 full-scale study.

    Dated: August 28, 2020.
Stephanie Valentine,
PRA Coordinator, Strategic Collections and Clearance Governance and 
Strategy Division, Office of Chief Data Officer, Office of Planning, 
Evaluation and Policy Development.
[FR Doc. 2020-19423 Filed 9-1-20; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P