1. Considerations & Best Practices in Electronic Transcript Exchange: PDF, EDI, XML
Tuan Anh Do
San Francisco State University
Jeff Elliott
University of Missouri System
Michael Maysilles New Jersey Institute of Technology
AACRAO Technology and Transfer Conference
New Orleans, LA
Sunday, July 9, 2:21 PM – 3:15 PM
Session ID: 6629
Brought to you by SPEEDE – A Professional Development Committee of AACRAO

2. Conference Reminders Please silence your cell phone/pager
Questions are welcome throughout – we will also have Q&A also at the end
If you must leave the session early, please do so as discreetly as possible
Please avoid side conversations
Please complete an evaluation for session 6629
Thank you for your cooperation!

3. Session Overview
A brief history and considerations of various methods of transcript exchange to include:
PDF Transcripts
EDI Transcripts
XML Transcripts
Additional information and resources
SPEEDE contact information

4. PDF Transcripts
Michael Maysilles

5. PDF History
Portable Document Format (PDF) released by Adobe Systems in 1993
Cooperated with ISO for standardized subsets
Released as an open standard in 2008
Adobe Reader is free, plus others
cited from
PDF is an electronic transmission of data not the transmission of electronic data. The PDF is an electronic image.
Signed upon receipt and verified authentic through signature verification and certificate authentication

6. PDF Transcript Overview
Electronic image vs. electronic data
Sending – Extract a dataset from SIS and spool to PDF document
Receiving – Institution must determine how to get data into system
Authentication – Secure PDF signed and certified as authentic using digital signature
Encryption – Provides a secure method of transmission using sender and receiver keys
PDF files can have attachments, both at document-level and page-level.
cited from
PDF is an electronic transmission of data not the transmission of electronic data. The PDF is an electronic image.
Signed upon receipt and verified authentic through signature verification and certificate authentication

7. PDF TRANSCRIPTS BENEFITS
Quickly and affordably deliver transcripts to institutions and businesses to verify degrees and coursework
Create electronic transcript complete with colors, images and watermarks that mirror the official paper transcript
Requires little technical knowledge at the institutional level
Fairly quick and easy implementation
Supported by a variety of vendors
Customer service and expectations
Cost reduction

8. Sample PDF TranscRipt

10. PDF Sending Best Practices
Utilize security within the PDF
Blue Ribbon Security
Digital signatures
Watermark background
Document expiration?
Use secure transmission methods
Vendor networks
Multiple-step authentication
No direct attachments

11. PDF Receiving Best Practices
Maximize the benefit of electronic
OCR
Templates
Don’t print, then manual data entry
No better than receiving paper?
Coordinate with primary trading partners
Use other methods for institution-to-institution transmission
Best Option!

12. DO PDF TRANSCRIPTS SAVE TIME & MONEY?
Sending PDF
Yes! Reduces paper, printing, stuffing, mailing time/costs
Receiving PDF
Depends
PDF transcripts must be imaged and data entered into the student information system
Some institutions have systems that can automatically load images into imaging systems
In general, PDF transcripts must still be manually entered or OCR’ed into your SIS

13. Transcript Processing Example
Paper
Up to 5 days to be received via mail +
Up to 30 business days to post to SIS
PDF
Arrive within 1 day of order +
EDI
Arrive within 1 day of order
Post to imaging system and SIS by next morning

14. PDF Transcript Challenges
issues:
directed to spam filters
Bad addresses
Feature questions:
Security features can cause issues for uploading, expirations, etc.
Do recipients accept PDF transcripts?
Receiving efficiently

15. EDI Transcripts
Jeff Elliott

16. EDI HISTORY
The AACRAO Standardization of Postsecondary Education Electronic Data Exchange Committee (SPEEDE) began developing national standard in 1989
AACRAO SPEEDE developed the initial format for the College Transcript
US Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) began developing a national standard during same timeframe
NCES developed the format for the K-12 Transcript

17. EDI HISTORY (CONT’D)
Both groups worked with the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) X12 to develop standard formats
ANSI ASC X12 Transaction Set 130 for the Student Educational Record (Transcript) approved in early 1990’s, with the most current version being published in 1998
Followed by EDI standards for several other education-related documents
Adopted as approved PESC (P20W Education Standards Council) standards around 2008, where they are now maintained by PESC’s Education Record User Group (ERUG)
Current version is TS130 Version 4.0, May 2009 (Closed Standard)

18. EDI FORMAT Delimited – like a CSV file Named “segments”
Mixture of optional and required fields and segments
Multiple occurring and nested segments

19. EDI FORMAT EXAMPLE SES|200507|1|||Fall 2005; SUM|U|4|N|||1|||3.33;
Delimiter
SES|200507|1|||Fall 2005;
SUM|U|4|N|||1|||3.33;
CRS|R|U||1|01|B+||||82| |3.33||CECN|801|Principles of Eng Economics;
SES|200601|1|||Winter 2006;
SUM|U|U|N|||1|||3.67;
CRS|R|U||1|01|A-||||||3.67||CVL|425|Hydrology and Hydraulic Eng;
SES|200609|1|||Fall 2006;
CRS|R|U||1|01|A-||||||3.67||CVL|324|Geotech Properties of Soil I;
AACRAO funded SPEEDE to began working on a national standard format for the electronic exchange of postsecondary student records.
NCES began developing the national standard to format for the electronic exchange of student records for kindergarten through high school students. ANSI/ASC - To gain more credibility in the creation and widespread adoption of the standards, the two groups (AACRAO and NCES) approached the American National Standards Institute’s (ANSI) Accredited Standards Committee (ASC) X12 for assistance in developing and approving the two standard formats. The committee reviewed both proposals and required 1 standard be created for K-post secondary.
ASC X12 Standard in the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) format approved in early 1990's.
Named Segment
Empty – i.e. Optional Fields
Segment Terminator

20. EDI PROCESS BENEFITS Standards are consistent
Resources are available
Processes can be batched and automated
Large volume of current institutions using standard
Efficient transmission of data with the least amount of characters necessary
State/Province and district initiatives
Sender and receiver are identified
Automated acknowledgements of both delivery and receipt possible
Transmission through SPEEDE Server benefits trading partners
Costs decrease
Speede delivery 

21. EDI Institutional Considerations
Capabilities of the organization
IT resources available
Interest level of senior management
Compatibility with SIS
Cost/benefit analysis
In house vs. vendor sponsored solution
Efficiency gains
Process reengineering
Strategic goals
Preferred trading partner methodologies
Capabilities: Do you have IT resources available or do you need to go to a vendor to support EDI technology. Do you have buy in and commitment of senior management. Will you be able to upload data into your SIS for full benefits of EDI.
Cost Benefit: If you build in house do you have the expertise and resources available or do you have a reliable vendor to provide this support. What goals do you have to gain efficiencies. What is your project plan and projected efficiency gains to offset the cost of development. Must look at existing processes and determine the risk/reward of changing.
Strategic goals – What are your preferred trading partners doing…Examples:
1.If your proposed trading partner is already using EDI and you, as a new partner, have EDI capability in your vendor based system, EDI
2. If your proposed trading partner has EDI capability in their vendor based system, and you can acquire EDI capability with in-house or third party support, choose EDI.
3. If you and/or your proposed trading partner are both considering acquiring EDI software either from a vendor or from a third party vendor as an add-on, choose EDI for both.

22. EDI Process Considerations
Technical complexity limits some institutions
Need for translation software or SIS compatibility to recognize full benefits
Data mapping can be cumbersome
Perception of complexity or lack of IT resources
Many small important setup details, but it’s only done once
CONS
Technical Complexity - While use of EDI grew and continues to be implemented in the registrar and admissions communities, for a number of reasons including programming complexities other sectors continued to use flat file structures in the 1990’s.
Translation Software - If your SIS does not have EDI capability, you will need to build or buy translation software. You will also need the ability to create a flat data file from your SIS (transcript data) and/or upload a flat data file into your SIS. The purpose of translation software is to “translate” flat transcript or admission application data into or out of the ANSI X12 EDI format.
Data Mapping - A cumbersome part of this process is the mapping of your data to the EDI standard, and also the mapping of data received back into a data format that fits into your own student information system.
Perception of complexity or lack of IT resources - In the view of many, the perceived complexity of implementing the EDI standards was one of the reasons that many schools (especially high school districts) did not use the EDI format.
Details, details - EDI requires an understanding of data file manipulation and a keen eye for visually parsing out the data file in case of errors. The data structure of the EDI transmission is relatively simplistic. This format is older and more compact than XML.

23. SPEEDE Quick ‘n’ Easy Utility

24. Quick ‘n’ easy

25. QUICK ‘n’ easy

26. XML transcripts
Tuan Anh Do

27. What is XML ? XML stands for eXtensible Markup Language
XML is a markup language much like HTML
XML was designed to carry data, not to display data
XML is designed to be self-descriptive
Tuan - Do we know how long it has been around as a technology? What industry it was first used in? When it began usage in education? If so we can make this more like a history of xml like we have for PDF & EDI. If not I will leave as is.

28. PESC XML example
High School Transcript Schema

29. XML Example
</TransmissionData> <Student> <Person> <SchoolAssignedPersonID> </SchoolAssignedPersonID> <AgencyAssignedID> </AgencyAssignedID> <RecipientAssignedID> </RecipientAssignedID> <Birth> <BirthDate> </BirthDate> </Birth> <Name> <FirstName>Kristen</FirstName> <MiddleName /> <LastName>Young</LastName> </Name> <Gender> <GenderCode>Female</GenderCode> </Gender> </Person>

30. Key Benefits of XML Content identification Enforced structure
International standard
Industry standardization
Content identification - Perhaps the most important aspect of XML is that text elements are identified, not on the basis of what they look like, but on the basis of what they are.
Enforced structure - XML documents are composed in accordance with a Schema, which defines the legal tag set for that document type.
International Standard - which means it enjoys widespread support across industry boundaries and gets extensive support from vendors.
Industry standardization – AACRAO’s SPEEDE Committee has created XML Schemas for the educational sector which are used by institutions and vendors.

31. Additional XML Benefits
It supports Unicode, allowing almost any information in any written human language to be communicated
Format uses English and less abbreviations making it less technical to read than EDI format
It can be updated incrementally
It is platform-independent, thus relatively immune to changes in technology
Tuan you said something interesting about versions in our panel discussion.

32. MORE XML BENEFITS
Forward and backward compatibility are relatively easy to maintain despite changes in Schema
Compatible with SEVIS, IPEDS and NCATE (for teachers)
XML preferred by IT because it is a format they are familiar with

33. XML Considerations
XML syntax is large relative to EDI representations of similar data
This results in higher storage, transmission and processing costs
Example 2K EDI = 30k XML (compression available in Office 07)
XML syntax is verbose, especially for human readers, relative to other alternative 'text-based' data
Number of tags = more to sift through to determine what you need for your SIS as a receiver, and to process on-going (performance impacts)

34. ASU Electronic Transcript Receipt Use Case

35. Security
Risk of identity theft, compromise of sensitive data, and financial obligation
Penalties and legal liability under laws such as FERPA, Social Security Act and HIPPA
Potential impact to reputation of your institution

36. Data Transmission Security
Encryption – coding to be unreadable, except by authorized recipient (PGP, SFTP, SSL)
Authentication – proves that the user is who they say they are (security key, digital certificate)
Non-repudiation – verification that transmission was received and an acknowledgement of receipt was sent back (transcript acknowledgement)

37. Security Methodology
Bilateral exchange – two organizations set up an exchange with each other and follow mutually agreed upon security protocols (e.g. Maricopa Community College sends to ASU)
Hub and spoke – organizations register with and transmit to a central authority that routes to partners (e.g. SPEEDE Server)

38. Questions

39. Resources

40. LEARN AND CONNECT Attend sessions Reference websites
Sign up for SPEEDE-L list serve and others
Download SPEEDE implementation guides

41. OTHER SPEEDE Sessions AACRAO Annual AACRAO Tech
Multiple Sessions
AACRAO Tech
Regional AACRAO Conferences
Generally one per year

42. Additional Opportunities
PESC – Fall 2017 Data Summit October 2017 Toronto, Canada PESC – Spring 2018 Data Summit May 2018 Washington, D.C.
Contact for presentation questions:

43. RESOURCES
AACRAO SPEEDE:
Who is doing SPEEDE
SPEEDE state contacts
SPEEDE state status
SPEEDE-L listserv
SPEEDE resource links
PESC Website:
Postsecondary Electronic Standards Council
Implementation guides (‘Standards & Info’)
Best practices

44. MORE RESOURCES SPEEDE Server: speedeserver.org Quick ‘n’ Easy Software
White Papers on EDI
PGP Beginners Guide
Recommended Best Practices (‘RIPS’)
AACRAO EDX Primer (Publication)

45. Contact Us Michael Maysilles Director of Assessment & Compliance
New Jersey Institute of Technology
SPEEDE
SPEEDE Listserv
SPEEDE Website
PESC Website
Jeff Elliott
Sr. Manager
Enterprise Data Warehouse & Reporting
University of Missouri System
Tuan Anh Do
Director, ITS / Enterprise Applications
San Francisco State University

46. Thank You!
Please complete the session evaluation using the AACRAO mobile app or the paper form provided in your registration packet. Session ID 6629
Thank you!

47. This presentation was brought to you by the
SPEEDE Committee
pesc.org
SPEEDE – A Professional Development Committee of AACRAO American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers