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- Student Higher Education Track Data for the 2023/24 Cycle is Now Available
The Higher Education Track data for Students expected to enter higher education (HE) from 2015 to 2023 is now available
We are delighted to announce that HE Track data for Students expected to enter HE between 2015 and 2023 is now available to members on the database.
Upcoming HE Track Webinar
Members are invited to join us for a webinar on Thursday 19th March at 10:30 – 11:30 AM to launch the latest HE Track data and showcase the full range of resources available to help you get the most from this release. Please see our event announcement to sign up and find out more.
What is the Higher Education Track?
The HE Track is a key element of our suite of tracking datasets and dashboards, shown as the Higher Education Data & Dashboard in our Tracking Diagram. This dataset supports HEAT members with the final stage of evaluation, analysing impact.
Through the HE Track, members can access Student and Ambassador-level data on enrolment, continuation and attainment in HE, and progression to postgraduate study and employment. This supports your organisation to examine outcomes for tracked individuals and evaluate interventions across the full HE journey, from access to employment.
If you are new to HEAT or would like a quick refresh, we strongly recommend you refer to the ‘Quick Guide to Using HE Track Data’ on pages 2-3 of the Student HE Track User Guide, which can be downloaded using the following link (members only).
Accessing the New Higher Education Track Data
Your organisation’s data can be generated using the HE Track option in the Reports area of the database (members only), viewed on the Student record Higher Education tab, and exported via an Activities Export which applies the ‘Include Students with Higher Education Track’ option.
More information on how to different access options is available in the Student HE Track User Guide (members only). Please note that due to the size of this dataset, your dataset will be processed overnight.
Roles and Permissions
By default only Users with the Roles of Lead, Lead Lite, Coordinator, or Coordinator Lite can access HE Track data and generate a HE Track Report. More information about Find out the permissions required to access HE Track data is available in the Student HE Track User Guide.
If you are not authorised to access HE Track data, please contact your organisation’s HEAT Point of Contact for assistance.
Important Information about Historic Tracking Data
All versions of HE Track (formerly known as the ‘HESA Track’) data referring to the previous tracking cycle (entry up to 2022/23) must be deleted.
If you have downloaded previous years’ HE Track data, please ensure you have deleted all copies you have saved locally. Before using the HE Track 2023/24 cycle dataset, we kindly request you read Jisc’s Terms and Conditions (members only).
How to Make the Most of your Higher Education Track Data
To support the analysis and interpretation of your Student HE Track data, we have created a range of handy resources for you:
- An interactive dashboard: The HE Track Dashboard offers instant analytics relevant to the monitoring and evaluation of your interventions. Download the HE Track dashboard via the HE Track ‘Download Dashboard’ button (members only) in the Reports area (members only).
- A comprehensive User Guide: A detailed guide to accompany the analysis of your HE Track data in the dashboard, learn in detail about the different ways of accessing your HE Track data, and how to prepare for upcoming tracking cycles. Download the Student HE Track User Guide via the HE Track i-button in the Reports area (members only). A ‘Quick Guide to Using HE Track Data’ is available on pages 2-3 to help users get started.
- A brand new online training course: An interactive online guide to help all users confidently use the HE Track Dashboard, whether you are new to HEAT, new to evaluation or an experienced user. Learn more about how this course can support your evaluation in our launch announcement.
How HEAT Records are Matched to Higher Education Data
To match HEAT records with those in the HE population, our colleagues at Jisc use five different match types. These range from highly reliable matches based on exactly matching name, date of birth and postcode, to more flexible matches using partial postcodes or similar-sounding names. Stronger matches are prioritised, while ‘fuzzy’ matches are only used when exact matches are not available. These slightly less precise match types are essential because personal identifiers on HEAT do not always perfectly align with those in the HE population, for example, due to data quality issues. Our five match types, which have been in use for many years now, strike a careful balance between maximising match rates and maintaining data integrity.
Although the match types themselves have not changed, Jisc continuously improve their processes to deliver the best possible matching outcomes. For example, they recently refined pre-matching data cleaning steps. This is one of the reasons why all tracking-eligible records are newly linked every time they are sent to Jisc—it ensures newly tracked records are processed using the latest methodology, and it helps maintain data integrity, for example, by correcting rare false positives from lower-confidence match types. As a result, you may occasionally see small changes in your HE Track data from one cycle to the next.
Learn more about the five match types in the Matching Criteria User Guide (members only).
If you have any questions about this announcement, please contact HEAT Support.
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