June 2014U.S. Department of Education

Software Vendors Webinar

COD Update for Software Vendors

Sarah UtzDirect Loan DivisionFederal Student AidSarah.Utz@ed.gov

202-377-3140

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• COD Release April 2014 Recap• COD Release June 2014 Update• Future Enhancements• Top Direct Loan COD Edits• COD Technical Reference Updates• Exchanging Data Between the Financial Aid

Office and the Business Office• Enrollment School Code

Agenda

On April 14, 2014, COD implemented the 2014-2015 Award Year with the following functionality:• New Award Year Setup• Direct Subsidized Loan Usage Limit

150% subsidized usage tags and dataEnforcement of the 150% subsidized usage time

limit• Full XML Common Record schema validation

New Schema 4.0a

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COD Release April 2014 Recap

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COD Release April 2014 Recap

2014-2015 includes:• Common Record response files returned in schema of

submission• Award year designator is “15”

Loan ID Agreement To Serve (ATS) ID Master Promissory Note (MPN) ID Message Classes for System Generate Files

New Award Year Setup

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COD Release April 2014 Recap

• Award Block• <PublishedPgmLengthYears> or <PublishedPgmLengthMonths> or

<PublishedPgmLengthWeeks>• <WeeksProgramsAcademicYear> (in specific cases)• <SpecialPrograms> (in specific cases)• <ProgramCredentialLevel>

• Disbursement Block• <PaymentPeriodStartDate>• <ProgramCIPCode>

• http://nces.ed.gov/ipeds/cipcode/Default.aspx?y=55• <EnrollmentStatus>

Submitted by schools

150% Subsidized Usage Limit tags

Further details can be found in the 2014-2015

COD Technical Reference (Volume II, Sections 1 and

3)

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• Person Block• <SubsidizedUsageLimitApplies>• <SumActualSubUsagePeriods> or

<SumActualNonCredTeacherCertSubUsagePeriods>

• Award Block• <CalculatedPublishedPgmLengthYears> • <AcademicYearLength> • <LoanPeriodLength> • <MaxSubEligibilityPeriod>

Unsubsidized Category• <AnticipatedSubUsagePeriod> or <ActualSubUsagePeriod> • < SumAnticipatedSubUsagePeriods> or <SumActualSubUsagePeriods>

(Person Block}• < RemainingAnticipatedSubEligibilityPeriod> or <

RemainingActualSubEligibilityPeriod>

Returned in Response

COD Release April 2014 Recap150% Subsidized Usage Limit tags

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• Award BlockNon-Credential Teacher Certification Category

• < AnticipatedNonCredTeacherCertSubUsagePeriod> or < ActualNonCredTeacherCertSubUsagePeriod>

• < SumAnticipatedNonCredTeacherCertSubUsagePeriods> or <SumActualNonCredTeacherCertSubUsagePeriods> (Person Block)

• < RemainingAnticipatedNonCredTeacherCertSubEligibilityPeriod> or< RemainingActualNonCredTeacherCertSubEligibilityPeriod>

Returned in Response

COD Release April 2014 Recap150% Subsidized Usage Limit tags

Further details can be found in the 2014-2015

COD Technical Reference (Volume II, Sections 1 and

3)

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COD Release April 2014 Recap

New system generated message classes:• CRSU15OP (2014-2015 Award Year)• CRSU14OP (2013-2014 Award Year)• CRSU13OP (2012-2013 Award Year)• CRSU12OP (2011-2012 Award Year)• CRSU11OP (2010-2011 Award Year)

Returned will all awards at a school that have a Subsidized Usage Calculation change, but no school reported updates processed on that day

Subsidized Usage Limit - New Schema 4.0a

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The following new fields will be added to the Direct Loan Rebuild file:

COD Release April 2014 RecapDL Rebuild Changes

Origination Record Disbursement RecordCalculated Published Program Length Years Payment Period Start Date

Special Program Indicator Program CIP code

Program Credential Level Enrollment Status

Weeks Programs Academic Year

Sum Actual Subsidized Usage Period

Actual Subsidized Usage Period

Max Subsidized Eligibility Period

Remaining Subsidized Eligibility Period

Sum Actual Non-Cred Teacher Cert Subsidized Usage Period

Actual Non-Cred Teacher Cert Subsidized Usage Period

Remaining Non-Cred Teacher Cert Subsidized Eligibility PeriodThe existing fields in the DL Rebuild file remain in their original position prior to April 2014 and the new fields will be added to the end of the file. The new Origination and Disbursement file length will be 1200. Prior year Rebuild files have spaces.

Edit Program Trigger

Reject 202 DL Cannot submit more than one tag for Published Program Length (Years, Months or Weeks)

Reject 203 DL Incorrect Special Program submitted

Reject 206 DL Sub Remaining Subsidized Eligibility Period is less than zero for this award

Warning 207

DL Sub Maintenance to this tag may have caused the Remaining Subsidized Eligibility Period to drop below zero for this award

Reject 208 DL Incorrect Student Level Code submitted

Reject 209 DL Invalid value submitted for Weeks Programs Academic Year

Note: “Maintenance Record” and “Change Record” are synonymous

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COD Release April 2014 RecapNew Award Level Edits

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• Non-Credential Teacher Certification comma delimited files

• Subsidized Loans reported for prior years• First time borrowers enrolled in Non-

Credential Teacher Certification Programs• T = Non-Credential Teacher Certification

subsidized usage• Message Class NCTCMYIN• See COD Technical Reference

Implementation Guide Page II - 1 – 179,

COD Release April 2014 RecapReporting Non-Credential Teacher Certification

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• Identifies first time borrowers whose subsidized usage has changed within the past week Maximum Eligibility Period Usage Period Remaining Eligibility Period

• COD website NewsBox Weekly CSV format Schools can choose to receive or not receive

COD Release April 2014 RecapDirect Subsidized Loan Usage Change report

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• New validation is based on the published Common Record XML schema version COD will return edits 210 (Reject) or 211 (Warning) on

documents which fail full schema validation Enforced: 3.0d, 3.0e, and 4.0a Retiring: 2.0e, 3.0a, 3.0b, and 3.0c

COD Release April 2014 Recap

For inquiries regarding XML schema enforcement contact: codsupport@ed.gov

Full Schema Validation

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Fall 2013 the Common Record Layout portion of the COD Technical Reference was restructured and the new format includes:

• New columns outlining the minimum length required for fields, whether or not a field is nillable, and field sequencing requirements

• A column specifically indicating values that are valid per the schema for each field

COD Release April 2014 RecapFull Schema Validation

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XML Schema ValidationXML Error Type Error Description

cvc-maxLength-valid String is too longcvc-datatype-valid.1.2.1 Value is not valid for data typecvc-attribute.3 Required attribute missingcvc-minLength-valid String is too shortcvc-enumeration-valid Value not in set of valid optionscvc-type.3.1.3 Element not validcvc-complex-type.3.2.2 Attribute 'xsi:schemaLocation' is not allowed to appear in elementcvc-elt.3.1 Required value missingcvc-complex-type.2.3 Element contains children, but is defined as element-onlycvc-length-valid String length is wrong (length has to be exact)cvc-minInclusive-valid Number is too smallcvc-pattern-valid String format wrongcvc-complex-type.2.2 Element contains no subelement whereas one is expectedcvc-maxInclusive-valid Number is too largeGeneral File Formatting e.g.

-Invalid character or invalid byte - Document contains non-UTF8 characters,-Content not allowed before <?xml tag,-Content is not allowed in trailing section - 0xFF character after </CommonRecord>-Opening tag exists but end tag is missing-xsi:nil doesn't have ="true" but uses HTML escape sequence for double quote instead ( xsi:nil=&quot;true&quot)-XML version is not supported (needs to be 1.0) - <?xml version="3.0"?>; version 3.0 does not exist-XML document structures must start and end within the same entity - <tag1>value<tag2>-XML does not begin with <?xml-Catastrophic xml formatting error, e.g. file is email message

Partial Validation – failure results in reject edit 210

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XML Schema Validation

Common errors: • Submitting tags out of order (Edit 211)• Submitting a string longer than the posted maximum length

value specified by the COD XML Schema (Edit 210)• Submitting an integer or decimal outside of the posted value

range specified by the COD XML Schema (Edit 210)• Neglecting to submit a required tag within a complex

element (for example, <City> in the <PermanentAddress> block) (Edit 210)

• Submitting tag names that do match the COD XML Schema (tag names are case-sensitive) (Edit 210)

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XML Schema Validation

• COD Update (05/30/2014):• “COD System Warning Edit 211 (5/20/14)” http://

ifap.ed.gov/eannouncements/attachments/053014CODProcUpdate.pdf

• Schema Validation Instructions: http://www.ifap.ed.gov/codxmlschema/attachments/CODGuidetoFullyValidXMLDocuments.pdf

• 4.0a Schema: http://ifap.ed.gov/codxmlschema/CODXMLSchema4pt0a.html

• Previous schema versions: http://www.ifap.ed.gov/ifap/codXMLSchema.jsp

When trying to determine why a file failed schema validation, use the file the school sent to COD, not the response file.

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COD Release June 2014 Update

June 26, 2014 the following will be implemented:• Direct PLUS Loan borrowers with a foreign

reported as his/her permanent address • Will begin using the borrower’s temporary address if

it is a domestic• New Warning Edit 214

• New Master Promissory Notes (Sub/Unsub & PLUS)

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Increased Loan Origination Fees

• Apply to loans with the Earliest Disbursement Date (EDD) on or after October 1, 2014 and before October 1, 2015.

Loan Type Prior Rate New Rate

Subsidized Loans 1.072% 1.073%

Unsubsidized Loans 1.072% 1.073%

Direct PLUS Loans 4.288% 4.292%

Note: Existing calculation and truncation rules remain

the same

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Other Sequester Changes

• A TEACH Grant where the first disbursement is on or after October 1, 2014 and before October 1, 2015 requires a reduction of 7.3 percent from the award amount for which the student would otherwise have been eligible

• An Iraq-Afghanistan Service Grant where the first disbursement is on or after October 1, 2014 and before October 1, 2015 requires a reduction of 7.3 percent from the award amount for which the student would otherwise have been eligible (i.e., the maximum Federal Pell Grant award amount for the relevant award year).

https://ifap.ed.gov/dpcletters/GEN1410.html

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COD Future Enhancements –

Origination Fee Percentage Changes:• Earliest Disbursement Date (EDD) will continue to be

used to determine the correct percentages.• COD system will reject a DLS, DLU, or DLP award with

new Edit 213 when:• the award has a disbursement that has a DRI of

‘True’ AND• the EDD for the award is on or after the FSA

anticipates the fees to change• COD will update origination fee percentages and

disbursement amounts on loans reported with only anticipated disbursements• New system generated responses intended for

school import to update records.

Mid-September 2014

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COD Future Enhancements

• Message Classes for the New System Generated Response:• CROF15OP (2014-2015 Award Year)• CROF14OP (2013-2014 Award Year)• CROF13OP (2012-2013 Award Year)• CROF12OP (2011-2012 Award Year)

Origination Fee Percentage Changes:

Edit Message # of Triggers

R-994 Missing Value 519,061

R-996 Invalid Value 390,409

Top Direct Loan COD Edits

* Data as of 5/9/2014

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Edits for Award Year 2013-2014

Edits for Award Year 2014-2015Edit Message # of

Triggers

R-994 Missing Value 85,379

R-996 Invalid Value 21,410

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COD Technical Reference Updates

Date Technical Reference Updates

May 2014 Revised Technical Reference was posted based on Summer and Fall 2014 system modifications

Exchanging Data Between the Financial Aid Office and the Business

Office

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Processing Flexibility

Actual disbursement data can be transmitted to COD up to 7 days prior to the actual disbursement date

• Ensures funds will be available to draw from G5 on the actual date of disbursement

• “Records First” process, i.e., the Pell Grant Program and Direct Loan HCM 1 schools MUST have accepted disbursement data in COD to establish and/or increase their Current Funding Level

• In some cases the date of submission to COD is reflected in the business office as the actual date of disbursement in error

• The actual date of disbursement MUST be consistent between COD, the Financial Aid Office, and the student account

• Can be a “review finding”

Enrollment School Code

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Enrollment School Code

The <EnrollmentSchoolCode> tag seems to still be a “mystery” to some schools…

• The <EnrollmentSchoolCode> tag indicates the physical location where the student is attending class

• Must be reported with each actual disbursement submitted to COD

• Some vendor software does NOT identify this tag clearly • A back-end process combines the first six digits of

the OPE ID and a branch campus ID• An OPE ID is NOT 6-digits…some vendor software

does NOT identify the OPE ID correctly

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Contact InformationCOD School Relations Center

Email: CODSupport@ed.gov

URL: http://www.cod.ed.gov

Phone - Direct Loans: (800) 848-0978

Phone - Grants: (800) 474-7268

Appendix

The new <SpecialPrograms> tags.

Value Description

A Selective Admission Associate Program

B Bachelor’s Degree Completion Program

N Not Applicable

P Preparatory Coursework Graduate Professional Program

T Non-Credential Teacher Certification Program

U Preparatory Coursework Undergraduate Program

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New Schema 4.0ASpecial Programs Values

COD validates the <SpecialPrograms> tag against Grade Level on an incoming loan.

Special Programs Tag Value Valid Grade Levels

Sel Adm Assoc Prog A 0-5

Bach Deg Completion Prgm B 0-5

Not Applicable N N/A

Prep Grad P 5

Teacher Cert T 5

Prep Undergrad U 1, 0

Tag Not Submitted N/A N/A

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COD Release April 2014 RecapSULA Phase II - New Schema 4.0a

The <ProgramCredentialLevel> tag will assist in validating the type/length of program

Description Program Credential Level

Student Level Code

Undergraduate certificate or diploma 01 0-5 (Undergraduate)

Associate’s degree 02 0-5 (Undergraduate)

Bachelor’s degree 03 0-5 (Undergraduate)

Post Baccalaureate certificate 04 0-5 (Undergraduate)

Master’s degree 05 6-7 (Graduate)

Doctoral degree 06 6-7 (Graduate)

First Professional degree 07 6-7 (Graduate)

Graduate/Professional certificate 08 6-7 (Graduate)

Non-credential programs (preparatory coursework/teacher certification)

99 0-5 (Undergraduate)

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COD Release April 2014 RecapSULA Phase II - New Schema 4.0a

Edit Program Trigger

Reject 204 DL & TEACH

Incorrect Program CIP Code submitted

Reject 205 DL Payment Period Start Date is outside the Award Begin and End dates

Reject 207 DL Sub For HCM/Reimbursement schools, sequence issues

Existing Edit 994 and Edit 996 will be triggered if a value is missing or not

valid

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COD Release April 2014 RecapNew Disbursement Level Edits