The UT SPEEDE Server:The Past, Present, and Future . . .  

Sending Electronic Transcripts

AACRAO Conference#367: Wednesday, April 4, 2012  8­9 AM

Presentation prepared by Tim. Tashjian, UT Austin

Presenter: Dave Stones, Southwestern University

Agenda� History� Present� Future� Qualifiers about the presenter.

History• Standardization of Postsecondary Education Data

Exchange• Simple yet secure way to send SPEEDE/ ExPRESS

transcripts via the Internet (EDI)• Develop a system whereby schools/organizations registered

(and thereby eliminate cost hurdles)• 1995 – UT Austin SPEEDE Server put into service• PESC (Postsecondary Electronic Standards Council) –

established in 1997

� UT SPEEDE Server adheres to national standards. Can work with vendors using the same standards

� UT SPEEDE Server is PCI compliant (via ApplyTexas)� UT SPEEDE Server is FREE to use� UT SPEEDE Server website has an FAQ to get you started

sending/receiving� http://registrar.utexas.edu/speede/docs/speede-faq.html� Protocols: SFTP, FTPS, FTP+PGP, Email+PGP (GPG)

NY- 1

NC - 10

SC29

AZ2

AR13

CA14

FL5

GA2

IA20

ID2

LA3

MI1

MN3

OK14

TN - 21

TX64

MD3

1999-2000 Senders by State and Province

Total

207

NY- 1

NC - 4

SC11

AZ4

AR39

CA28

FL12

GA20

IA7

ID1

MN1

TN - 17

TX100

MD5

AL6

MS1

Canada

BC – 6ON – 21

IL1

NJ 7

OH1

VA - 2

OR23

2010 Senders by State and Province

Total

313

MO5

NM2

WI3

NY- 1

NC - 15

SC28

AZ2

AR29

CA15

FL8

GA2

IA14

ID2

LA4

MI1

MN3

OK22

TN - 22

TX76

MD3

HI1

WA1

Total

249

1999-2000 Receivers by State and Province

NY- 3

NC - 9

SC12

AZ6

AR42

CA30

FL17

GA28

IA10

ID1

LA2

MN1

OK3

TN - 16

TX143

MD5Canada

BC – 7ON – 21 AL

13

IL1

IN1

OH1

MS1

NJ9N

OR23

VA - 2

Total

421

2010 Receivers by State and Province

KS1

MO6

NM2

NV2

WI2

Total Documents Sent per Fiscal Year

0

500,000

1,000,000

1,500,000

2,000,000

2,500,000

3,000,000

3,500,000

4,000,000

4,500,000

FY1996 FY1999 FY2002 FY2005 FY2008 FY2011

� Current stats� Over 8.5 million transcripts delivered since 1996� Over 30 million documents delivered since 1996� In November of 2011, delivered 576,981 documents, a 17%

increase over November of 2010� Over 4 million documents delivered in 2011, a 27% increase

over 2008, 4% over 2010.

ApplyTexas Applications – TS189

Format

� In 1998 the SPEEDE server began transmitting applications for admission (The Texas Common Application – renamed ApplyTexas in 2004).

� Over 130 Texas schools are registered to receive ApplyTexas admissions and scholarship applications

� In 2011, the UT SPEEDE Server delivered 1,450,608 ApplyTexas applications, an 11% increase over 2010.

Test Scores – TS138 Format

� In 2000 the SPEEDE server began transmitting test scores. First SAT, followed by GRE and TOEFL.

� Four schools currently receive EDI electronic test scores through the SPEEDE server:� University of South Carolina� University of Northern Iowa� University of British Columbia� University of Texas at Austin

History� XML sending/receiving option� TREx (Texas Records Exchange of k-12 records)� Quick ‘n’ Easy rewrite

Present� XML sending and receiving� 43 schools registered to send/receive XML transcripts� Why not more?� Because no translator yet??? Schools must choose to be

EDI school or XML school . . . More choose EDI

7%

93%

1172 Total Registrants

XML registrants - 77 EDI registrants - 1095

0

200,000

400,000

600,000

800,000

1,000,000

1,200,000

FY2005 FY2006 FY2007 FY2009 FY2010XML Transcripts 1,021 1,522 785 2,119 686

EDI Transcripts 596,946 675,557 807,269 1,071,864 1,048,918

Recent XML Numbers• Mar 2011-Feb 2012: 11,070 XML transcripts delivered.• Feb 2012: 647 delivered.• - Pima CC (AZ) to UA (AZ) 336• - U of Iowa to National Transcript Ctr 11• - Central NM CC to UNM 211• - UNM to Central NM CC 74• - National Transcript Ctr to XAP and U Iowa 15

• TREx – Texas record exchange• THECB, TEA• State Legislature mandated in HB 1, 2006• Approximately 1900 public Texas high schools in Texas� In 2010: 101,501 Texas h.s. transcripts transmitted by TREx

through the UT SPEEDE Server, a 56% increase over 2009 (65,263 sent in 2009)

� In 2011: 160,996 Texas h.s. transcripts transmitted by TREx through the UT SPEEDE Server, a 58% increase over 2010

� UT Austin stats:� 2,803 electronic h.s. transcripts received at UT Austin

(9/1/2008 – 1/22/2009); 31684 total trans received (8.8% electronic )

� 4,287 electronic h.s. transcripts received at UT Austin (9/1/2009-early 2010); 27,703 total paper trans received (15.5% electronic)

� 13,713 electronic h.s. transcripts received at UT Austin in 2011

� Southwestern University (1350 students) stats:� 844 electronic transcripts received in 2011, roughly 75%

TREx HS Transcripts.� 2440 TS189 applications and essays (roughly half apps)

received in 2011 from ApplyTexas.

� What has UT Austin’s Office of Admissions gained by receiving electronic data instead of images or paper?� Use the TEA course number and compute course credit

toward unit requirements (including deficiencies)� update the high school code, received date, graduation

year/semester � note credit for AP courses (Math, Science)� update rank and class size� much faster automated processing

� Staff processes about 24 transcripts per hour (coding, logging, imaging)

� The Stamp (recording units on the paper)� Last year, about 117 hours worth of work saved . . .� This year, about 178 hours saved . . .� Next year . . .

� SPEEDE Quick ‘n’ Easy Transcript Software � Rewritten in 07-08 in Java for upkeep purposes� Quick ‘n’ Easy for Applications Software

� Rewritten in 09-10 in Java for upkeep purposes� Free, Downloadable from UT Server site.

� Initial Purpose: Print and Acknowledge without investing in an EDI translator.

� Initially (95) developed in dBASE III+, compiled using Clipper.

� Future� Capacity� Phase out PGP and email delivery

� In progress

� Open source XML to EDI translations� In progress

� PDF with embedded XML

� Capacity� Heavy increases in usage� Aging hardware� Replaced “front end”� Replaced “back end� Building in more redundancy through ‘virtualization’

� Phase out PGP and email delivery� Maintenance and support costs� Technical difficulties with some proprietary aspects� Better options with SFTP/FTPS� No target date yet, but encouraging voluntary switch to

SFTP/FTPS� No longer allowing new accounts to be set up with PGP

� XML to EDI translation� The Crosswalk – AACRAO SPEEDE Committee� XSLT (XML style sheet mapping to EDI) completed� Initial testing completed� Working on approval for open sourcing the XSLT� To be administered by the AACRAO SPEEDE committee

� EDI to XML translation – no project for this yet (some QnE code could be reused)

� PDF with embedded XML� PESC PDF/XML workgroup convened at PESC Summit

October, 2008� Chaired by Jim Bouse, U. of Oregon and Armando

Rodriguez, XAP Corporation� What does this buy us?

� PDF human readable, AND� PDF sender can embed XML; receiver may read and interpret

� PESC approved

� Next steps (post approval)1. Getting server functioning to our satisfaction in the UT

SPEEDE server environment (receiving a pdf and sending it through)

2. Build registrant table option for sending/receiving pdf option

3. Pilot test with several schools

4. Next steps: review feedback, incorporate, wider test

� Past, Present, and Future� For more information:

� http://registrar.utexas.edu/speede/� http://registrar.utexas.edu/speede/docs/speede-faq.html

� Questions?� tim.tashjian@austin.utexas.edu� stonesd@southwestern.edu