Unistats record 2023/24
Unistats record 2023/24 - Data collection schedule
Version 1.2 Produced 2023-08-23
The document below is designed to guide providers through the stages of data submission for the Unistats record.
At a glance
| From August 2022 | Data capture and collation |
| March 2023 | Validate data locally using validation kit |
| By 31 May 2023 | C23061 Data Collection System opens |
| 19 July 2023 | Valid data submission required |
| 19 July 2023 | Nil return confirmation |
| Anticipated by 16 August 2023 | Graduate Outcomes and NSS data added |
| 23 August 2023 | Sign off |
| Anticipated by 4 October 2023 | Official Statistics publication of 2023 Discover Uni (formerly Unistats) dataset on the HESA website |
| Anticipated by 6 October 2023 | Update Discover Uni website with 2023 dataset |
| 30 November 2023 | Deadline for up to date widgets on providers' websites |
Please note that the above schedule may be subject to change. Further information on the deadlines, including specific dates, will be announced once confirmed and the schedule will be updated.
Providers who have recently joined the OfS register
For the attention of English providers that registered with the Office for Students on or after 23 June 2023:
The deadline to have submitted and signed off a valid Unistats return is 12.00 p.m. two months after a provider's date of registration, or the next working day if that is a weekend. Newly registered providers do not have to work to the timetable highlighted above. For example, if a provider registered with the OfS on 7 July 2023, a submit and sign off Unistats return is required by 12.00 p.m. on 7 September 2023. For more information please contact [email protected].
Missed deadlines
HESA is required to report any providers who miss any of the deadlines detailed in the schedule to the relevant statutory customer. These are the valid data submission required, nil return confirmation and sign off deadlines.
For the C23061 collection, providers in England are required to complete a late form where the nil return confirmation and sign off deadlines are missed. Please note that although the Accountable Officer is only required to sign the late form for the sign off deadline, they should be kept informed of any missed deadlines. For all administrations the reason for late submission will be shared with the primary regulator or funder.
Providers are reminded to make use of the HESA Liaison team and to make them aware of any issues that could impact on the providers’ ability to meet these deadlines.
Detailed requirements
From August 2022: Data capture and collation
Providers should read the C23061 Unistats record coding manual and associated documentation for details of the requirements for the return.
During these months providers will need to load and maintain local record systems.
If a provider has any queries regarding the requirements for the C23061 collection please contact Liaison at [email protected].
March 2023 onwards: Validate data locally using validation kit
HESA's data quality assurance processes are outlined in the validation overview.
The C23061 validation kit is made available to download from: validation kits.
The validation kit contains the schema and business rules for C23061. Further details of validation can be found in the Quality Rules section of the coding manual.
The validation kit enables providers to test their data locally ahead of the Data Collection System opening in May 2023. Providers are strongly encouraged to use the validation kit as part of their data preparations.
A guide to using the validation kit can be found on the 'help with validation kits' page, alternatively, please contact Liaison.
By 31 May 2023: C23061 Data Collection System opens
The C23061 collection is available on HESA Data Collection System, giving providers the opportunity to test files against the validation ahead of the first deadline.
A user guide for the submission of C23061 Unistats data to the Data Collection System can be found in the support guides section of the website.
Access to the Data Collection System is granted by the KIS record contact via the HESA Identity System. An email will be sent to inform relevant colleagues when the Data Collection System becomes available. Please note that ahead of the collection opening, KIS record contacts are required to complete the Grantable Roles Review in the HESA Identity System. Further information on the review can be found in the IDS User Guide.
It is a provider’s responsibility to ensure that they are progressing reasonably towards the deadlines; if any issues become apparent or assistance is required with the submission process then please contact Liaison. HESA does monitor provider interactions to feed into their own risk assessments and this information may be shared with the primary regulator or funder of a provider.
19 July 2023: Valid data submission required
Providers are required to send a file which has no business or exception stage errors triggering and contains the majority of their courses to HESA by 19 July 2023.
Please note that Unistats exception stage errors can be resolved by the sign off deadline.
This schedule allows for providers to review their reports, perform quality checks and make any amendments required before sign off.
Where errors are triggering for genuine data, a switch will need to be requested. This request should be sent to Liaison by email, detailing the rule and an explanation for why this data is genuine, in good time prior to the deadline. More information on requesting a switch can be found in the support guides section of the website.
19 July 2023: Nil return confirmation
Providers are required to submit a nil return form to indicate that their provider has no courses which meet the eligibility criteria for the Unistats record as specified in the coverage of the record. The completed form needs to be emailed to Liaison by 5.00 p.m. on 19 July 2023 to guarantee this will be actioned by the deadline. The form is available from the coding manual and needs to be signed by the provider’s Accountable Officer (England and Wales) or Head of Provider (Scotland and Northern Ireland).
Anticipated by 16 August 2023: Graduate Outcomes and NSS data added
Anticipated by 16 August 2023, Graduate Outcomes and NSS data will be provided for providers. The Unistats file and other reports which reference this data will then become available for providers to download and review. From this point onward it will be possible for providers to sign off the Unistats data provided all errors have been resolved.
23 August 2023: Sign off deadline
Providers are required to have their data marked as signed off on the Data Collection System by 23 August 2023. The sign off form needs to be emailed to Liaison by 5.00 p.m. on 23 August to guarantee sign off on the deadline.
Once a provider's data has been approved on the Data Collection System, the sign off button directs the user to a web page from where the form can be downloaded. The sign off form must be completed by the provider’s Accountable Officer (England and Wales) or the Head of Provider (Scotland and Northern Ireland). Once completed, the form should be emailed to [email protected]. Please note that the transaction number on the sign off form must correspond to that of the data being signed off.
Sign off completes the data collection process. Timely sign off ensures that a provider's data is included in any data deliveries to statutory customers, as well as onward uses of the data.
Anticipated by 4 October 2023: Official Statistics publication of 2023 Discover Uni (formerly Unistats) dataset on the HESA website
It is anticipated that data signed off in the week previous to publication will be published as Official Statistics on the Discover Uni (formerly Unistats) page of the HESA website by 4 October 2023 for prospective students to view. Thereafter, updates will be published on a weekly cycle.
Anticipated by 6 October 2023: Update Discover Uni website with 2023 dataset
Data that is signed-off in the week previous to publication is scheduled to be published on the Discover Uni website by 6 October 2023 for prospective students to view. Thereafter, updates will be published on a weekly cycle. To clarify, the Discover Uni website will continue to display the C22061 Unistats dataset until that time.
30 November 2023: Deadline for up-to-date widgets on providers' websites
In November, providers should have up-to-date widgets embedded on their course pages for each course within the Unistats return.
Making updates to the Unistats submission
Providers are expected to make in year updates if changes occur to the course offering. The Unistats submission should reflect the latest and most up to date information available.
If an update is required, the updated data and completed sign off form must both be received by HESA Liaison by 12.00 p.m. on the relevant Tuesday in order for the updates to be included in the weekly updates to the Discover Uni website.
Need help?
Contact Liaison by email or on +44 (0)1242 388 531.