What is UCAS Data for HESA?

UCAS Data for HESA (previously known as *J) is the transaction which has been designed to supply data available from UCAS to higher education institutions, in an appropriate format, so that it can be used in their return for their HESA Student Record.

There are a number of fields that are included in the transactions, and a specification is available which describes the fields that will be included, and the translation from UCAS to HESA coding conventions.

The HESA data requirement is published as part of the coding manual and is available at: http://www.hesa.ac.uk/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=602&Itemid=241

Higher education institutions' access to UCAS Data for HESA transaction

Higher education institutions will be able to obtain this transaction from UCAS through a number of routes:

(a) MARVIN in a flat-file type structure (the majority of institutions will be using this route in 2007/08 but it will be unavailable after this time)

(b) odbc-link directly into tables

(c) xml-link

The following documents give details of the format for the 'FLAT' file for *J data from HESA.

Timing for UCAS Data for HESA transaction

The UCAS Data for HESA transaction will be available at the end of an application cycle, once examination results have been confirmed; this is usually late October / early November.

Structure of the UCAS Data for HESA transaction

The structure of the transaction is one record per admitted student.

The transaction cannot be split into an entity structure. To give an example of this, and as a starting point for institutions, course-related information is provided assigned to each student according to course applied for and qualifications are provided as a repeating group of fields.

Students covered in the UCAS Data for HESA transaction

Students included in the transaction are those placed in an application cycle for a given year. Deferred students will be included in the transaction of their year of application, and will continue for every year that they are a live applicant.

Changes to HESA Student Record 2007/08

2007/08 sees the implementation of a number of changes to comply with the data standards set by the Managing Information Across Partners (MIAP) programme.

This includes the replacement of the HESA institution identifier with the UK Provider Reference Number (UKPRN). For a summary of the changes, please refer to the Summary of Changes section on the HESA website.

Assistance with UCAS Data for HESA

If you require any assistance or information in regards to the 2007 entry return, please refer to the HESA website where you will find the specification for UCAS Data for HESA Transaction for 2007.

If you require any reference material in regards to 2006 entry, please refer to the below document. Please note that this document should only be used for reference purposes for HESA student returns made before 2007 entry.

UCAS Data for HESA - Reference Material for 2006 Entry - Its fields and their translation from UCAS to HESA coding conventions - (943kb Word File)

Further information

For further information about HESA and the Student Record return, you may find it beneficial to visit the HESA website.