Data Dictionary for The Chronicle of Higher Education's Executive Compensation Datasets

The following data dictionary explains what each field in the Executive Compensation datasets mean. Some fields are relevant only for public or private colleges. Also, not all fields were used in all years of the data. If the data you purchased is updated (for example if we've needed to make a correction), we will alert you. Some data may not match what was published in print, as figures here may reflect updates or corrections post-publication. If you have any questions about the data, please email data@chronicle.com.

Previews of data sets include ten rows of data.

A few notes:

- A field containing "\N" or NULL indicates a NULL value.
- All individuals, including interim leaders, who served in the capacity of chief executive are included. Often, more than one president serves during a given year. Presidents who serve less than the full year are noted.
- Some Roman Catholic colleges whose presidents are members of religious orders pay no direct compensation to their chief executives, instead allocating money to the religious order. Compensation for these presidents may be reported as $0.
- For public colleges, compensation is compiled through surveys and public records requests. For private colleges, compensation data is compiled from the Internal Revenue Service's Form 990, which is filed by most nonprofit entities. Some private nonprofit universities cite a religious exemption from filing the Form 990 and were therefore excluded from our analysis.
- Institutional data are provided where possible. Institutions' total expenses and faculty salaries come from the U.S. Department of Education's Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System and are for the most recent year available at the time the salary data were gathered -- usually the academic year preceding the compensation year. Average in-state tuition is also from Ipeds and includes tuition and fees.
- For public colleges, The Chronicle surveys public doctoral universities in the United States and all state college and university systems or governing boards with at least three campuses and 50,000 total students in the same academic year as the compensation data being reported. (The 2010 through 2012 surveys were based on public research universities and affiliated systems with enrollments of at least 10,000, and universities with smaller enrollments that are state flagships.)
- Chief executives who lead both a university system and its main campus are listed under the campus name.
- Beginning with the 2011 Private and 2013 Public, we have included the names and titles of the five highest-paid employees, other than the CEO, at each institution. Some institutions may have provided more than just the top five. Although additional people are not shown online, they may be in these data.
- Public-college compensation data are not directly comparable to data reported for private nonprofit institutions. Those figures include slightly different categories, such as the value of various nontaxable benefits. They are reported by calendar rather than fiscal year and are taken from the IRS Form 990.
- Before reporting compensation in 2015, we reviewed data for the private nonprofit baccalaureate, master's, and doctoral degree-granting and Title-IV-participating institutions with the 500 largest endowments, as reported to Ipeds. Some nonprofit colleges don't report the value of their endowments to Ipeds, and those were excluded from our analysis. In 2015, The Chronicle tweaked an aspect of its methodology, to include institutions that primarily award baccalaureate degrees or above.
- Names and most of the titles of private college "key employees" appear as they did on the colleges' Form 990s. Some titles have been shortened for space.
- For percentiles, the figure given means that percent of the comparison group is below that figure. For example, a public college president in the 90th percentile for total compensation in 2013 made more than 90 percent of other public college presidents in 2013.
- The full data sets have the following number of rows (by year)
	2016 public: 1,373 (254 presidents)
	2015 public: 1,480 (259 presidents)
	2014 public: 1,318 (244 presidents)
	2013 public: 1,257 (254 presidents)
	2012 public: 215
	2011 public: 198
	2010 public: 184
	2015 private: 1,937 (574 presidents)
	2014 private: 5,557 (516 presidents)
	2013 private: 6,373 (562 presidents)
	2012 private: 6,498 (539 presidents)
	2011 private: 5,083 (550 presidents)
	2010 private: 494
	2009 private: 524
	2008 private: 275

Field names and descriptions:

PrimaryKey: A unique ID for each row in the data.
unitid: The Department of Education six-digit identifier for each institution. IDs are consistent across years.

employeeID: A Chronicle-created unique ID for each employee in our data. IDs are consistent across years.

chronorgname: The institution's name in Chronicle style.

stabbr: Two-letter abbreviation for the state where the institution is located.

system: Flag indicating whether the institution is a system.
	NULL: Not a system
	1: System
	2: Flagship university
	3: Both a system and a flagship university

Flagship: Flag indicating whether or not the college is a “flagship” institution.
	NULL: Not indicated
	0: No
	1: Yes

public: Flag indicating whether the institution is public.
	NULL: Not public
	1: Public

private: Flag indicating whether the institution is private.
	NULL: Not private
	1: Private

fiscalYear: This is the fiscal year covered by the data. This field is filled in only for public institutions, where pay is expressed according to the institution's fiscal year, usually July 1 - June 30.

calendarYear: This is the calendar year covered by the data. This field is filled in only for private institutions, where pay is expressed according to the calendar year, Jan. 1 - Dec. 31.

employeeName: Combined first, middle and last name of the employee.

nameSort: Employee's name in last-name sorted order (last name, first name, middle name/initial).

employeeTitle: Employee's title.

partialYear: Flag indicating whether the president served less than a full year for the year in question.
	0: Not partial year
	1: Partial year

positionCategory: Coded categorization for each employee.
	1: President, CEO or chancellor
	2: Athletic department employee, including coaches, athletic directors, etc.
	3: Academic, including professors, deans (not including medicine or law), provosts, etc.
	4: Administrators, including vice presidents.
	5: Medical personnel, including doctors, medical deans, etc.
	6: Lawyers, including law school deans and general counsels.
	7: Former employees (may include some former presidents who aren't coded 8)
	8: Former presidents, CEOs or chancellors

totalComp: Total compensation for the employee. Does not include "deferredCompSetAside" or "retirement." For publics, starting in 2016 this includes nontaxable benefits, which was not gathered for publics prior to 2016.

totalCompRank: For each year's group of public or private colleges, this is the ranking, based on total compensation.

totalCompPercentile: Among the colleges in each grouping (public/private and year), percentile ranking of the total compensation of the president.

baseSalary: For public colleges, this is the salary provided to the chief executive, including compensation from private university-related foundations. For private colleges, this is salary plus sick pay paid by the employer and employee contributions to a 401(k) or 403(b) plan.

baseSalaryPercentile: Among the colleges in each grouping (public/private and year), percentile ranking of the base compensation of the president.

bonus: The value of all bonuses and incentive compensation paid out to the chief executive, including incentive pay and signing bonuses.

severance: Payments made to the chief executive upon his or her resignation or firing, as determined by his or her contract, separation agreement, or a legal settlement. This can include severance pay, unused vacation pay, or other agreed-upon separation pay.

otherComp: Miscellaneous pay and benefits, including severance payments, tax gross-ups (money an employer provides an employee for taxes paid on benefits), vacation leave cashed out, debt forgiveness, fellowships, employer-provided vehicles and parking, housing payments, travel, meals, moving expenses, entertainment, spending accounts, and club dues. Vested deferred compensation, meaning money set aside in previous years that was paid out to the employee in the current year, can also be included in other pay. May also include interest accrued on deferred compensation.

remainingOtherComp: “otherComp” minus severance and deferred compensation paid out.

remainingOtherCompNote: Text that explains the specific nature of “remainingOtherComp.”

deferredCompPaidOut: Compensation deferred from previous years that was paid out in the year being detailed.

deferredCompSetAside: Deferred compensation set aside in the year covered that is to be paid out in future years. This includes contributions to supplemental executive retirement plans. This does not overlap with any compensation paid out in the reported year. Some of the compensation in this category may be counted again in the year in which it is paid out. (As this is not paid out during the reporting year, it is not included in "totalComp.")

nontaxableComp: Health and medical benefits, life insurance, housing provided by the employer, personal legal and financial services, dependent care, adoption assistance, tuition assistance, and cafeteria plan.

retirement: Payments made by the university on behalf of the chief executive to a retirement plan that is available to any university employee during the year. This can include 401(k) plans, state pension plans, and other retirement plans that are broadly available. (As this is not paid out during the reporting year, it is not included in "totalComp.")

partVIIReportableComp: Total taxable compensation received, for those individuals whose total compensation did not exceed $150,000 as reported in Part VII of the institution's 990 tax form. (Relevant for private colleges only.)

partVIINontaxableComp: Total nontaxable compensation received, for those individuals whose total compensation did not exceed $150,000 as reported in Part VII of the institution's 990 tax form. (Relevant for private colleges only.)

grossUp: Flag specifying whether this person received "gross-up" payments, which is extra money to cover the taxes on benefits received. Not asked in all years.
	NULL: No indication about gross-up payments.
	1: Received gross-up payments.
	2: Did not receive gross-up payments.
	3: No answer regarding gross-up payments.

houseFlag: Flag specifying whether this person received a housing benefit.
	NULL: No indication of a housing benefit.
	0: No housing benefit provided.
	1: Housing benefit provided.

houseType: Additional information about the housing provided -- whether it's a university-owned house, rented, or just financial support is provided.

houseValue: The value of the house or housing support.

houseValueType: Details the type of home benefit valuation (i.e., estimated sale value, rental value, etc.).

houseNote: Additional details about the housing benefit being provided.

carFlag: Flag specifying whether this person received college-provided housing.
	NULL: No indication of a car benefit.
	1: Car benefit provided.

carType: Explanation of the car benefit (i.e., allowance, university-owned car, etc.).

carValue: Value of the car benefit.

carNote: Additional information about the car benefit.

clubFlag: Flag specifying whether this person received a club membership benefit.
	NULL: No indication of a club benefit.
	1: Club benefit provided.

clubValue: Value of the club benefit.

personalFlag: Flag specifying whether this person received personal services benefits (i.e., maid service, cell phones, etc.).
	NULL: No indication of a personal service benefit.
	1: Personal service benefit provided.

personalValue: Value of the personal service benefit.

personalNote: Additional notes about the personal service benefits received.

expenseAccountFlag: Flag specifying whether this person received an expense account.
	NULL: No indication of an expense account.
	1: Expense account provided.

expenseAccountValue: Value of the expense account.

travelFlag: Whether or not the person receives extra travel benefits, like first-class travel or complimentary spousal travel.

otherPerks: Details on other perks provided to the president not detailed elsewhere.

otherFringeFlag: Flag specifying whether this person receives other benefits from what is explicitly noted in the previous benefit sections.
	NULL: Not indicated
	0: No
	1: Yes

otherFringeNote: Text specifying the nature of the additional fringe benefits.

fringeBenefitValue: Number indicating the value of the additional fringe benefits received.

footnoteFlag: Indicator of a footnote for the individual.
	0: Indicates a special note about the president.
	1: Indicates that the president has taken a vow of poverty.
	2: Indicates that the president's salary is paid directly to a religious order.
	3: Note about not appearing on tax filings.
	4: Indicates that the president has taken a vow of poverty. (Same as footnote 1.)

footnote: Detailed footnote text.

instExpenditures: Institution's total expenses as reported by Ipeds.

instExpendituresPercentile: Among the colleges in each grouping (public/private and year), percentile ranking of the institution's total expenses.

totalCompExpendituresRatio: This is the ratio of the institution's total expenses to the total compensation of the president, times 1,000,000.

totalCompExpendituresRatioPercentile: Among the colleges in each grouping (public/private and year), percentile ranking of the ratio of the institution's total expenses to the total compensation of the president times 1,000,000.

tuitionFees: The average tuition (in-state for public colleges) and fees as reported to Ipeds. (Not applicable for system offices.)

tuitionFees_percentile: Among the colleges in each grouping (public/private and year), percentile ranking of the ratio of average tuition (in-state for public colleges) and fees. (Not applicable for system offices.)

tuitionTotalCompRatio: This is the ratio of the average student tuition (in-state for public colleges) and fees to total compensation of the president.

tuitionTotalCompRatioPercentile: Among the colleges in each grouping (public/private and year), percentile ranking of the ratio of the average student tuition (in-state for public colleges) and fees to the total compensation of the president.  (Not applicable for system offices.)

fullProfSalary: Average 9-month salary of full professors for the year in question as reported by Ipeds. (Not applicable for system offices.)

fullProfSalaryPercentile: Among the colleges in each grouping (public/private and year), percentile ranking of the full professor's 9-month salary. (Not applicable for system offices.)

fullProfSalaryTotalCompRatio: This is the ratio of the average full professor 9-month salary to total compensation of the president. (Not applicable for system offices.)

fullProfSalaryTotalCompRatioPercentile: Among the colleges in each grouping (public/private and year), percentile ranking of the ratio of the average full professor's 9-month salary to the total compensation of the president. (Not applicable for system offices.)

fiscalStart: Month the institution's fiscal year begins.

startTerm: Year/month (YYYYMM) the president started his/her term.

startMonth: Month the president started his/her term.

startYear: Year the president started his/her term.

endTerm: For presidents who have left the position, this is the year/month (YYYYMM) they departed. NULL means the president is still in the position.

endMonth: For presidents who have left the position, this is the month they departed. NULL means the president is still in the position.

endYear: For presidents who have left the position, this is the year they departed. NULL means the president is still in the position.

similar: List of unitids that are "similar" to the institution listed. The Chronicle's algorithm for determining "similar institutions" uses factors such as Carnegie classification, endowment value, total expenditures, percent of expenditures spent on instruction, admissions rate, and religious affiliation, as well as enrollment, percent of graduate students, percent of undergraduates who are 25 or older, percent of Pell Grant recipients, and median SAT score. The first unitid listed is the most similar, the second is the next-most similar, etc.
