GSS 2026-2029 DRAFT Statement of Work.pdf

Statement of Work

Conduct the Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (GSS) for the 2026 through 2029 survey cycles

I. Overview

A. Purpose

The contractor shall conduct the Survey of Graduate Students and Postdoctorates in Science and Engineering (GSS) for four survey cycles in the fall of each year: 2026, 2027, 2028, and 2029.

Specifically, the Contractor shall:

• Conduct the 2026, 2027, 2028, and 2029 survey cycles

• Conduct methodological research on an ongoing basis throughout the contract period

• Conduct research on survey design and methodologies including, but not limited to, eligibility criteria for institutions and units1 in the target population; the respondent contact strategy process; survey instruments and data collection systems; editing and missing data methods; data visualization techniques; and methods for presenting data when there is a break in trend data

• Maintain a database consisting of individual institution data relating to science, engineering, and health-related graduate enrollment, postdoctoral appointments (postdocs) and employment of other doctorate recipients holding nonfaculty researcher positions

• Generate tables using the database

• Produce 508 compliant publications to release the GSS data for each survey cycle

• Prepare public use files for each survey cycle

• Prepare 508 compliant data and methodological presentations in response to special requests, such as presentations at professional meetings

• Prepare and deliver data files from each survey cycle for the NCSES data repository

1 A reporting unit is an organizational unit where graduate students, postdoctoral researchers, and/or other doctorate holding nonfaculty researchers are enrolled and/or work. A unit can be a teaching unit, research unit, or both a teaching and research unit.

B. Background

The National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES) within the National Science Foundation (NSF) has conducted the GSS annually since 1972. Funding for the survey has been provided by NCSES, the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and in some years, the Department of Energy (DOE). The GSS is intended as a census of all academic institutions in the United States and its territories that grant research-based master’s or doctorate degrees, appoint postdoctoral researchers (postdocs), or employ doctorate-holding nonfaculty researchers in science, engineering, and health (SEH) fields.

The GSS provides national estimates of Masters’ and Doctoral student enrollment, the number and characteristics of postdocs and doctorate holding nonfaculty researchers in SEH fields in eligible institutions. Federal policy makers, academic administrators, and independent researchers use the data for policy formulation, budget analyses, congressional hearings, program planning, research on higher education, and in publications mandated by Congress. Academic institutions use the GSS to make comparisons with their peer institutions.

The GSS includes data for academic institutions as of the fall term of the academic year for all eligible units (i.e., departments, branch campuses, affiliated research centers, and separately organized components, such as medical or dental schools, schools of nursing, and schools of public health). The survey is distributed to school coordinators and data are collected separately for each reporting unit. The majority of school coordinators submit their information on the Web survey data collection system;

however, a few submit their data via email in excel files.

The 2023 GSS data collection covered 22,802 reporting units located in 770 schools in 687 graduate institutions. Given the occurrence of institutional mergers or closures and expansion of eligible fields of study the numbers of GSS institutions, schools and reporting units may vary over the period of the contract.

Data published from the GSS include graduate enrollment by sex, race and ethnicity, citizenship, type and source of financial support, degree level (master’s or doctorate), field of study covering SEH fields, and full-time and part-time status. Data are also published on the number of postdocs by sex, race and ethnicity, citizenship, type and source of financial support, type of doctorate held by postdocs, origin of doctorate, and field of study and on the number of doctorate recipients holding non-faculty researcher positions by type of doctorate and field of study (https://www.nsf.gov/statistics/srvygradpostdoc/).

The tasks in this Statement of Work are:

Task 1 Transition, Project Plan, and Procedures Task 2 Project Management Task 3 Conduct the 2026 GSS Task 4 Conduct the 2027 GSS Task 5 Conduct the 2028 GSS Task 6 Conduct the 2029 GSS

Task 7 Conduct the FFRDC Postdoc Survey Task 8 Product Development, Promotional Activities, and Stakeholder Engagement

Task 9 Methodological Research Studies and Statistical Analyses Task 10 Transition of GSS Data, Materials and Procedures to the Next Contractor

In addition, this Statement of Work includes the following appendices:

Appendix A: Schedule of Major Deliverables/Milestones Appendix B: Federal Requirements for Work

II. Specification of Work

Task 1 Transition, Project Plan, and Procedures

This task includes, but is not limited to, the transition of the GSS from the incumbent contractor to the new contractor and the establishment of a management structure and plans, including the procedures under which the project operates. Transition for the 2026 survey cycle and remaining transition activities will take place within six months of the contract award and will require a coordination effort with the incumbent contractor to ensure successful transition of all past survey operations and data-related items in the inventory. The new contractor shall update the project management plan and schedule included in their proposal. The final management plan should ensure a successful and timely completion of the 2026 GSS within budget with a targeted institutional response rate of at least 95 percent.

1.1 Kick-off Meeting

Within two weeks after the award of the contract, the Contractor shall meet with the Contracting Officer (CO), the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) and other NCSES staff to discuss and review tasks and deliverables. Discussions will include the overall project management plan and schedule for the GSS implementation, including plans for the transition from the incumbent. The Contractor shall prepare and submit the draft agenda three working days before the meeting for review/approval by the COR. This one-day meeting shall be held in Alexandria, VA at NSF.

Within one week following the initial meeting, the contractor shall provide the COR with the meeting minutes describing each issue discussed, the conclusions reached, and revised plans as appropriate.

1.2 Transition Plan and Processes

Transition for the 2026 survey cycle and all transition activities will take place within three months of contract award. A closely concerted coordination effort with the incumbent contractor is needed to ensure successful transition of GSS materials, data files, and documentation for all past survey operations and data-related items. Successful transition is instrumental in carrying out the initial survey activities for the 2026 GSS.

After careful review of the draft transition plan developed under the previous contract by the incumbent contractor, the new contractor shall develop a more detailed transition plan that includes the status of materials provided by the incumbent contractor (see list below) and any needs by the new contractor for information or materials. The detailed transition plan shall be submitted to the COR within three weeks from award of the contract, and shall include a detailed plan for the transition, testing, and operation of all IT systems, and an assessment of the risks accompanying the transition process.

Within 1 month of the contract award date, NCSES will host a meeting at which the new contractor shall meet with the incumbent contractor. The purpose of the meeting will be to review each contractor’s transition plan, provide the new contractor with background and materials and to convey the urgency of a smooth and expedient transition for the 2026 GSS. The two contractors shall work together to ensure that the transition does not disrupt survey operations and service to GSS respondents.

Materials to be provided by the incumbent at the start of this project include, but are not limited to, the following:

• All software and systems documentation used for the 2025 GSS cycles, including a system flow chart demonstrating the linkages between the various elements of the system;

• Detailed and complete inventory of past survey documentation (including data collection contact materials) and data files (including public use files, NCSES new data system files, and NCSES data repository deliverables) provided by the incumbent and past contractors;

• Electronic files containing all programs developed under previous contracts;

• Master data file from the 2025 GSS cycle for use in the 2026 GSS frame review and updating activities;

• Table specifications and programming code used to produce the Detailed Statistical Data Tables and other reports for the 2024 and 2025 GSS;

• Survey and historical coordinator contact information received from each institution during the survey cycles;

• Materials related to the evaluations, methodological research, and statistical activities performed by the incumbent contractor;

• GSS historical/archival data files.

All materials shall be safely stored and/or archived. In addition, a detailed and complete inventory of all materials received and of all materials developed shall be maintained by the contractor, for transition to the next contractor at the end of this contract. The contractor is encouraged to identify other aspects of the project that should be included in the transition activities.

1.3 Survey Management Plan/Schedule

Based on the kick-off meeting discussions and consultation with the COR, the contractor shall review and make revisions to the proposed Survey Management Plan/Schedule. The Contractor shall submit a revised Survey Management Plan/Schedule for NCSES review and approval within 2 weeks after the kick-off meeting.

The Survey Management Plan/Schedule must contain the following:

Resource Plan

• Staffing information including an organizational chart and proposed key personnel crucial to successful project outcomes by task assignments, and their contact information; resumes, hourly rates, and the number of proposed hours per person per task per year (or a percentage of their time).

• Status of materials provided by the incumbent contractor and identification of additional materials needed to move to a fully functioning operation

Communication Plan

• Plan for establishing communication protocols between the contractor’s staff and the COR.

• Plan for releasing data and other products developed under this contract.

• Plan to inform the GSS institutions about changes resulting from the transition to the new contractor, including changes in operations and procedures for communicating with the new contractor.

Project Management Plan

• Schedule of activities under this contract using an electronic package such as Microsoft Project for the development of a work breakdown schedule (WBS) which provides detailed schedules for completion of tasks and subtasks, to track/monitor progress and interrelated activities of each survey cycle.

• Plan for development of a real-time information management system (IMS) that provides up-to-date information on all actions on tasks and deliverables. This IMS should provide the COR access to real-time information that assists NCSES in managing the project and shall include but is not limited to the following information: when survey invitations were sent to each institution and when each institution responded; the mode of response; the number of institutional contacts initiated by the contractor by mode of contact (paper, e-mail or telephone), date of contact and reason for contact; date each institution first logged on to the Web survey data collection system;

contacts initiated by the institutions, date of contact, the mode of contact and the issues raised;

response rates

• Plan for a budget and financial reporting system with detail, by year, task and subtask. This system shall provide, at the task and subtask level, actual versus projected costs by activity and staffing to ensure careful monitoring of the negotiated costs versus actual costs for the GSS.

Any revisions to the plans requested by NCSES shall be incorporated by the contractor and sent to the COR within two weeks.

1.4 Quality Assurance and Quality Control Plan

The Quality Plans for the GSS shall demonstrate the contractor’s commitment to perform quality work.

While quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) efforts relate to many tasks within the GSS, the planning and execution of QA/QC activity throughout the project is of such overarching importance to be considered a separate activity. However, the contractor shall budget, plan and conduct all QA activities under the appropriate tasks and subtasks.

The objective of QA is the early identification and resolution of problems in cost, timeliness and quality of the GSS processes and data file. The QA Plan for the GSS systems processes, files and databases shall contain procedures for quality assurance and will evolve as the contract progresses. The QA Plan shall also include risk assessments of any trade-offs involving data quality, the schedule, and the budget.

The QA plan shall address detailed procedures that are integrated throughout the entire range of GSS activities, including all phases of data collection, processing and analysis; for example, emailing packages that include the survey invitation and reminder letters, survey instructions and other correspondence; response tracking; keying; data editing; table preparation and verification, and so forth.

The QA results shall be used to provide timely feedback to the affected areas of survey operations to improve the quality of work. The IMS (specified in the Survey Management Plan) shall be structured to help identify potential problems and to be proactive in responding to these problems.

The QA procedures will evolve, e.g., the QA for the 2026 GSS should be revised based on the experience gained during the 2025 survey cycle and so on. The procedures will also be reviewed during each survey cycle and revised as need arises and in response to NCSES requests. Results of the QA plan shall be reported in the Methodology Report for each survey cycle.

A QC plan is also part of this task. The QC plan shall specify procedures the contractor will use to ensure accuracy for all final products and deliverables, and shall designate the roles accountable for accuracy of a product, including the author, the reviewer, the QC checker, etc. The QC procedures shall include “best practices” for Web survey data collections and for all aspects of the GSS process.

The contractor shall monitor and evaluate QC results from each survey operation for early detection of possible problems and resolution, and assessment of the overall quality of survey operations. All QC results shall be well documented and shared with the COR on a weekly basis and included in the Methodology Report for each survey cycle.

All QA and QC plans shall be submitted to the COR for approval within one month of the contract award for review and approval by the COR, with input by the STIA-SM Program Director and NCSES Chief Statistician. After approval of the quality plans, the contractor’s methods and procedures for quality (and general requirements for checking of work) shall be provided to each staff person on the project. Training in specific areas of quality as relevant to each task shall be provided to staff working on that task. The contractor shall ensure that detailed QA and QC procedures are implemented and closely followed.

1.5 Security Plan

The contractor shall be responsible for protecting the GSS data, as required by the Federal Cybersecurity Enhancement Act of 2015, Privacy Act of 1974 and the NSF Act of 1950 as amended. The Contractor shall also be subject to all federal (e.g., Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA), Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS)), NSF, and NCSES policies on these matters, as specified by the NCSES Chief Statistician, regarding data collection, data storage and access, and data dissemination and analysis. These policies may change during the period of the contract.

The contractor shall submit for review and approval by the COR with input from the NCSES Chief Statistician a detailed plan for protecting the security of GSS data at the contractor’s site and protecting the security of GSS data when transferring/delivering data.

Task 2 Project Management

The contractor must have a project management system that identifies potential problems early, ensures high-quality data and adherence to schedules, controls project costs, and maintains close communication with the COR. Project operations shall include frequent discussions with NCSES concerning progress and challenges, meetings to discuss and resolve problem areas, and regular reporting between the contractor and COR.

The contractor's project director for the GSS shall be committed to this project for a majority of his/her time for the duration of the contract and shall have proven management and broad technical skills to handle this complex project.

The contractor’s IMS Website shall provide up-to-date information on tasks and deliverables. The IMS Website shall be updated on an agreed upon schedule with the COR so that project reports and deliverables can be closely monitored by the COR; it is expected that during data collection, updates on the progress will be made daily.

The contractor shall maintain up-to-date records of all activities performed throughout the contract.

These records shall form the basis for the GSS Methodology Report, the documentation for each survey cycle, and shall provide sufficient depth and understanding of all project activities to meet the transparency requirements of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and NSF Data Quality Guidelines (see Appendix B).

Unless otherwise specified, one hard copy of all deliverables is sent to the CO. One electronic version is sent to the COR, who will then distribute, as necessary, within the National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics (NCSES).

2.1 Communication and Reporting

2.1.1 Monthly Project Reports

Beginning one month after the contract award, the contractor shall provide monthly progress reports to the CO and COR by the 15th of each month. This report shall include documentation on the progress of survey activities and expenditures identified by task and subtask, problems encountered, actions required, and expenditure analysis for the month. The contractor shall finalize the monthly report format in consultation with the COR.

The monthly reports shall include details on the progress of the survey, a summary of problems encountered, early warning of potential problems and concerns, and actual hours and costs incurred. The reporting period consists of the first full month of performance plus any fractional part of the initial month. Thereafter, the reporting period shall consist of each calendar month.

The monthly project reports should include:

• Task by task progress completion status o Comparison and discussion of actual vs. planned (from the previous monthly report) activities by task o Activities occurring during reporting period o Actual hours and costs incurred for reporting period o Problems encountered, actual vs. proposed solutions and schedule changes o Notification of any upcoming problems or challenges and proposed solutions o Planned activities for the next reporting period

• Task by task financial reports o Comparison and discussion of actual vs. projected individual staff hours o Comparison and discussion of actual vs. projected costs o Forecasted staff hours and costs for the next reporting period

In addition, special purpose time and cost reports may be requested by the COR during the contract.

2.1.2 Weekly Videoconferences

Beginning one month after contract award, the contractor shall schedule weekly progress meetings via videoconference with the COR to discuss the progress of various operations, any operational problems encountered and planning for the upcoming work. The contractor’s project director, the COR, and relevant contractor staff working on tasks taking place shall participate. The contractor shall provide an agenda two days prior to the meeting, and meeting minutes within one working day of the teleconference for the COR’s review.

2.1.3 Weekly Status Reports

During data collection, the contractor shall provide weekly reports to the COR on the status of various operations to monitor progress, particularly response rates. The contractor shall produce the outline of the weekly reports for approval by the COR. However, at a minimum these reports should include: a description of all survey activities conducted, response rates, names of respondents and nonrespondent institutions, and comparison of the progress of the current survey cycle with that of the previous survey cycle (to the extent that such information is available). This status report can be in the form of a weekly telephone call (during the regular weekly meeting), along with e-mailed tabulations.

2.1.4 Data Collection Monitoring and Site Visits

2.1.4.1 Information Management System (IMS)

The contractor is required to establish an IMS, accessible by NCSES, for monitoring survey progress.

2.1.4.2 NCSES Visits to Contractor’s Site

NCSES staff will make on-site visits to the contractor’s site to observe and monitor survey operations, including training, preparation of sample files, address lists, and printing and assembly of any mailing packages; receipt, edit, and keying of any mail responses; conduct of any telephone interviews and scheduling; debriefing; coding; review of raw data files; etc. These on-site visits shall occur up to two times or as deemed necessary by the COR with each visit lasting up to two days.

2.1.4.3 Contractor Visits to NSF

The contractor shall plan in-person meetings (one day) at NCSES with the COR and other NCSES staff up to three times a year as deemed necessary by COR. The purpose of these meetings will be to discuss with NCSES management progress, problems, actions required, and future plans. The contractor shall prepare an agenda three days in advance of the meeting and shall prepare the draft meeting minutes within two working days of these meetings; the minutes shall be distributed as final minutes after the COR’s approval of the draft.

2.2 Standards, Guidelines, and Protocols

NSF/NCSES standards, guidelines, and protocols related to computer processing, data file documentation, survey standards, release of data, quality control, media contacts and NCSES publications shall be followed in the work conducted under this contract. NSF and NCSES standards, guidelines and protocols are included within Appendix B of this SOW. The contractor shall be notified immediately of any changes to these documents.

All copies of material developed during the conduct of the surveys, including computer programming codes, documentation, data files, CD-ROMs, Web files and documentation, etc., are to be transmitted to NCSES or disposed of in accordance with instructions from NCSES upon completion of work.

All deliverables, reports, and tables shall be delivered to NCSES in standard, NCSES-approved formats and software, such as Microsoft Office Word or Excel. Unless specified otherwise, all deliverables, reports and tables shall be delivered to the COR in electronic format.

2.2.1 Computer Processing

All tasks requiring computer processing work shall be conducted at the contractor's secure computer facility. All computer programs and data files such as those used in various stages of data collection, data processing and development of tabulations shall be fully documented. All computer software must be portable, that is, non-proprietary software capable of being transported to another contractor. The contractor shall implement procedures to back up the data on a regular basis and have a process for fast, secure recovery of archived data.

The Web survey data collection system must be capable of running on a variety of Web browsers such as Internet Explorer, Mozilla, Chrome, etc. with appropriate security procedures. In addition, the Web survey data collection system and access to the system must be transportable.

The contractor shall follow the Federal Standards for Security (FIPS PUB 200) (see Appendix B).

Task 2.2.2 Section 508 of Rehabilitation Act

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act, as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-

220) requires that when Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use information and communication technology (ICT), it shall be accessible to people with disabilities. Federal employees and members of the public who have disabilities must have access to, and use of, information and data that is comparable to people without disabilities.

Some examples of NCSES items that contain ICT are: {Web Survey Data Collection System, InfoBriefs, Special Reports, White Papers, PowerPoint Slides, Survey Descriptions, Technical Notes, Data Tables, Methodology Reports, and copies of each year’s Survey Questionnaire (for posting on the NCSES website)}.

All GSS products, platforms and services delivered as part of this statement of work that are ICT, or contain ICT, shall conform to the Revised 508 Standards, which are located at 36 C.F.R. § 1194.1 & Apps. A, C & D, and available at https://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and-standards/communications-and-it/about-the-ict-refresh/final-rule/text-of-the-standards-and-guidelines.

The contractor shall work towards full implementation of Section 508 standards and practices for items stated above and provide recommendations to the COR and other key staff to achieve and maintain compliance with these standards.

2.2.3 Survey Standards and Guidelines

All work conducted under this contract shall follow the applicable standards set forth in the statistical standards for the NCSES surveys (see Appendix B) which may change over the course of the contract.

The contractor shall be notified immediately of any changes to these documents.

Survey practices shall reflect state of the art survey research methodology, leading to improvement in data quality, timeliness, and cost efficiency. contractor staff shall be familiar with any relevant Statistical Policy Working Papers and Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Standards and Guidance for Statistical Surveys (see Appendix B).

2.2.4 Publications Standards and NCSES Review

All tables and reports for NCSES publication and/or electronic dissemination on the NSF Website shall adhere to NCSES Publication Guidelines. The publication guidelines and a description of the NCSES https://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and-standards/communications-and-it/about-the-ict-refresh/final-rule/text-of-the-standards-and-guidelines https://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and-standards/communications-and-it/about-the-ict-refresh/final-rule/text-of-the-standards-and-guidelines review process are available in Appendix B. These guidelines may be updated by NCSES during the course of the contract. The contractor shall be notified immediately of any changes to these documents.

All tabulations shall be edited for consistency within and across tables. The programming codes used to produce these tables shall be documented and preserved for future reference.

All contract materials shall be submitted in formats and software specified by the COR. To meet publication goals, the COR will typically require at least two weeks for the initial review of a draft report. Several iterations of the product may be necessary before it is submitted into the NCSES review process. Once in the review process, the contractor shall be responsible for making any required changes from the review. The NCSES publication review process may take 1-2 months for a data release InfoBrief and a lengthier period for Detailed Statistical Data Tables, analytical InfoBriefs, or special reports, depending upon the extent of revisions required. Appendix B contains the File Format Guidelines for NCSES Publications. Note that there is one exception to this requirement: materials prepared for special tabulation requests from one of the GSS Federal Sponsoring Agencies (e.g., the National Institutes of Health) shall be prepared in the formats specified by each agency at the time of the request.

2.3 OMB Survey Clearance Support

During the period of performance for this contract, forms clearance requests must be submitted to the Office of management and Budget (OMB) for the 2026 through 2028 survey cycles. The survey clearance packages must be submitted to OMB by May 2026. The contractor shall prepare the OMB clearance package and the accompanying Federal Register Notices with significant input from NCSES (see Appendix B). The OMB clearance package shall include plans and proposed respondent burden hours for any methodological work, pilots, or pretests. The contractor shall include the draft survey contact materials and worksheets in the OMB clearance package. The format and content of the OMB clearance packages shall be specified and approved by the COR. To allow time for NCSES review and revisions, the draft OMB clearance packages shall be submitted to NCSES prior to January 1, 2026. The final OMB clearance package shall be submitted by NCSES, and the Contractor shall assist the COR in addressing any questions from OMB.

The contractor shall prepare OMB generic clearance packages for methodological research activities conducted for the GSS. The OMB generic clearance package shall include a letter to OMB for generic clearance approval, plans, proposed respondent burden hours and draft materials. The contractor shall draft for NCSES review and approval and provide final copies of all materials for the generic clearance package, including, but not limited to, letter to OMB under the generic clearance for methodological research; prototype materials; scripts used to recruit respondents; interview or focus group protocols or guides; study plans; and data analysis plans.

In order to provide input for the OMB forms clearance and generic clearance packages, the contractor shall collect and maintain information on the respondent burden for the GSS survey completion time.

Task 3 Conduct the 2026 GSS

The contractor shall conduct the 2026 GSS. The GSS data collection involves the institution’s review of the eligible2 reporting units (e.g., departments, research centers, health care facilities) from the previous survey cycle and the institution determining if any updates are needed (e.g., adding new units, deleting units that no longer exist, or renaming units that merged). This is done typically by designated school coordinators who are most knowledgeable about the requested GSS data at the institutions (e.g., student coordinator for data on graduate students, postdoc coordinator for data on postdocs and other doctorate-holding nonfaculty researchers). The school coordinators submit GSS data for all eligible reporting units at the institutions into the GSS Web survey data collection system, review and reconcile any data inconsistencies. Throughout the data collection period, school coordinators can call a toll-free telephone number or send an e-mail to receive assistance from Help Desk staff.

Final data collection activities include providing additional assistance to school coordinators who have not submitted their school’s data by the data collection due date. Extensions are granted on a case-by-case basis. Also, follow-up telephone calls are necessary when a unit’s reported counts of graduate students, postdocs, and/or doctorate holding nonfaculty researchers are significantly different from the previous years’ counts and an explanation has not been provided in the comment box available in the Web survey.

3.1 Revise the Survey Operations Plan (SOP)

The contractor shall update the Survey Operations Plan (SOP) for the 2026 survey cycle, based on the SOP from the 2025 survey cycle provided by the incumbent contractor. The SOP shall be a detailed description of operational plans for conducting the survey, including collecting, processing (editing, error resolution, imputations), tabulating, and disseminating the survey data in reports, tables, and public use files. The SOP shall also provide all the information on contractor staffing, budgeting and contractor reporting for the 2026 survey cycle.

The SOP shall include, at a minimum:

• Data collection procedures

• Procedures for data reporting via the Web survey data collection system

• Procedures for tracking responses and response rate

• Procedures to maximize response rates

• Data review and retrieval procedures and specifications

• Imputation plan and procedures

• Contractor staffing and cost estimates

• Detailed schedule with deliverables/major milestone dates

In addition, the contractor shall include in the SOP detailed quality assurance procedures for each of the survey operations/sub-tasks noted above.

After review and approval of the SOP by the COR, the contractor shall then conduct the 2026 survey cycle closely following the SOP. Departures from the approved SOP must be approved by the COR.

3.2 Population Coverage

2 See GSS eligible fields in Appendix B.

The contractor shall obtain the master file of institutions used for the 2025 GSS from the incumbent contractor to review and to update with any institution mergers, closures, or name changes. At the same time, the contractor shall review the list of designated school coordinators for the eligible GSS institutions and take steps to determine if any changes are necessary. To determine if the school coordinator’s information is current for each institution, the contractor shall send an e-mail to the current school coordinator requesting updates in contact information or assignment. This e-mail serves as notification that the GSS will be launched in mid-October and to obtain information on the institution’s eligible reporting units. The contractor shall deliver to the COR a list of institution mergers, closures, or name changes for input into the NCSES Taxonomy of Institution Names (TIN) database.

3.3 Survey Instruments

The Contractor shall update and maintain the GSS Web survey data collection system for the 2026 survey cycle. The structure and content of the Web survey system may change as the result of problems identified in previous survey cycles; methodological work conducted under this contract as well as NCSES investigations outside this contract. For example, based on the GSS redesign, the 2017 GSS began collecting separate data for master’s and doctoral degree students and the Classification of Instructional Program (CIP) codes of the reporting units where the graduate students and postdocs are being reported.

Almost all GSS institutions use the Web survey data collection system to submit data. The Web survey system shall be ready for the fall data collection no later than 15 October 2026. The contractor shall notify the GSS school coordinator when the Web survey system is open and provide them with passwords and access to the Website.

The GSS Web survey data collection system should follow current best Web design practices. It should accommodate direct uploading of the GSS data by multiple respondents, allow for manual data entry in multiple sessions, ensure data are saved regularly, include built-in data edits, and be easy for respondents to understand and use. The Web survey system shall build in indicators of problems that respondents may be having so that the contractor can respond proactively.

The contractor shall provide adequate and secure computer resources to handle the Web survey volume throughout the data collection phase to avoid any Internet connection interruptions. In addition, the contractor shall provide adequate technical support to school coordinators requesting assistance to ensure timely completion of the data collection. The QA procedures shall include regular monitoring of the Web survey data submissions to identify any technical issues.

The contractor shall be responsible for drafting, preparing, and when applicable, printing final survey data collection materials. These materials include but are not limited to Webinars on the GSS web survey data collection system, advance survey notifications, reminders to participate and non-response follow-up materials. The contractor shall assemble and email survey information to institutional school coordinators according to NCSES specifications and the approved SOP.

3.4 Update of Taxonomy Used in the GSS

For the 2026 survey cycle, the contractor shall use the updated GSS Code List approved by the COR which includes the degree programs that conform to NCSES Taxonomy of Disciplines (TOD). The contractor shall also review all available degree program related data and provide recommendations to NCSES on the exclusion/inclusion of these programs in the 2026 GSS. Any recommended changes to the GSS Code List must be approved by the COR before implementation by the contractor.

3.5 Survey Data Collection

The contractor shall conduct the 2026 GSS according to the plan set forth in the approved SOP. The primary method of survey administration shall be a Web survey and Web-based monitoring system. The contractor shall achieve a minimum of a 95% response rate at both the institutional and reporting unit levels. Response rates are to be calculated using the American Association for Public Opinion Research3 standard definitions and the OMB recommended guidelines. See the 2023 GSS Methodology Report for the response rate procedures used.

The contractor shall be responsible for preparing, assembling, and distributing (electronically) all survey materials that institutional contacts will receive according to NCSES specifications (see Subtask 3.3) and the approved SOP.

The contractor shall be responsible for developing training manuals and providing adequate training for all GSS operations for their staff working on the GSS.

The contractor shall conduct data reviews and determine error resolution options based on the methods specified in the SOP. The contractor shall collect both paradata and metadata on the survey implementation process throughout the 2026 survey cycle. These data shall include at a minimum:

• Information on key data collection variables such as when surveys were sent to each institution and when each institution responded

• Which respondents responded via the Web survey instrument and the Data Upload feature

• How many contacts were initiated by the contractor with each institution, by mode (e-mail or telephone), date of contact and reason for contact

• When each institution initially logged into the Web survey data collection system, the number of additional logins by the institution, and the length of time for each login session

• For any login session that did not result in a completed survey, breakoff information that documents the GSS Web survey section where the breakoff occurred

• Frequency of consulting “help” features within the Web survey data collection system

• For each responding institution, response times within each of the GSS Web survey sections

• Other variables specified by NCSES during preparation of the SOP

At the end of the 2026 survey cycle, the contractor shall conduct a formal debriefing of the survey staff.

The purpose of the debriefing is to identify any issues associated with the survey procedures. The contractor shall prepare a memo for the NCSES documenting the meeting and providing recommendations for changes to the procedures for the 2027 survey cycle. This shall include any lessons learned and decisions needed.

3 http://www.aapor.org/Standards-Ethics/Standard-Definitions-(1).aspx

3.5.1 Customer Technical Assistance

The contractor shall provide technical support by toll-free telephone and e-mail assistance using highly trained and professional staff to promptly answer any respondent questions, beginning with the initial e-mail to the school coordinators prior to the start of the data collection. For the e-mail assistance, the contractor shall set up a project e-mail account to answer respondent questions. The project e-mail should also be used for follow-up questions, reminders, or other survey operations.

The technical support staffing level must be adjusted to adequately meet the telephone/e-mail demands throughout data collection by closely monitoring the contact volume and times. Staff should be available to answer telephone calls during regular business hours and should respond to e-mails and after-hour telephone calls within the next business day. The contractor shall document all telephone/e-mail inquiries including the reasons for contact with the goal of using this information to improve the data collection effort in future GSS cycles. The documentation shall be of sufficient detail to understand any challenges that occurred related to reporting specific items, to identify respondent concerns, and to facilitate improvement in the GSS. The contractor shall provide the COR with reports summarizing the telephone/e-mail contact history on a weekly basis and in summary at the end of the 2026 data collection.

3.5.2 Coding

A small group of dedicated coders shall be used in the coding operation to minimize inter-coder variation.

All coding operations shall be automated to the extent possible followed by manual coding. The QA procedures shall include verification of at least 10% of the coding workload for all operations and provide feedback mechanisms for the coders to ensure that consistent coding practices are employed.

The contractor shall prepare the coding manuals in consultation with NCSES and conduct the training for all coding operations. Within one week of completion of each phase of the coding procedures, the contractor shall hold a debriefing session with the coders to obtain feedback to update the coding manual and/or improve the training and coding procedures. This shall include lessons learned and recommendations. The contractor shall document the debriefing results in the Methodology Report.

3.5.2.1 Coding of Institutions

GSS institutions shall be coded with their IPEDS unit_id and flags to identify Carnegie classification, minority- and Hispanic-serving institutions, land-grant universities and colleges, and health-professional schools shall be assigned. Because NCSES integrates the GSS with NCSES’ Higher Education Research and Development Survey of Expenditures (HERD) and the Survey of Federal Science and Engineering Support to Universities, Colleges and Nonprofit Institutions (Federal Support Survey), the contractor shall work with the COR for conformance with the NCSES Taxonomy of Institution Names (TIN) to ensure that institutional characteristics reported to the GSS are comparable with those reported on other NCSES surveys and to resolve any inconsistencies involving GSS institutions. The contractor shall work with NCSES to resolve GSS inconsistencies before GSS data are provided for input into the NCSES data system and NCSES Data Repository.

3.5.2.2 Coding of Programs for Reporting Units

A crosswalk between the GSS Code List and the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Classification of Instructional Programs (CIP) is used to assign program codes for reporting units (Appendix B). Every effort shall be made to assign codes consistently across survey cycles. However, provisions should be made to correct prior coding if errors are identified during editing or review or if requested by NCSES during the 2026 survey cycle.

Only those reporting units meeting the eligibility requirements, basically those in science, engineering, or health fields as listed in the GSS Code List, shall be coded and entered into the GSS database.

Reporting units in all other fields, such as law, physical education, music, library science, the arts, and humanities as defined in the NCSES TOD are considered non-S&E and non-health-related disciplines, are not eligible for the survey and thus are excluded. In cases where the eligibility of a reporting unit is questionable, the contractor shall contact the reporting unit head or the school coordinator to determine the nature of the program and the eligibility of the reporting unit. Consultation with NCSES may also be necessary to determine eligibility of reporting units for some questionable cases. The list of questionable reporting units and the outcome of this validation shall be documented in the 2026 Methodology Report.

3.5.3 Receipt Control

The contractor shall perform all receipt control of completed survey materials returned by respondents either via the Web survey data collection system, or Excel spreadsheets. This information should be used to update response status for eligible institutions. Receipt information will be available to NCSES in the IMS.

3.5.4 Follow-up for Nonresponse

Under the current GSS procedures, respondents are requested to complete the survey by end of February. Closeout for the survey is determined by NCSES and the contractor with the closeout generally occurring around mid-March. The contractor shall follow up with nonresponding institutions within a specified timeframe to obtain complete or partial survey data. The contractor shall provide weekly and monthly response analyses to NCSES and others at NCSES’s direction. New and additional responses received after survey closeout and before final imputation shall be processed. Any responses received after final imputation will not be processed.

3.6 Editing and Imputation

The contractor shall examine, edit and resolve all edit and error messages in the GSS data. For the edit specifications currently used, see Appendix B. The editing procedures shall be documented in the SOP at the beginning of the 2026 survey cycle and shall be based upon the prior survey cycle edits and experience. Edited values shall be flagged in the final data file for the survey cycle. During data processing, the contractor shall, at a minimum, prepare weekly edit and metadata reports, which may be e-mailed to the COR.

The GSS Web survey data collection system shall include edit checks within the instrument. Error messages given to Web respondents shall be specific to the edit/question failure and provide a clear indication to the respondent about what caused the edit failure.

The GSS Web survey data collection system shall include a feature that identifies responses that are substantially greater than or less than the corresponding response from the previous survey cycle. The contractor shall work with the COR to determine an appropriate level of change to flag for the 2026 survey based on the 2025 survey results. Any student count provided by the reporting unit respondent (i.e., any cell in the race, support, or postdoc response grids) deemed substantially different from the prior year’s response shall be flagged as such in the Web system, and a message shall be displayed requesting that the respondent provide an explanation for the identified increase/decrease. The conditions triggering these alerts to the respondent shall be based on both ranges and absolute differences in the counts. The edits shall be specified in the SOP and approved by the COR prior to the start of the 2026 survey cycle.

Any reporting unit with at least one value flagged as substantially different from the 2025 data shall be set aside for further review. In addition, schools with aggregated counts above specified conditions shall also be reviewed (even if none of the school’s reporting units were identified for review).

Some schools and/or reporting units will require data retrieval telephone calls to ask for explanations for changes, if the original explanations were not sufficiently clear. These telephone calls may resolve such questions. However, for a small set of schools, changes may be made to the respondent-completed Web data collection by project staff, the school coordinator or the reporting unit respondents under the direction of the school coordinator. These changes shall be tracked and flagged.

3.6.1 Institution Follow-Up and Error Resolution

The contractor shall perform follow-up with the school coordinators as necessary to achieve a clean, error-free dataset. Care must be taken to preserve the positive and sensitive working relationship between NSF and its respondents. All errors must be resolved according to the specifications in the SOP and inconsistencies either eliminated or accepted if the school coordinators satisfactorily explain them.

An audit trail of all changes to the reported survey information, who made the changes, and the reason for the changes, shall be maintained by the contractor.

3.6.2 Imputation

The contractor shall prepare and submit to NCSES for approval an imputation plan specifying the imputation procedures that will be used to fill in missing data after all follow-up efforts have failed.

Before performing the missing data procedures, the contractor shall provide NCSES with a complete listing of all reporting units and/or institutions requiring such procedures. Any imputed data shall be flagged and missing data shall be handled according to the specifications included in the SOP.

The contractor shall compute imputation rates for all data cells and display the rates/measures in tabular form. An analysis of the impact of imputations on the GSS data shall be included in the Methodology Report each year. For the missing data imputation procedures currently used, see the 2024 GSS Imputation Plan in Appendix B.

3.7 Data files

As part of the…