PDF-to-Data’s Big Impact on School Efficiency and Learner Success

PDF-to-Data is a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution that converts PDF transcripts from a sending school to machine-readable formats that are recommended by the Postsecondary Education Standards Council (PESC), TS 130 (EDI) or PESC XML. The patented parsing engine models each sender’s transcript template and converts them while maintaining all critical relationships between data points in the output. The resulting transcript data files, ready within minutes, can be uploaded directly to existing CRM or student information systems without manual intervention.

PDF-to-Data has a big impact on both schools and learners. Here are a few examples.

Impact on Postsecondary Institutions

It’s no secret that postsecondary institutions are feeling financially squeezed, with declining enrollments and increasing costs combining to create a fiscally challenging environment. Given this reality, every admissions and registrar’s office staff member is a precious resource, but too often pulled in multiple directions. Some schools have 10 or more full-time staff members who are dedicated to manually processing transcripts and entering data into the school’s system.

PDF-to-Data frees up existing admissions and registrar’s office staff from tedious manual data entry, so they can spend more time helping students and families directly, answering questions, doing higher-level work, and participating in new initiatives across the institution.

In addition, PDF-to-Data is easy to implement. Because it’s a SaaS solution, there is no hardware or software for institutions to download or maintain. That means schools gain valuable staff time, without adding to the IT department’s existing workload.

Impact on Learners

PDF-to-Data has the potential to transform the admissions process from the learner’s side, boosting learner mobility and maximizing student success.

Today’s admissions process takes months, as each element of a student’s application — including, crucially, the transcript – is collected and entered into the school’s information system. Meanwhile, students are waiting on pins and needles for the school’s admissions decision, which will change the course of their lives. Many important facets of their lives, from financial aid to housing and transportation decisions, hinge on admissions. The faster the admissions process is complete; the sooner students can put plans in place to support their success in school — and ultimately increase their chance of successfully completing a degree.

For students who are attempting to transfer credits to an institution, the picture is even more complicated. Many schools wait until the admissions process is concluded before evaluating a student’s transcript to determine how credits will transfer to the new institution. PDF-to-Data helps to streamline the whole process, shortening a student’s time to decision and making it easier for students to enter their new institution ready to succeed.

Learn more about PDF-to-Data.

Additional Resources:

• ​Learn about PDF-to-Data (PDF)