How Colleges and Universities Can Expand the Value of Degree Audit Solutions

Degree audit solutions play a central role in helping institutions and students track progress toward graduation. At their core, these systems evaluate all graduation requirements for a given credential and compare them against elements of a student’s official academic record. By translating complex degree requirements into structured data, degree audit solutions allow institutions to determine whether students are on track to complete their programs.

An AACRAO survey on the use of degree audit and education planning solutions collected responses from 653 institutions. The findings reveal that while most institutions rely on degree audit systems, many are still in the early stages of using the data and automation capabilities these tools offer. Institutional leaders can gain important insight into student support when they evaluate how these solutions function today and where to go next.

Degree Audit Solutions Are Widely Adopted, but Underutilized

For many institutions, degree audit technology is a standard tool used by staff. In fact, according to the AACRAO survey, 92% of undergraduate-serving institutions report using a degree audit solution to evaluate student progress toward program requirements.

Despite this widespread adoption, many institutions still struggle to use the full capabilities of these systems. As noted in the study, 39% of undergraduate-serving institutions surveyed describe their use of data from degree audit or education planning solutions as “some localized, reactive analytics and reporting efforts.” In many cases, institutions rely on the system primarily for basic requirement checks rather than broader insights.

Although degree audit technology has existed for decades, about half of surveyed institutions do not fully capitalize on the automation and accuracy these systems support. As a result, institutions often continue to rely on manual processes that modern degree audit solutions are designed to reduce.

Evaluating Student Progress Through Degree Audit Solutions

The value of degree audit solutions extends beyond verifying graduation requirements. Institutions also use these systems to understand student course demand. By reviewing which courses students have completed and which requirements remain, institutions gain a clearer picture of the specific courses students will need to complete their programs.

This insight supports more informed course scheduling decisions. Academic leaders can identify demand for required courses, anticipate capacity needs, and address potential scheduling gaps. The survey also indicates that students regularly use these systems to anticipate which classes they need to take and to check progress toward graduation. At 61% of undergraduate-serving institutions in the AACRAO study, leaders estimate that at least 75% of students use the degree audit solution, which further emphasizes its value to students and administrators.

The Current State of Institutional Trust in These Solutions

The growing use of degree audit data for course scheduling and planning makes institutional confidence in these systems especially important. Survey responses show that 46% of stakeholders fully trust the accuracy of their degree audit solutions. These institutions rely on the assessment to award degrees and advise students with few, if any, manual corrections.

However, another 50% report only modest trust in the system’s accuracy. These institutions use the assessment as a “ready to review” tool for awarding degrees and rely on it as a primary advising resource. However, they still rely on manual checks and stop short of presenting the results as an official evaluation for students.

Institutions cite both technical and organizational challenges that reduce their ability to fully leverage the system. 55% report that some program completion requirements cannot be fully programmed into the degree audit system. Others attribute the issue to adoption challenges across campus. Survey responses include comments such as “faculty does not want to learn the system” and “lack of buy-in from administrators and advising staff.”

Expanding the Strategic Value of Degree Audit Solutions

Degree audit solutions have become a standard tool across higher education, but many institutions have not fully realized their potential. When institutions trust the accuracy of these systems and integrate the data into broader planning processes, they gain new opportunities to support academic advising, course scheduling, and student progression. As academic operations teams continue to refine their use of these systems, degree audit data can play an even greater role in helping institutions guide students toward timely completion.