AdvisorTrac can import/update student information via an ASCII text file import or via XML files.
ODBC support is no longer available for importing student and course information. LDAP is another method that may be used to retrieve the data on an as needed basis. We can work with you regarding your specific needs, though an LDAP import seldom provides all of the necessary student fields.
This document describes some of the specifics regarding importing data via an ASCII text file import.
First, the center administrators must decide which fields to import from the campus information system into the AdvisorTrac database. The decisions should be based upon three factors: 1) What information would be useful to track and report; 2) What data is contained within the campus database; and 3) What fields can AdvisorTrac import?
After the data fields have been determined, the campus IT department needs to export a sample data file to an ASCII text file. This sample file needs to be sent to techsupport@advisortrac.net in order to create the import map. After the sample file has been successfully imported, the complete student database may be exported and then imported into AdvisorTrac.
The AdvisorTrac server on a nightly basis imports a text file of student records. This text file must contain a numeric student ID as well as any student data that will be updated in the AdvisorTrac system. The import process will look for an existing student record that matches the numeric ID in the import file. If the record already exists, the AdvisorTrac will update the existing fields for the student record. If the student record does not exist, the record will be created and the fields for the student will be imported.
AdvisorTrac may be configured to not update certain fields when the student record already exists (no overwrite).
A AdvisorTrac administrator may also import the data at any time during the day instead of at the scheduled time. This is done by clicking the 'Import SIS' link in the Student Listing screen. Setting the system to import at a specific time is done by entering the time of day in the Auto Import Data at field on page 12 of the preferences screen.
It is most common to import/update the student data of the AdvisorTrac system. The student's course enrollment is another area of AdvisorTrac that may be configured to receive imports. Course enrollment information may be part of the student data text for or it may be located in a separate file. The course enrollment data must consist of a student ID and course code as well as a term code. Optionally, a grade and an instructor name or ID may be included as part of the text file import. If an instuctor ID is included, a third file that lists the instructor names and IDs may also be imported in order to link the ID with the name. This instructor data file must include the instructor ID, name and may optionally include a department, phone and email.
The following table lists the fields that are available for importing into the student table of AdvisorTrac. Note there are in actuality more fields than are shown here but are not included for brevity. If you have any questions about any of the fields, please contact technical support (techsupport@advisortrac.net)
Your ASCII file does not need to have every field listed below; it may instead include only those fields that are needed (as well as the required fields). The field lenths shown are for information purposes only, you do NOT need to pad the data to any specified length.
| Name | Type | Required | Description |
| ID | #L | Yes | The unique numeric ID of the student. |
| Other ID | A20 | A secondary ID (or barcode) for the student. | |
| Last Name | A40 | Yes | The last name of the student |
| First Name | A40 | Yes | The first name of the student |
| Middle | A20 | The middle name/initial of the student | |
| Street Address | A60 | The street address of the student | |
| City | A50 | City of the student's address | |
| State | A2 | The state code of the student address | |
| Zip | A10 | The zip code of the student's address | |
| A80 | The student's email address. Needed for sending email reminders to students but is not necessarily required. | ||
| FullName | A80 | The student's Last, First Middle name. This field may be computed automatically and not actually included in the import. | |
| Home Phone | A20 | The student's home phone number. | |
| Work Phone | A20 | A secondary phone number for the student. | |
| Gender Male | B | The system internally stores this as boolean, but the import may compare against an ascii character like "M" or "F" to determine the sex of the student. | |
| Birthdate | D | The birthdate | |
| Ethnicity | A60 | Ethnicity (could be a code or complete name) | |
| Grad Und | A80 | A code that indicated Graduate or Undergraduate (usually "G" or "U") | |
| College | A80 | What college the student is attending | |
| Class | A80 | The student's class: Freshman, Sophomore, etc. or FR, SO, JR, SR or 2003, 2004, etc. | |
| Cohort | A80 | Used to custom group the student records. Use of this field is determined by the AdvisorTrac administrator. | |
| Major | A80 | The student's major. May be a code or complete description. | |
| Handle | A20 | The student's web login name. Not needed if the student is not going to login via the web. Also may be configured by the student the first time the student logs in via the web. | |
| Password | A20 | The student's web password. See Handle for notes. | |
| ReferredBy | A80 | Who referred the student to the center. | |
| Degree Goal | A80 | Either the Degree Earned or the Degree Goal. | |
| Overall GPA | #R | The Overall GPA for the Student (EMCCGPA) | |
| Total Hours | #R | Total Accumulated Hours for the Student (BMI1) | |
| HS Name | A30 | Name of the High School Attended | |
| Custom Field1 | A80 | A custom field that may be used for any purpose. | |
| Custom Field2 | A80 | same as above | |
| Custom Field3 | A80 | same as above | |
| Custom Field4 | A80 | same as above | |
| Custom Field5 | A80 | same as above | |
| Custom Field6 | A80 | same as above | |
| Custom Field7 | A80 | same as above | |
| Custom Field8 | A80 | same as above | |
| Custom Field9 | A80 | same as above | |
| Special Status | A80 | A student status field: may be a code or description. |
The following table lists the fields that are available for importing into the course enrollment (or progress reports) of AdvisorTrac. Note, the instructor fields may be imported in a separate text file.
| Name | Type | Required | Description |
| Student ID or Student Other ID |
# or A20 | Yes | The unique numeric ID of the student. In some cases the ID is the secondary alphanumeric ID - please indicate to us which ID will be utilized. |
| Course | A40 | Yes | The course the student is enrolled in |
| TermID | # | Yes | The term code for the semester that the student is enrolled in: 032 might be the year 2003 Spring, and 034 might be the year 2004 Summer. |
| Instructor ID | ?? | If utilized, coordinate the use with Redrock Software. | |
| Instructor Name | A60 | The fullname of the instructor | |
| Instructor First | A40 | The instructor's first name. | |
| Instructor Last | A40 | The instructor's last name. | |
| Instructor Email | A80 | The instructor's Emaill address. | |
| Instructor Phone | A20 | The instructor's phone. | |
| Instructor Sal | A8 | The Salutation or Degree for the instructor (Phd, etc.) | |
| Grade | A20 | The Grade received for this course. | |
| Value | # | The Numeric grade value | |
| Date | D | Date grade/report issued. | |
| Type | A40 | The report type (midterm, final, etc.) In some cases it is simply a flag used by the system to indicate the disposition of the course (REGISTERED, DROPPED, WITHDRAWN). |
| Code | Field Types |
| A## | Alpha field of a certain maximum length (you do not have format to this length) |
| #L | Long Integer (-1.2 billion to +1.2 billion) |
| #R | Real Value (decimal # with 12 digits precision) |
| # | Small Integer (-32676 to +32676) |
| B | Boolean (Yes/No) |
| D | Date (mmddyyyy or yyyymmdd or mm/dd/yyyy), please specify format utilized |
The files to be imported must be in ASCII format. The data may be separated by TAB characters or Comma (CSV format) or the columns may by positioned using spaces (fixed length delimeter). Please indicate the nature or method of the column delimiter when contacting Redrock Software to setup the auto import functionality.
Note: Regarding alpha fields shown above with maximum lengths; you do not have to pad the text to the length shown above. Only pad to the length that is used by your campus database.