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* Sixth semester is defined as the third semester prior to graduation, which is typically the end of a student's junior year.
Test Scores
Class Rank and GPA
Submit HSSP Data Elecronically
Processing Reminders
Student data gathered during one academic year is used in making awards for High School Scholarship Programs (HSSP) for the following academic year. Test scores, unweighted Grade Point Average (GPA), class rank, and class size are data elements needed in determining HSSP awards. ISAC obtains student data from high schools for those students in the top 50% of the class at the end of the sixth semester* on the HSSP 6th Semester Academic Information Roster. High school counselors can choose from one of three methods to provide sixth semester data to ISAC:
An e-Message, which provides an overview of the delivery process, is sent to high schools in the spring to announce the start of the new HSSP cycle.
Test Scores
Test scores from the ACT and SAT exams taken between September 1, and June 30, (during the student’s third and fourth semester prior to graduation) are reported to ISAC. For students who have multiple scores, only the highest score will be used to determine HSSP eligibility. The ACT exam portion of the Prairie State Achievement Exam (PSAE) score will be treated the same as a national date test score and will be used in eligibility determination if it is the highest score achieved by the test taker. The PSAE is required by the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) for all juniors who attend Illinois public high schools.
Class Rank and Grade Point Average (GPA)
As part of the HSSP process, high school counselors must provide the sixth semester* class rank and unweighted GPA for students (as of June 30, of that year), as well as the unweighted GPA scale (4.0, 5.0, or other).
Submit HSSP Data Electronically
The HSSP electronic process will work outside of the electronic exchange of transcripts that was used in past years (now called the College Illinois Transcript Exchange). As ISAC makes the transition to a new provider, a separate interim electronic process will be used. Effective immediately, high schools will be able to provide sixth semester data to ISAC electronically via an Excel spreadsheet.
Follow the steps below to submit sixth semester data to ISAC electronically via an Excel file:
- Contact ISAC's School Services Department (by calling toll free at 866.247.2172, or sending an e-mail message to isac.schoolservices@isac.illinois.gov) to obtain the following information:
- User name and password to access the site that will allow you to upload your Excel spreadsheet to ISAC
- File password that will be used to encrypt (protect) data in the Excel spreadsheet that will be uploaded to ISAC
Note that all information provided by School Services is case sensitive, so be sure to record the information exactly as it is provided to you.
- Create an Excel spreadsheet with your students' sixth semester data.
- The Excel spreadsheet must be created using the 2012-13 HSSP Excel Data Elements. The HSSP Excel formatted sample template can be downloaded and used by high schools to create their file.
- The Excel spreadsheet submitted to ISAC must include the file password that was provided by School Services (in the step outlined in the first bullet, above).
- When saving and naming the Excel file, it must be in this exact format (case sensitive): hssp999999.xls (where "999999" is your high school's 6-digit school code). The file must be saved as an "Excel 97-2003 Workbook" (i.e., with an ".xls" extension). In order for ISAC to accept the file, it cannot be saved as an "Excel 2007 Workbook" (i.e., with an ".xlsx" extension).
- Once the encrypted excel file is ready to submit, access the site located at https://isacprodxfr.isac.org/ and then follow the on-screen prompts to upload your file to ISAC.
- When logged into the file upload site, users will be able to see other files; however, they cannot delete, open or move any file (including their own) once it has been uploaded to the site.
If an Excel spreadsheet is submitted that does not follow the prescribed formatting specifications, ISAC will not be able to process the data. Should this occur, the high school will be contacted by School Services staff to discuss how the data will be resubmitted (via either a corrected Excel spreadsheet or a paper roster).
Processing Reminders
All Illinois high schools:
- Submit only sixth semester data.
- The GPA scale reported and the cumulative unweighted GPA calculated must be consistently applied for all students reported.
- The unweighted GPAs reported must match the unweighted GPA scale that appears on the school's profile (for example, if the school profile indicates a GPA scale of "4.0," the school's sixth semester data should not include a record with the GPA listed as "4.3").
- If a school ranks, rankings should be provided for the top 50% of students.
- If a school does not rank, unweighted grade point averages (GPAs) should be provided for the top 50% of students.
Refer to the School-Generated Roster page within this section for instructions and processing reminders if this is the chosen method of transmitting sixth semester data to ISAC.
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