FAQ - Desk Audit: Education Completed "Unknown"

Updated 6/19/25

Sometimes at intake a student may be unsure of how much formal education they've completed. In that case, it's appropriate to select "unknown" for Education Completed. The student name will appear on the Desk Audit table, and that's OK - you don't need to make any changes to the student record.

More commonly, the student is returning to ABE after a long absence and has more than one Education Completed history item. The FAQ below goes into more detail about how to correct this. 

Q: When I run the Desk Audit report, a student comes up with Education Completed>Unknown. On their Students>History screen, they have more than one Education Completed history item. The older one is Unknown, and I added a newer, more accurate schooling level. Why is the student still showing up as Unknown on this table?

A: The older Education Completed>Unknown history item was in effect on July 1. By default, the Desk Audit report Start Date is set to July 1 of the current NRS program year. When the report is run, SiD shows items in effect on the report Start Date (July 1, unless you change it).

Watch a quick "show me" video for how to fix it, or continue reading for step-by-step guidance.

In the example below,

• The Education Completed Unknown was in effect on 7/1/24, the first day of the 24-25 NRS program year.
• The Secondary School Equivalent selection went into effect after July 1.
• the Education Completed>Unknown will be used for 24-25 unless you change it.

Here's how to edit the Effective Date of the more recent entry so Unknown is no longer in effect on July 1.

1. On the Students>History screen, select the Education Completed row with the latest history item.
2. Edit the Effective Date to July 1 of the current NRS program year.
3. Save changes.

Once this change is made, the student will no longer appear on the Desk Audit with an Unknown education completed.

NOTE: You cannot change an Education Completed history item added by another site. We may be able to make the change for you. Send us an email at [e-mail].