A Unique Research Data Infrastructure for Educational Research and Beyond: The National Educational Panel Study

Abstract

Abstract The article provides an insight into the conceptual and methodological framework as well as the research data infrastructure of the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS). The NEPS study has been set up to build a profound empirical basis for the description and analysis of educational processes and competence development across the life span. Its large-scale database consists of longitudinal information from more than 60,000 target respondents – distributed over six different starting cohorts ranging from newborns to adults – and from relevant context persons such as parents or teachers. The complex multicohort sequence design schedules annual or even semiannual survey waves including a broad spectrum of competence assessments. All data are thoroughly prepared, documented, and disseminated free of charge in the form of regularly expanded Scientific Use Files. In addition to some background information about NEPS in general, this paper primarily focuses on issues of data collection, data structure, data availability, and the requirements for different types of data access. The number of more than 1,000 data users involved in over 700 research projects so far serves to highlight the potential of NEPS as a unique research data infrastructure for educational research and beyond.