Initial Course Participation (ICP) is a federal financial aid requirement that’s mandated by the Department of Education.
All Purdue instructors are required to report ICP once at the beginning of each gradable course — meaning any course in which a final grade will be assigned. Reporting is completed through myPurdue and remains open from the first week of the semester through the end of final grading for each course.
Reporting Requirements
ICP reporting applies to all campuses and all gradable courses, including undergraduate, graduate, research and independent study courses. If a grade (A+ through F, S, U, I or P) will be assigned at the end of the term, ICP must be reported. Non-gradable sections such as recitations and labs paired with a gradable course don’t require separate reporting — however, academic activity within those sections can count as initial participation for the paired course.
Reporting Deadlines
Deadlines vary by course type:
- Full Term: Report no later than the end of the third week of the term
- First and Second Eight Weeks: Report no later than the end of the first week of the session
- Non-standard Courses: Report no later than the fourth class meeting
What Counts as Participation
A student is considered to have commenced participation if they have attended at least one class or submitted one academic-related activity — such as a quiz, homework assignment or sign-in sheet. Students who have never attended class and have never submitted any academic-related activity should be reported as not participating.
If you teach using Brightspace, ICP is handled automatically — no manual reporting is required.
How to Report ICP in myPurdue
All gradable courses are required and eligible for ICP reporting. Follow the steps below to complete your submission.
- In myPurdue, select Initial Course Participation from the Faculty Tools card.
- Choose the term.
- Select the course reference number (CRN) and submit.
- Review the reporting status summary at the top of the page for the number of students marked as participating, not participating and not yet reported.
- Mark individual students as participating by checking the box next to their name or select Mark All Yes to submit all students at once.
- Read the acknowledgement and submit with each page, if your roster spans multiple pages.
- To report for additional courses, scroll to the bottom and select CRN Selection.
You can verify your reporting status at any time from the My Courses card in myPurdue.