The Department of Education (ED) recently released its annual report on the Top 10 audit findings and Top 10 program review findings for FY22. These findings remain largely unchanged from FY21 to FY22.

As has been noted in prior years, the most common findings in both school audits and program reviews are the following:

Inaccurate/untimely enrollment status reporting (16.8% of school audit findings, 8.8% of program review findings)
Return to Title IV (R2T4) calculation errors (7.9% of school audit findings, 6.0% of program review findings)
Verification violations (3.9% of school audit findings, 4.7% of program review findings)
Entrance/exit counseling deficiencies (3.6% of school audit findings, 4.5% of program review findings)
The Top 10 audit findings come from ED’s compilation of findings identified by institutions’ independent financial statement/compliance auditors in single audit reports submitted to the federal audit clearinghouse and to ED directly in FY22. The Top 10 program review findings are from program reviews conducted by ED during FY22.

The total number of deficiencies/findings identified in school audits from FY21 to FY22 increased by approximately 6.5%, with 4,958 deficiencies in FY21 and 5,281 deficiencies in FY22.

RubinBrown specializes in higher education audits and assistance with program reviews, and RubinBrown teams regularly consult on student financial aid and other federal funding controls and process improvements to help institutions improve compliance matters. Additionally, RubinBrown has teams that help in implementing new ERP systems including the setup of student financial aid and compliance related controls to help encourage improved compliance. If you or your institution are in need of assistance, please feel free to reach out to a member of RubinBrown’s Colleges and Universities team.

The link to the reports on the Annual Top Ten School Audit Findings and Top Ten School Program Review Findings can be found here.

Published: 9/13/2023

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