NCHEMS

What NCHEMS does

NCHEMS (National Center for Higher Education Management Systems) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan postsecondary education consulting organization established in 1969 and headquartered in Boulder, Colorado. It provides research, development, and technical assistance to U.S. state agencies, state higher education systems, and individual institutions, helping them adopt forward-looking policies in strategic planning, accreditation and student outcomes, governance, affordability and finance, and the evolving landscape of higher education. Its core offering consists of project-based consulting engagements operating under the proprietary Knowledge First Framework™, supported by the HigherEdInfo national data platform that publishes comparative metrics such as direct-from-high-school college-going rates by state and year.

The organization's product portfolio includes six consulting service lines (Strategic Planning, Analysis and Data Support, Accreditation and Student Outcomes Consulting, Governance, Affordability and Finance, and Evolving Higher Education) plus applied research publications such as the Noncredit to Credit Pathways Brief, the States of Opportunity state financial aid policy research, and state-specific funding formula reviews. Complementary offerings include a Cooperative Extension conceptual framework addressing rural workforce development and Student-Centered Enrollment Management Principles developed with the Strada Education Foundation. All engagements are delivered via direct enterprise consulting relationships rather than through resellers or self-service channels.

NCHEMS generates revenue through project-based professional services contracts with U.S. state and institutional clients; pricing is not publicly disclosed and contracts are negotiated directly. The organization claims a national and international footprint but the documented customer base is concentrated in U.S. state and land-grant university systems. The business employs 251-500 staff and has no parent company, subsidiaries, acquisitions, or external funding rounds — consistent with a niche, mission-driven nonprofit operating in the state-level higher education policy consulting market for over 55 years.

Name

NCHEMS

Legal name

National Center for Higher Education Management Systems

Website

https://nchems.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1969

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

251–500 employees

Short description

NCHEMS is a Boulder, Colorado–based nonprofit consulting organization founded in 1969 that provides research, policy analysis, and technical assistance to U.S. state agencies, state higher education systems, and institutions on strategic planning, funding formulas, accreditation, governance, and student outcomes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulder

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Higher Education Consulting Services: Project-based consulting engagements with state agencies, state systems, and higher education institutions to provide strategic planning, policy analysis, data support, and technical assistance on postsecondary education issues.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

NCHEMS is a nonprofit, nonpartisan postsecondary education consulting organization that provides research, development, and technical assistance to state agencies, state higher education systems, and institutions. Through project-based engagements, the organization delivers strategic planning, accreditation consulting, governance advisory, affordability and finance analysis, and data-supported policy recommendations to help clients adopt forward-looking higher education policies.

Product overview

NCHEMS is a nonprofit, nonpartisan postsecondary education consulting organization offering a portfolio of consulting services and data platforms. The core offering consists of consulting and technical assistance including Strategic Planning, Analysis and Data Support, Accreditation and Student Outcomes Consulting, Governance, Affordability and Finance, and Evolving Higher Education services. These are supported by the proprietary Knowledge First Framework™ methodology and the HigherEdInfo data platform providing national comparative data on college-going rates. The organization also produces research publications including the Noncredit to Credit Pathways Brief, Student-Centered Enrollment Management Principles, and funding model reviews for state clients. Project initiatives cover state financial aid policy development, cooperative extension workforce development, and state funding formula reviews. The portfolio is organized around helping states, systems, and institutions adopt forward-looking policies through evidence-based consulting, robust data analysis, and collaborative solution development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Knowledge First Framework™: A proprietary framework developed by NCHEMS to ensure clients have critical information and insights to make intelligent decisions and implement effective postsecondary education policy.
• HigherEdInfo

Products and services

• Higher Education Consulting and Technical Assistance Project-based consulting and technical assistance encompassing strategic planning, accreditation consulting, governance advisory, affordability and finance guidance, analysis and data support, and evolving higher education practices to help state agencies, state systems, and higher education institutions adopt forward-looking policies and practices.
• HigherEdInfo National data resource providing comparative information and analytics for higher education decision-making, including direct-from-high-school college-going rates by state and year, maintained as a publicly accessible platform for higher education leaders and policymakers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Louisiana model serves as reference for other states exploring similar funding approaches
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core and secondary.

• Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning (IHL)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerIHL, Mississippi's state agency overseeing public universities, contracted NCHEMS in October 2025 to develop a new funding model for the state's public universities, the first since 2012. The proposed hybrid model incorporates performance metrics and post-graduation outcomes beyond equal distribution.
• Connecticut Office of Policy and ManagementcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Connecticut Office of Policy and Management partnered with NCHEMS to evaluate the Connecticut State Colleges and University System (CSCU), identifying key challenges and providing recommendations to improve organizational structure, financial sustainability, and ability to meet student and workforce needs.
• Louisiana Board of RegentscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Louisiana Board of Regents contracted NCHEMS in 2024 to assist in reviewing the state's higher education funding formula with an advisory committee. The review aims to align the funding model with the state's Higher Education Master Plan and support the goal of 60% of working-age adults holding a degree or high-value credential by 2030.
• Colorado State University ExtensionsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerCSU Extension partnered with NCHEMS for labor market information analysis to support workforce pathway development in rural Colorado communities. NCHEMS identified in-demand occupations matching community preferences for program development.
• University of Maine ExtensioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUniversity of Maine Extension partnered with NCHEMS for LMI analysis for ongoing marketing efforts and program development. UMaine Extension also collaborated with NCHEMS on workforce development initiatives, with NCHEMS providing supplemental LMI data and support as an external partner.
• University of Arkansas Division of Agricultural ExtensionsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe University of Arkansas Extension Center for Rural Resilience and Workforce Development partnered with NCHEMS for a requested workflow review to better understand strengths and opportunities for improvement in using LMI data for workforce development.
• University of Florida Center for Public Issues EducationsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerUMaine Extension partnered with a research team from the University of Florida Center for Public Issues Education to conduct a statewide needs assessment in Maine, surfacing opportunities for supporting small business financial well-being.
• Strada Education FoundationsecondaryStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrada Education Foundation supported the articulation of principles for reform in enrollment management, working with a group of enrollment management professionals. NCHEMS supports these principles and believes professionals can be supported by well-informed coordinating and governing board members and state agency staff.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Ithaka S+R: Ithaka S+R is a nonprofit research and consulting organization serving higher education, with overlapping work on strategy, sustainability, and data analytics for colleges, universities, and state systems. Directly comparable as a nonprofit policy/strategy advisor to the higher education sector.
• HCM Strategists: HCM Strategists is a policy and advocacy consulting firm focused on education, with deep work on higher education funding, equity, and state policy. Directly comparable as a specialist advisor to state and institutional clients.
• Southern Regional Education Board (SREB): SREB is a regional compact serving state higher education agencies across the U.S. South with policy research, data, and technical assistance — overlapping directly with NCHEMS' state-level funding formula and workforce development work.
• EducationCounsel: EducationCounsel is a boutique education law and policy consulting firm advising states, systems, and institutions on regulatory, accreditation, and federal student aid issues. Overlaps with NCHEMS' accreditation, governance, and federal-aid advisory work.
• Education Commission of the States (ECS): ECS is a nonprofit, nonpartisan interstate compact that works directly with state policymakers on higher education policy, funding, and governance — an almost identical buyer persona and service scope to NCHEMS' state-agency practice.
• Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE): WICHE is a regional interstate compact providing policy analysis, data, and program services to states on higher education issues. Comparable in mission, customer base (state agencies), and nonprofit consulting model.

Broad incumbents

• American Council on Education (ACE): ACE is the major higher education association representing presidents and chancellors of U.S. accredited institutions, providing policy advocacy, research, and leadership development. Broader in scope than NCHEMS but operates in the same policy and institutional-effectiveness domain.
• RAND Education and Workforce: RAND's education division conducts large-scale policy research and evaluations for federal and state agencies on workforce, higher education, and equity — overlapping with NCHEMS' policy-research and analytics offerings but at broader scale.
• Deloitte Government & Public Services (Education): Deloitte's education practice serves state higher education agencies on large-scale transformation, funding-model design, and technology implementation — a much broader incumbent that increasingly competes for the same state-policy engagements NCHEMS pursues.

Regional players

• National Association of System Heads (NASH): NASH serves public higher education system heads and offices in the U.S. and Canada, providing research and forums on system-level governance, performance funding, and policy. Highly comparable buyer persona (system-level decision makers) to NCHEMS' state-system clients.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about NCHEMS