A calculated field in a PCR Educator DAT Query can now reference another field by its alias name in square brackets, for example [Absences in Class] * 100.0 / [Total Absences]. The expression reads in plain English, and the DAT Query stays correct when fields move.

What's new

Reference by name. A calculated field can name the field it needs by its alias, written in square brackets. The alias is the field name you already see in the query.

Stable when fields move. An alias reference points to a field by name, so reordering or duplicating fields keeps every calculation correct. PCR Educator resolves the alias to the field when the DAT Query runs.

Readable expressions. An expression like [Gifts This Year] minus [Gifts Last Year] explains itself. The next person who opens the DAT Query can read the math directly.

Why it matters

Naming the field keeps the meaning of a calculation visible on the page. An expression built from aliases reads the way a school talks about its data. Concentration ratios, year-over-year deltas, and weighted averages can be written with names that say what they mean, and the DAT Query keeps working when someone rearranges the fields later.

A few ways to talk about it

• Calculated fields in a DAT Query reference other fields by name, so the math reads in plain English.
• Reorder or duplicate fields freely. Alias references stay pointed at the right field.
• Concentration ratios, year-over-year deltas, and weighted averages, written the way you would say them.

Available now to all PCR Educator schools. Your account team can walk you through alias references in a DAT Query whenever you're ready.