Personal Education Number (PEN) information for administrators

The Personal Education Number (PEN) is a nine-digit number assigned to each student enrolled or registered with any; B.C. Early Learning (Strong Start program), Public or Independent school, B.C. Certified Offshore School, Yukon School, or public Post-Secondary Institution.

Last updated: September 11, 2020

Once issued, the PEN follows the student through their B.C. education path from Early Learning, through K-12 and post-secondary enrollment. This number is used for multiple purposes including; the distribution of funding to schools, transition analysis between schools, districts and post-secondary education, exams and student reporting.

• Access PEN Web

Help with PEN web

Below you will find a selection of guides to help you through various aspects of using the PEN Web. For detailed instructions please view our step-by-step guide. 

• Step-by-step instructions for using the PEN web application (PDF)
• PEN Activity Report (PDF)
• Data Entry Guidelines and Acceptable Documentation
  • Guidelines for the Acceptable Use of Names, Date of Birth and Sex (Gender)
  • PEN Data Entry Questions and Answers
  • PEN Demographic Tips
• Downloading your return files from the web
• Query the PEN Web system for an existing PEN
• Requesting PENs Online for new students
• Request Return Files
• Uploading a PEN request file

For additional assistance contact the PEN Coordinator.