it will be readily understood that the components of the present invention , as generally described and illustrated in the figures herein , could be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations . thus , the following more detailed description of the embodiments of systems and methods in accordance with the present invention , as represented in fig1 through 12 , is not intended to limit the scope of the invention , as claimed , but is merely representative of certain examples of presently contemplated embodiments in accordance with the invention . the presently described embodiments will be best understood by reference to the drawings , wherein like parts are designated by like numerals throughout . many of the functional units described in this specification have been labeled as modules , in order to more particularly emphasize their implementation independence . for example , modules may be implemented in software for execution by various types of processors . an identified module of executable code may , for instance , comprise one or more physical or logical blocks of computer instructions which may , for instance , be organized as an object , procedure , or function . nevertheless , the executables of an identified module need not be physically located together , but may comprise disparate instructions stored in different locations which , when joined logically together , comprise the module and achieve the stated purpose for the module . for example , a module of executable code could be a single instruction , or many instructions , and may even be distributed over several different code segments , among different programs , and across several memory devices . modules may also be implemented in hardware as electronic circuits comprising custom vlsi circuitry , off - the - shelf semiconductors such as logic chips , transistors , or other discrete components . a module may also be implemented in programmable hardware devices such as field programmable gate arrays , programmable array logic , programmable logic devices or the like . similarly , operational data may be identified and illustrated herein within modules , and may be embodied in any suitable form and organized within any suitable type of data structure . the operational data may be collected as a single data set , or may be distributed over different locations including over different storage devices , and may exist , at least partially , merely as electronic signals on a system or network . referring to fig1 , an apparatus 10 may implement the invention on one or more nodes 11 , ( client 11 , computer 11 ) containing a processor 12 ( cpu 12 ). all components may exist in a single node 11 or may exist in multiple nodes 11 , 52 remote from one another . the cpu 12 may be operably connected to a memory device 14 . a memory device 14 may include one or more devices such as a hard drive or other non - volatile storage device 16 , a read - only memory 18 ( rom 18 ) and a random access ( and usually volatile ) memory 20 ( ram 20 or operational memory 20 ). the apparatus 10 may include an input device 22 for receiving inputs from a user or from another device . similarly , an output device 24 may be provided within the node 11 , or accessible within the apparatus 10 . a network card 26 ( interface card ) or port 28 may be provided for connecting to outside devices , such as the network 30 . internally , a bus 32 , or multiple buses 32 , may operably interconnect the processor 12 , memory devices 14 , input devices 22 , output devices 24 , network card 26 and port 28 . the bus 32 may be thought of as a data carrier . as such , the bus 32 may be embodied in numerous configurations . wire , fiber optic line , wireless electromagnetic communications by visible light , infrared , and radio frequencies may likewise be implemented as appropriate for the bus 32 and the network 30 . input devices 22 may include one or more physical embodiments . for example , a keyboard 34 may be used for interaction with the user , as may a mouse 36 or stylus pad 37 . a touch screen 38 , a telephone 39 , or simply a telecommunications line 39 , may be used for communication with other devices , with a user , or the like . similarly , a scanner 40 may be used to receive graphical inputs , which may or may not be translated to other formats . the hard drive 41 or other memory device 41 may be used as an input device whether resident within the node 11 or some other node 52 ( e . g . 52 , 54 , etc .) on the network 30 , or from another network 50 . output devices 24 may likewise include one or more physical hardware units . for example , in general , the port 28 may be used to accept inputs into and send outputs from the node 11 . nevertheless , a monitor 42 may provide outputs to a user for feedback during a process , or for assisting two - way communication between the processor 12 and a user . a printer 44 , a hard drive 46 , or other device may be used for outputting information as output devices 24 . in general , a network 30 to which a node 11 connects may , in turn , be connected through a router 48 to another network 50 . in general , two nodes 11 , 52 may be on a network 30 , adjoining networks 30 , 50 , or may be separated by multiple routers 48 and multiple networks 50 as individual nodes 11 , 52 on an internetwork . the individual nodes 52 ( e . g . 11 , 48 , 52 , 54 ) may have various communication capabilities . in certain embodiments , a minimum of logical capability may be available in any node 52 . note that any of the individual nodes 11 , 48 , 52 , 54 may be referred to , as may all together , as a node 11 or a node 52 . each may contain a processor 12 with more or less of the other components 14 - 46 . a network 30 may include one or more servers 54 . servers may be used to manage , store , communicate , transfer , access , update , and the like , any practical number of files , databases , or the like for other nodes 52 on a network 30 . typically , a server 54 may be accessed by all nodes 11 , 52 on a network 30 . nevertheless , other special functions , including communications , applications , directory services , and the like , may be implemented by an individual server 54 or multiple servers 54 . in general , a node 11 may need to communicate over a network 30 with a server 54 , a router 48 , or nodes 52 . similarly , a node 11 may need to communicate over another network ( 50 ) in an internetwork connection with some remote node 52 . likewise , individual components 12 - 46 may need to communicate data with one another . a communication link may exist , in general , between any pair of devices . referring to fig2 , an educational institution 60 may be organized in such a way as to divide its curriculum into specialties or degree programs . moreover , an educational institution 60 may have various characteristics that might motivate a student to pursue a degree or a certificate at that institution 60 . for example , an educational institution 60 may be organized into multiple departments 62 , colleges 62 , and the like , thereby providing a prospective student a variety of educational offerings . likewise , each department 62 may offer several degrees 64 a - c typically related to one another . similarly , other departments 62 b , 62 c within the institution 60 may offer various related degrees programs 64 d - i , or courses of study 64 d - i . typically , such as when attending a four - year postsecondary institution 60 , a student attends with the goal of achieving a degree 64 offered by the institution 60 , or departments 62 contained therein . most educational institutions 60 provide a catalog 66 to current and prospective students defining requirements for earning a degree 64 from the institution 60 . in fact , the catalog 66 , as of the date of a student &# 39 ; s admission , may be considered a contract between the student and the institution 60 defining the requirements on each of the parties . certain factors may influence a student to attend one educational institution 60 as opposed to another 60 . because of differences in faculty , reputation 68 , courses offered 70 , tuition expenses 72 , accreditation 74 , location 76 , and other factors 78 like cost and schedule , a degree at one educational institution 60 may be valued or sought more by a student , an employer , or society in general , than a degree at another educational institution 60 . thus , whatever the path may be , a student may desire that the end award or degree be granted from a preferred institution 60 . for example , although a student may attend a community college or earn credits from other institutions 60 , a student may desire to transfer those credits to a preferred educational institution 60 toward a selected degree 64 at that institution 60 . as stated , the reputation 68 of an educational institution 60 may be an important factor when choosing an educational institution 60 from which to graduate . reputation 68 may be a rather subjective measurement . for example , because of an institution &# 39 ; s faculty members , ranking by an independent reporting agency , supposed intelligence of attending students , diversity , or the like , it may be perceived that a degree 64 from a particular institution 60 is more valuable to a student than another . thus , a student may desire a degree at a selected institution 60 for no other reason other than its reputation 68 , or any other single perceived advantage that may come as a result . other factors that may influence a student to pursue a degree or to take courses at a particular educational institution 60 may include courses 70 or degrees 64 offered by the institution 60 , and affordability of tuition expenses 72 . in addition , an institution &# 39 ; s accreditation 74 may be important . that is , in certain fields or occupations , a degree 64 may be required from an institution 60 that is accredited by a government agency , an independent agency , or the like . in certain instances , an institution &# 39 ; s location 76 may be the most important factor to a student when selecting an educational institution 60 . some students may have the aptitude or credentials to attend a more distinguished or reputable institution 60 , but may choose an institution 60 simply because of its proximity to home or family likewise , other factors 78 may be important to a student when choosing an educational institution 60 from which to graduate . referring to fig3 , a catalog 66 may contain information and requirements necessary to graduate from a particular institution 60 . for example , a catalog 66 may contain a number of degree requirements 80 . degree requirements 80 may include various criteria necessary for a student to graduate from a particular college 62 or department within the institution 60 . for example , degree requirements may include required general education courses 84 . a student may be required to complete many of these courses 84 before being accepted into an upper division program or into a particular department 62 or college 62 within an institution 60 . several categories of courses may be classified as general education courses 84 . for example , general education courses 84 may include federally mandated courses 84 , state mandated courses 84 , or courses 84 mandated by a particular institution 60 . in addition , an institution 60 may require that a certain number of credit hours or a certain percentage of a student &# 39 ; s overall curriculum be comprised of general education courses 84 . degree requirements 80 may also include required departmental courses 86 teaching subject matter relevant to a chosen degree program 64 . departmental requirements 86 may include courses or requirements that are required by a department 62 or college 62 within the institution 60 . finally , degree requirements 80 may include electives 88 . electives 88 usually refer to courses or requirements that may or may not be related to a particular degree 64 , but may be selected at the discretion or interest of a student . degree requirements 80 may include criteria such as a student &# 39 ; s grade point average ( gpa ) 90 . that is , unless a student has achieved a specified gpa 90 , he or she may not be admitted into a department 62 or college 62 within the institution 60 . thus , several layers of admission may exist after initial admission into an educational institution 60 . in addition , other actions 92 or criteria 92 may be required to satisfy degree requirements 80 . a catalog 66 may also include graduation requirements 82 necessary for graduation from a selected institution 60 . graduation requirements 82 may include requirements with respect to the transfer of credits 94 from one institution 60 to another , requirements for upper division credits 96 , credits earned during residency 98 , a mixture 100 of courses , and other requirements 102 . because different institutions 60 may offer different degree programs 64 , courses taken at one institution 60 may or may not readily be accepted for credit at another institution 60 . thus , a student may lose a certain number of credits earned at one institution 60 when transferring to another 60 . graduation requirements 82 may also include a number of upper division credits 96 . that is , certain classes may be designated as upper and lower division courses , each satisfying different requirements . graduation requirements 82 may also include certain residency requirements 98 . that is , although an institution 60 may accept a certain number of transfer credits 94 , the institution 60 may also require that a certain number of courses be taken at the graduating institution 60 . these requirements 98 may exist to ensure that an institution 60 receives compensation for and control of granting a degree 64 . in other instances , graduation requirements 82 may require a certain mix 100 of courses within a particular degree program 64 . that is , an institution 60 may require that courses such as general education courses 84 , departmental courses 86 , and elective courses 88 , be taken in specified proportions as part of a degree program 64 . likewise , other requirements 102 may be specified , as needed , to satisfy graduation requirements 82 . a catalog 66 may specify certain prerequisites 104 such as admission or matriculation prerequisites 106 , and course work prerequisites 108 . for example , admission or matriculation prerequisites 106 may include requirements for selected high school credits 110 , proficiency in a native or second language 112 , entrance exam scores 114 such as an sat or act score 114 , high school gpa 116 , or other prerequisites 118 . course work prerequisites 108 may refer to course work 108 needed to be admitted into a selected institution 60 . course work prerequisites 108 may include requirements for a selected gpa 120 earned taking a course , series of courses , or course of study , approval 122 from an authority to give credit to a selected course , or other requirements 124 . a catalog 66 may also include a list of courses 126 offered by an institution 60 . each course 126 may be assigned a course number 128 , a number of credit hours 130 , a description 132 of subject matter taught by the course 126 , classes that satisfy prerequisite or co - requisite requirements 134 of the course 126 , and the like . a course schedule 136 will usually be issued periodically by an institution 60 . the course schedule 136 may contain information needed to register for and attend selected courses 126 . since a course schedule 136 may be dependent on a number of factors , the schedule 136 is typically provided separately and at a later time than the catalog 66 . for example , the course schedule 136 may be dependent on the availability of faculty , student demand , classroom availability , and the like . the schedule 136 may provide course numbers 138 corresponding to each course 126 , days and times 140 courses 126 are offered , credit hours 142 assigned to each course 126 , faculty 144 assigned to each course , location 146 of each course , and other information 148 , as needed . referring to fig4 , various entities within an educational institution 60 may be responsible for providing institutional curriculum information support 150 . moreover , various methods for distribution of institutional curriculum may be used . for example , an institution 60 may produce hard copies 152 of catalogs 160 , graduation guidelines 162 , and course schedules 164 . one advantage of hard copies 152 is that they may be distributed through the mail , as well as provide a tangible record of institutional curriculum . in addition , hard copies 152 may provide the primary means of providing information to those lacking electronic means of communication , such as the internet . since catalog 160 and graduation guidelines 162 are usually created far in advance of and less frequently than documents such as course schedules 164 , they will typically be separate documents 160 , 162 . as the internet and other electronic communication means become more prevalent , online copies 154 of catalogs 160 and course schedules 164 may often be provided . these online copies 154 may be provided in the form of html pages , 166 posted on the internet , or other documents posted online on an institution &# 39 ; s intranet . many institutions 60 may design elaborate web sites consisting of numerous pages connected by hyperlinks . however , since few standards exist for uniformly presenting educational information , desired information may be hard to find . thus , apparatus and methods are needed to mine or extract information corresponding to selected institutions 60 , such that it may be easily viewed , organized , and compared by individuals . in certain instances , an institution 60 may maintain a master template copy 156 of institutional curriculum . the master template copy 156 may be used so persons or entities within the institution 60 may add , modify , or delete information from the institution &# 39 ; s catalogs 160 , graduation guidelines 162 , or schedules 164 , as needed . the master template copy 156 may be formatted for printing as a hard copy 152 , or online copy 154 . information in the master template copy 156 may be stored in a database 158 in the form of records 168 . each record 168 may correspond to a particular department 62 , degree 64 , course 70 , student , faculty member , or the like . referring to fig5 , courses 172 may be organized into a hierarchy 173 . the hierarchy 173 illustrates an order or sequence of courses 172 that should be taken by a student . these courses 172 satisfy graduation 82 and degree 80 requirements provided by the catalog 66 . for example , the hierarchy 173 may be divided into general education courses 84 , lower division major courses 170 , and upper division major courses 96 . electives 88 may also be required to earn a degree 64 and graduate from an institution 60 . however , these electives 88 may or may not be taken at any time during a degree program 64 and , therefore , are left out of the hierarchy 173 in this example . for example , a student may need to take a specified number of general education courses 84 . general education courses 84 may provide a basis or foundation for further study , and may also indicate a student &# 39 ; s ability to succeed in upper division courses 96 in a degree program 64 . once general education courses 84 are completed , a student may or may not be admitted into a college 62 or department 62 to finish a degree program 64 . lower division major courses 170 may or may not be taken by a student before being admitted into a particular degree program 64 . lower division major courses 170 may include those courses 170 directly applicable to the student &# 39 ; s degree program 64 . in addition , lower division major courses 170 may serve as prerequisites for upper division major courses 96 . upper division major courses 96 refer to those courses 96 directly applicable toward a selected degree program 64 . upper division major courses 96 are usually more advanced courses 96 taken during the final two years of a four - year degree program 64 . the courses 84 , including the general education 84 , lower division major 170 , and upper division major courses 96 , may be used to satisfy requirements 174 a , 174 b prescribed by the graduation 82 and degree 80 requirements . once these requirement 174 are satisfied , a student should be entitled to a degree 64 . referring to fig6 , while continuing to refer generally to fig5 , requirements 175 may be organized into a degree dependency graph , such as a degree tree structure 180 . a degree tree structure 180 simply represents one example of a dependency graph that may be used in accordance with the invention . other types of dependency graphs may include linked lists , double linked lists , content - addressable memory structures , networks , or other topologies . a degree tree structure 180 may be considered a map or path to earn a degree 64 . for example , requirements 175 or entries 175 within a degree tree structure 180 may be satisfied by general education 84 , lower division major 170 , upper division major 96 , and elective courses 88 satisfying the graduation 82 and degree 88 requirements . the degree tree structure 180 may show relationships between requirements 175 , such as prerequisites 175 a for other courses 175 c . likewise , other courses 175 d , 175 e may be corequisites within the degree tree structure 180 . some courses 175 f may serve as prerequisites for multiple other courses 175 g - j . if desired , the degree structure 180 may be divided up into a series of quarters , trimesters , or semesters 182 a - c so a time may be estimated for completing a degree 64 . for example , selected courses may be taken during a first semester 182 while other selected courses may be taken during a second semester 182 b likewise , the degree tree structure 180 may be divided into courses 184 taken before admission to a degree program 64 , and courses 186 that are taken after admission to a degree program 64 . various requirements 175 within the degree tree structure 180 may be satisfied by several different courses 126 . others may be satisfied only by completing a specific course . as stated , the degree tree structure 180 represents a path or map to complete a degree 64 at a selected institution 60 . however , once the degree tree structure 180 is established , a student may be able to satisfy particular requirements 175 at other more preferred institutions 60 . thus , once the degree tree structure 180 is established , a student may be able to take courses 126 at another institution 60 . this may enable a student to more efficiently achieve a degree 64 . referring to fig7 , a process 188 for managing a student &# 39 ; s curriculum may include a source information module 190 , a mining module 192 , a planning module 198 , and a degree tree structure 180 . a source information module 190 may gather information from multiple institutions 60 a - c . catalogs 66 a - c and course schedules 136 a - c may be gathered from each institution 60 a - c . the information from catalogs 66 a - c and course schedules 136 a - c may be sought or otherwise received by a mining module 192 . the mining module 192 may search the catalog 66 a - c and course schedule 136 a - c information for information relevant to a student &# 39 ; s degree program 64 . for example , certain requirements within a student &# 39 ; s degree program 64 may be satisfied by a course 194 a offered by several different institutions 196 a . a list 196 a may be compiled to include institutions 196 a offering selected courses 194 a or their equivalents 194 a . likewise , with respect to other courses 194 b , 194 c , lists of institutions 196 b , 196 c offering the course 194 b , 194 c or an equivalent 194 b , 194 c may be compiled . the lists 196 a - 196 c may contain several institutions 60 in common or others 60 that are unique to a single list 196 a - c . once relevant information is extracted by the mining module 192 , the information may be received by a planning module 198 . a planning module 198 may process the information , including courses 126 and course schedules 136 a - c , to satisfy requirements in the degree tree structure 180 . a planning module 198 may be composed of various modules , including , but not limited to , a presentation module 200 , an i / o module 202 , a processing module 204 , a criteria module 205 , and an interrogatories module 206 . a presentation module 200 may present , to a user , information corresponding to courses 126 , degree programs 64 , course schedules 136 , catalogs 66 , and the like for a selected institution 60 or institutions 60 . the presentation module 200 may further present to a student , a degree tree structure 180 and courses 126 used to satisfy requirements within the tree structure 180 . an i / o module 202 may have the primary task of inputting and outputting information on courses 126 , degree programs 64 , institutions 60 , course schedules 136 , catalogs 66 , degree tree structures 180 , and the like from the planning module 198 . a processing module 204 may process information on courses 126 , degree programs 64 , course schedules 136 , and the like , and may optimize the information to fit within a student &# 39 ; s degree tree structure 180 . a criteria module 205 may work in coordination with the processing module 204 to compare information received from the mining module 192 to certain criteria and preferences selected by a student . finally , an interrogatories module 206 may receive from a student , or other individual , preferences such as schedule , cost , location , credit hour load , and the like , with respect to selected courses 126 , degree programs 64 , institutions 60 , and the like . referring to fig8 , dissimilar words , terminology , or concepts used to describe the same information or idea may decrease the efficiency of finding and using the information . information known to one individual may go undiscovered by another individual simply because he or she has failed to identify or search for the proper words , terminology , or concepts . for example , with respect to educational institutions 60 , information with respect to courses 126 , degree programs 64 , and the like , may be described very differently , thus making the extraction or comparison of such information very difficult . in order to overcome this difficulty , standardized nomenclature is needed to identify like information from different educational institutions 60 . a process 210 for describing institutional information with standardized words , terminology , and concepts , such that it may be easily extracted and compared , may include creating a standardized nomenclature 212 . the standardized nomenclature 212 may classify types of information within an educational institution 60 . for example , terms within a standardized nomenclature 212 may be created for institutions 60 , catalogs 66 , departments 62 , degrees 64 , courses 126 , information corresponding to courses 126 , course schedules 136 , and the like . a process 210 may or may not include a step for protecting the nomenclature 214 . protecting the nomenclature 214 may include acquiring patents , copyrights , trademarks , or the like necessary to protect and maintain the integrity of a system of words , terminology , concepts , and the like , used to construct a standardized nomenclature 212 . once the nomenclature 212 is created , it may be distributed 216 to various educational institutions 60 offering courses 126 , degree programs 64 , and the like . distribution 216 may include providing reference materials to each educational institution 60 , identifying terminology within the nomenclature 212 , and identifying information it is intended to classify . once distributed 216 , the process 210 may optionally include a step to motivate 218 use of the nomenclature 212 . motivation 218 may include providing incentives , information , materials , educational workshops , seminars , and the like , informing institutions 60 of the benefits of adopting the nomenclature 212 . the creator of the nomenclature may also incorporate suggestions 218 , received from educational institutions 60 , into the nomenclature 212 . incorporating suggestions 218 may include modifying , adding , or deleting terms or terminology from the nomenclature 212 . once adopted , information such as course information , degree information , course schedule information , institutional information , faculty information , and the like may be classified 220 according to the nomenclature 212 . classification 220 may include labeling or identifying information within an institution 60 using the nomenclature 212 . once the information is classified 220 , the information may be made available , such as on the internet , to students , prospective students , or organizations dedicated to gathering , comparing , and providing educational information to the public . the information available from institutions may then be mined 224 by searching for information with respect to institutions 60 , courses 126 , degrees 64 , course schedules 136 , and the like , using the nomenclature 212 . for example , mining may occur over the internet . mining 224 may include extracting from all available information , the desired and relevant information , such as information corresponding to courses 126 , degree programs 64 , institutions 60 , catalogs 66 , course schedules 136 , and the like , that is organizable and comparable . referring to fig9 , for example , in one embodiment , a process 230 for providing a standardized nomenclature to an educational institution 60 may include creating a standardized set of xml tags 232 . xml is a standard for describing data that may be used to define data elements in web pages and documents transmitted between businesses . xml , similar to html , uses tags to identify certain types of data . however , whereas html is used primarily to define how elements are displayed , xml may be used to define what type of data those elements contain . in addition , whereas html uses predefined tags , xml allows tags to be defined , as needed , by a developer . thus , data items such as an institution 60 , departments 62 or colleges 62 within an institution 60 , degrees 64 , courses 126 , course schedules 136 , and the like , may be identified with standardized tags in accordance with the invention . once standardized tags 232 are created , the tags may optionally be protected 234 . for example , as described previously standards , publications , agreements , patents , copyrights , trademarks , and the like , may be used to provide some degree of integrity and protection 234 . subsequently , the tags may be distributed 236 to various educational institutions 60 . distribution 236 may include providing education and reference materials describing the tags and information to be identified by the tags . once the tags are distributed 236 , the process 230 may optionally include motivating the institution 60 to use the tags . in addition , a creator of the tags may optionally incorporate , into the tags 232 , suggestions received from institutions 60 . once the tags 232 are distributed 236 , institutions 60 or other organizations may classify 240 information such as courses 126 , degrees 64 , course schedules 136 , institutions 60 , and like information with the tags 232 . classifying 240 information may include taking information included in html web pages of an institution 60 and creating xml pages identifying the same information with xml tags 232 . in other embodiments , an institution 60 may simply embed xml tags 232 within existing html pages . in other embodiments , an organization or entity independent from an educational institution 60 may acquire information from an institution 60 from hard copies , html pages , or the like , and identify information within these sources with xml tags 232 . once information is classified 240 with the xml tags 232 , the information may be posted 242 online , such as over a subscription service or on the internet , where it may be accessed and mined by individuals and organizations . mining data 244 may refer to the process of extracting , comparing , organizing , presenting , and the like , information corresponding to educational institutions 60 identified by the xml tags 232 . referring to fig1 , xml pages 250 may be created to identify various types of information 252 . for example , in one embodiment , xml pages 250 may include tags 252 to identify information corresponding to an institution 252 a , a catalog 252 b currently used at an institution 60 , a department 252 c within such an institution 60 , a degree 252 d offered by a department 252 c or college 252 c , hours 252 e needed to graduate with a selected degree , and the like . within a selected degree , tags 252 identifying general education 252 f , departmental 252 g , and elective 252 h courses may be provided . in certain embodiments , hours 252 i and courses 252 j corresponding to these requirements 252 f - h may also be provided . in a similar manner , xml pages 250 may include tags 252 k identifying courses 126 offered by a particular institution 60 . the course tags 252 k may include other descriptive tags 252 p including but not limited to credit hours corresponding to the course , description of subject matter taught by the course , prerequisites of the course , co - requisites of the course , and the like . likewise , other xml pages 250 may include course schedule 136 information . for example , a course schedule tag 252 m may identify scheduling information corresponding to a course 126 . in addition , other tags 252 r may identify a time that a course 126 is offered , days that a course 126 is offered , faculty teaching a course , locations where a course is taught , and the like . likewise , any of multiple other tags 252 n may be provided , as needed , to provide selected information . like html tags , xml tags may include a beginning tag 252 a and an ending tag 253 a that enclose information 254 or data 254 therebetween . for example , institution tags 252 a , 253 a may enclose the name of a university , such as the “ university of utah .” likewise , catalog tags 252 b , 253 b may enclose the year of a particular catalog 66 being described . department tags 250 c , 253 c may enclose the name of a department or college . each of the other tags 252 d - r may enclose specific information , as needed . thus , the use of xml tags 252 or a standardized nomenclature 212 may facilitate the mining and comparison of information corresponding to different educational institutions 60 by a student or other individual . the tags 252 are simply presented by way of example and do not constitute an exhaustive list of all possible tags 252 that may be used . therefore , the illustrated tags 252 are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention . in reality , a seemingly innumerable number of tags 252 could be established to identify various types of information corresponding to educational institutions 60 , the likes of which are intended to be captured within the scope of the present invention . in addition to xml pages 250 , other pages 260 may be provided as needed in accordance with the invention . for example , pages 260 containing xsl 262 , or extensible style sheet language 262 , may be used to specify the style or manner of display of xml data . the xsl specification 262 may function as a style template , thereby enabling a designer to apply a single style to multiple xml pages 250 . dtd 264 , or document type definition 264 , may be used to define tags and attributes used to describe content in an xml or html document . the dtd specification 264 may define those tags that are allowed as well as tags that may appear within other tags likewise , dom 266 , or document object model 266 , may specify how objects in a web page are represented . this specification 266 enables programs and scripts to update the content , structure , and style of html and xml documents . referring to fig1 , as described previously , institutions 60 may make information coded with xml tags available over a network , such as the internet 271 . for example , multiple institutions 60 may provide information on multiple servers 270 a - c . each of these servers 270 a - c , may store and serve xml pages 250 a - c containing information corresponding to each individual institution 60 . this information may be made available to persons or entities having access to the internet 271 . in another embodiment , a selected institution 60 may embed or retrofit existing html pages 272 a with xml tags 274 identifying information within the pages 272 a . an institution 60 may then place these pages 272 a on a server 270 d , where they may be served over the internet 271 . likewise , in another embodiment , an institution 60 may refuse to or be unable to provide information identified with xml tags 252 . such an institution 60 may choose to exclusively provide html pages 272 b on the internet 271 . in this instance , a party or entity independent from the institution 60 may take information from the institution &# 39 ; s html pages 272 b and code the information with xml tags 252 . in certain embodiments , a user having a computer 276 may be able to access any of the information stored on the servers 270 a - e through a browser 278 . a student - centered , cross - institutional curriculum management system 280 may be used to mine data from the servers 270 a - e for use in managing a student &# 39 ; s curriculum . in certain embodiments , the management system 280 may include a web search engine 282 , a mining engine 284 , an equivalency module 286 , an expert system 288 , a comparison or organization module 290 , a user interface 292 , a database 294 , and other modules 296 . for example , a web search engine 282 may be specifically tailored to search for information offered by educational institutions 60 on web servers 270 a - e . in presently contemplated embodiments , the web search engine 282 may enable a student to search for information corresponding to selected institutions 60 , degree programs 64 , courses 126 , and the like . a mining engine 284 may include a page parser 298 , a crawler 300 , an indexing module 302 , and the like . for example , a page parser 298 may be programmed to parse xml pages 250 a - c , 274 , or other available data located on the internet 271 , to extract desired information sought with respect to education . the page parser 298 may work with an indexing module 302 to identify and index information identified by tags 252 in the xml pages 250 . in addition , a crawler 300 may be provided to scour the internet 271 for information corresponding to educational institutions 60 , degree programs 64 , courses 126 , and the like . the management system 280 may also include an equivalency module 286 to determine the equivalency of degree programs 64 and courses 126 offered by different institutions 60 . for example , although institutions 60 may offer courses 126 of identical or similar subject matter , these courses 126 may be identified with distinct course numbering systems . thus , in certain embodiments , the equivalency module 286 may function by comparing the content of these courses 126 to identify equivalency therebetween . in certain cases , equivalency may be determined by specific policies of educational institutions 60 with respect to the transfer of credits therebetween . the management system 280 may also include an expert system 288 to assist a student in planning , optimizing , and completing a degree program 64 . the expert system 288 may identify selected preferences that a student may have with respect to a selected curriculum , and may plan the curriculum by retrieving information in accordance with the preferences . the management system 280 may also include a comparison or organization module 290 for use by a student or other entity to compare or organize selected institutions 304 , degree programs 306 , courses 308 offered by institutions 60 , or other criteria 310 , as needed . a user interface 292 may function to enable a user to interact with the management system 280 . for example , a user interface 292 may receive data in response to interrogatories presented to a user . likewise , the user interface 292 may enable a user to select preferences with respect to his or her curriculum . the user interface 292 may also present , organize , and compare data , as needed , for a user . likewise , the management system 280 may include a database 294 including a database engine 312 and records 314 . the database engine 312 may be effective to store , retrieve , modify and search records 314 within the database 294 . records 314 within the database 294 may include records corresponding to student information 316 , student preferences 318 , degree programs 320 , indexes for searching the web 322 , indexes 324 of information that has been mined over the internet , equivalency tables 326 containing information with respect to normalizing the equivalency of courses 126 offered by various institutions 60 , as well as other records 328 . in selected embodiments , any or all of the data provided over the internet may be provided to a student or other individual on a self - contained mass storage media , such as a cd - rom , dvd , or the like . for example , a cd - rom may be created containing any or all of the structures illustrated in fig1 in memory , rather than being stored in different physical systems . a cd - rom containing selected catalogs 66 , information with respect to selected institutions 60 , schedules 136 , and the like , could be provided to a student corresponding to a desired region , such as a city , state , or the like . in other embodiments , a customized cd - rom could be provided containing only catalogs 66 , institutions 60 , schedules 136 , and the like , that are desired by a particular student or individual . thus , an entire search or comparison may be performed from information entirely contained on a cd - rom , dvd , or other mass storage medium . in other embodiments , part of a search or comparison may performed from information stored on a cd - rom , while additional or more specific information may be gathered by logging onto the internet . for example , selected planning may be performed offline . once this planning is complete , a student may be connected online to register , download additional information , or the like . referring to fig1 , an expert system 288 for inclusion in the student - centered , cross - institutional curriculum management system 280 may begin 330 by enabling a student or prospective student to select graduation criteria 332 . selecting 332 graduation criteria may include selecting 334 an institution 60 from which to graduate , selecting 336 a department 62 or college 62 within the institution 60 , and selecting 338 a degree program 64 within the department 62 or college 62 . once graduation criteria have been selected 332 , a catalog 66 may be selected 340 but is typically fixed by having offered the degree . selecting 340 a catalog 66 may simply refer to selecting a year to begin a degree program 64 . once a catalog 66 is selected 340 , a student may select 342 preferences with respect to a selected degree program 64 . for example , a student may have certain preferences 342 with respect to a class schedule 344 , such as preferred times of the day to take courses 126 , preferred days 346 of the week to take courses , preferences with respect to cost 348 , preferences with respect to a credit hour load 350 taken during a semester or other interval , years 352 in which a student desires to attend or graduate , preferred locations 354 , maximum travel time , and the like . by inputting a student &# 39 ; s preferences 342 , the expert system 288 may acquire a set of parameters within which to plan a student &# 39 ; s curriculum . the expert system 288 may then be able to optimize the student &# 39 ; s curriculum more efficiently and rapidly than a student might be able to on his or her own . once preferences 342 are established , the expert system 288 may determine 356 or establish 356 a degree tree structure 180 in accordance with the selected graduation criteria 332 . the degree tree structure 180 may serve as a map or template provided by the expert system 288 to assist a student in completing a degree program 64 . the tree structure 180 embodies courses in sequence to accomplish the designated degree under the constraints of the catalog 66 and preferences 342 . once the degree tree structure 180 is established 356 , existing credits may be imported 358 into the tree structure 180 . these existing credits 358 may be credits earned by a student taking courses 126 at another institution 60 , received in high school , received at the student &# 39 ; s current institution 60 , received from taking exams , and the like . once the expert system 288 has established credits a student has already earned , and how the credits may be applied to a selected degree program 64 , the expert system 288 may determine 360 a next set of courses 126 to be taken by the student . the expert system 288 may then import 362 course schedule 136 information either manually , from a student , from information mined over the internet 271 , or the like . with the course schedule 136 , the expert system 288 may create a class schedule 366 for the student . this class schedule 366 may be optimized 364 to the student &# 39 ; s selected preferences 342 . for example , if a student selects a preference 342 to take courses 126 close to a selected location 354 , the expert system 288 may search for courses 126 that are taught by institutions 60 closest to the selected location 354 . likewise , the same process may be followed for each of the other preferences 342 . once scheduling information has been imported 362 and the class schedule 366 has been optimized 364 to the student &# 39 ; s preferences , the expert system 288 may proceed to output a class schedule 366 to the student . the class schedule 366 may be for a selected semester , multiple semesters , or the like . once the class schedule 366 has been output , the expert system 288 may save 368 a student &# 39 ; s profile for future use . if the student graduates 370 , upon completing a class schedule 366 , then the process may end 372 . however , if a student does not graduate 370 upon completing the class schedule 366 , a student may be provided the opportunity to modify preferences 374 and other criteria . if a student does not desire to modify his or her preferences 374 , the expert system 288 may proceed to import existing credits 358 earned from completing the class schedule 366 into the degree tree structure 180 . if , however , the student desires to modify preferences 374 , the student may modify criteria such as graduation criteria 332 , or other preferences 342 , with respect to a selected degree program 64 . the present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics . the described embodiments are to be considered in all respects only as illustrative , and not restrictive . the scope of the invention is , therefore , indicated by the appended claims , rather than by the foregoing description . all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency of the claims are to be embraced within their scope .