The Voluntary System of Accountability (VSA) is an initiative by public 4-year universities to supply clear, accessible,and comparable information on the undergraduate student experience to important constituencies through a common web report – the College Portrait.

The VSA was developed in 2007 by a committed group of university leaders and is sponsored by two higher education associations - the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) and the Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU).

Development and start-up funding was provided by the Lumina Foundation. Beginning in 2010, the VSA is supported by the participating institutions through annual dues.