Improving the Student Application and Admission Process Cheryl Jacobs Lori Murray-Hawkins University of New Brunswick

Background Definition and Development System overview Improvements Challenges Next steps

Before

Motivation Single, standard online form and process UNB Strategic Goals – increase international access to UNB – increase enrollment of students (in part, through better service) – Improved communications and marketing Commercial products, including from our ERP/SIS provider, inadequate

Definition & Development MBA Graduate Academic Units – Survey, Requirements Document, Code, Test Undergraduate – More centralized admission decision process – BOGO, Enhanced SIS syncing More GAUs and special UG programs Upgrade Schedule

Features Applicant account/profile Application form – Start and stop – Question logic – Document uploads Online Letter of Reference Applicant status page

Features Import to SIS Admin console – tailored to roles Decision process workflow Recruitment reporting Statistics Usability, accessibility, privacy standards

Improvements Applicants: – Single, online application form – Applicant-provided documents can be uploaded, during or following submit, rather than mailed – Online payment – Self-serve status information

Improvements Admissions: – Consistency – Efficiencies in decision process (workflow) – Tied into SIS inbound documents recording Academic Units: – Central location for application documents – Add/remove faculty reviewers per application

Improvements Recruitment: – Track and follow-up on abandoned applications UNB: – Single, online application form – Reduced silos: recruitment and admissions, admissions and academic units – More applicants > students (hopefully)

Challenges & Lessons No “silver bullet” – Academic and business unit priorities – Initial design case too restricted – Different data collected, decision processes Consistency (?) – Forms – Fees – Program administration

Challenges & Lessons In with the new (but don’t lose the old!) – Online application – or not – Online payment – or not – 2 applications for the price of one No “Easy button” – Units underestimated engagement – Didn’t know their programs or processes – Visual important

Challenges & Lessons International applicants Data integrity Too easy? Ongoing development – Priorities – Scheduling

Next Steps Complete graduate programs Upgrade releases Admissions input of paper applications Application agent console Academic Unit interface Mobile support Document transfer

Questions? Cheryl Jacobs Lori Murray-Hawkins