New Class Registration System Easier to Use, Supports Retention Efforts

LEXINGTON, Ky. (June 16, 2014) — Underscoring the University of Kentucky's efforts to place students first, a sophisticated new course registration system debuting today will make it easier to sign up for classes and also will significantly assist efforts in degree planning.

"For the first time, we will have a registration system completely integrated with all of our customer management services and outreach," said Don Witt, UK's associate provost for enrollment management. "The student user experience will be greatly improved and advisors will have an additional, powerful tool to aid students as they plan throughout their academic careers toward a degree."

The system is open today for students to start pre-registering for classes. And, most significantly, new, first-year students will be able to use the new registration system for the first time during summer advising conferences -- 'see blue.' U, which starts June 23 on the UK campus. A guide to the new system is on the registrar's website.

Witt said the new system, which has been in development by Enrollment Management and the Enterprise Application Group (EAG) and its Mobile Portal Workflow Team for more than a year, offers several powerful tools and insights for students and advisors to utilize, including:

·         Easier searches for information, such as class availability and capacity, numbers of open seats in a class and wait list information

·         A display of the class schedule in a calendar friendly view and format

·         Vastly improved speed of the system and performance

·         Greater access for students at pre-registration stage to see what classes they are eligible for and to work with advisors on a formalized degree plan

Witt said several focus groups were held with students last year as the new system was being developed. Open forums also have been held with advisors to better understand their needs and how to make the system better.

One student from a focus group said of the new sytem that "the course registration app allows me to find my classes both more quickly and easily.  It allows me to see a plan of what my schedule would look like without having to continuously create a hand-drawn one.”

Still another student remarked that the new system is "a lot easier than the old registration process, and I like this tool better because you can see your classes on a weekly schedule rather than having to go to several different tabs.”

In the past, Witt acknowledged that some students also utilized third-party sources and platforms to help with class registration and degree planning. But the new system, with a complete integration of all the university's available technology, should alleviate the need for that.

"Our entire focus — our only focus — has been to create a new registration system that makes it as easy as possible and as intuitive as possible for students and advisors to use," Smitha Nair, manager of the UKIT Mobile Portal Workflow Team. "We know one of the first impressions that students have of UK is the registration process. We also know that the ability to quickly register for classes and to understand how that experience fits with planning toward a degree is critical. I'm excited we have a system that will help us maximize the experience our students have in this vitally important process."

MEDIA CONTACT:  Kathy Johnson, 859-257-3155, kathy.johnson@uky.edu