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Ferrilli Information Group partners with University of the Sciences in Philadelphia to meet campus demands for degree audit and electronic advising.
The partnership between Ferrilli Information Group (FIG) and University of the Sciences in Philadelphia resulted in dramatic improvement in efficiency and accuracy by providing timely access to students’ academic records during degree audit and registration. Advisors and administrators now spend less time with paper, more time with students..
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Student records are kept in file cabinets. To be shared, they must be delivered by campus mail or by hand.
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Files can be accessed anytime, anywhere, through the Web.
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One paper file. One user.
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Any authorized user can access any file.
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File cabinets are jammed and overflowing. Misfiled folders can be lost forever.
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There’s always room for one more electronic file and files are always where they’re supposed to be. Each file is an electronic file from the start.
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Degree audits are performed manually, a tedious and error-prone process, as checklists are compared individually with transcripts.
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A degree audit can take as short a time as a minute, with no errors.
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Students are often oblivious of degree requirements and whether they have met them.
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Students can check themselves to see what courses they have left in order to graduate.
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Advisors struggle to keep graduation checklists up to date. Students must locate necessary forms and make trip after trip to have them signed.
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Advisors and students can mutually view an always updated listing of courses taken and courses needed to graduate. Additional courses can be added online, with no need for the student to make another trip back.
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Advisors in one major are usually unable to assist students in figuring out the requirements for another possible major.
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By using the “what-if” scenario, students know instantly what additional courses would be needed for another major.
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Students must wait two months to see their final schedules. Often they are closed out of classes they wanted and must visit department offices to find open sections.
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Students view open sections and can register for a full schedule immediately.
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Web registration and degree audit were features long desired by administrators and advisors. Students complained that other campuses provided online registration. However, an already lean IT department at University of the Sciences did not have the staff resources to implement the features their users wanted. Partnering with FIG meant that University of the Sciences could move ahead, initiate the project, and finish it in a timely fashion. University of the Sciences found the FIG rates reasonable, and FIG’s familiarity with the campus, the Datatel environment, and the University of the Sciences’ systems resulted in the project being completed and running smoothly in less time than expected.
FIG broke down the process into meaningful steps. Degree audit, the basis of the other modules, came first, with campus stakeholders fully involved. Once the backbone was in place, e-advising and the what-if scenarios were implemented.
Advisors no longer have to hunt for folders. All the information they need for advising is available a click or two away. Students are happy that they now can see the courses they need to take and be able to complete their registrations in one online session. And dreaded degree audits are completed without tears.
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