ITEC 630 Week 2

Week 2:

3. Think about your own university or college and choose an idea that could improve student satisfaction with the course enrollment process. Currently, can students enroll for classes from anywhere? How long does it take? Are directions simple to follow? Is online help available?
Next, think about how technology can help support your idea. Would you need completely new technology? Can the current system be changed?

Question: Create a system request that you could give to the administration that explains the sponsor, business need, business requirements, and potential value of the project. Include any constraints or issues that should be considered.

Enrollment system: I’m going to push the boundaries with this a little bit here. I’ve actually had thoughts about new implementations that UMUC could do as a whole with regards to classes AND enrollment. :) 

Project Sponsor: UMUC IT Department

Business Need

The current student enrollment system requires the student to have a full understanding of their requirements for graduation. They also need to have an idea of what they need to take in order to progress (which classes need to be completed before they can take others). Another method that a student can enroll is by emailing “someone” from student advisement and have them do it for the student. However, there is no feeling of personalization in the sense of when a student could meet with an advisor face to face and really talk about their degree and where they are going. The current enrollment system is also not available as a mobile application and neither is the course page. 

Proposed System

The existing enrollment system will be enhanced to provide the following functionality

Extend enrollment/MyUMUC to mobile platforms

Established workflow of tuition payment. 

Similar to online banking (see account, transfer money, etc). 

Calendar alerts for payment due (for students who opt for payment plans) 

Student Course Requirement Visibility 

What-if analysis 

Completed vs to be completed 

Grades

Breakdown of completed courses and grade earned

The existing My Classes portal to also be provided as a mobile application as is. The My Classes portal is sufficient as is but since most students utilize mobile devices on a regular basis, it would allow the student to have increased access to classes due to freedom of movement. It would make participating in discussions easier and thus allow students to achieve a better education. 

Business Value of the Request

The enhancements to the enrollment system provides business value by:

Students would have a clearer snapshot of their current progress and where they have to go 

more on-demand access to enrollment 

Decrease the possibility of being dropped from classes due to missed payment

Increased efficiency in workflow

The enhancements to My Classes will add value by: 

More on-demand access to classes and material 

Increased mobility so students can study/participate wherever and whenever 

Increased ability to participate in online classes 

Constraints: 

Mobile application will need to be secure because students will have the option to pay through mobile app. 

device compatibility: mobile application for MyUMUC and My Classes will need to be compatible with devices and operating systems on the market.