The Challenge
Can Tufts ease the burden of single course enrollment for students and staff?
Non-traditional students, those that are taking single courses or certificate programs, are a key income generating opportunity for universities. Prior to this project, these non-traditional students had to follow the same multi-step registration process as students applying to a degree program, causing many to abandon Tufts University in favor of easier enrollment options.
The Approach
Assessing the Current State
A new student enrolling in any course will touch multiple departments and interact with half a dozen software platforms. It was important to identify the existing student journey to understand the student experience, the hand-offs of information, the stakeholders involved, and the pain points for all involved. Blueprinting workshops brought together all university stakeholders to document the full complexity of the challenge. There were four different paths to enrollment based on the type of student enrolling, resulting in four current state blueprints.
Journey Map of existing process, students must navigate four different websites and wait up to 48 hours for a secure ID before being able to register
Stakeholder Scoping Sessions
Through cross-functional stakeholder working sessions, the group was able to come to a shared understanding of the student challenges and a shared vision for process improvement.
No Duplicate Systems Stakeholders need to maintain course catalog, student records, and other data in only one system; real time integration will be important
Self service Priority New system needs to prioritize usability to emphasize the self service aspect of enrollment and not further tax over worked registrars
One Sitting Enroll & Pay Allow students to enroll in courses and pay in full while their interested is piqued
Imagining the Future State
A full service blueprint detailing the entire process from start to finish was used to identify and address usability issues, roles and responsibilities, and key transition points between portals.
The improved Journey of Student Registration now puts much of the process out of view of the student, allowing them to register and pay for their course as they browse
The Impact
Improved Student and University Experience
Improved Student and University Experience
Reduced Enrollment Time from ~4 days to 15 minutes Reordering the steps of the enrollment process reduces enrollment time and captures payment at time of interest
Guided Marketing Website Redesigned the marketing website to guide students through the self-identification process and quickly identify relevant programs
Redesigned Enroll/Pay Experience Redesigned the new enrollment portal for visual integration with Tufts and user focused experience
Alignment of Multiple Stakeholder Groups Registrars, bursars, program directors, community relations and more came together to examine, revise, and implement a new process to work better for all parties
Previous Marketing Site for Summer at Tufts
Updated Marketing Site for Summer at Tufts
Enrollment Portal Default UX
