Two new electronic forms for graduate students

A cross-functional project team transitioned several PDF forms used by graduate students to electronic forms using WorkflowGen. They are the Reviewers’ Report and Final Exam forms, replacing the paper versions of the master’s and doctoral Reviewers’ Report forms and the Final Exam form for master’s (Plan A/B) and doctoral students. New process guides related to the forms are available on the Grad School website under “Examination Procedures.”

As with many electronic forms, there are benefits for students, instructors, and staff. The electronic forms are easier to use and result in faster processing times. For questions about the Reviewers’ Report of Final Exam forms, contact gssp@umn.edu.

Purchasing job aid

The University’s Controller’s office recently shared a purchasing method job aid showing common purchases and the best suppliers to buy from. It lists items in order of efficiency and cost such as airfare, catering, and technology.

NameCoach is up and running

NameCoach, the name pronunciation software ASR purchased, is up and running for commencement ceremonies. There are 17 colleges across the system campuses that are using the tool and have provided positive feedback. Additionally, NameCoach will be available in Canvas systemwide for students and faculty starting May 7.

Making NameCoach available for commencement and in Canvas will conclude the initial phase of this project. Future work includes investigating using the tool in other systems such as APLUS, Salesforce, the University directory, and MyU, to name a few. For questions about this effort, contact Julie Selander (goode021@umn.edu).

Use Zoom for online meetings

The University has switched to Zoom for its online video conferencing. We recommend using Zoom in place of WebEx from now on, although WebEx will be available until September 2. Read about how to use Zoom. OIT has also provided information about how Zoom compares to Google Meet.

New ASR Blockchain Collaborators Google Group

Interested in blockchain? Please join the new ASR Blockchain Collaborators Google Group! Request to join while logged in to your UMN account. This group is open to anyone in ASR who is interested in blockchain technology—from those with deep knowledge to those who are just curious. Through this group, we will:

• Share and talk about articles, webinars, videos, etc., about blockchain to better educate and inform us on where this tech is going
• Investigate how blockchain will impact the specific areas we work in
• Meet with blockchain experts to see how it is currently impacting higher ed and other sectors

We have a series of blockchain lunch meet-ups that will kick off on April 23. If you have any questions, please contact Jaime Wascalus (wascalus@umn.edu) or Adrienne Bricker (abricker@umn.edu).

AACRAO’s 105th Annual Meeting

Between March 31-April 3, 2019 several ASR staff participated at the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) 105th Annual Meeting in Los Angeles, CA. Stacey Tidball, Julie Selander, Adrienne Bricker, Morgan Pasterski, and Tina Falkner presented on topics ranging from a Government Update to FERPA 2.0 to Tracking Graduate Students on their Degree Progress to Creating a Trans-Inclusive Student Experience to Mentoring.

As always, the University of Minnesota sessions were well attended and full of lots of questions. As the president of AACRAO for the 2018-19 year, Tina was the presiding officer at the Annual Meeting. Breaking with the AACRAO tradition of conducting the opening session in a suit, Tina opted to embrace the city of the Oscars and wore a purple dress festooned with sequins.

Julie Selander and Tina Falkner at AACRAO

Student Health Benefit Plan messaging in MyU

Students who are admitted to a degree program and registered for six or more credits per semester are required to have health insurance (see full eligibility rules). If students do not complete a survey indicating that they already have health insurance, they are automatically enrolled in the student health benefit plan. The student health benefit plan costs $1116 a semester, and students have approximately three weeks after the first day of classes to waive this coverage before they are charged. Many students appeal the charge once they see it on their bill.

This spring, messaging about waiving the student health benefit plan was added to the My Finances tab of MyU. Responses to the student health benefits survey increased by 15%.

 

	Total eligible students	Total completed (waive or enroll)	Total waived	Total enrolled	Total pending (incomplete)	Overall completion percentage
Spring 2018	8214	5300	2746	2554	2914	65%
Spring 2019	7423	5924	3252	2672	1499	80%
Difference	-791	+624	+506	+118	-1415	+15%

Boynton Health will maintain this messaging and continue to present it through the My Finances tab in the future.