THE WORLD CAMPUS

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World Campus Setting Standards in Student
Services

• Sloan ALN Workshop 2001
• Quality in Online Learning
• September 25-28, 2001
• Jean McGrath
• Director, Student Services

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Setting Standards in Student Services

• Introduction
• Background
• Overarching Principles and Standards that Define
  Quality in World Campus Student Support

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Setting Standards in Student Services

• Range of Services that Contribute to a Quality
  Program
• Evaluation of Services
• Challenges and Responses in Student Support
  Services
• Conclusion

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Introduction

• The Importance of Student Support Services
• 14 million people in virtual classrooms
• Key to student satisfaction
• Standards are being defined
• Paper will discuss
• Range of services and strategies
• How and why decisions were made
• Lessons learned
• Challenges

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Introduction

• Review of Published Statements, Guidelines,
  Benchmarks, and Standards
• Statement of the Regional Accrediting
  Commissions on the Evaluation of Electronically
  Offered Degree and Certificate Programs
• Institutional commitment
• Admission standards, complete information
• Appropriate services
• Importance of sense of community

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Introduction

• Review cont.
• Quality on the Line Benchmarks for Success in
  Internet-Based Education
• Students receive complete information
• Students receive hands-on training
• Interaction with student service personnel
• System to address student complaints

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Introduction

• Review cont.
• Online Student Services Provision A Guide to
  Good Practice published by the Western
  Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications
• Thorough listing of support services
  information, admissions, financial aid,
  registration, orientation, academic advising,
  technical support, career services, library
  services, personal counseling, bookstore, sense
  of community
• Good practice recommendations
• Exemplar Web sites

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Background

• Creation of the World Campus
• Initial Goals
• Mission of the World Campus
• World Campus Student Services

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Background

• Creation of the World Campus
• Match the knowledge and teaching resources of
  Penn State with lifelong learning needs
• Extend educational programs to learners at home
  and their workplace
• Application of technology-based learning
  environment to enhance quality of educational
  experience
• January 1998 41 students in 4 courses

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Background

• Initial Goals
• By 2002/2003 30 programs, 300 courses, 10,000
  annual enrollments
• 2000/2001 22 programs, 188 courses, gt5100
  annual enrollments

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Background

• Mission of the World Campus
• Increase access to Penn State
• Offer high-quality programs
• Create interactive, resource-rich learning
  environment
• Meet market needs
• Is financially self-sustaining
• Source of new income for academic departments

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Background

• World Campus Student Services
• History of organization
• Description of staff
• Functional areas
• Academic policies and business practices

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Principles and Standards that Define Quality

• Integration
• Access, ease and convenience
• Timely response, accurate information
• Staff competence
• Equitable policies and procedures
• Customer care

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Range of Services

• Administrative Services
• Instructional Support Services
• Advising and Counseling Services and Resources

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ServicesAdministrative

• Information to students
• Call Center
• Registration
• Web site Importance

• Self-Assessment of Readiness to Participate
• Student Record Management
• Financial Aid

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ServicesAdministrative

• Information to students
• Accessible
• Hours of operation
• Up-to-date
• Accurate completeconsistentclear no surprises

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ServicesAdministrative

• Self-Assessment of Readiness to Participate
• Appropriate technology
• World Campus 101
• Technological skills
• Traits that lend themselves to learning at a
  distance
• Time commitment
• Pre-requisites

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ServicesAdministrative

• Web site importance
• The campus of the World Campus
• New Web site in October 2000
• Service based, user driven, accommodate new
  resources
• Drive prospects to application
• Create sense of Penn State community
• Foster relationships with corporations/association
  s
• Help prospects understand virtual universities

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ServicesAdministrative

• Call Center
• Evolution
• Scaling
• Reduce the number of calls
• Menu-driven greeting
• Expanded hours
• Continue evaluation

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ServicesAdministrative

• Registration, Collection of Tuition, Bookstore
• Access, ease, convenient
• Options
• Out sourced bookstore
• More options for students Better service
• Internal resources applied to core competencies

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ServicesAdministrative

• Student Record Management
• Maintenance
• Lesson, examination management
• Grade report, transcript, certificate
• Changes in transitioning to online

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ServicesAdministrative

• Financial Aid
• Title IV
• Alternate sources of funding
• University Office of Student Aid

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ServicesInstructional Support

• Orientation
• Library Services
• Registration
• Services for Students with Disabilities

• Technical Support
• Activities and Services that Promote a Sense of
  Community

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ServicesInstructional Support

• Orientation
• Prospective student information
• World Campus 101
• Welcome Letter
• Orientation week

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ServicesInstructional Support

• Library Services
• Interface to Penn State Libraries
• Support services for distance students
• Register as user
• Locate materials
• Loan services
• Search strategies
• Designated librarian
• Use of chat

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ServicesInstructional Support

• Services for Students with Disabilities
• Publications and other media
• Web site testing
• Integration with on-campus unit
• Crucial timing of student notification
• Tracking of students

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ServicesInstructional Support

• Technical Support
• Exemplar
• Developed in-house
• Components of the HelpDesk
• Course Solutions
• Web Dictionary
• Tips and Techniques
• Downloads

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ServicesInstructional Support

• Technical Support cont.
• Components of the HelpDesk
• Contact Us
• Take a Tour
• Administrative functionality
• Student-problem tracking system
• Flow of information
• Student satisfaction

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ServicesInstructional Support

• Activities and Services that Promote a Sense of
  Community
• Strong, ongoing relationships
• Course, program, and university level connections
• Audio conferences
• Discussion groups
• Bulletin boards
• Program offices
• Online chat
• Penn State logos

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ServicesInstructional Support

• Sense of Community cont
• Course, program, and university level connections
• Web site links
• World Campus Community
• Appropriate extra curricular resources
• Peer mentor program
• Student advisory board
• Student newsletter
• Positive impact on completion and retention rates

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ServicesAdvising and Counseling

• Pre-Admission Counseling
• Application and Admissions
• Advising
• Career Services
• Personal Counseling

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ServicesAdvising and Counseling

• Pre-Admissions Counseling
• Administrative and academic processes
• Nature of distance education
• Course and program requirements
• Transfer credits

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ServicesAdvising and Counseling

• Application and Admissions
• Unique nature of online adult student
• Options
• Applications specific to each program
• Course and program requirements
• Ethical aspect

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ServicesAdvising and Counseling

• Advising
• Based on correspondence study practices
• Reflect Penn State on-campus policies and
  practices
• Responsibilities
• One-stop shopping

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ServicesAdvising and Counseling

• Career Services
• Ascertain educational background and interests
• Direct link to Penn State career services Web
  site
• Resume and cover letter assistance
• Networking opportunities
• Proposed activities

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ServicesAdvising and Counseling

• Personal Counseling
• To-date have not institutionalized this service
• Assumed adult learners would access this service
  in local community
• Referral to on-campus services

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Evaluation of Services

• Collection of feedback information
• Students, faculty, staff
• Surveys, focus groups, benchmarking, informal
  contacts, complaints
• Good information flow
• Program teams
• 2001 benchmarking effort

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Challenges and Responses in Student Support
Services

• Services Targeted to Student Population
• Staffing Issues
• Student Information Systems

• Course Completion and Program Retention
• Maintaining Quality While Scaling
• Cost Efficiency

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Challenges and Responses

• Target Services to Student Population
• Unlearn traditional ideas of supporting
  students
• Benchmarking study
• Response
• Offer full range of services
• Value and prioritize based on student feedback

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Challenges and Responses

• Course Completion and Program Retention
• Students drop out
• Life circumstances
• Personal and professional transitions
• Technical problems
• Not suited to distance learning
• Lack of satisfaction with design, instructors,
  services
• World Campus completion rates
• Spring 2000 85
• Spring 2001 95.6

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Challenges and Responses

• Course Completion and Program Retention Cont.
• Increasing completion rates
• More experienced students
• Improvements in course design
• More effective online teaching
• Response
• Communications
• Peer mentor program

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Challenges and Responses

• Student Information Systems
• Legacy student information systems
• Issues for students taking both RI and World
  Campus online courses
• Financial aid tracking
• Silos of information in various databases
• Response
• Formed teams, identified issues, development

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Challenges and Responses

• Staffing Issues
• Training and retaining staff
• Program knowledge
• Effective use of technology
• Skill set evolved with ALNs
• Response
• Professional development
• Staff review and feedback
• Appropriate technology

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Challenges and Responses

• Maintaining Quality While Scaling
• Increased students, programs, services
• Response
• Staff training
• Performance standards
• Appropriate student information systems
• Agility

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Challenges and Responses

• Cost Efficiency
• Key to success
• Response
• Staff time tracking
• Knowing costs
• Streamline processes

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Conclusion

• Student Support Services are a priority
• Quality standards and the range of services are
  being identified
• Develop support services based on input from
  students
• Continually evaluate services

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Questions ?

• Jean McGrath
• Jwm9_at_psu.edu
• 814-863-8690

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