Degree Works advisement tool to go into effect in January
Undergraduate advisers from USC’s Columbia and satellite campuses came together Thursday to discuss changes to the advising system that officials say will streamline the process and benefit students.
Loren Knapp, faculty chair of the University Advisors Network, reviewed the success of the SARS software, which allows students from all colleges and degree programs to schedule advisement appointments online.
Knapp said the SARS pilot program has been successful so far in the colleges of Public Health and Pharmacy and the Office of Fellowships and Scholar Programs, and that a SARS Super User, or “SARS czar,” has been hired.
Helen Doerpinghaus, vice provost and dean of undergraduate studies, said the SARS system was an answer to student complaints.
“Students have said some colleges or major programs have really easy online sign-ups to see advisers. But some colleges are behind the times, and you have to wait until they put up a sign-up sheet on the door,” Doerpinghaus said. “Regardless of what you major in, you should be able to get online and sign up for an advisement appointment.”
Doerpinghaus also said SARS makes reports available for advisers to see which students haven’t signed up for a senior check or advisement yet, and they can send out reminders to those students so they don’t miss those appointments.
OneCarolina
Aaron Marterer, university registrar, spoke about the progress of the OneCarolina project, which is overhauling the university’s finance, payroll and human resources programs. He said one of his remaining goals is to get all of its glitches and problems fixed by the end of this semester.
Another new program expected to be available to students and advisers within the next year is Degree Works, which is planned to go live in January 2014.
It will allow students to plan out their curriculum requirements by major and see potential changes to graduation dates if they add or drop additional coursework. Degree Works also has a semester planner that has students and advisers working together to form a graduation plan.
Marterer says he is excited about the reporting tools of Degree Works, which will allow the university to track student progress by different groupings.
“We can look at all students and see where they are, or look at the entire freshman class and see where they are,” Marterer said.
Other changes
Marterer also spoke about changes to the advisement appointment system. Now called “register time tickets,” those appointments will be staggered every day and depend on a student’s total earned hours, not including hours they are currently earning. Students confused about the process can watch tutorials at sc.edu/sschelp.
Transfer evaluation improvements have also been made, with better collaborations between the registrar and admissions counselors. Marterer said about 90 percent of transfer credits will correspond to equivalent courses.
“That’s due to a tremendous effort on everyone’s part,” Marterer said.
The forum also discussed the feasibility of electronic advisement forms, which would speed up the advisement process. An example brought up was an electronic application that would allow students to apply for graduation online.
Doerpinghaus said she is committed to making the entire advisement experience better with these improvements.
“I think students have a lot to say about advising, and it really makes a difference in terms of graduating on time,” she said.