9/12/2013
Graduate
Student
Administrative
Services
The Graduate School
Graduate Student Administrative Services
Executive Summary
2013 has been an exciting and productive year for the Graduate Student Administrative Services Team. We are fortunate to have such a talented and dedicated group of individuals. The attached report captures the stories behind this year’s accomplishments, highlighting our team’s most celebrated achievements. While it is incredibly difficult to reduce our accomplishments to a few sentences, we can definitely say that our contributions have provided excellent customer service and created measurable value for all of our major stakeholders, including but not limited to: NC State’s graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, faculty instructors, advisers and researchers as well as campus administrative staff. In looking at the NC State Graduate School as a well‐oiled machine, the Graduate Student Administrative Services Team would be considered the nuts and bolts that keep the trains running on a smooth and precise schedule. This group is responsible for the day‐to‐day student service processes, employment administration processes and financial support processes. The chart below captures an overview of our services as they pertain to graduate students, employment, and funding.Overall, we provide admissions and records services to NC State’s graduate student population and those who work with graduate students, including: 2,800 Graduate Faculty 8,200 Graduate Students 89 Faculty Directors of Graduate Programs (DGPs) 100 Graduate Service Coordinators (GSCs) and Graduate Personnel Representatives 164 users holding DGP security clearance 122 users holding GSC security clearance We also provide employment and funding services to: 3,200 Graduate Assistants 400 Graduate Fellows 150 Department & College HR Representatives for Graduate Assistants/Fellows 350 Postdoctoral Scholars & Fellows 90 Department & College HR Representatives for Postdoctoral Scholars & Fellows
Major Successes and Highlights this Year
Graduate Student Admissions & Records Services: o We successfully completed the project to integrate online document access into our PeopleSoft Student Information System (SIS). This resulted in the virtual consolidation of multiple student folders into one electronic folder. Furthermore, we provided access to all programs directors and their staff. For the first time ever, all documents related to a graduate student’s career are accessible from one virtual place. The next step is allowing departments to upload their own documents via SIS. o We launched Phase One the NextGen Admissions initiative. NextGen promises to deliver a set of department‐based tools for use by faculty and staff to automate the faculty review and evaluation process. This includes Prototyping an iPad application for faculty reviewers. o Online Admissions Advanced Enrollment Deposits were implemented for the following programs on campus: Business Administration (MBA), ComputerScience (CNC), Computer Science (CSC), Electrical Engineering (EE), Electrical Power Systems Engineering (EPSE) and Financial Mathematics (FM). o Supported the new College of Science implementation including an immense about of behind the scenes work to make academic program and plan changes, perform security updates, build new milestone templates, update student checklists, build Graduate Plan of Work templates built and to move students into the new academic programs/plans. o Eliminated the stand‐alone MBA program admissions application saving the University about $23,000 per year. o Introduced a number of efficiency and customer service measures including (1) eliminating significant administrative work from the international VISA process, (2) loading of electronic GMAT test scores into the University’s graduate admissions system, (3) simplifying and streamlining academic load tracking and (4) improving the value of external applicant recommendation information for our faculty. o In partnership with the University Registrar and the Office of Information Technology, completed the successful upgrade of SIS. This effort included testing, training, and updating user manuals. o We have presented at major graduate school/student conferences, including: National Association of Graduate Admissions Professionals (NAGAP) 2013; “Best Practices For a Paperless Application and Review Process” Southeast Atlantic Regional User Group (SEARUG) 2012; “Using Workflow to Manage Student Record Processes” North Carolina Council of Graduate Schools (NCCGS) 2012; “Using Workflow in the Graduate Plan of Work” o Two of our staff serve in administrator roles for SEARUG: Lian Lynch: State Coordinator Lindsay Gentile: Secretary Personnel Support and Human Resources Services for Graduate Research Assistants, Graduate Teaching Assistants, Graduate Fellows, and Postdoctoral Scholars: o In an initiative spanning multiple fiscal periods, we successfully completed the transition of graduate fellowship stipend payments out of the Human Resources (HR) System and into the Financial Aid System. This resulted in the centralized processing of fellowships as well as the consolidation of fellowship records into the
Graduate School. We now enter approximately 400 fellowships over the course of the year, with most fellowships beginning in August. o In partnership with the University Department of Human Resources and the Office of Information Technology, we completed several hours of systematic testing and assisted with the successful upgrade of the University’s HR System. o As part of our standard client service offering, we provided just‐in‐time training for approximately 60 graduate student HR representatives on campus immediately after the HR System upgrade. We continue to provide one‐on‐one training, as requested, for new department and college graduate HR representatives. o In June, we hosted our annual “Graduate HR/Personnel Representative Meeting” to provide news and updates regarding assistantships and fellowships. Over 80 individuals attended the meeting. o We consistently insure that approximately 3,200 graduate assistants, 400 graduate fellowships, and 350 postdocs are paid correctly and timely, and assist with any systematic or HR‐related questions that may arise. o The current procedure for processing graduate assistantships in the HR System is being revised. We hope to develop a standardized, paperless process that is more efficient and effective for campus personnel, and to have this process in place for Spring 2014. Graduate Student Financial Support (GSSP) o This year we completed the implementation of a new set of cost‐control practices designed to create savings to the University while allowing us to meet our strategic enrollment plans. These include stricter controls on student time limits, funding formula changes and in‐state residency requirements. In the face of increasing health insurance and tuition, these measures are resulting in the avoidance or shifting of significant costs. o As part implementing tighter cost‐controls, we provided faculty graduate program directors with an online method of authorizing tuition support for students beyond the allowed number of semesters. This tool was incorporated into the Graduate Student Online Assessment & Reporting system (GSOARS), a one‐stop shop for student information. Authorizations to extend automatically route to College Graduate Associate Deans. o We’ve begun an exciting new project to fully integrate the GSSP system into the Financial System, HR System and SIS. This should result in real‐time eligibility award determinations, providing a direct service to both students and staff. We these
Information Technology Support Services o Implemented web‐based exit surveys for graduate certificate students o Supported the migration of graduate fellowships from the HR System into the Financial Aid System and the implementation of cost controls in the GSSP. o Delivered reporting enhancements to the Graduate Student Online Assessment & Reporting System (GSOARS) o Supported the migration and training of nearly 90 customer PC users to the new version of the Windows operating system and the Active Directory system for file sharing. o Provided application programming for the overhaul of the Program Review System. This project provides functionality for undergraduate plans and enhanced assessment reporting. o Migrated/upgraded production and developmental Windows and Linux servers to new platforms. o Developed software that emails a list of students whose graduation applications have either been approved or denied by the Graduate School to Graduate Program Directors and Graduate Service Coordinators on a weekly basis. o Implemented a web site for the Professional Science Masters (PSM) program, including a self and peer assessment tool for students in PSM classes. o Facilitated acquisition and support for new Security Information Management Software as a requirement for new Department of Defense research contracts. o The IT team continues to provide seamless user support in the way of security, applications, access, customer FAQ knowledgebase, website content management, workshops and orientation. As budget reductions forced further down‐sizing this year, more work has been successfully absorbed by this group.
Major Initiatives in the next 12 months
We look forward to accomplishing several goals within the next year including, but not limited to: Providing academic departments with just‐in‐time expert back‐up staffing services during crunch periods, key‐staff absences and unexpected turn‐over; Expanding training offerings for administrative system use; Standardizing the HR‐systematic procedures for graduate assistants, which will make the entire process more efficient and paperless for graduate students and campus administrative personnel who work with faculty and students regarding assistantships; A presentation proposal at the National Association of Graduate Admissions Professionals (NAGAP) 2014 entitled, “Engaging Campus Users & Achieving ‘Operational Efficiency’”; and A panel presentation proposal at NAGAP 2014 entitled, “An Ounce of Planning: Keeping New and Prospective Students Informed and ‘On Task’ Through Scheduled Communication.” Feel free to get in touch with any of our team members listed on the next page to find out more about any of our services.
Contact the Graduate Student Administrative Services Team at 919.515.2872 or visit www.ncsu.edu/grad Graduate Student Admissions & Records Services / University‐Wide Tuition Residency Reclassification Services o Lian Lynch, (v) 919‐515‐0798, (f) 919‐515‐2873 o Lindsay Gentile, (v) 919‐515‐1985, (f) 919‐515‐2873 General Business Services o Chris Buchanan, (v) 919‐515‐4472, (f) 919‐513‐7787 o Bridget Foy, (v) 919‐513‐0004, (f) 919‐515‐2873 Postdoctoral Scholar Services / Graduate Student Financial Support Services o Meghan Wilson – Post Docs / Graduate Appointments / Fellows, (v) 919‐515‐1996, (f) 919‐515‐2873 o Katie Granack – Graduate Student Support Plan, (v) 919‐515‐4429, (f) 919‐515‐ 2873 Business Software Application User Support + Data Analytics o David Edelman, (v) 919‐513‐3135 , (f) 919‐515‐2873 o Joe Perez, (v) 919‐515‐4473, (f) 919‐515‐2873 Web Site + Security Services o Darren White, (v) 919‐515‐1997, (f) 919‐515‐2873
