report april 2014 - western sydney · 2014. 6. 25. · page ii . student communication framework...

Student Communication Framework Report, April 2014. Page i

October 2008

Report April 2014

Student Communications Framework

Student Communication Framework Report, April 2014. Page ii

Student Communication Framework Report, April 2014. Page iii

Table of Contents

Executive summary iv

1. Introduction 1

2. Background 1 2.1 Stakeholders 2

3. Need for a strategic and coordinated approach: 3 3.1 Reference Group 3 3.2 Student Communication Working Party 3 3.3 Key issues identified 4

3.3.1 Commencing student welcome communications 4 3.3.2 High volume of student emails 5 3.3.3 Lack of uniformity in language 5 3.3.4 Lack of centralised coordination of communications and events 6

3.4 Student survey feedback 6 3.5 Existing communication channels and processes 7

4. Conclusion and Recommendations 8 4.1 Coordinated planning of events and services to support transitioning students 8 4.2 Coordinated communications planning and central approval process 9 4.3 Student Communications Policy 9

4.3.1 Centralised approval of email correspondence 10 4.3.2 Priority classification 11 4.3.3 Consolidation of emails 11 4.3.4 ‘Reminder’ emails 11 4.3.5 Generic email addresses 11 4.3.6 Language 11 4.3.7 SMS messages 12 4.3.8 Potential policy implementation issues 12

4.4 Channels 12 4.4.1 Recommended classification system/channel matrix 12 4.4.2 Recommendation of New channels 14

5. Budget considerations 16

6. Monitoring and evaluation 16

List of annexes 17 Annex A: Student email audit results 18 Annex B: Student Communication Survey 20 Annex C: Student Survey results 21 Annex D: Existing student communication channels 30

Student Communication Framework Report, April 2014. Page iv

Student Communications Framework Report

Executive summary This report provides recommendations for improving the quality and coordination of the university’s formal communications with our students. Review of current practices demonstrated significant opportunity for improvement in order to ensure students receive coordinated and coherent advice and information which is up-to-date, timely, accurate, and presented in a consistent manner, using appropriate language.

The review identified a range of specific issues which need to be addressed, including:

A lack of whole-of-institution planning and coordination of communications and events designed to support student commencement, transition and progression;

Lack of timeliness in finalisation of event schedules and subsequent advice to students of their specific schedule;

High volumes of emails received by students from across a large range of UWS stakeholders;

Multiple, uncoordinated emails being sent simultaneously to students;

Lack of uniformity in language in email communications including, inconsistency in formatting and language, use of acronyms, unclear subject headers, and missing call to action details;

The current approach risks student confusion and a lack of understanding about how services and events fit together and what is expected of them. It also increases the likelihood of key information being missed, being misunderstood, and/or reducing the likelihood of students engaging with key information and experiences designed to support them through the different stages of the student lifecycle.

Feedback from students received through both the Commencing Student Survey and the Student Communications Survey undertaken for the review indicates many believe they receive too many emails, often in their view irrelevant to them, with many reporting that they no longer bother to read emails from UWS. Despite this, surveyed students ranked email as their most preferred method of communication. This suggests that email has the potential to be an effective channel for communication, especially given the ease of access from iPads and smartphones, but that we need to improve the way we as an institution use email in terms of both quantity and quality. The overall aim should be to ensure that email correspondence, the university’s official mode of communication with students, should be used sparingly in order to preserve both the impact of the medium and its usefulness to students.

A range of recommendations are provided to achieve a more strategic and coordinated approach to student communication, including key transition. In summary they include:

Student Communication Framework Report, April 2014. Page v

Implementation of a collaborative planning process for all routine student communications and key transition events;

Development of a UWS Student Communications Policy, including the requirement for bulk student emails to be approved by Internal Communications and/or ARO Communications;

HTML email to enable student emails to be prioritised using coloured banners (e.g. Critical, Important and General);

The ability for students to opt-in to receive certain types of general information that is not directly related to their course or enrolment;

Consolidated weekly or fortnightly general information emails to students;

New campus-specific channels such as CUBE student portal, lecture theatre advertisements, signage at campus entrances and Foursquare to communicate targeted messages to students based on their campus (and reduce the reliance on broadcast campus emails about events and campus infrastructure updates).

A number of these recommendations have budgetary implications which require consideration and the implementation of all recommendations will require integrated planning across the University, including a comprehensive education process.

As a result of this review, the university has already commenced work to improve our communications approach and some key initiatives, which have been implemented include:

Consolidation of welcome letter to commencing students in 2014, as undertaken by the Academic Registrar’s Office Student Communication team.

Consolidation of email communications to first year students in 2014, as undertaken by the communications team in Academic Registrar’s Office.

Minimising use of email as a channel as reminders for students to complete Student Feedback surveys (SFU), rather more prominent placement of SFU information on vUWS. The Office of Engagement, Strategy and Quality have implemented this change, as of mid-2013.

Student Communication Framework Report, April 2014. Page 1

Student Communications Framework Report

1. Introduction This report provides recommendations for improving the quality and coordination of the university’s formal communication with our students1. The aim is to ensure the provision of coordinated and coherent information and advice which is up-to-date, timely, accurate, and presented in a consistent manner, using language appropriate for the student cohort and their stage within the student lifecycle. Review and analysis of current practice identified significant opportunity for improvement in order to achieve these outcomes.

2. Background

In early 2013 the Student Transition, Retention & Success (STaRS) Project reviewed the experience of commencing student’s interactions with the University during their initial commencement and transition period. All identifiable institutional communications with commencing students, along with all planned institutional initiatives/events instituted by the University were mapped on a timeline along the student lifecycle from receipt of university offer to the end of the first session (collectively referred to as touch points).

Two strategies were used to complete the mapping. Firstly, an audit of a commencing student’s email account (with their consent) was undertaken and secondly, key stakeholders from across the university met to brainstorm and document all touch points which attendees could, through their own knowledge identify.

The following insights emerged from this process:

1. No one within the University had a full understanding of the range of initiatives and projects in place designed specifically to support student transition to university;

2. Planning for events and services and communications about these to students appeared to largely occur independently with separate and discrete communication of information;

3. No one within the University has a full understanding of the range or timing of communication events with students and there is repetition between and across communications;

4. Accessibility of the information (language used and ability to be understood by and to be meaningful to commencing students) varies greatly;

5. Between the point of receiving an offer and midway point of first session (15 weeks), a typical commencing student is directly touched (letter, email, phone call, event) up to 90 times, with the source of those touches coming from up to 10 distinct areas of the institution (excluding School and/or course specific activities);

1 Note: The focus is on bulk communications to students, including through planned events.


6. The mapping process suggested a 2013 commencing student could potentially attend seven unique transition events prior to their first class commencing.

In summary, this initial review demonstrated that our commencing students are confronted with a large volume of communications via a number of channels and events, starting from when they receive their first offer for a university place. There is little evidence that such communications and events are coordinated in any strategic way, reflecting a lack of a cohesive and integrated planned approach to our communications and event planning at the institutional level. The current approach risks student confusion and a lack of understanding about how things fit together and what is expected of them. It also increases the likelihood of key information being missed, misunderstood, and/or reduces the likelihood of students engaging with key information and events designed to support them through the different stages of their transition.

2.1 Stakeholders

As many stakeholders are involved in communicating information to students, this impacts on the volume of messages and contributes to a lack of consistency in both message and language. Identified stakeholders include:

Current/continuing students

Commencing students

Student Communication Framework Reference Group

Student Communication Framework Working Group

Internal Communications, Office of Marketing and Communication

Communications, Academic Registrar’s Office

Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Education)

Pro Vice-Chancellor (Students and International)

Schools – academic and professional staff

Student Support Services

Careers & Cooperative Education

UWS International

Capital Works & Facilities

IT Services

Library

Campus Provosts

uwsconnect

Equity and Diversity

Campus Safety and Security

Learning and Teaching Unit

UWS International


3. Need for a strategic and coordinated approach: The volume, lack of coordination and cohesiveness of our institutional interaction (written communications and events) with our commencing students demonstrated by the above review led to the convening of a high level reference group who unanimously endorsed the need for a more strategic and coordinated whole-of-institution approach to our communication and interaction with commencing students and the planning which informs it.

3.1 Reference Group: The reference group membership consisted of:

Betty Gill (convenor), Assoc PVC Education & Leader STaRS Project;

Scott Christensen, Director. Office of Marketing & Communication;

Ellen Brackenreg, Director, Student Support Services;

Sophie Buck, Assistant Academic Registrar, Student Administration – Operations;, and

Alison O’Connor, Marketing Manager, Health & Science, representing Robert Palin, Associate Director, Student Recruitment Services.

3.2 Student Communication Working Party: Reference group

members nominated representatives from key areas to form a working group consisting of:

Leanne Findlay – Internal Communications Manager (convenor);

Beth Thomas – Communications Coordinator, Academic Registrar’s Office;

Bruce Da Silva – Integrated Experience Manager, student recruitment;

Lien Lombardo – Project Officer, Student Transition, Retention & Success

Program (STaRS);

Kathryn Bannon, Administrative Officer, Office of Director, Marketing &

Communication.

The working group was tasked with undertaking a further review of current practices

and providing a report with recommendations for consideration by the reference group

(incorporated into this report).

Whilst the review arose from a focus on communications with commencing, first year students, it is acknowledged that the issue of effective communications extends beyond commencing students2. For this reason the decision was made to not limit consultation with students to commencing students only, thus the majority of the recommendations apply to communication with all UWS students. The aim of the working group was to examine the issues identified, gather further information about the current approach (channels and processes) to student communication at UWS and to develop recommendations based on the learning’s of the review to improve UWS’ communications to our students. The working group completed an email audit of a further three students across different disciplines and varying stages of their

2 A/P Gill reported an unsolicited comment from an aspire student attending the Innovation Workshop –

UWS Timetabling Review noting the excessive number of emails he received. His view was confirmed by other students in attendance with the general comment that “they don’t read them”.


undergraduate degree, and also conducted a small student survey to gauge students’ views on the information received via email.

3.3 Key issues identified:

The review identified the following key issues:

High volume of welcome to university communications to commencing students;

High volume of emails;

Lack of uniformity across a range of communications: Including language, formatting and use of acronyms;

Lack of coordination in timing of communications;

These initial findings were largely confirmed by the subsequent investigations and are combined in the following explication of each issue. A summary of student survey results is also provided below.

3.3.1 Commencing student welcome communications

The mapping of student touch points for 2013 commencing students identified that they received up to seven letters/emails from different areas of the university welcoming them to the university, with some providing additional information. These included a:

VC welcome letter (outlining a number of transition support services);

Deans welcome letter;

Academic Registrar’s Office (ARO) welcome email;

Learning &Teaching bridging programs email;

Orientation letter;

Student Support Services email and reminder.

In reviewing the letters/emails, the language and message in each of these pieces varied. As each communication was discrete, there was no coordination or coherence of messaging to students who have limited, if any familiarity with the structure and processes of the University, stages of their transition and how events and services are relevant to and support their transition.

The Academic Registrar’s Office Student Communication team has now consolidated four of these letters/emails (one from ARO, one from Learning & Teaching and two from Student Support Services) into a single email from the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Students & International), providing more coherent and coordinated information and advice to students.

The focus of the Orientation letter has also been changed from a welcome message to an event invitation. It is also recommended that the timing and content of the VC welcome letter be changed to focus on the Transition Success @ UWS Program (rather than be another generic welcome message).


This would reduce the number of initial welcome communications to the following:

Deans welcome letter

Pro Vice-Chancellor (Students & International) welcome email.

3.3.2 High volume of student emails

As email represents the current official communication channel between UWS and our students, a significant part of the review focused on current email communication practice – both volume and quality.

The initial audit of a commencing nursing student (Student A) email account revealed a high volume of emails, ranging from 13 in the month of February, before the commencement of session, to 55 in the month of May (Graph 1, Annexure A).

An email audit of a further three students from across different disciplines/schools – social sciences, communication arts, and science and health, confirmed a similar trend with an average of 29 emails per student during the month of March 2013 (see Annexure A, Graph 2).

The highest proportion of emails originated from within Schools, being course or unit related, followed by general information emails and student specific administrative emails (Annexure A, Graph 3). Emails were from a range of sources providing information on discrete support services as well as a range of topics including capital works projects, IT Services, parking, graduation, job alerts and surveys.

The audit revealed instances of the same email being sent to students up to three times (either accidentally or as reminders).

3.3.3 Lack of uniformity in language

The lack of clear and consistent processes in managing communications across the institution leads to a lack of uniformity in the quality of our communications and the language used. The review elicited examples of the following:

Inconsistency in formatting and language: Inconsistency and lack of uniformity in formatting of emails and language variations were noted depending on the originating area;

Use of acronyms: Use of acronyms within correspondence which would be meaningless to commencing students was noted. As a general principle, minimal use of acronyms should be adopted for communications to all students;

Unclear subject headers: Some emails did not clearly identify the focus of the email to allow students to decipher the content and relevance of the email to them. In some instances emails were not clearly identifiable as originating from UWS in the subject header. This increases the potential of important information being missed by students who perceive the emails as being of a general nature, perhaps “junk”;


Missing call to action details: Some reviewed emails included no options for further enquiries such as clarification of the meaning and relevance to the student, or expectations of them associated with the email.

These issues were consistent across the four accounts audited.

3.3.4 Lack of centralised coordination of communications and

events

In mapping the commencing student timeline and auditing of the 4 student email accounts, it was evident that various UWS business units send out emails with limited, or no centralised coordination. For example in March 2013, two emails were sent by UWS regarding official University information on the same day from two different areas. This was repeated on a further three occasions during that month.

From a student (customer) perspective, receiving simultaneous multiple communications from the University, which they reasonably would conceive of as one entity, would likely seem confusing and would not facilitate their transition and orientation to the university. Further, it may increase the possibility of students not reading and engaging constructively with the information, resulting in important information and subsequent action being missed.

A lack of appropriate timeliness of information provided to commencing students regarding key events is also of concern. For example, in 2014 the final schedule for Course Orientation sessions was not available on the UWS website, to which students are referred, until a couple of weeks before the event. This is despite offers having been made to student’s months earlier. This appears to result from delay in coordinating and finalising scheduling with schools, as well as ongoing change requests. This also impacts the MY Course Planning (MCP) events, which are held before Orientation and provide vital enrolment information, and are often compulsory for commencing students.

However, given that the range of courses admitting students is known before offers commence, there appears to be no fundamental reasons why such scheduling should not be completed in advance of the offers process. In this way information would be readily available to commencing students at the time when it would be of most interest and relevance to them – when enrolling and anticipate commencing university. It would also allow them to plan other commitments well in advance with the potential for increasing participation.

3.4 Student survey feedback:

The survey of on-campus students was conducted in October 2013. A total of 411 students were directly approached whilst on campus, completing an “on the spot” survey. A copy of the survey is provided as Annex B. Areas of focus included student practices in checking their email account, their perception on the volume of emails received, the type of information students do and do not want to receive, preferred


methods of communication, and whether students would like an opt-in option for certain types of information.

Forty two per cent of students surveyed reported checking their email daily, or almost every day, with a further 30% reporting that they check it weekly. Unfortunately the remaining 29%, a significant number of students, reported only checking their email irregularly, ranging from every 2nd or 3rd week (18.4%), a few times a session (9.5%) and never (1%). This finding in itself is problematic given that email is the official channel of communication and on occasion may require time limited action on behalf of students.

Almost a third (31.1%) of the students surveyed rated the amount of information they received from UWS via email as being “too much”, with the majority (67%) rating it as “adequate”. Comments offered by students suggested a lack of perceived relevance of content received, reflected in the differential importance cited for different types of information (table 1) with enrolment and course related information rated as being of highest importance (see Table 1, Annex C).

The most preferred method for students to receive information, including course and enrolment, as well as general information from the University was email (57%), followed by vUWS (52%) and in class (44%). There was a low preference for social media options (Facebook 13% and Twitter 1%). This suggests that email has the potential to be an effective channel, including for more general information, especially given the ease of access from iPads and smartphones, but that we need to improve the way we as an institution use email (in terms of both quantity and quality).

The majority of students (82%) indicated that they would like to have the option to opt-in to receive general information. Representative comments received from students included:

“Too much ‘junk’ that is irrelevant to me”;

“Sometimes receive unrelated information to me”;

“Too many unrelated emails for things I'm not involved in”; and

“Sometimes get emails that are not meant for me”.

Detailed survey results are available at Annex C.

3.5 Existing communication channels and processes: A range of different channels, both digital and print, are available and are currently used by UWS to communicate with our students. Annex D provides a full listing of these existing communication channels.

Due to the geographic dispersion of the campuses and the lack of physical signage, there is a heavy reliance on digital communication. Currently there appears to be a heavy reliance on broadcast email (the university’s official mode of communication with students) for communicating general information, as well as official course and enrolment related information. This is supplemented by digital screen ads, social


media, webpage banner ads, messages on student systems and webpages, screensaver slides, and SMS messages (used rarely). As a result of current limitations of the student portal, there is no central online location which students can access daily, and where they can expect to obtain up-to-date and timely information from the university.

In addition to broadcast emails approved and sent by Internal Communications (Office of Marketing and Communication) and Communications (Academic Registrar’s Office), students receive high volumes of emails directly from Schools and Divisional areas. Currently, these emails are sent directly to students without centralised approval.

Many key stakeholders are involved in communicating key services and information to students, often consisting of discrete instances, disconnected from any strategic coordination. The result is an increased volume of messages, a lack of consistency in both message and language and increased risk of reduction in “stickiness” of key messages requiring action on the part of students, exemplified by the earlier quote from an aspire student that “I just stopped reading them”.

4. Conclusion and Recommendations

Effective, timely, accurate and relevant communication to our students is important to ensuring an overall positive student experience. At no point is this more important than for commencing students, transitioning to university, unfamiliar with university processes, expectations and much of the language routine to the existing university community. Similarly, it is important to ensure that events designed to support student commencement and transition to university are strategically planned and communicated as a comprehensive and coordinated whole, in a timely fashion. It is quite reasonable that students, unfamiliar with organisational structures underpinning the institution, would see the university as one entity and have an expectation that information provided to them would be coherent, consistent and coordinated across that institution.

Communications must be written in Plain English, with minimal use of acronyms. It must be unambiguous and accessible to meet the diverse needs of students. Information sent to students should be relevant, accurate and delivered in a timely fashion. The following recommendations are provided to achieve these outcomes.

4.1 Coordinated planning of events and services to support transitioning students

It is recommended that a formal process be established to enable and ensure collaborative planning and messaging across and between key events designed to support student transition, such as My-Course-Planning, Orientation, student support programs and academic support programs (e.g. bridging courses).

The aim of such a process would be to ensure:


Consistency and coherence of information and advice to students, irrespective of the source of the information, or its focus;

Clear understanding among both students and participating school staff about the purpose of different events and there place in supporting student transition;

Finalisation of schedules for events in the year prior so that information can be available to commencing students when enrolling and they are anticipating university commencement.

4.2 Coordinated communications planning and central approval process

It is recommended that university wide information targeted to a large group of students (eg: corporate information, enrolment information, campus information etc) should be coordinated centrally with either Academic Registrar’s Office Student Communications team or Internal Communications team to ensure:

1. Timing of communications is coordinated effectively;

2. All communication is reviewed and approved for language consistency;

3. Consistency in formatting to achieve uniformity of all communications sent to students;

4. Information is not duplicated;

5. Categorising of information to maximise opportunities to consolidate key information. This will reduce the volume and repetition of information sent out to students;

6. Strategic planning and scheduling of routine communications designed to support student transition, including events, should occur well in advance to ensure the above objectives are met.

There are a number of benefits in centralising the coordination, planning and implementation of communication. The goal of this approach is to ensure students are receiving information that is relevant to them in a timely fashion and that information is not duplicated, but is presented in a coherent, logical and connected way. The information they receive will be in Plain English and have all relevant information for the student to act on.

4.3 Student Communications Policy A review of other University websites revealed that many had a formal communications policy. In general these are designed to achieve the following objectives3:

1. Students receive authoritative and accurate and up-to-date information from the university in a timely fashion;

2. Students are not confused by receipt of conflicting information from a range of different sources, or by the use of inaccessible language;

3 Adapted from RMIT – Current Student Communication Policy

http://www.rmit.edu.au/browse/Staff%2FAdministration%2F;ID=kzqfvhipzxyqz;STATUS=A?QRY=city campus

http://www.rmit.edu.au/browse/Staff%2FAdministration%2F;ID=kzqfvhipzxyqz;STATUS=A?QRY=city%20campus


3. Information and advice provided to students to support them at different stages of the student lifecycle are coordinated and coherent in their messaging;

4. Staff have a clear understanding of their responsibilities when communicating with students and the key principles underlying effective communication;

5. Staff have a clear appreciation the importance of communications in ensuring a client-focused service and positive experience for our students.

It is recommended that a formal UWS student communications policy be developed. This communication policy will outline:

1. What we communicate to our students (type of information);

2. How we communicate this information (channel, category, Plain English, language and UWS style);

3. Who communicates to students (centralised process);

4. When we communicate information (based on type of information etc.);

5. Accurately recording our communication in student records (TRIM);

6. Outline the responsibilities of key areas in managing the communications process.

It would also cover the below recommendations regarding centralised approval, priority classification, consolidation of emails, minimisation of reminder emails, use of generic email addresses, appropriate language and sending SMS messages.

4.3.1 Centralised approval of email correspondence

As well as the emails that are approved by Internal Communications and the Academic Registrar’s Office Student Communication team, students receive a large number of emails directly from Schools and Divisional areas, which are currently sent directly to students without centralised approval.

It is recommended that staff wanting to send non-personalised emails to groups of students or all students be required to submit the request and draft email, via an online form, to Internal Communications and/or Academic Registrar’s Office Student Communication team for approval and sending. Draft emails would need to be received at least 2 weeks before the intended sending time, to allow time for review and approval, and, if appropriate, consolidation into a weekly/fortnightly student email. The strategic planning and scheduling of routine communications advocated above should limit the number of communications and allow sufficient time for quality review.

Emails from academic staff to students about course or unit-related information would be exempt from this approval process however the policy would provide principles and advice to Schools on effective communication strategy and processes.

The overall university aim should be to ensure that email correspondence, the university’s official mode of communication with students, should be used sparingly in order to preserve both the impact of the medium and its usefulness to students.


4.3.2 Priority classification

Internal Communications and ARO Student Communications would determine the priority classification of emails.

Examples of the proposed classification system include:

Critical – campus emergencies, course information, enrolment information, tutorial registration, census date, exams, results, progression and graduation;

Important – announcements about important UWS initiatives (e.g. UWS Summer, smoke-free campuses);

General – nUWS, student support programs, IT services and outages.

4.3.3 Consolidation of emails

Where possible, messages to all students should be consolidated into a weekly/fortnightly (or as needed) update email. This approach would reduce the volume of student email, and place more focus on students’ information needs rather than the organisational structure of the university.

Similarly, where possible, emails to groups of students sent directly from School administrative staff should be consolidated. A single contact point (and single email sender) is recommended for each School to consolidate and coordinate emails (excluding those sent directly by academic staff).

4.3.4 ‘Reminder’ emails

The email audit revealed that sometimes students receive multiple emails about the same topic over a period of a few days.

It is recommended that reminder emails be limited to critical and important messages (e.g. about census date, major UWS initiatives such as UWS Summer), and that these emails undergo the same centralised approval process.

4.3.5 Generic email addresses

Apart from their lecturers and tutors, most students are not usually familiar with the names and positions of UWS staff. For this reason, it is recommended that generic email addresses be used when sending bulk emails to students (with the exception of emails from academic staff and emails from members of UWS Executive). These generic addresses should identify the School or divisional area (e.g. [email protected], [email protected]), and be monitored daily by a responsible member of staff.

4.3.6 Language

All communication to students should be written using Plain English, with minimal use of acronyms.


4.3.7 SMS messages

SMS messages to students should only be sent by Internal Communications and ARO Student Communications, and only in urgent, emergency situations.

4.3.8 Potential policy implementation issues

There is likely to be some resistance from staff, especially those who currently:

Send emails directly to large groups of students will want to continue to do so

without a centralised approval process;

Request campus-specific broadcast emails to students that would be better

published within CUBE, Foursquare, or on campus signs or lecture theatre ads.

This includes Capitals Works updates and Provost and Campus Life Committee

information about campus events and activities;

Request broadcast emails to students and continue to want a dedicated,

separate email for their message (rather than having their message included in

a consolidated weekly/fortnightly update).

There is also likely to be some staff resistance to the priority classification system, as many staff would believe their message to be critical or important, when it may be classified as general information.

A consolidated weekly or fortnightly email would require staff to submit information to Internal Communications and/or ARO Student Communications early (email requests are currently often received with minimal notice). It would also require that staff accept that their message will need to be brief and will that it be published alongside other messages rather than as a standalone message.

4.4 Channels

There are a number of channels that UWS can use to maximise the effectiveness in communicating information to our students. This will ensure that students are not receiving all information via email and will support our goal of providing relevant information to our students in a timely fashion that is most effective for them.

4.4.1 Recommended classification system/channel matrix

The following is a recommended classification system outlining appropriate channels for various types of messages. This should be used as a guide only – effective communication requires case-by-case assessment of the most appropriate channels for each message.

Please note that those in green font are recommended new channels that would require funding. Opt-in broadcast email lists would require funding and/or assistance from IT Services.

Student Communication Framework Report 13 of 35

Recommended Classification System / Channel Matrix

Channel Enrolment

-related Course-related

UWS news &

initiatives

IT Services

& outages

Campus

life

Student support

programs

Career & jobs

Campus infrastructure

Parking Campus

emergency

HTML broadcast email

Opt-in broadcast email lists

CUBE

Signage at campus entries

Lecture theatre advertisements

Targeted email from School

Uwsconnect digital screen advertisements

School digital screen advertisement

Foursquare

Social media

Student system messages (e.g. vUWS, MyUWS)

Student webpage messages

Webpage banner ads

Home page message

Screensaver slides

Computer lab desktop wallpaper messages

SMS messages

Hardcopy materials


4.4.2 Recommendation of New channels

The below new channels are recommended to maximise the effectiveness of our communications to students and minimise over-reliance on email.

CUBE (MyC3)

CUBE is an online student portal that will assist students to easily navigate and access the systems, information and workspaces they require for their study. The CUBE application will include workbooks, notifications and task lists, and will have the potential to push campus- and course-specific information directly to students’ devices (e.g. iPads).

Messages received via CUBE can be tailored, based on student profiles. CUBE will use student-specific information, such as students’ location and course, to determine the information that is relevant to them. Tailored messages can be displayed in the “Notifications” section – for example, information about Capital Works & Facilities projects and announcements from Provosts about campus events.

A pilot of CUBE is scheduled for mid-2014.


The current broadcast email system used by UWS is plain text only, with no formatting capabilities.

The introduction of a new HTML broadcast email system would enable formatting to assist students in prioritising the emails they receive.

It is recommended to introduce HTML broadcast email and, similar to Charles Sturt University, to use different coloured email banners to categorise and prioritise emails as follows:

Critical – red or orange banner;

Important – green or purple banner;

General – blue banner.

This would help avoid situations where critical emails about enrolment, census date and units become ‘lost’ amongst less important emails about campus infrastructure, student services and events.

Opt-in email lists

Students surveyed expressed a desire to be able to opt-in to receive emails about general information that is not directly related to their course or enrolment.

It is recommended that the ability to ‘opt-in’ be created, perhaps via CUBE or with the support of IT Services, for the following types of emails:

Campus life information – e.g. events and activities


Campus infrastructure updates

Career and job information

Consideration should be given to sending a once per session or year email to create awareness of support services available for students, including the option to subscribe to additional updates. Other less intrusive channels can also be used for reminder messages during the year.

Signage at main campus entries

The introduction of signage at campus entrances would provide a key communication tool in a high-traffic area. The messages would need to be succinct and brief, and centrally coordinated. Some examples of signage include portable VMS signage and wall-fixed LED signs. Capital Works & Facilities is planning to trial a public-facing sign beside James Ruse Drive, Parramatta, this year. With funding support, this sign network could be extended to include signage at the main entrance of each campus for internal messages to students and staff.

Digital screen ads on campus

Currently, the Office of Marketing and Communications and uwsconnect promote student messages on digital screens at uwsconnect outlets on campus. IT services is currently investigating the feasibility of extending this digital screen network to include screens in student thoroughfare areas on each campus.

There is the potential for broader use of existing digital screens in School buildings. A number of Schools now have digital screens installed including the School of Business; School of Computing, Engineering and Mathematics; School of Education; School of Humanities and Communication Arts; and School of Social Sciences and Psychology.

Lecture theatre advertisements

Lecture theatre advertisements were proposed by uwsconnect and are being considered by IT Services in consultation with the Office of Marketing and Communication. Advertisements would project on lecture theatre screens prior to the start of lectures.

Foursquare

Foursquare (http://foursquare.com) is a free social media app that can be used to communicate campus-specific information – for example, special offers at uwsconnect outlets and messages from Provosts about campus events.

http://foursquare.com/


5. Budget considerations


The costs of an HTML email sending system (e.g. Click Dimensions) would be approximately $30,000 USD per year. Another option is having Alpha West develop the plain text TRIM@ email sending system into an html system – this has the benefits of being a one-off cost of approximately $20,000 and being a system that already integrates with TRIM.

Either solution would require IT Services to integrate the system with daily auto-updated student and staff lists from Callista and Alesco (the Majordomo system is expected to need replacing in 2014).

Signage at main campus entries

Capital Works & Facilities is currently determining costs for a public sign network and will then source costs for extending this to an internal (campus entry) network.


IT Services is currently investigating the feasibility of extending the existing uwsconnect digital screen network to include screens in student thoroughfare areas on each campus.

Lecture theatre ads

IT Services is currently assessing the technical and cost feasibility of lecture theatre ads.

6. Monitoring and evaluation

Once a UWS Student Communications Policy has been developed, approved and communicated to staff, it is recommended to conduct follow up student email audits:

3 months after policy implementation; and

6 months after policy implementation.

In order to protect student privacy, students would be asked to complete a spreadsheet detailing emails received during a one month period.

If necessary, a follow up student survey could also be conducted to compare student responses in October 2013 (prior to implementation of this strategy).

It is recommended that students are recruited at policy implementation phase to ensure they keep all their emails. Recruitment post-implementation could result in inaccurate reporting as students may delete their emails for the time period the team wants to evaluate.


List of annexes

Annex A: Student email audit results

Annex B: Student Communication Survey

Annex C: Student Communication Survey results

Annex D: Existing student communication channels


Annex A: Student email audit results

Graph 1: Email Audit Student A (February – June, 2013)

Graph 2: Email Audit of four student accounts (March 2013)

13

33

47

55

39

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Feb-13 Mar-13 Apr-13 May-13 Jun-13

33 32

23

28

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Student A Student B Student C Student D

No. of emails received in Mar-2013


Graph 3: Source of student emails within UWS

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Feb-13 Mar-13 Apr-13 May-13 Jun-13

Graduation specific information

Survey

Administrative (specific to student)

IT

Library

Legal

Student support services

General

nUWS

MESH

Exams

Enrolment

School (course & unit specific)


Annex B: Student Communication Survey

This survey aims to obtain feedback on how UWS communicates to our students. Your feedback is much appreciated.

1. The amount of information I receive from UWS via email is: Not enough

Adequate

Too much

Comments for Q1:

2. How often do you check your student email? Never

Only a few times during session

Every second or third week

Once a week

Almost every day

Every day

Comments for Q2:

3. On a scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 being the most important) how important to you is receiving information about:

Very unimportant

Unimportant Neutral Important Very

important

Enrolment, tutorial registration, census date, exams, results, progression and graduation

1 2 3 4 5

Course information from your School 1 2 3 4 5

UWS news and initiatives (e.g. solar car, Parramatta City Campus, smoke-free campuses)

1 2 3 4 5

IT services and outages 1 2 3 4 5

Campus life information (e.g. events and activities) 1 2 3 4 5

Student support programs (e.g. study support, counselling)

1 2 3 4 5

Career and job opportunities (e.g. career workshops, internships)

1 2 3 4 5

Campus infrastructure updates (e.g. lecture theatre upgrades, road closures)

1 2 3 4 5

Comments for Q3:

4. My preferred mode of communication for general information from UWS, besides course and enrolment-related information, is:

(Examples of general information include news and initiatives, IT services and outages, campus life information, student support programs, career and job opportunities, campus infrastructure updates)

In class

Email

vUWS

SMS

Facebook

Twitter

Direct mail

Other (specify: )

Comments for Q4:

5. Would you like an opt-in option for emails about general university information (see examples above)?

Yes, for everything except course and enrolment-related information Yes, but would like to choose what I do and don’t receive No, I prefer to receive all information

Comments for Q5:

Further comments:


Annex C: Student Survey results Report by: Lien Lombardo, Project Officer, Student Transition, Retention and Success Project team (STaRS), Office of the Associate Pro Vice-Chancellor (Education) – Health & Science

Student Communication Survey

In weeks 12-13 of spring semester, 2013 a survey was conducted across 5 campuses targeted at UWS students. Students were approached randomly on campus during busy parts of the day and given a one-page survey covering 5 questions to complete. In total, 411 surveys were completed and the data was entered into SPSS version 21 for analysis. Below are the results of this survey.

Question 1: The amount of information I receive from UWS via email is -

Nearly one third of the respondents (n=128) said they were receiving too much information from UWS via email, and approximately two thirds of respondents said that the volume of information received was adequate. However, the comments relating to this question suggest that some of the content may not be relevant:

Too much ‘junk’ that is irrelevant to me

Sometimes receive unrelated information to me

Too many unrelated emails for things I'm not involved in

Sometimes get emails that are not meant for me

I normally get emails that are of great importance, but there's a lot that are not

completely relevant

Too many emails from classes (tutorials) I'm not in

Other comments relating to the amount of information received from UWS via email were:

Good mostly, receiving 2 or 3 emails for the same thing is annoying

I would like more verbal forms of communication.

Varies: sometimes irrelevant sometimes, not enough. Not enough from tutors

I don’t' check emails as much, so I prefer that everything on vUWS

1.7%

67.2%

31.1%

Q1. The amount of information I receive from UWS via email is:

Not enough

Adequate

Too much


Some lecturers/tutors do not reply to emails sent

Question 2: How often do you check your email?

One of the UWS student responsibilities is to check their student email account frequently (daily if possible). Approximately 16% of students (n=67) do check their email on a daily basis while a quarter of the respondents checked their emails almost every day (n=104, 25.2%). A further 29.6% of students checked their email at least once a week (n=122).

It is encouraging to note from this survey results, that over 70% of students do check the email at least once a week while the rest of the students check either every 2nd or 3rd week (18.4%), only a few times during session (9.5%) and never (1.0%).

The comments relating to this question were predominantly related to physically accessing emails:

The inbox is too flooded, checking it becomes too much hassle

Sometimes I forget should be connected to vUWS

it does get more frequent depend on assessment

if it was only for essentials I would take emails with more weight

Takes too long to access. Don't want 3 logins to see emails...

It takes a long time to receive email reply & information

too much junk most of what i need is on vUWS

1.0%

9.5%

18.4%

29.6%

25.2%

16.3%

Q2. How often do you check your student email account?

Never

Only a few times duringsession

Every second or third week

Once a week

Almost every day

Every day


Question 3: On a scale of 1 to 5 (with 5 being the most important), how important to you is receiving information about (below aspects):

Table 1: Student rating of importance of types of information received by email

Very

important Important Neutral Unimportant

Very unimportant

Enrolment, tutorial registration, census date, exams, results, progression and graduation

73.8% 20.1% 4.9% 0.7% 0.5%

Course information from your School 39.6% 39.6% 17.8% 2.2% 0.7%

UWS news and initiatives (e.g. solar car, Parramatta City Campus, smoke-free campuses)

4.4% 10.0% 42.7% 26.9% 16.0%

IT services and outages 16.3% 30.9% 34.3% 12.9% 5.6%

Campus life information (e.g. events and activities) 6.3% 20.9% 39.1% 22.3% 11.4%

Student support programs (e.g. study support, counselling)

10.7% 26.0% 39.1% 16.3% 8.0%

Career and job opportunities (e.g. career workshops, internships)

22.5% 35.2% 29.1% 8.1% 5.1%

Campus infrastructure updates (e.g. lecture theatre upgrades, road closures)

13.1% 26.7% 30.3% 15.8% 14.1%

Key learnings from question 3 results are:

Over 90% of respondents ranked receiving information about enrolment, tutorial

registration and other progression information to be either important or very important

Majority of the respondents (79.2%) stated that receiving course information from

their school was either important or very important

In regards to UWS news and initiatives, the majority of students (42.7%) were neutral

about receiving this information, 26.9% indicated that this information was

unimportant

A large percentage of students (34.3%) were neutral when it came to receiving

information about IT services and outages, over 45% considered it either important

or very important

Campus life information was ranked below neutral for majority of students (> 70% of

respondents)

Student Support programs were important to approximately 26% of the respondents

while the majority were neutral on this subject (39.1%)

For information on career and job opportunities over 50% deemed it to be important

or very important whilst the majority of the remaining cohort were neutral on this

subject

Campus infrastructure update information was rated as either neutral or not that

important by the participants


Q4. My preferred mode of communication for general information from UWS, besides course and enrolment related information

The most preferred option for students is email (57%) whilst vUWS (52%) and in class (44%) communications were the next 2 preferred modes of communications. Twitter and direct mail were the least preferred options. Majority of the respondents chose more than one preferred option. A combination of Email & vUWS seem to be the most preferred combination.

Q5. Opt-in options

The majority of students (62.5%) surveyed preferred the opt-in option for general emails where they could pick and choose what they would receive.

19.5%

62.5%

18.0%

Q5. Opt-in options for general information emails

Yes - for everythingexcept course &enrolment related info

Yes but would like tochoose what I do anddon't receive

No, I prefer to receiveall information

44% 57% 52%

16% 13% 1% 5%

56% 43% 48%

84% 87% 99% 95%

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

120%

1. In class 2. Email 3. vUWS 4. SMS 5. Facebook 6. Twitter 7. DirectMail

No (%)

Yes (%)

Q4. Preferred mode of communication for general information


Qualitative responses - Student Communications Survey

Feedback from Question 1:

I can’t even find relevant emails!

I receive info on important events about the Uni and study session.

irrelevant info to me

Information is irrelevant to myself

I just want info important and relevant

all information is necessary.

too much 'junk' that is irrelevant to me.

Finding out the uni is becoming completely smoke free but not given me chance

or notice on how to vote on the change

Not many people read the updates enough, it's spread more by word of mouth

Maybe just send 1 email per week

I get info that doesn't concern me.

Good mostly, receiving 2 or 3 emails for the same thing is annoying

Better security

Sometimes receive unrelated information to me

too many emails from classes (tutorials) I'm not in

Continuously receiving irrelevant mail from UWS

I would like more verbal forms of communication.

There’s plenty of Info.

to many unrelated emails for things I'm not involved in

Although, varies sometimes irrelevant sometimes not enough. Not enough from

tutors

Adequate, although sometimes not relevant.

would like more relevance to course (e.g. vUWS notifications)

almost irrelevant. Do not really use email

too many bloat emails.

not relevant

I normally get emails that are of great importance, but there's a lot that are not

completely irrelevant

Too Ambiguous? -spam? - info? - Teacher/student?

too much crap but it’s unnecessary

Unnecessary Information

E-mail communication is good

Unnecessary and irrelevant emails.

I want to be able to forward emails better...

there's plenty of information received but would be better formatted

the university should hold more presentations from time to time to communicate

to students in person and allow for questions in person

a lot of crap that’s not needed

borderline too much

I often find many emails aren't relevant to me


So many emails man!

sufficient would like to hear more about activities like band corps etc

too many emails

Some lecturers/tutors do not reply to emails sent

most of the time it is quite helpful

Don't receive grades updates, information about M.Teaching

sometimes get emails that are not meant for me

a lot of information seems to be superfluous, perhaps a tab on the website

I receive all the correct information

Sometimes there is irrelevant stuff sent from or designated for other campuses

which is annoying

I get emailed about things that don't concern me

there is a lot of information coming from UWS via email. Not all of it is relevant to

me but it is still interesting

I don’t' check emails as much, so I prefer that everything on vUWS

too much irrelevant information


The inbox is too flooded, checking it becomes too much hassle

Student email is essential as you get info on what is happening

Not regularly

I find it necessary to check regularly.

Daily

I have important correspondence to check each day.

Mostly when I have work to do

usually when needed via lecturer or info

Everyday

Check it when I receive new emails on my phone

Linked to my normal email so everyday

I have set-up auto forward rule to normal email.

Sometimes I forget should be connected to vUWS

Every 2 days

it does get more frequent depend on assessment

once a week

if it was only for essentials I would take emails with more weight.

Again, hardly relevant

takes too long to access. Don't want 3 logins to see emails...

I would probably check it more if there was the link through to vUWS as that is

checked daily

It takes a long time to receive email reply & information. There are so many

policies put in place that most of the staff are not familiar with

Everyday

always flooded with useless emails

too much junk most of what I need is on vUWS


vUWS should be used for important information


Do not receive enough email from lectures

Spam

Highly value any academic info on furthering academic studies.

would also like more info for mature age students

I often receive emails from tutors that aren't directly involved with me.

I don't need to know what's happening on other campuses.

again personal preference

lots of info that doesn't relate to me


In class is great too, but vUWS is the most go-to place

divide announcements based on category

class doesn't really give information

vUWS is checked more than email

It’s easy to access.

A link for e-mails on the vUWS site

depends on the urgency & if there is a deadline

As I am on Facebook regularly (as most ppl are) I find this is the best way.

I always check my texts more often

academic/official things. FB for social stuff /life,. academic mean

vUWS needs to be more emphasised

Urgent information such as outages or danger should be communicated through

SMS

I think SMS is extremely effective and easiest not to ignore!

SMS's - only urgent ones!

preferably the teach informs the class

I live on campus so Facebook is easy

important messages should be announced

if possible contacting by SMS is best

every student at least has an email account, however not everyone checks it

email is best way for communication however too much


receiving irrelevant emails makes my inbox look like a home purely for spam

being able to choose would be perfect!

No spam!!

I do like getting info on these issues. But only on certain issues.

100% Too much unnecessary info

the current method of emails is very effective

it would be easier to select what I want to receive


Commencing Student Survey 2013 Feedback – relevant comments

Needs improvement themes:

Foci - Emails

email management (too much spam and sends goog emails to junk)

Email, vUWS announcements often are sent to people not in the relevant tutorial /

workshop group and gets very cluttered and difficult to find your tutorial /

workshop group announcements.

Doubling up on information on email and vUWS unnecessary and time wasting

The vUWS does not contain email system which is not convenience enough.

vUWS have crashed twice and spam emails were sent.

Connecting your student email through the iPad does not work when following the

guidelines for set-up. Have redirected emails to my normal account, which is

connected to iPad and phone so it’s ok now but confusing and not ideal at first

Everything to do with organisation. We don't need huge volumes of information

about the process or how your system will do it.

More notifications in lectures or tutorials, rather than emails

Being told about important info (e.g. assignments or tests) at lectures instead of

finding out on our own through email.

More relevant emails that are for more tuts instead of everyone else's.

More effective communication or explanation of assignments or just in response

to emailed questions

More reminders of when assessment tasks are due and when extensions are

allowed become clearer on the actual due date. Receiving emails which are

relevant to me; for example only receiving emails for my tutorial group rather than

every tutorial group

Other generic information

Information for first year, first semester uni starters. I was given conflicting

information about units I should enrol in for my first semester as a part time

student. I sought out my course Coordinator and Student central. This was very

confusing. Also the enrolment online was a little unclear (just the subject selection

section).

Explanations of responsibilities, and maybe not so much pressure put on new

undergraduates. I also feel some of my teachers need to understand that we do

not understand vast amounts of very specific information when we begin in a new

area

SERVICE, I have had numerous experiences with student central, on the phone,

collection of IPADs etc (the list goes on) where I have been provided with a

minimal effort of help from staff in resolving issues and queries. I am often left

feeling unsure and with the impression they are just getting me through as fast as

they can rather than helping effectively. Information on vUWS could also be better


set out and clearer, I am often struggling to find what I am looking for / have been

told is there.

Enrolment process was extremely difficult Needs more explanation and

assistance with applying for HECS. There were many orientation days, all of

which had the same information, this could be compiled into one day with all the

information. This would save wasted trips to campus Lack of recorded online

lectures. This would be beneficial as to avoid wasted trips to uni, for only a 2 hour

lecture - which could easily be uploaded to vUWS.

To inform student about enrolment when they get admission though email. To

publish result quickly

Response to student emails:

A lecturer I have promises at the end of each lecture that he will respond to any

emails he gets. I sent him an email several weeks ago and have not received a

reply, and I know others in the same position.

Response to emails by lecturers

Quick replies from faculties to students via email

[More] in class help as email can take too long for a reply ad well needed

feedback in depth of what is needed to be improved

Advanced standing application (international students) and enrolment - too

complicated, lots of delays, have to email different people just to know either the

application went through or not, confusion with units granted, there's no clear

instructions / advice for students who were granted advanced standing like for

example- the necessity of attending the skills challenge test. Lots of hassle based

on my experience.

Tutors and lectures need to improve replying to student emails!!!!

VUWS and Communication- ALL teachers need to reply ASAP- Teachers take

the time to respond, if an email has been sent by the incorrect email vUWS

should include a contact list for ALL subjects.

Improve Teacher-Student support. With no staffrooms, no email replies and the

fact that staff are very hard to find, it’s almost impossible to get help on

assessments.

For the tutors to read their emails daily

Better communications via email between teachers and students


Annex D: Existing student communication channels

Broadcast email (plain text)

All students

Students by campus

Undergraduate and postgraduate

Targeted groups of students


Uwsconnect digital screen ads

Ooh Media screen ads (owned by uwsconnect)

Social media

UWS Facebook site

Current students Twitter site (@UWSstudentinfo)

Webpage banner ads

Home page

Student landing page

Student system messages

vUWS

MyUWS

Student webpage messages

Relevant/high traffic webpages

e.g. Results, Exams, Graduation, Student Central

Screensaver slides

Student Central

Careers & Cooperative Education

Computer labs

Desktop wallpaper messages

SMS messages

Critical messages only (campus security or enrolment)

Hardcopy materials

Posters

Flyers

Postcards

Brochures

report april 2014 - western sydney · 2014. 6. 25. · page ii . student communication framework...

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