As a college student, I don’t know many of my peers that have plenty of “time to kill.” We live very busy lives trying to juggle academics, involvement on campus, work/internships, and a social life. One of the last things a student wants to spend their precious free time doing is running around campus and waiting in lines. This leads to frustration, missed deadlines, more dissatisfaction, and potentially, students choosing to unenroll from the institution; not something an institution wants when each student brings in, on average, $200,000 during a typical 4-year experience at a higher education institution.
Growing up in the age of Amazon, Google, and giant superstores stocked with everything imaginable, the current college-age generation is accustomed to convenience, efficiency, and speed. Why shouldn’t my university function the same way?
The runaround has caused me my fair share of stresses while in college, with trying to turn in the correct form, getting the correct signatures, and finding the correct office/building to go to on campus before the correct deadline. It’s exhausting, to say the least. On top of that, this process generally needs to be completed several times each year for a wide range of topics. Why can’t there be one central office on campus or one online portal to drop/add a class, view financial aid, schedule an advising appointment, check grades, etc.?
Students, like myself, could have an entirely different—and better—experience on campus and outlook on their institution if there was a “one stop shop” for all their needs. This innovation would streamline the flood of data that needs to be processed and routed, as well as simplify the logistics for the institution and students alike. This change in culture could positively impact the entire campus. With this one stop portal, I could add a class from my phone while I’m walking across campus or visit a central location to turn in a form on my way to the library, rather than bouncing between multiple locations and navigating multiple processes to accomplish a single task.
This new age of technology is changing the needs of today’s students. If schools adapt, they will make their students’ lives more convenient and help ensure that they have the best experience possible. Removing this frustration would increase my and my fellow students’ satisfaction, potentially, improving institution retention rates as a result. Modernize the student experience by beginning to implement your “one stop shop” today.