ICMS Implements Web-Based Student Administration System in Nine Months, Cuts Student Records Management Workload
 
 

ICMS Implements Web-Based Student Administration System in Nine Months, Cuts Student Records Management Workload

Printer View Printer View

Established in 1996, the International College of Management, Sydney (ICMS) is a private business college offering diplomas and associate, bachelor, and master’s degrees in hospitality, event management, sport and property services management, and international tourism.

ICMS deployed Oracle’s PeopleSoft Student Administration, PeopleSoft Student Administration Integration Pack, and PeopleSoft Campus Self Service to ease the workload for administration and enable students and teachers to update details, share information, and complete transactions online.

 
Automating Administration Tasks

A word from International College of Management, Sydney

  • “Automation provided by Oracle’s PeopleSoft solutions enabled ICMS to reduce the time required for the student services staff to manage student records. We are also seeing fewer students queuing up each term to amend their course preferences and make payments.” – Steve Swarts, Vice President, Information Technology, International College of Management, Sydney

ICMS has approximately 1,200 students and 90 teaching staff across two campuses in Manly, on Sydney’s northern beaches. The teaching staff at ICMS previously used an in-house-developed student administration system, which evolved as the college expanded beyond hospitality into areas such as business, retail services, events, international tourism, and property management. In recent years, this system could not keep up with the growth in student numbers and changes in ICMS’ business processes.

“The system was initially built for around 300 to 400 students, but by the time we grew to 1,000 students, it would not scale,” said Steve Swarts, vice president, information technology, ICMS. “At the beginning of each semester, we would have long lines of students outside our administration office wanting to make changes to their course selections and timetables.”

In early 2011, ICMS engaged Oracle Specialized Partner Tripoint Corporation to implement a new, Web-based student administration environment based on PeopleSoft Student Administration, PeopleSoft Student Administration Integration Pack, and PeopleSoft Campus Self Service, using Tripoint Corporation’s rapid implementation methodology.

ICMS has consolidated student and course data into a single administration system that reduces the workload for administration staff and academics. Importantly, students can now select and change course preferences, pay fees, and update their personal details online. PeopleSoft Student Administration Integration Pack was also used to link the system with ICMS’ timetabling and financial systems.

 
Enrollment, Class Timetable Scheduling Automated

 
Online System Reduces Student Records Administration Workload

 
More Efficient Class Scheduling and Lecturer Allocation

 
Reduction in System Maintenance Costs, Data Duplication, Web Development Workload

 
 

 
 

Challenges

  • Consolidate student and course data into a single administration system that supports growth in student numbers
  • Ease student services’ burden by removing the need to manually update enrollments and class schedules
  • Reduce data duplication and uncertainty about the validity of student and course information
  • Enable students to select and change course preferences, pay fees, view lecture notes, and update their personal details online
  • Reduce application management costs for the student administration system
  • Improve interdepartmental processes and data management

Solutions

Oracle Product and Services

  • Enabled staff to update student enrollments almost instantly rather than spending several days on this each term
  • Automated class scheduling to prevent having to spend a few days per month preparing timetables
  • Cut 20% of the time required for IT staff to maintain the administration system and minimized the online application development workload
  • Imported data from learning management, timetabling, and financial management applications in a few hours, rather than a few days, each term
  • Made it easier for administration staff to schedule classes with the right teaching resources, as the central system provides better visibility into the courses that students will want to complete in the future
  • Cut the time it takes staff to manage student records by enabling students to update their personal details, change course preferences, and pay fees online
  • Significantly reduced application management and maintenance costs, as a separate application is no longer needed to schedule classes
  • Minimized data duplication, improved student services, staff efficiency , and productivity by significantly enhancing data flow and processes between departments
  • Cut the number of students queuing up to change course preferences at the start of each term
  • Deployed the Web-based system in nine months, reduced risk, and saved thousands of dollars in implementation costs by using a proven, rapid-implementation methodology
  • Created a training mechanism that made it easy for new staff to learn how to use the system

Why Oracle

ICMS began looking for a new student administration system in 2009 and initially considered the Callista application and similar software from Technology One before investigating Oracle’s PeopleSoft system.

“Oracle was the only supplier that provided a solution within our budget and the right time frame,” said Swarts. “We felt that Oracle was best placed to meet our objective to deploy the system in a relatively tight timeframe.”

Implementation Process

ICMS implemented PeopleSoft Student Administration, PeopleSoft Student Administration Integration Pack, and PeopleSoft Campus Self Service in nine months using Tripoint Corporation’s rapid implementation methodology (TRIM) and PeopleSoft User Productivity Kit.

By using the methodology, ICMS saved thousands of dollars in implementation costs and reduced risk by having a well-documented approach to the project. This methodology enabled ICMS to go live on the system as soon as possible.

ICMS also used PeopleSoft User Productivity Kit to create training tools that made it easy for new staff to learn how to use the system. A staff member uses PeopleSoft User Productivity Kit to record how to run a procedure. Other users can train themselves simply by following the saved process.

Partner

Tripoint Corporation was engaged as ICMS’ implementation partner covering project and change management.

“We defined a repeatable implementation approach which we knew would enable us to take the PeopleSoft Student Administration—the world’s premier student management application—into midsize higher education markets in Australia and New Zealand,” said Vaughan Stibbard, CEO, Tripoint Corporation.