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News

  • The Enrollment & Retention Management team is exploring Artificial Intelligence technology to assist with understanding our data at a deeper level.  Stay tuned for more exciting information on the use of AI in Enrollment & Retention Management.
  • Enrollment & Retention Management is working with Marketing to explore new opportunities and strategies for greater outreach both in brand awareness and program publicity.  The faculty who responded to the program highlights survey this spring have been very instrumental in helping drive our strategies and planning for program features and new articles.  Thank you!
  • We have hosted two Retention Advisory committee meetings with faculty and staff across campus this spring.  Thanks to all who participated and provided strong thinking in areas related to retention.  Results are beginning to be evident.
  • We have hosted two Recruitment Advisory committee meetings with faculty and staff across campus this spring.  Great ideas have been shared and areas of improvement are identified and part of our ongoing Strategic Plan for Enrollment and Retention Management.  Recruiters are utilizing shared thoughts to enhance their work in their territories.
  • The initial Admissions Recruitment Plan was launched for the campus.  An annual Recruitment Plan will be implemented each June in future years.
  • Internal Auditors assisted Enrollment & Retention Management staff with an audit of practices and communications related to helping students of all backgrounds feel more comfortable and a sense of belonging at UIS through interactions with Enrollment & Retention Management staff.  Many of those items noted are now being implemented. 
  • I am happy to say that we are continuing to stay on track with the Strategic Enrollment & Retention Management plan.  We have much more work to do, but we have a superb team in Enrollment & Retention Management and across campus working together to improve our enrollment and retention outlook.  Thank you all for you strong work you continue to do in the areas of Enrollment & Retention!
  • Laci Engelbrecht has successfully completed Certification as a Certified Financial Aid Administrator from the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators.  Congratulations Laci on this achievement!

Spring Events

A number of prospective students are visiting campus through the next two months.  A full list of activities can be found at uis.edu/visit.  Please welcome all visitors to campus warmly and let them know they each belong at UIS.

Office of Records and Registration

The Office of Records and Registration (also known as the Office of the Registrar) consists of a number of areas responsible for a variety of duties.  Listed below are a few updates from the various subunits within the Office of Records and Registration:

  • Catalog: The 2023-24 UIS Catalog is now available online and the catalog addendum (including new offerings approved through August 1, 2023) will be available in early fall.
  • Degree Audits: Working with the Office of Admissions Processing, efforts are being made to improve course-to-course articulations to improve transferability for incoming students.
  • Grading/Records: End of term grading for the Spring 2023 semester will begin in the next few weeks, with the deadline to have all grades submitted electronically by Noon on Wednesday, May 17.
  • Registration: Registration for Summer 2023 and Fall 2023 courses is currently underway.  Please encourage students to register as soon as possible before classes fill up or get cancelled due to a lack of enrollment.
  • Tuition/Fees: Tuition, fee, and assessment amounts for the Summer 2023 and Fall 2023 semesters are now available via the Tuition and Fees website.

Questions or concerns regarding registrar-related functions should be sent to registrar@uis.edu or (217) 206-6174.

Office of Admissions Recruitment

As we approach the end of the academic year, it’s time for a spring update on our admission and recruitment activities. We have made significant progress in our efforts to attract and enroll talented students this year.

Outreach & Events

On campus events have returned! We offered four in person Open Houses this year as well as daily campus tours most days of the year. We have continued to offer a variety of virtual events to connect with prospective students. These events have been well attended and have allowed us to reach students who may not have been able to visit our campus in person. Our outreach programs continue to be a key focus, as we work to build relationships with high schools, community colleges, and community organizations. We have increased our efforts to provide information to students and families all over the state.

Numbers

We are pleased to report that students indicating they plan to attend UIS in the fall remain strong. We have seen an increase in applications from undergraduate international students, which is particularly exciting. We look forward to a strong entering class this fall. As we look to the future, we remain committed to recruiting and enrolling a diverse and talented student body. This inludes students from Chicago and St. Louis, as well as diverse students across Illinois.

Summer Opportunities

Don’t forget that we are offering a FREE course to rising high school seniors this year. Students in Springfield Public Schools District can choose from two courses (Statistics or Public Speaking) this summer. This is the second year of the Smart Start program and we look forward to many more years of promoting college attendance in our community.

Office of Admissions Processing

The Office of Admissions Processing is responsible for functions in Enrollment Management related to receiving and processing all applications and admission materials, evaluating credentials for admission (domestic, foreign, military, ACE recommended) at all levels, evaluating and processing changes of curriculum/add certificate programs, coordinating transfer-related matters by providing articulation-related advising for prospective and current students, establishing and maintaining relationships with university partners, and creating/updating transfer agreements. Here are few updates from Admissions Processing:

  • Admissions Processing is working on re-establishing relationships across campus as a new, stand-alone unit in EM.
  • We are almost fully staffed and are no longer working off of a backlog. In addition to daily application processing and evaluating, we are now able to dedicate time towards reviewing procedures, cross-training, special projects and reconciling error reports. 
  • The application period has ended for the one vacant position in Admissions Processing, the Admissions and Records Associate (Transfer Coordinator). We hope to receive the top three candidates from HR and conduct interviews soon.  
  • We are in the last and fourth action cycle in the first year of the University of Illinois System’s project with the National Association of System Heads (NASH) project focused on transfer student success initiatives. By applying NASH’s improvement science model, we’ve completed three, 45-day action cycles focusing on closing gaps in the transfer process in an effort to increase the two-year to four-year transfer rate and bachelor degree completion. We’ve worked towards shrinking the gap between when transfer applicants are admitted and their initial advising appointments, developing and updating clear articulation pathways for top feeder community colleges, and building relationships with top feeders and working to establish advising hours on the community college campus, allowing students to have direct access to UIS staff throughout their transfer planning journey. NASH has invited us to continue the work as they redevelop this improvement community for a second year.

Office of Financial Aid

  • The Office of Financial Assistance is almost fully staffed at this point with permanent team members. With the assistance of temporary employees and student workers, we have been fully staffed most of the spring semester. We are looking forward to increasing and improving our service to students as the new team members progress with their training and experience.  
  • Please visit our Contact Us page for a list of team members.
  • Our Scholarship Coordinator is Jessica Bailey.  Jessica is working to gather all scholarship winners and alternates from the various selection committees for the 2023-24 donor-funded scholarships. It is important that we receive and review all potential recipients as soon as possible to send out scholarship notifications to students. If you have any questions or need assistance with finalizing winners and/or alternates, please reach out to Jessica.
  • The team is busy preparing financial aid offers for 2023-24 for new and continuing students, as well as summer 2023, and advising students.  In addition, we will begin a financial aid leveraging project with a third-party vendor to review our UIS scholarship and other aid programs. The objective is to optimize the use of UIS scholarship and aid programs to better influence recruitment, yield and retention of students. A full review of Financial Aid is planned for the 2024-25 undergraduate recruitment cycle. 
  • The U.S. Department of Education is revising the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) for 2024-25 and beyond. This is a result of the FAFSA Simplification Act, with the motto “Better FAFSA, Better Future.” The FAFSA will not be available from the U.S. Department of Education on October 1 this year as was past practice.  Instead the new FAFSA forms are promised by DOE to be released sometime in December 2023, for the 2024-25 aid year. More details to come on this important change to the FAFSA application and student aid eligibility.

Overall, enrollments for spring and fall are looking strong.  We have more time to continue to bring in new students, as well as ensure that our current students are assisted with their enrollment needs for Summer 2023 and Fall 2023.  Let’s make the coming semesters strong for our students!

If you have any questions or ideas related to Enrollment and Retention Management or you just want to stop by to chat, please reach out.

Best,

Vickie S. Cook, Ph.D. 

Vice Chancellor for Enrollment & Retention Management

University of Illinois Springfield

One University Plaza, UHB 107

Springfield, IL 62703

217-206-8660

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