Each June, 500+ incoming College of Liberal Arts (COLA) undeclared students attend First-Year Orientation and register for their fall semester classes. Of all majors, these students have a large variety of interests and the most options about which courses to take their first semester — but they also have more decisions to make than declared students during their advising and registration session.
In July 2018, Enterprise Technology & Services led the University Advising Center (UAC) through a Lean Yellow Belt project to analyze and improve the orientation processes. A key outcome was the development of an online self-study workshop in Canvas for incoming, undeclared students to complete prior to attending June Orientation. Students receive an email invitation once they make their UNH deposit and can access the workshop as often as they wish.
The workshop contains various modules, including UNH Major Exploration, AP and College Credit Overview, What to Expect at Orientation, and How to Register for New Student Orientation.
Between March and May 2019, 400+ students were invited to the online workshop. Of those:
- 80% logged on
- 75% explored majors
- 50% accessed the orientation preparation
- 40% accessed the COLA 401 preview
The UAC will continue to refine the Canvas content for incoming, undeclared students in 2020. This body of work is also informing a larger UNH effort to develop Canvas content targeting all incoming students, increasing their UNH engagement before arriving on campus.
