The University of Chicago has entered the next phase in implementation of a new Academic Information System, with a revamped self-service portal for students and administrative staff.
More than halfway through an 18-month implementation, AIS streamlines how UChicago provides student academic and financial information to faculty, students and staff. The enhanced my.UChicago self-service portal is effectively a personalized homepage for users, providing a unified portal for key information and access to academic and financial tasks.
"AIS consolidates and updates many of the academic systems we use everyday," said Kathie Koch, executive director of administrative services for IT Services, and one of three co-sponsors of the project. "When the full implementation is complete in the Autumn Quarter 2016, faculty, students, staff, parents, even alumni will gain simple, direct, mobile-optimized access to students' academic and financial information."
The AIS project has been in development since 2014, when UChicago’s main academic system was deemed obsolete. At that time, a team of subject area specialists from around campus assembled to implement an extensive improvement of UChicago’s academic and student financial systems of record. Some staff members have been working in AIS since late last year, and on Monday, May 16, students will begin using the system when they register for Autumn Quarter 2016 classes.
“Today’s technology enables us to streamline the way we present and interact with academic information,” said Scott Campbell, University Registrar and co-sponsor of the project. “Students will no longer have to work through multiple web pages to do one thing. The my.UChicago website will now be a ‘one-stop-shop’ for completing academic tasks.”
The most visible piece of the AIS implementation is the remodeled my.UChicago self-service experience. Currently populated with basic financial aid and academic information, over the coming months, additional student records, College advising, and student finance features will be added.
"In addition to the new look, AIS will provide real-time transactions and more robust access to information," said Amanda Fijal, project co-sponsor and senior executive director of University Financial Aid and ESA Technologies. "We are very pleased to introduce this new experience to UChicago."
A project website, www.ais.uchicago.edu, has been established to support the introduction of AIS on- campus. Resources such as videos and reference documents are available for faculty, students, and staff. System support will be offered to assist users through the transition and training will occur throughout the summer. The project’s video overview can be viewed at Academic Information System spring video.
Questions about the new system and its implementation can be sent to the project team at aisproject@uchicago.edu.
—Prof. Jacqueline Stewart
