University of Guelph Cooperative Education Department

www.coop.uoguelph.ca

The University of Guelph is one of Canada's leading comprehensive universities, recently ranked number one among competing institutions (Maclean's Magazine, 2002). Among the various alternatives for its students, it is home to the third largest Cooperative Education program in the country.

Challenge
The Cooperative Education department was looking to re-establish a sound and functional Internet presence by constructing a site that provided essential information to students, employers, alumni and other interested parties.To date, the employment process has been a cumbersome one, requiring students to submit resumes, cover letters and transcripts in hard copy to positions of interest. The process has been managed by staff members through a client-server ORACLE application, allowing them to monitor applications, arrange interviews, approve job offerings, etc. The coop department required a web-based solution that would allow for the continued use of this tool while introducing the ability for employers to manage job postings and for students to track the status of applications.

Objective
UIM outlined the following goals in its development of the employment process application. The features to be incorporated would automate the existing activites surrounding the employment process for students, staff, and employers:

1. Reduce the paper trail
2. Increase convenience for students
3. Reduce time required for manual data entry
4. Increase convenience for employers
5. Intuitive interface design towards a user centric approach
6. Seamless integration of components with existing systems

Strategy
UIM's approach first involved the redesign of the Cooperative education website, applying new technologies including a CMC (Content Management System) allowing for frequent updates of specific content. This feature was to increase the dynamic nature of the site providing information such as news, current events and up to date forms to students and employers. The objective behind the design of the interface was to achieve a high level of functionality and sophistication to represent the department online. This Employment Process Application system will allow students to apply for certain positions with employers who have opted to accept applications online. This system will build on the existing ORACLE 8.1.6 system and look towards integrating with the University's DATATEL COLLEAGUE system in order to access student transcripts.

Results
A visually appealing site that is highly content driven yet remains remarkably functional and not overwhelming. The educational component for the Introduction to Co-operative Education course provides first year students with the necessary materials.

The integration of Internet technology to facilitate this process will be used to enhance the overall Coop program in the following ways:

1. Improve the employment process experience and overall communication for students and employers through the provision of an online option.
2. Present CES as a progressive unit at the University of Guelph to employers through the integration of new technologies.
3. Improve the overall flow of the employment process for both students and employers by integrating the two areas.
4. Encourage proactive initiatives to be taken by students by increasing their ability to update their current information.
5. Attract outside interest into the University's Coop program by establishing a higher standard of efficiency in the employment process.
6. Decrease the current inefficiencies related to pursuing employers at different stages of the process.
7. Email 'reminder system' tied directly to the database.
8. Reinforce the human face of the Coop department through Job development, Student/ Employer visits, Student and employer relationship management/development

While the cost savings can be determined by examining the long-term improvements that the system will bring about within the University, there is also the immediate value of improved processes and communication flow when implementing this forward-thinking strategy. An effective tool such as this will assist in successfully marketing the program across Canada and abroad, appealling to both employers and students alike.

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