Bursary system built in house improves student application experience

New internally-developed system helps students more easily apply for Fanshawe bursaries online at www.fanshawec.ca/bursaries

Fanshawe College's Information Systems Services team has recently developed and deployed a new bursary application system together with Fees, Financial Aid and Student Awards Services. The result: student access to Fanshawe financial support options has been improved and the application process has been significantly streamlined.

The two-year project began after the teams identified key functions they were seeking in a system and discovered a marketplace gap. An extensive scan of off-the-shelf solutions that didn't meet the requirements revealed an opportunity to develop a system internally that would better serve the needs of our students.

"Our default is always to take advantage of what exists in the market," explains Ryan Graham, Sr. Manager of Information Systems Service. "However, after several vendor interviews it became apparent that Fanshawe's previous homegrown system was the most functionally rich solution on the market. This prompted us to develop version 2.0 using our internal development team."

Staff in the two departments worked collaboratively to rebuild the advanced application in house using best practices in user-centric design.

Iterative, user-centric design practices were a mainstay of this project, and our customers worked closely with us," Ryan says. "This allowed us to develop a solution that not only provides a robust set of features, but that is also oriented to optimally engage both staff and students."

The final product was a multi-purpose online system accessible to students via Fanshawe's website, for the submission and assessment of applications to financial needs-based bursaries and awards. This new tool will allow students to verify their personal information themselves and easily provide or update specific situational details, making it easier than ever to complete an application online for a student awards bursary. In addition, students will be able to view 'best fit' financial aid options recommended based on their eligibility. The new tool will also make it possible for students to track the progress of their applications.

There are also benefits to Fanshawe staff, including the automation of some manual processes involved in assessing and responding to bursary applications. Thanks to the new internally-developed system, the turnaround time for assessing an application will be decreased and communication with students will now be handled electronically.

"We are fortunate to have the skilled staff at Fanshawe to build a system like this one. I am proud of the collaboration and work the team put in to make this happen," said Senior Associate Registrar Kevin Nash, who oversees Fees, Financial Aid and Student Awards. "We are confident students will benefit and look forward to seeing it in action."

The new online bursary application system is now live at www.fanshawec.ca/bursaries, and will be announced to students before the summer 2021 bursary applications open.