What Students Want
13
What Students Want Institutional Web Management 2001: Organising Chaos
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Before leaving university and starting Luminas Limited, the directors were all involved in running student union-backed web sites. While doing this, they obtained a unique perspective on what students want from a university site. In this talk, they present some ideas from this experience that you may not have considered before.
Transcript of What Students Want
What Students Want
Institutional Web Management 2001:Organising Chaos
Who Are We?
• MJ Ray• Former Student Union Webmaster
• tsw Founding Editor
• Andrew Savory• Former Student Union Webmaster
• Former University Webmaster
• Luminas
Why We're Here
• Some time in Higher Education• 6 years working on SU sites
• 4 years working on tsw
• 5 years work on HEI sites
• Now semi-detached
WebsitesThatSuck.com
• Are university sites really that bad?• No!
• Yes...
• Well, maybe.
• Lots of useful information• But is it "What Students Want"?
What HE Sites Try to Do
• Marketing (prospectus etc.)• Course information
• Timetables• Reading lists• Results and grades• Enrolments
• Term dates• Event information
What Students Want
• Prospectus• Course information
• Timetables• Reading lists• Results and grades• Enrolments
• Term dates• Event information
Why Aren't They Happy?
• "I just want it to work."• "It's always out of date."• "I still haven't found what I'm looking
for."
Actually: "I want it structured to find what I want without searching through links and pages."
Why Aren't They Happy?
• "It has to look nice for students thinking of coming here."
• "I want links to the Student Union social stuff."
• "I don't trust it."(too much marketing material to draw students
in?)
How to Improve?
• Structure and Organisation• Separate student material
• Types of content• Mostly right, but some missing
• Quality• Timeliness
How to Improve?
• Simplicity and elegance vs. "Wow!"• Accessibility• Work with Student Unions to gain
credibility
Remember the Audience
• Paying customers now?• Legal requirements• Teaching Quality Assessment
Summary...
• Much done right• Still strive to improve• Listen to the audience
• Ask "what students want"!
Top Ten Tips for Tip-top Sites
1) Provide the basics first
2) Update the information
3) Segregate the information
4) Maintain consistency
5) Use Student Unions to complement your content
6) Get institutional buy-in to providing services
7, 8, 9, 10) Ask them what they want!
