On April 24, UVic is scheduled to launch its new and improved website after a much-needed facelift. The site has been developed by a team of experts and advisors to create a “pathway” for both the external and internal communities - including parents - to access information in a more user-friendly manner.
The new home page will give “new students a much easier time finding out about UVic,” says Matt Stiegemeyer a communications officer for student recruitment. “Whether you are a new undergraduate or a [cu rrent] graduate student, the information is now neatly packaged.”
One of the new features included in the site’s makeover is its emphasis on experiencing the university right from your own home. Many of the additions were initiated for high school students and other prospective audiences who said they wanted to get a sense of what campus is like.
A “Tours and visits” page provides an overview of the university with options to explore UVic grounds in a virtual tour through a digital, 360-degree panomaric view of campus. Facilities Management has provided a Google Earth build-out of the campus and its buildings to replace the traditional 2D map as an innovative way to help students navigate themselves around school.
A “Life at UVic” tab provides insight into the lives of some of the people who study and work at UVic and prospective students and their families can also book a campus visit through this page.
The development team has worked hard to remove university jargon and explain things in plain language and the site has been tested by prospective students, receiving good feedback so far according to Stiegemeyer.
With a new section devoted entirely to parents and families, parents should also have an easier time navigating the new website. This section includes information about admissions, tours, housing and finances from content developed from the perspectives of family members of current students.
“The blogs allow students, faculty and staff to share stories which are not edited for content, where they are free to say what they will,” Stiegmeyer explains. “It is an arena of research and discovery [for the university] and bloggers are free to have negative opinions, and a personal voice.”
Michelle Reid, a fourth-year Anthropology student blogger says, “the site hasn’t even launched yet and friends and classmates seem to be reading it, which is encouraging for the project.”
Students have been able to take a sneak peak at the new site while it is under development.
Reid describes writing for this type of medium as challenging, saying “it’s hard to strike a balance between something interesting, appropriate and accessible.”
Students can make comments on the blogs and email the contributors. Stiegemeyer says plans for the blog continue to expand and he hopes a blogger from each faculty will eventually be included.
While the new site was primarily developed for the external community, the goals of the project also cater to students, staff and faculty via the new uSource portal. Current students can access their academic records and most importantly register for classes by logging into uSource with their original Netlink ID beginning in March, when students register for summer classes.
An online tutorial for the new registration process can be found at registrar.uvic.ca and a help line will provide answers to any questions students may have during this time of transition.
You can check out the new site before its launch date by clicking on the link located on the current UVic homepage or typing this link into your browser: http://wwwdev.uvic.ca/.
Originally published in Volume 1, Issue 3 of the Fountain, April 2008