Self-service options now available on eSIS

The UW-River Falls Registrar’s Office announced the availability of a new, free, Student Self-Service to save students trips to the office and give them a more hands on experience.

The new services are now available through eSIS, and, according to an email sent to students at the beginning of April, the service consists of being able to print enrollment verification certificates so students are able to send them to health insurers and other organizations that require proof of enrollment.

Being able to check deferment forms and electronic notifications sent to lenders, being able to obtain a list of student loan lenders and link to real-time loan information, students can view their enrollment history and enrollment verifications that are provided to student service providers by request.

“My guess is that we’ll have less foot traffic into our office,” said Registrar Daniel Vande Yacht. “Everything else will probably stay the same.”

Although the idea of the new services is to give students a chance of doing things themselves, there are also some behind the scenes changes being made that this new service will help with.

“We’ve had a reduction to our staff so this will help maintain our ability to do everything that we have been doing,” Vande Yacht said. “This is to help alleviate the work load.”

The Registrar’s Office has also made some physical changes as well as technological ones. The office has changed the layout around due to the addition of a new kiosk to be able to assist students when they come in, and a new printer.

Students are still welcome to come when they need assistance and the staff will walk them through the steps to access the information that they are looking for.

Senior biology major Spencer Theis said that he usually goes into the Registrar’s Office about once a year just to make sure everything is going smoothly with his enrollment at UWRF. He also said that the changes that are being made will be helpful to all students.

“It’s always a hassle trying to call the school, so that will be nice to be able to do that (enrollment verification) yourself,” Theis said. “It will make students more confident.”

Theis said that it would also be less stressful for students to be able to do more things themselves with their enrollment and loan information.

Another change the Registrar’s Office is hoping to make within the next year, or the next few months, is an upgrade to the Degree Audit Reports (DAR).

The staff at the Registrar’s Office is currently working on an interactive DAR to make it easier for students to figure out classes and their major.

“I would use them (DAR and eSIS) more if they were more user friendly and interactive,” said Melanie Becker, a junior and communicative disorders major.

Although Becker is a junior, it is only her second semester here at UWRF and she admits that she has not had to stop into the Registrar’s Office very much yet. However, the few times she has stopped by, her experience has been a good one.

“I went in there and said this is what I need and they were able to help me,” Becker said.

Another change that will be coming to UWRF within the next couple of months will be a new program called U.select that will assist students that are looking to transfer to campus.

Future students will have the opportunity to create a DAR that will allow them to see what classes will transfer over and what classes they would still need to take.

Minnesota schools already use the U.select program and UWRF will be either the third or fourth Wisconsin school to use it as well.

“I hope that the students can find it and use it,” Vande Yacht said. “We are here to help serve the students.”

The changes being made to the Registrar’s Office are expected to be active within the next six to nine months, but there has yet to be a set completion date.

However the new Self-Service is now available and ready for use on eSIS under “Enrollment Verification” located in the academic drop down box under Academics.