The critical task of guiding students through their online programme is no small feat, but student support teams make the journey smoother for everyone. We spoke with Interactive Pro’s own Student Support Manager Brittany Cordy to find out how to connect with online students, and what drives teams to perform their best.
What is the overall goal of a student support department?
Our goal is to provide prompt, consistent, and excellent guidance on all administrative aspects of students’ study journey. We work with students from start to finish—from when they enrol up until their graduation, and even after graduation.
Why is student support crucial in online higher education?
It’s one of the most crucial points because it really makes or breaks the student’s online journey. We make the process as seamless as possible and provide students with as much support as they would get from an on-campus programme. We have events that bring students together like live guidance sessions and create an environment for them to thrive.
We facilitate interactions between students as much as possible. Students interact with their tutors, but a lot of times we’re their main point of contact. If they have questions about anything that pertains to payments or to any aspect of their studies outside of the academic realm, they come to us.
What are some of the best tools student support teams can use today?
Our messaging system we have now, Intercom, is really great. The Canvas LMS itself is super useful, too. There is an Intercom Chat button that students can use to message and interact with us.
We want to have more video interaction in our programmes and incorporate video conference software like Zoom more often. It allows students to see each other and it makes you feel like you’re in a classroom without being in a classroom. It sparks conversation between students that may not have happened otherwise.
What role does student feedback play in student support?
Students can give feedback at any time. We take that feedback and we share it between all departments, and it allows everyone to look at problems from a different perspective. We have quizzes at the end of each module asking for feedback and we’re always looking for feedback so we can progress and improve.
What are the most important qualities and skills you look for in a student support team?
I think the ability to think outside the box and problem solve is huge. A lot of the time we have to solve a student’s problem without being able to see what they’re seeing on their screen. I think organisation, time management, prioritising, and the ability to communicate not only with our students but with each other and other departments is incredibly important.
How can student support teams best serve online students?
We’re students’ main point of contact, but we also need to uphold the regulations and standards of the universities we’re working for. We focus on making sure that our processes for everything that involves the students is clear and concise, and they have a proper understanding of it.
Addressing all of our students needs and then communicating effectively with them is key. In a perfect world, we’d solve a student’s question within five minutes. But often there are really complicated cases, so we need to be sure that communication with students is consistent, concise, and clear and that they have an understanding of where they are in their process.
What are some of the biggest issues teams face when supporting students?
Some problems that come up are trying to find the best way to resolve a student’s issue the most quickly, because sometimes the solution will involve other departments and sometimes even third parties.
What is the most satisfying part of working in student support?
Meeting the students face to face at graduation is the greatest thing ever. They are so happy and it’s one of those funny things because people don’t really get to see us behind the scenes. Then we actually get to meet and they see who has been working with them for months or even years, and we get to see the results of all our work.
To me, I’m just doing my job, but to hear students explain how much our support helped them through their studies is just so incredible. My first graduation really reinforced my passion for the job.
