SAA Newsletter September 2014 Inside This Issue

SAA Newsletter
September 2014
Inside This Issue
Welcome!
1
Welcome to the September issue of the SAA Newsletter, as we embark on
another academic year at the University of Southampton. We have the
usual mix of operational, project and system updates, plus SAA staff news.
This month we place the spotlight on the Operational Excellence team to
learn more about their activities. We also learn more about the launch of
the new Banner Basics e-Learning Course.
Welcome
1-2 Operational News
2
SAA Job Vacancy
2
SAA Generic E-mail Addresses
2
SKILLS Network
3
Higher Education Review Update
3
Banner Basics e-Learning Course
3-4 SAA Staff News
4
SAA Spotlight: Operational Excellence
5
Feature Requests
5
Assessment at Southampton Update
5
Scientia Update
Forthcoming Awards Dates
Fri 17 Oct,
17:00
Deadline for marks
upload
Mon 20 Oct,
12:00
Marks release and
classification
Mon 20 Oct,
12:00
Deadline for approval
of awards
Fri 14 Nov,
17:00
Deadline for marks
upload
Mon 17 Nov,
12:00
Marks release and
classification
Mon 17 Nov,
12:00
Deadline for approval
of awards
Should you have any queries, please
contact: awards@soton.ac.uk
Operational News
Admissions
Confirmation and Clearing was very successful this year with higher
numbers of calls being taken and more good quality applications than ever
being received and confirmed. The new undergraduate admissions cycle
has now started and new UCAS data has been received at the University
since the middle of September. If you do not have a UCAS processing
Manual for the 2015 cycle, please contact the ROA Team Leader in your
faculty.
New applications for postgraduate taught and research programmes are
also being received and are already being considered for offers. We are
also receiving last minute applications for postgraduate programmes
starting this year, and faculty teams are working hard to process these
before the start of term.
Curriculum & Timetabling
The teaching timetable has been published so all students and staff are
now able to view personal, module and location timetables via SUSSED. The
web room booking facility is now available for ad hoc bookings of common
learning space rooms. We are working on fine tuning the allocation of
students and resolving a number of capacity issues following the success
of undergraduate recruitment, and changes will be communicated to
students as they happen. We will be identifying clashes in continuing
students’ timetables and will be liaising with students to ensure they are
kept informed about any clashes and how to resolve them.
Online Option Choice opened for Year 1 entrants and students repeating
their year of study on 26 August, and is available until 26 September. You
can find a copy of the user guide at:
http://www.southampton.ac.uk/studentadmin/curriculum/optionchoice/d
ocuments/online_option_guide.pdf
On Sunday 28 September (‘Allocation Sunday’) we will be allocating year 1
students to their optional modules so that they have a complete timetable
ready for teaching beginning on Monday 29 September. We will be offering
face-to-face support for students during those first few weeks of the
Semester and will be contacting Faculty Student Offices shortly to make
the necessary arrangements. If you have any queries please do not hesitate
to contact the team at: timetabling@soton.ac.uk
Key Information Sets (KIS)
SAA Staff Vacancy
Having looked at the guidance on the HESA web page and reviewing how
this has been interpreted by other institutions, we have identified the
following areas which need to be addressed:

New programmes for entry in 1516 that have not had a KIS created
but do appear on UCAS and have a course URL

Foundation Programmes: Where students apply for a unique
Foundation programme code, no action is required. However, where
the UCAS code denotes both the Foundation Year and the
substantive programme, a new KIS needs to be created for the
whole programme of study.

Programmes with multiple Majors that have only one KIS: Where
students can apply to an individual major a separate KIS must be
created. Where the application is to the overarching programme
and the specialism is declared at a later point a single KIS is
required

Mlang – as these have separate UCAS codes from the BA, a separate
KIS should be produced

Programmes available with a placement year: Where a programme is
advertised as a three year course but having an optional sandwich
year, the sandwich year should not be included as a stage in the KIS
and the maximum average fee should not take account of the fee
for this year. If however the course is advertised as a 4 year
programme including a year in industry, then the KIS should reflect
the sandwich year. The proportion of students taking up the option
is not a factor in whether the component should be included.
We will be prioritising the issues which can be resolved quickly after the
initial submission, with a target date for resubmission by 30 September.
It is likely that this may well result in some actions for Faculty teams
(estimation of learning & teaching hours and assessment methods for new
programmes etc) and we will be in touch shortly with further information.
Winter Graduation
Our winter ceremonies will take place from Wednesday 17 to Friday 19
December. This is slightly different from those previously published. The
schedule and all other relevant information is published on our website:
http://www.southampton.ac.uk/graduation/winter/winterindex.shtml.
Important dates to note are that Graduand applications open from 01
October to 31 October, and that the robe order deadline is the end of
October. More information, including the new process for the platform lists,
will be published shortly.
Senior Student Data Analyst
Location: Highfield Campus
Salary: £28,695 to £35,256, FullTime Permanent
Closing Date: Sunday 28
September 2014
Interview Date: Tuesday 14
October 2014
Reference: 452614GX
https://www.jobs.soton.ac.uk/Vaca
ncy.aspx?ref=452614GX
We anticipate that there will be a
number of new vacancies
advertised over the course of the
next few weeks, so please keep a
look out at:
https://www.jobs.soton.ac.uk/
SAA Generic E-mail Addresses
Please could we remind you that a
documented list of all SAA Generic
email addresses is available to view
on our SAA Workstream SharePoint
site.
This document contains email
information on all generic accounts
for teams in Faculties and Registry.
You can locate this document by
visiting the Working in SAA /
Contact Information folder within
the ‘Libraries’ section of our
SharePoint site, where you can also
view the SAA and University
organisation charts, as well as an AZ of acronyms.
This list of generic e-mail addresses
is maintained centrally as a point of
reference. Please do not hesitate to
let us know of any new addresses
or amendments, by e-mailing
S.J.Edwards@soton.ac.uk
The last award date for winter eligibility will be 17 November 2014.
As always, please call us on x23620 or e-mail
graduation@southampton.ac.uk if you have any questions.
Forthcoming SKILLS Network
Session
Semester 1 Exams
The semester 1 exams run from 12 – 23 January 2015.
Please note that the SZAEXAM form in Banner will open on 22 September.
All other critical dates will be published shortly.
Please call us on x24734 or e-mail exams@southampton.ac.uk if you have
any questions.
2
We look forward to welcoming you
at the next SKILLS Network session
on Tuesday 21 October, 09:0010:00. Details of the session will
follow soon by e-mail, so watch this
space!
Higher Education Review Update
The date on which the University has to submit its Self Evaluation Document (SED)
and supporting evidence for next February's QAA Higher Education Review is
approaching rapidly - 10 November 2014. We can expect the review panel to be
looking at our website in detail from that date if they are not doing so already.
Version 6 of the SED is currently with Faculties and Professional Services
departments as well as with an external adviser for feedback. This version will go
to AQSC in September. Following that, the final version will go to Senate in
October.
Members of the Quality Standards & Accreditation Team (QSAT), assisted by a
number of other colleagues throughout the University, are very busy putting
together the evidence base. Colleagues in SAA will understand that at the current
time this has to be QSAT's number one priority.
SAA Staff News
Registry: Curriculum and Timetabling
We were pleased to welcome Greg Cooper to our team in September. Greg will be
job-sharing the Curriculum and Timetabling Officer for Medicine role with Kate
Marsh, following her return from maternity leave.
Finally we would like to send our very best wishes to Lianne Browne as she starts
her maternity leave, and will be much missed.
Quality Standards & Accreditation Team (QSAT) News & Away Day
Tracey Allen (Head of Academic Appeals and Student Complaints) and Pamela
Rouse (Collaborative Provision Adviser) have left the University. Sunita Parhar has
joined QSAT as Interim Head of Academic Appeals and Student Complaints.
If anyone is looking for an idea for a team away day, QSAT would thoroughly
recommend Field Archery at the Countryside Education Trust in Beaulieu.
Following a walk from Beaulieu to Buckler's Hard and lunch in Beaulieu, we spent a
very enjoyable afternoon shooting arrows at a range of targets in different
woodland settings. We were, of course, accompanied by instructors throughout,
and training and equipment were all provided!
Tracey Allen scored the highest number of points and won the ‘silver’ arrow.
Launch of the Banner
Basics e-Learning Course
The iSolutions Training &
Development Team and SAA
are pleased to announce that
the new Banner Basics elearning course was
successfully launched in
September.
This is an exciting new elearning solution for University
staff who require foundation
knowledge to navigate and use
the Student Record System,
Banner.
Banner Basics replaces the
previous ‘Introduction to
Banner’ training course and
places a fresh emphasis on
online learning and activities
to enhance the training
experience.
On completion of this
interactive course there is a
knowledge check with
successful trainees being
granted access to Banner.
This course was developed
through a successful
collaboration between the IT
Training & Development Team
in iSolutions and SAA. We
anticipate that this is just the
first building block of a
sustained wider collaboration
to enhance training and elearning courses for Banner.
We would like to take this
opportunity to thank all those
involved for their hard work
and support in bringing this
course to fruition.
There has been very
encouraging and constructive
feedback from attendees who
have enjoyed this new look elearning course, and we look
forward to rolling this out to
new users over the coming
months.
For further information, please
visit:
http://www.southampton.ac.u
k/isolutions/computing/traini
ng/
3
Faculty of Engineering and the Environment (FEE)
Q: Who do you work with across the University?
The FEE SAA Team has undergone some changes in the last
couple of months. Firstly, the Recruitment, Outreach and
Admissions Team have moved to Boldrewood Annexe, said
goodbye to Jackie Page and welcomed Sean Hollywood and Helen
Fitzgerald.
A: Initially we will work with a 'champion' to
identify a particular process that needs to be
reviewed. Then we'll identify who can best
facilitate the workshop. Finally, we'll identify a mix
of staff and students to attend the session. This
might include people who are directly involved in
a process, or people who we think can offer a view
on how it can be improved.
Secondly, the Graduate School Team has seen Stephen Wakeling
appointed as CDT Administrator for SIS and ESA (Sustainable
Infrastructure Systems and Energy Storage and its Applications)
and welcomed Jenny Knight and Victoria Saunders.
Thirdly, the Admin and Assessment Team has said goodbye to
Paul Green and welcomed Lee Chisman, Anna Davis, Suki Parmar
and Joanna Hobbs (working joint with the Graduate School).
Fourthly, the CQA Team (Dain Mead, Brenda Leigh and Claire
Brockman) has moved to Boldrewood Annexe, along with Roz
Stanton, the Faculty Academic Registrar.
All extension numbers and email addresses remain the same for
all staff.
Registry: Exams, Awards & Graduation
Although we’re sad to see Caroline Bassily (nee Wright) leave us to
take up her new post in Medicine, we’re delighted that Becca
Thorburn has now taken up the Senior Administrative Officer role
in the team.
Fae Ashton joined us as a temp back in July and has so far
successfully lived through graduation and the supplementary and
presessional exams. Her temporary assignment runs until at least
mid-October.
SAA Spotlight: Operational Excellence
Q: Looking back over the last year, what were the
successes for the team?
A: A year ago Mary was leading the work on her
own - now there are six of us in the programme
office. Awareness of our work is spreading and we
are regularly being approached with ideas for
future workshops.
Q: What are the regular challenges that you have
to face as a team?
A: One of the biggest challenges is measuring the
impact of the changes that have come out of the
workshops. Some of the processes work on an
annual cycle, so we will have to wait some time to
see the full impact. We'll be focusing on this a lot
over the next year.
Q: Please tell us something that we might not
know about members of the team
A: Maria and her husband once spent an evening
with Jean-Claude Van Damme (and his mother) at
a VIP party at the Cannes Film Festival.
This month we caught up with the recently established
Operational Excellence team to learn more about our colleagues
and their activities.
Elizabeth’s Belgian great grandfather traced her
family back to the 15th Century and found there
is a strong likelihood that she is related to Anne
Boleyn.
Q: Please tell us a bit about the way in which the Operational
Excellence team is structured, and the key activities that you
undertake.
Dannielle is a record-breaking tap dancer.
A: We organise workshops across the University that help staff
and students to review and improve particular processes. The
workshops are supported by a network of more than 25 University
staff who are now trained process improvement facilitators. The
aim is to reduce bureaucracy across the organisation, free-up time
and make it easier for us all to access the services that we rely on.
After a workshop, we work with a process champion to help
embed the changes, organise follow-up meetings and measure
the benefits.
Mary Hurst is the Programme Manager. While Mary is on maternity
leave, Maria Ward (Project Manager) will be leading the team.
Working with her are Frank Wright and Dannielle Elster (Business
Change Analysts) and Elizabeth Lloyd (Programme Coordinator).
Greg Sandford works with us a day a week on our
communications.
Q: Where is the team based?
A: We're based in 37/4007, and we like to stress that we have an
'open door policy' so anyone who wants to find out more about
the programme can pop in for a chat.
4
Greg has been used as body-double for Barack
Obama.
Q: What are the main objectives for the team for
the new academic year?
A: We want to continue to raise awareness of the
work, and you'll be seeing a lot more about the
programme around the University. We also want
to go back to the processes that have been
reviewed over the last year to see where the
changes have made a difference for our staff and
students.
Visit www.southampton.ac.uk/excellence for more
information, and follow the office on Twitter
@UoS_Excellence.
If you or your team are interested in being
featured in a future SAA Spotlight item during
2014-15, we would really like to hear from you.
Please contact Stuart Edwards.
Assessment at Southampton Update
Recent Feature Requests Gone Live
We are pleased to announce that the User
Acceptance Testing for Banner Gradebook XE
Marks Entry and eAssignment was successful
and will be available as planned for 2014/15.
The following CRs were made live during the recent systems
releases:
Changes to Functionality
CR3099
Online method for students to request Proof of
Enrolment letters
CR3269
Create a new withdraw code for use with
admissions
CR3290
HESA Update of STULOAD Function
CR3292
Amendment to fees module billing process
CR3293
Include residence status 0 into the ‘whole’ tuition
fee billing process
CR3313
Automation of the 920 checklist item for specific
courses
CR3317
Add new SHANCRS codes and SGAADVR codes
CR3333
HESA Update of MOD/EXCHANGE/LOCSDY
Functions
CR3353
Amend the RZEPROP process
CR3397
Reverse out form SZASECT as obsolete
CR3407
Re-instate the Clearing Hotline Applicant Look-up
facility for 2014
CR3490
Over the next couple of weeks, Jenny
Millington and Liv Støbseth-Brown will be
visiting Academic Units across the University
to speak with academics and SAA colleagues
about how these systems will function and
discuss potential changes to processes.
These meetings are designed to ensure that
there is a coherent understanding between
SAA colleagues and academics about
responsibilities for providing and accessing
information in a timely way, to enhance
working processes and the experience
provided to our students.
Look out for information about Marks Entry
Roadshows which will be held in October, to
provide generic information about the
changes to the Marks Entry systems and how
they will benefit you and your Faculty.
Training for the systems will be provided in
the form of an online training guide, currently
being developed by the IT Development and
Training Team, which will be accessible to
both SAA and academics.
You can find out more information by
accessing the Assessment at Southampton
Communications SharePoint site at:
https://groupsite.soton.ac.uk/Administration
/Assessment-at-SouthamptonCommunications/Pages/Home.aspx
HESA Paper fix
Changes to Reports
CR3335
CR2181 CAS Report additional item
CR3408
Upgrade Discoverer Report 1.025
Scientia Update
CR3447
Additional tick box fields to the bottom of the
report SZAALVL
CR3363
HESA 8.11.1 Upgrade KIS
Following the decision to stop the Scientia
Enterprise go-live in August, in the coming
weeks work will be undertaken on planning
the new project.
CR3426
INTTRACK UK 8.3.1.2
CR3468
Enrolment error on Higher Education Page
We need to agree appropriate dates and the
correct technical approach to this
implementation so that we can guarantee a
successful go-live next time.
Upgrades of Banner Modules
CR3380
HESA 8.11.2 Upgrade DLHE
CR3491
Paper fix for DLHE
CR3390
UCAS 8.7 Regulatory for 2015 cycle includes
CR3316
Exam Scheduler is being looked at as a
separate project and it is anticipated that it
will go live on 30 September.
5