Lakehead University joins MapIt Learning Collaborative to improve student transfer journeys
Lakehead University has been chosen to be part of the Ontario Council on Articulation and Transfer’s (ONCAT) second MapIt Learning Collaborative with nine other colleges and universities.
The MapIT Project aims to examine the entire transfer process: the steps students take when transferring schools in Ontario and the ‘behind-the-scenes’ workflow steps post-secondary institutions (PSIs) take when receiving applications.
Participating PSIs connected through knowledge-sharing sessions and received a collated map of the transfer journey – from both staff and student perspectives – to reveal pain-points, bottlenecks, and other opportunities for improvement to administrative and communications activities.
“Often the student transfer experience is different from what is imagined by the services facilitating that process,” said Dr. Michel S. Beaulieu, Associate Vice-Provost Academic.
“Led by Nick Chamut, Associate Registrar of Undergraduate Admissions, Lakehead will gain a better understanding of how our processes work and improve them to ensure a better student experience.”
In this round, after gathering feedback from participants, ONCAT is casting a greater focus on faculty decision-making processes (i.e., credit assessment) and is re-adjusting its approach due to COVID-19.
After gathering feedback from the first cohort, ONCAT confirmed the next group of PSIs in December 2020: Lakehead University, Centennial College, La Cité collégiale, Northern College of Applied Arts and Technology, Sault College, Sheridan College, Trent University, the University of Guelph, and the University of Windsor. HESA (Higher Education Strategy Consultants) will return as a consultant.
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Media: For more information or interviews, please contact Brandon Walker, Media, Communications and Marketing Associate, at (807) 343-8177 or mediarelations@lakeheadu.ca.
Lakehead University is a fully comprehensive university with approximately 9,700 full-time equivalent students and over 2,000 faculty and staff at two campuses in Orillia and Thunder Bay, Ontario. Lakehead has 10 faculties, including Business Administration, Education, Engineering, Graduate Studies, Health & Behavioural Sciences, Law, Natural Resources Management, the Northern Ontario School of Medicine, Science & Environmental Studies, and Social Sciences & Humanities. Lakehead University’s achievements have been recognized nationally and internationally, including being ranked, once again, among Canada’s Top 10 primarily undergraduate universities in Maclean’s 2021 University Rankings; as well as included in the top half of Times Higher Education's 2020 World Universities Rankings for the second consecutive year, and 98th among 766 universities from around the world in THE's 2020 Impact Rankings (which assesses institutions against the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals). Visit www.lakeheadu.ca.
Established in 2011, ONCAT was created to enhance academic pathways and reduce barriers for students looking to transfer among Ontario’s public colleges, universities, and Indigenous Institutes. For more information, visit www.oncat.ca. For more information about MapIt, please email Carolyn Poplak at cpoplak@oncat.ca. ONCAT is funded by the Government of Ontario.
