Beginning this fall, students at George Mason University will have access to enhanced services designed to meet the needs and expectations of the 21st-century student. These new practices and policies will help ensure that every student at Virginia’s largest and most diverse public institution has access to excellence in a transparent and responsive environment.
“We have this already complex student body. We have students coming to us who have very different needs,” said David Burge, Mason’s vice president for enrollment management. “We have to think about a holistic reorganization of the way we think about the student experience.”
Key features of Mason’s overall Student Experience Redesign, launching at the start of the fall semester, include the following:
- “Mason Initiation,” which will change the way students experience their first year at the university, includes changes to UNIV 100 classes and additional activities during the Preamble.
- The Mason Student Services Center, located on the lower level of SUB I on the Fairfax Campus, will simplify the way students seek help with questions about financial aid, enrollment and billing. Other administrative offices will eventually be integrated into the center.
- Technology surrounding the project will be supported by Salesforce, a constituent relationship management platform, in order to centralize student information for greater development of student support and engagement services.
Future initiatives include the Mason Care Network, a student-centered coaching team that will help students meet their academic and personal goals. The network will serve incoming students, both freshmen and transfer, in tandem with major advisors in the colleges.
Each of these was discussed and explained at a recent town hall meeting for the campus community at the Johnson Center.
“Given we have such a large and diverse student population, it’s absolutely critical that we come together and try to provide a consistent and robust experience for our students,” Mason Provost David Wu said. “This is a big part of it.”
You can view a recording of the event here.