(Graduate education) New automated email communication for Graduate and Professional Students

Graduate Student Services & Progress (GSSP) and the office of the Registrar (OTR) is automating the current congratulations email sent to graduate students after they have cleared their degree requirements to align it with the Letter of Certification. With the new process, an email (titled "Your degree award") will be automatically sent to the graduate students' University email approximately 24 hours after they have cleared degree requirements in PeopleSoft. This new automated communication will provide better service to students seeking more timely notification and proof of degree completion. Automation will go live by the end of April 2016, and any old processes will be retired once the new process is live. Stay tuned for more information at the Registrar's Advisory Council meeting on Monday, April 4.

FERPA: I am a supervisor - can I assign FERPA training to my direct reports?

There is not a centralized process for assigning the FERPA training but it can be assigned by a supervisor. The supervisor can go to Ulearn (via MyU), search for the FERPA tutorial, and click the "assign" button. Then, a list of the supervisor's direct reports appears for assigning the training. It is recommended to assign FERPA training to new employees. For employees that are obtaining PeopleSoft access, the basic Student Data Inquiry training also includes FERPA information and a referral to the tutorial.

MyU & PeopleSoft Unavailable During PeopleTools Update April 23-24

MyU and PeopleSoft applications will be unavailable for system updates on Saturday and Sunday, April 23 and 24; please plan accordingly. Service is expected to be restored by approximately noon Sunday, April 24. In addition, PeopleSoft Finance will be unavailable for an extended time for normal weekend maintenance. The outage will affect all campuses.

Based on their analysis to date, the update team anticipates there will be no action or change to business processes for most end users.

Details and updates can be found on the University’s Service Status website.

New procedure for granting PeopleSoft Access to student workers

Starting April 25, student workers who need view-only or basic update access to PeopleSoft Student Administration pages will be required to complete the online training courses available through the University of Minnesota's Learning Management System. These courses may be launched and completed by the student worker at their convenience.

Those who require additional access (e.g., program/plan, registration) will be granted the access with the understanding that their supervisor will provide the needed training and be responsible for all work completed by the student worker. As always, for any access to be established, an Access Request Form (ARF) with the appropriate ARF attachment must be submitted and processed by Provisioning and Requests (PAR).

May/summer term and fall 2016 registration

May and summer term registration begins on Tuesday, April 12 for students admitted to degree or certificate programs. May and summer term registration opens for non-degree and visiting students on Tuesday, April 19.

Fall registration appointment times run from Thursday, April 14-Thursday, May 5 for students admitted to degree and certificate programs. Registration for non-degree and visiting students begins Friday, May 6. The fall 2016 registration time table can be found on the One Stop website. Twin Cities students received an email the week of March 28 with instructions on how to find their appointment time and other important reminders. A notification was also added to MyU letting students know their appointment time is now available.

FERPA: Are photos of students taken at events protected by FERPA?

Yes, photos that identify students in their educational or academic environment are protected by FERPA. In these cases, you should get student permission to share the photo. For example, consent is needed to use a student’s photo taken in a classroom setting in marketing materials or on your website.

New Office of Student Finance director announced

Tina Falkner has accepted the position of Director of the Office of Student Finance (OSF) within Academic Support Resources, effective February 22. Tina has served as the Interim Director of the OSF since May 2015. During that time, she has focused on sustaining an inclusive, engaged environment for the team and has helped build bridges between (and within) OSF and their key stakeholders.

Thanks again to the search committee, interview committee and everyone who attended the open forums to learn about Tina's vision for the Office of Student Finance.