By: CAMRI BULLS, SOFIE FOPPIANO, NICOLE JOHNSON, & NIC VALDESPINO
Our Mission
To prepare incoming first-year and transfer students for life at Carolina before the beginning of the school year by providing a program to educate them on mental health/wellness resources, academic resources, career resources, and ways to get involved on campus. Carolina Deep Dive will allow more information to be gathered from students to better equip them for college life. Carolina Deep Dive will also elaborate on the information provided at orientation and other programs like ACE, Carolina Kickoff, and Project Uplift.
Pre-Carolina Preparedness Survey
We sent out a survey to current students to gauge attitudes regarding their orientation experience. and “pre-Carolina” experiences. We asked students about how well prepared they felt entering UNC and how orientation, and other events such as Carolina Kickoff, ACE, and Project Uplift made an impact on that preparation. We also asked where these programs succeeded or needed improvement.
Overall, we found that many students felt that their orientation experience somewhat prepared them for college; 45% of respondents were unaware of campus mental health resources, 78% of respondents did not connect with an advisor before coming to Unc, 54% of respondents did not feel as if they developed a community when first beginning college.
Since most respondents attended virtual orientation, a transition to an immersive on-campus experience paired with increased resources was frequently suggested as an orientation area of improvement. Students felt as if their previous experiences focused generally on the social aspect, building connections, and making new friends. They found gaps when it came to things such as navigating the campus and registering for classes.
Pain Points
After reviewing the data from the student survey our group targeted the pain points in which we wanted to improve through the Carolina Deep Dive program.
- Students feel as though they lack a sense of community when first beginning college.
- A lack of guidance when choosing a major
- Many users are unaware of the mental health resources on campus.
- It is difficult to find university resources in one location.
- Users are unaware of many resources on campus unless they go in search of it themselves.
User Profile
In order to cement the characteristics of our target group, we created a user profile that outlines the key characteristics of the individuals we hope to assist with Carolina Deep Dive
After identifying our users, we considered possible solutions using "How Might We" Statements
User Journey
In order to understand the perspectives of incoming and current students, we created a user journey map that outlines the process by which individuals become acclimated with and utilize information from pre-Carolina events. Incoming freshmen seek guidance before they come to UNC, and they view ACE, Carolina Kickoff, and Project Uplift as informational sources designed to facilitate their transition to college life. Although current students are years removed from their orientation experience, our user journey reveals that they are still required to use the information taught to them before they arrived at Carolina. When issues arise during one’s academic journey at UNC, upperclassmen are often forced to visit a number of different sites in order to answer a single question. The difficulty students experience during this process indicates a need for centralized information regarding mental health/wellness resources, academic resources, career resources, and ways to get involved on campus.
The Ecosystem of First-Year Orientation
Carolina Orientation Best Practices Comparison
Most North Carolina colleges offer some sort of pre-orientation program; however, they differ in their usefulness to students. UNC, compared to other schools, falls in the middle of the pack in terms of the price and features of its Kickoff program. At present, no University program contains a complementary app, indicating an area of possible improvement for all schools. In order to make pre-orientation programs at UNC more accessible and useful, we must find ways to lower the cost of attendance and provide more in-depth, instructional programming.
Carolina Deep Dive Orientation Initial Prototype: App and Itinerary
Focus Group Findings
To test our initial prototype, we conducted a focus group with 22 freshman students in two separate sessions. These students supported our idea of a complementary app for orientation and believed pre-Carolina events should be more informative. They suggested the addition of a meeting and blog function, meant to connect new students with their peers and counselors on campus.
"For me, it felt like I had to figure a lot of things out on my own." - female first-year student
Stakeholder Interviews
We spoke with on-campus student leaders who are also out-of-state students to evaluate their experiences before coming to school at UNC. We asked them about what they have observed from their fellow students and what they would hope to improve if they were to participate in the development of Carolina Deep Dive.
Follow-Up Survey
We surveyed a combination of focus group participants, initial user survey respondents, and other students and asked their opinion of the reiterated app prototype. Respondents shared their willingness to participate in Carolina Deep Dive, use of the app, and any additional suggestions they have that would improve the student experience.
Marketing Collateral and Social Media Campaign
Audio Segment
We created a brief podcast to give audiences a closer look at our process, what we discovered and hope to accomplish with Carolina Deep Dive.
Video Segment
Following prototyping, focus groups, and surveys, we created a short video explaining the current problem with the pre-Carolina student experience, possible solutions, and the benefits of participating in our program.
Credits:
Created with images by pharut - "sea water texture" • pharut - "sea water texture" • Naoki Kim - "blue water wave texture background" • Naoki Kim - "blue rippled water texture background" • schankz - "water spray from the waves" • Aleksandra Konoplya - "Transparent blue clear water surface texture with ripples, splashes and bubbles. Abstract summer banner background Water waves in sunlight with copy space Cosmetic moisturizer micellar toner emulsion" • Irina - "Blue water texture, blue mint water surface with rings and ripples. Spa concept background. Flat lay, copy space." • Andrey Armyagov - "Waves of water of the river and the sea meet each other during high tide and low tide." • MIND AND I - "Creative Web Designer planning application and developing template layout, framework for mobile phone. User experience (UX) concept." • Sondem - "Blue Water surface, abstract background with a text field" • evannovostro - "Blue ocean water surface, background photo" • Denis Gladkiy - "Circles on water"