Meet Ada, the new Admissions staff member at the Faculty of Humanities at the University of Amsterdam. Since March 2023, Ada has been helping the Admissions team check English language tests (IELTS, TOEFL and Cambridge) as part of the Master Admissions process. Automating this manual, repetitive checking reduces the workload during peak periods. The hours returned can be used by employees for other work.
Department
Admission Office
Applications
Inproces, IELTS, TOEFL, Cambridge
Result
138 hours of time saved per year
Lower workload in peak periods
Motivation
Every year, some 14,000 students apply for a Master’s program at the University of Amsterdam. Many of the programs have a mandatory English language test, such as the TOEFL, IELTS or Cambridge. All these language tests previously had to be checked manually by the Admission Office. Resulting in a very high workload around peak periods (March, May). Can’t we automate this process?
Approach
Robotic Process Automation (RPA) seemed to be the right solution. A Proof of Concept was started within the Faculty of Humanities (FGW). To later expand to other faculties. Step 1? Setting up a workspace and mapping the process. While mapping the current process, a number of optimizations were immediately made such as adjustments to the application form. Tacstone Technology then partnered with the UvA to develop, test and bring the software robot live.
Her name? Ada.
The process
Demo: Checking English language tests
Like employees, Ada has her own workspace, with access to existing applications. From logging into Inprocess to navigating to new applications to checking language tests, all these steps are automated. Watch a demo video to the right to see Ada at work.
Check the video!
The result? Lower workload in peak periods.
Ada’s advantage is that she is available 24/7. This means that she can also work in the evenings and on weekends. And this allows her to handle the peak of new admissions. There can be days when Ada processes hundreds of admissions. Of course there are also exceptions in this process, such as incorrectly entered data so that test scores cannot be found. Ada gives these admissions the correct status so that they can be handled by the staff.
A digital colleague within your Admissions team?
Does your Admissions team also suffer from a (too) high workload during peak periods? Are there repetitive tasks that a software robot could take over?
Contact Ebert Knol for a digital employee in your department.