A Guide to Getting Started
1. Look Around
When you are assessing current onboarding practices at your college, it can be useful to send a group to complete the college application and matriculation process to help identify structural barriers. Then using data, you can identify the needs of your incoming students. These data points will help you to fix existing problems and build supports to meet students where they are when they enter the college.
2. Gather Your Data
Student surveys of matriculation steps, counseling meetings, and support needs CCSSEE data
Local abbreviated and comprehensive ed plan data
Student Equity and Achievement (SEA) data: retention and enrollment data
Focus groups with high school and first-year students
Student communications systems assessment: What information are students receiving and when are they receiving it?
Guided Pathways data (CalPass) for first-time enrolled students
3. Engage Your Team
Whom should you include?
Counseling and Instructional Faculty
Classified staff from A & R, Outreach, EOPS, Financial Aid, and Counseling
Deans overseeing Student Development
How do we get started?
Start with your self-assessment and data to develop an understanding of the problems or barriers students face in the onboarding process.
Schedule regular meetings to provide time, space, and energy to understand the barriers students are facing with onboarding at your college and to develop creative solutions that meet students at their starting point.
Explore questions in groups that can lead to ideas for solutions. Here are some questions to get you started. You can use these with the “How might we…” questions you developed in your self-assessment.
How can we support students in exploring their interests and how they align with opportunities at the college?
How can we identify students early who will benefit from one or more of our support programs?
How can we help students prepare for their counseling meetings to make the best use of their time with the counselor?
How can we better prepare to provide a more personalized approach to college onboarding and orientation?
4. Sample Activities
Sample Activity 1: Matriculation Process
After completing the self-assessment for onboarding, simulate the matriculation process with teams, and begin to brainstorm solutions.
Sample Activity 2: The Warm Hand-off
This activity helps participants to understand what students need to feel connected and supported.
