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Andrew Drinkwater

5 Reasons to Start Your Career as an Enrolment Services Data Professional

Often when we think of data professionals in higher education, we think of institutional research and analysis, and IT. Here I’ll talk about why starting my career as an enrolment services analyst helped me hone my data craft.

The Data Only Updates 3x Per Year?

Snapshots can also be helpful with enrolment forecasting – in particular, many users I speak to don’t want their forecast to change daily, instead every second week or even every month.

Still Rolling Over Manually?

We used to update our scenario data monthly during the fall term and at end of the fiscal year. After this all was quiet until the dreaded rollover to the next academic year in summer.

What Programs Do We Even Offer?

Working in Institutional Research, I often was asked questions around “What programs do you offer?”, or “How many programs are there?”. You’d be surprised that answering these questions is not as easy as it sounds.

When is a New Scenario a New Scenario?

Scenario versions are based on user-controlled parameters, automatically updated parameters, and changes in your data model. Tracking the outputs of your scenarios allows you to go back and reflect on the results, seeing where there are opportunities for improvement.

Why Version Control Matters to Enrolment Forecasters

Enrolment forecasts are often large and complex models, involving information from databases, models, spreadsheets, and several other places. These models often involve thousands of lines of code and there are many opportunities for human error. I recommend using software to support versioning.

Plaid joins SFU VentureLabs

We’re very excited to announce our newest partnership with SFU VentureLabs, an accelerator that focuses on science, technology, and innovation-based ventures. VentureLabs was recognized as a top North American accelerator in 2017 by UBI Global.

The Importance of Reflection in Enrolment Forecasting

You’re finished enrolment forecasting for the cycle. The targets you helped developed made it through Senate, and you can breathe a sigh of relief. Right…?

20 years of wonder. Happy birthday, SFU Surrey

My undergrad degree was a transformative experience. Like my current job, the path to there wasn’t all that linear either. Back in high school, I vowed I would attend university away from home, live in a dorm, and so on. But that isn’t what happened.

Using a Database for your Enrolment Forecast

Databases are great at storing the inputs and outputs of your enrolment forecast. Depending on your configuration, horsepower, and forecast design however, they may be very subpar for the steps that happen between input and output.