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When Maryanne Woke, Project Portfolio Manager for the School of Graduate Studies at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, received a directive from the Chancellor to be "student-ready by September," she knew her team had its work cut out for them. What followed was a guided three-month journey that transformed how UW-Whitewater welcomes its graduate students. 

The Challenge: Creating a Graduate-Specific Experience 

Before implementing Advantage Orientation^®, UW-Whitewater relied on their undergraduate admissions office for orientation programming.  

"Graduate students often felt the experience wasn't designed with them in mind. For example, undergrad orientations included campus tours, but those tours focused on buildings rather than graduate students' needs," explained Maryanne. 

This disconnect was particularly problematic for students who couldn't attend in-person events.  

"For students who lived out of state or even another country, attending in person wasn't always possible," Maryanne notes. The school needed a solution that would embody their motto: "anytime, anywhere." 

The Timeline:  

The project kicked off in June with an ambitious goal. "We were given a directive straight from the Chancellor to be student ready by September. So, we just had to make it happen," Maryanne recalls. 

Here's how they did it: 

June: Project organization and content planning began with tools and scripts provided by Advantage Design Group^®. Maryanne and her team followed the guided process to partner with their campus video team, customize scripts, and coordinate with nine presenters. 

July: Maryanne gained access to the pre-populated Advantage Orientation® platform that was branded to UWW’s standards and received training to customize the content provided. 

August: Platform launched to students in advance of the September deadline. 

The Secret to Success: Templates and Customization 

One of the key factors in meeting this aggressive timeline was the platform's template system. "The template that you provided was huge for us," Maryanne emphasizes. "It gave us a clear starting point and helped us get the ideas flowing. From there, we were able to build on it, customize it for our campus, and decide what additional content we needed to highlight." 

The team went beyond simply using pre-populated content, choosing to create their own videos featuring UW-Whitewater's faculty, staff, and even the Chancellor.  

"All of our videos featured our own faculty and staff and the chancellor. We used the script you provided as a foundation and made adjustments along the way," explains Maryanne. 

Key Features Students Love 

The orientation platform includes several innovative features that enhance the student experience: 

• Interactive Quizzes: Reinforcing important concepts like time management expectations for graduate coursework 

• "I" Buttons: Allowing students to save topics of interest for later review, creating a personalized resource page 

• Mobile-Friendly Design: Ensuring students can access orientation content anywhere, on any device 

• Accessibility Features: Meeting WCAG 2.2 AA standards with closed captioning, screen reader compatibility, and customizable viewing preferences 

Beyond Information Delivery: Building Community 

For Maryanne, the platform serves multiple purposes beyond student orientation.  

"We use it as a training tool," she reveals. "It shows the information that came directly from our dean and chancellor. This accuracy reinforces reliability, and the policies and resources are provided accurately." 

The platform also helps consolidate essential information.  

"It enables us to consolidate all policies into a single location, including the support and resources available to our graduate students," Maryanne explains. 

Looking Ahead: Expansion Plans 

While the initial launch focused on general graduate student orientation, UW-Whitewater has ambitious expansion plans. The College of Business is exploring how to integrate special orientation requirements and acknowledgements directly into the platform.  

"We're now exploring how to integrate support for that process directly into the orientation," Maryanne shares. 

The team is also in discussions with other colleges, including their undergraduate admissions offices, about implementing similar solutions.  

"We think this is a great platform. We're even discussing with our undergrad admissions to show them," she adds. 

Words of Wisdom for Other Institutions 

For schools considering a similar project, Maryanne offers this encouragement: "Just start. Your first video will be amazing simply because you took the first steps. Don't overthink it. Explore the examples and the tools available, practice with them, and then make it your own. The toughest part is beginning." 

The Bottom Line 

UW-Whitewater's success story demonstrates that with the right tools, clear objectives, and committed team members, institutions can transform their graduate student onboarding experience in a remarkably short timeframe. In focusing on what matters most: creating a sense of belonging and providing students with the resources they need to succeed. They've built a platform that will serve their graduate community for years to come. 

"We want them to feel a part of UW-Whitewater," Maryanne emphasizes. "Our online orientation really helps bring this to life." 

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