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Wichita State University Tech (WSU Tech) is a national leader in workforce development and career readiness. But, as the higher education landscape shifts and student expectations evolve, WSU Tech recognized that strong institutional values and dedicated teams were not enough to eliminate friction from the student experience.
While the college had invested in systems and talent, students still encountered uncertainty and delays, particularly during onboarding and transfer processes. Communications lacked alignment. Advising and enrollment workflows were clear internally, but felt disjointed to students. WSU Tech saw an opportunity not just to optimize operations, but to transform how students navigated critical decision points across recruitment, onboarding, enrollment, and transfer.
To meet this moment, WSU Tech partnered with Swim to analyze the full student journey, uncover operational breakdowns, and co-design a future-state experience that centered student empowerment, responsiveness, and strategic growth.
WSU Tech began this work with a comprehensive review of student engagement points, particularly onboarding, transfer planning, and communication sequencing. Swim used this analysis to surface institutional blind spots and identify key opportunities for system alignment and conversion growth.
This engagement reflected Swim’s belief that lasting transformation is grounded in both empathy and evidence. To redesign the student experience, we needed to see it clearly from all angles: student-facing communication, behind-the-scenes workflows, technological constraints, and cross-departmental handoffs.
Key elements of the work following the environmental analysis included:
Insights from the analysis phase fueled the co-design of scalable, student-centered communications and process systems:
1. Personalized Communications Plan
Swim developed four comprehensive communication strategies that mirrored the mapped student journeys. Each plan included:
All communications were created in WSU Tech’s unified brand tone and supported by staff training to promote internal consistency and long-term sustainability.
2. Cross-Departmental Alignment
The future-state design brought together advising, enrollment, marketing, and academic leadership. Through stakeholder sessions, Swim facilitated dialogue around shared goals and reinforced student-centered design as the organizing principle of institutional coordination.
Throughout the engagement, Swim served as both strategic consultant and implementation partner, ensuring findings were not only documented, but acted upon.
While full lifecycle metrics will unfold over the next enrollment cycle, WSU Tech has already seen early institutional wins:
These changes build toward the ultimate goal: a student experience that supports progression from first inquiry to final credential and removes the barriers that disproportionately impact historically underserved learners.
WSU Tech’s partnership with Swim reflects what’s possible when institutions choose transformation over optimization. By redesigning systems around the lived student experience, not institutional convenience, WSU Tech is building a future-ready model of access, mobility, and student empowerment.
This work embodies Swim’s mission to eradicate generational poverty by transforming how students experience higher education. Every process redesigned, every message clarified, and every student retained brings us one step closer to a future where all learners can succeed.
