Current students won’t have to rely on legacy.wlu.ca for much longer.
The Wilfrid Laurier University web renewal project is currently being developed for the launch of a new website for current students in July 2016, and a preparatory launch of a collaborative Intranet solution for staff and faculty for September 2016.
While the new website will offer more robust information for current students, the site will also be open and accessible to the general public.
“The new current students’ site is being developed with the needs of Laurier students in mind, but we realize that other members of the community — parents, employers and even future students – may visit the site to explore the Laurier student experience,” said Kristine Lougas, web manager for Laurier.
The web team finalized its research analysis, gathered from 11 different focus groups including an online survey, card-sorting exercises and a Google analytics review. Over 900 current Laurier students participated in this research process from various programs and faculties.
The research highlighted some themes that current students wanted to see integrated in the new website. Some of the key themes include personalizing student preferences and relevant content, quick and easy navigation to student needs rather than institutional structures and centralizing robust information, including services and academics on one website.
The process of transitioning into new web environments is not an easy task and requires many steps, but the web team has developed a solution to ensure a “quality user experience” for Laurier students as well as staff members.
“I’m excited that it is not just a look and feel update, but a significant shift with using the website as the communications tool,” said Lougas.