March 27, 2020

Enrollment Management remote processes and services

Registrar's Office

Several staff members from the Registrar’s Office are working remotely and available to assist students, faculty and staff. The following services will be provided:

• Monitoring the @email email account.
• Processing transcript requests.
• Completing graduation audits.
• Processing grade changes and removal of incomplete grades.
• Assisting VA students and certifying their eligibility for benefits.
• Processing scheduling, fee and room requests.

Office of Student Transitions

During the remote working period, the Office of Student Transitions will continue to plan Orientation programs and the First-Year Seminar course for this fall. Staff members are still available to take calls and answer questions from students and families regarding Orientation. We will continue to communicate with incoming students, encouraging them to register for the programs. We are committed to creating a positive experience for our incoming class. 

EM-Tech

Greetings to all our valued customers. EM-Tech is ready to support you any way we can in this current work environment. The easiest way to reach us is by using an ITDirect case. Links to file a case are on our web page: wmich.edu/enrollment/technology/support. Also, continue to submit Salesforce cases for specific problems isolated to a student record. We are dedicated to keep Salesforce running, Admissions applications processing and data flowing properly with Banner. If we can be of any help, let us know!

Mike Roe
Director of Information Technology

Student Financial Aid

Bronco Express and Financial Aid are serving our students, families and colleagues remotely by:

• Assisting via phone calls and phone appointments.
• Reviewing @email daily.
• Processing financial aid documents within five business days.
• Processing incoming mail within 10 business days.

Additionally, payments can be made online or mailed to WMU, and financial aid is being awarded daily. If a student has an emergency situation during this time, they can contact our office and we will do our best to assist them.

Office of Precollege Programming

The Office of Precollege Programming remains available to serve you as all staff members will continue to work remotely. Contact information for specific programs and the general office can be found below. 

• Office of Precollege Programming: (269) 387-2773, @email
• College Day Program: (269) 387-3339, @email
• ATYP: (269) 387-3553, @email
• Upward Bound Kalamazoo: (269) 387-3357, @email
• Upward Bound VanBuren: (269) 387-3357, @email
• Metro Detroit Outreach: @email

Most of our services have transitioned from in-person to remote delivery, and staff members continue to work diligently to provide support through a variety of methods. Many of these services require internet access. To assist with access, we have attached a number of resources for free/low-cost internet: 

• Comcast Internet Essentials
• Spectrum Internet Assist
• Access from AT&T
• Verizon Innovative Learning
• FCC’s Lifeline Program 
  • Enter your zip code and find low-cost options from providers in your area.

The wellbeing of youth and their families will remain our highest priority. We look forward to this difficult time passing; however, in the interim, virtual connections will be our primary source of communication. Please stay safe and let us know if there is anything our office can do to be of assistance. 

Office of Admissions

Office of Admissions team members are working remotely (sometimes on an abbreviated schedule) and available to assist during normal business hours. Prospective students, admitted students and staff may connect with us in several ways:

• Call us at (269) 387-2000. Calls will be answered Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. EDT
• Chat with us. Click the “Chat With Us” button in the lower right corner of our web page (available Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. EDT)
• Email us. Connect through a general email account. Accounts include:
  • Admissions information: @email
  • Transfer students: @email
  • Campus visits: @email
  • Applications: @email

Connecting with you is very important to us, and our team will respond as quickly as possible.

Credit/No Credit option for undergraduate students

Undergraduate students have the option to change their course grading mode to credit/no credit through Friday, April 3. This change can be done on a course-by-course basis, and major/minor courses are included. “Credit” will be posted for each undergraduate student who earns the grade of “C” or better at the end of the semester. “No Credit” will be posted for any grade below a “C” at the end of the semester.

Note: Students with a registration hold can email @email with their WIN and course information, and Registrar's Office staff will make the change for them.

All undergraduate students will receive a final reminder via email early next week.

Spring commencement postponed

As stated in an email from President Montgomery last week, WMU's April 25 commencement ceremony will be postponed. Alternate dates are being explored. The Registrar's Office will send updates as soon as the information is available.

GLBA spring shred event canceled

Due to COVID-19, the decision was made to not hold a spring shredding event. The GLBA committee is still planning to hold the fall shredding event in October.

Spring 2021 course fee deadline extended to May 15

The deadline to submit course fee request forms for new fees and renewals for spring 2021 has been extended to May 15.

Updates from Admissions

WMU going "test optional" for first-year students

With ACT and College Board canceling spring test dates and uncertainty about when testing will resume, as well as how Michigan and Illinois will handle their state-wide testing, we don’t want students to worry about how they will fulfill admission requirements. Consequently, WMU will implement a "test optional" admission policy for first-year students. Test optional means that students may submit ACT or SAT test scores if they wish, but scores not required. Students who have an ACT/SAT score may decide if they want the score to be used in the admission process or not. 
 
Additional points to note:

• This policy is only for the remainder of 2020 entry and for 2021 entry terms. We will continue to explore if WMU will adopt a test optional policy on a permanent basis.
• At this time, test optional is for admission only, not scholarships. 

Unofficial transcripts

Students whose school(s) is not submitting official transcripts may scan and submit unofficial transcripts for an admission decision. Official final transcripts will be needed if the student enrolls at WMU. This is the same policy we currently have.

Admissions confirmation deadline

WMU will honor all admission and scholarship offers until at least June 1. As June 1 approaches, we will reevaluate and, if necessary, further extend.

Campus visit changes

Campus tours are on hold through April 25. In the meantime, we are encouraging students to experience campus through virtual tours at wmich.edu/admissions/virtualtour. We are also exploring virtual visit options and plan to announce that schedule very soon.

Spring 2020 withdraw numbers

The last day for students to withdraw from a course was March 16. This semester, fewer students withdrew than in previous spring semesters.

Spring 2020: 217 complete withdraws, 1,551 partial withdraws

For reference, here are withdraw numbers from the last two spring semesters:

Spring 2019: 278 complete withdraws, 1,987 partial withdraws
Spring 2018: 296 complete withdraws, 2,536 partial withdraws

Note: A complete withdrawal is withdrawing from all classes (a final grade of "W" will appear on the academic transcript). A partial withdrawal is withdrawing from one or more but not all classes (a final grade of "W" will appear on the academic transcript).

Hardship withdrawal process

Withdrawal from a course will now only be permitted through the hardship panel withdrawal process via the Office of the Ombudsman.