The role of the FYSCO

First

Year

School

Contact

Officer

Transitioning into university life can be

daunting for new students

UWS Commencing Student cohort comes from all walks of life,

particularly those most at risk of withdrawing

Not all students attend MyCourse Planning &

Orientation, thus missing key information

Key information sent to Commencing Students

can get lost in the ‘noise’

Supporting Commencing Student

transition is everyone’s business @ UWS

Supporting UWS Commencing Students

What is a First Year School Contact Officer?

It is not an ‘extra’ role, but simply provides an institutional framework for communication & coordination, ensuring that good practice core business activities are consistently implemented.

An “identified contact person” for students when they have a question or need assistance and are unsure where to go. They are not responsible for solving all issues, but for ensuring that they get solved! They provide assistance to this cohort during the transition period (Weeks 0-3)

If a school already has a role specifically supporting students, then this would be the FYSCO

FYSCO Role in Supporting Commencing Students

Orientation Week 3

Role of FYSCO:

• Established in 2009, First Year

School Contact Officers provide

students assistance during their

transition into university

• FYSCOs are generally a designated

professional staff member at school

level

• Introduced at “Orientation”, FYSCOs

are established as a familiar face &

first port of call for students at for

enquiries from weeks 0-3

University of

Western Sydney

School

FYSCO

Student

Importance of FYSCO?

Directly address Goal 1 of the Securing Success: 2015-2020 Discussion Paper

Indirectly addresses Goal 2 through the data collected by FYSCOs

Addresses 3 Key Focus Areas from the UWS Making the Difference 2014-2016 Strategy Position for success in the higher education environment Create a superior and engaged learning experience Build organisation capacity

Directly address 2 of UWS’ KPIs Student retention Student satisfaction

Key Tasks of a FYSCO1. Available in school “front office” during office hours Monday to Friday, week 0 to

week 32. Handle 1st year student queries, directing to specialist areas where

required3. Attend all orientation sessions for School courses on their campus to be

introduced to students4. Ensure you have School specific contact details (DAPs, first year academic

coordinators, 1st year unit coordinators) prepared with contact details and consult times

5. Familiarise yourself with other UWS services 6. Record all 1st year student enquiries from weeks 0-37. Send all student query data to the STaRS Project Officer after week 3 via

internal mail (used for research purposes)8. Participate in research where

applicable

Available Support for Students

The STaRS Website has an easy-to-use format, to quickly find available support for particular issues faced by students

www.uws.edu.au/STaRSPlease contact David Roach –

the STaRS Project Officer – with any questions d.roach@uws.edu.au 4620 3406