Background and Rationale

For every Higher Education Institution (HEI), the registrar’s office is the axis on which every activity spins. It is also the hub of a student’s education. Due to the vital role of the registrar’s office in administrative excellence and students’ academic success, the registrar, who is one of the principal officers, should see himself/herself as a peer of academics and a partner in the delivery of educational programs. As the steward of the academic record and the keeper of institutional data, the registrar is in a unique role at the institution. An institution needs good data to advance its initiatives. The registrar, who sits at the crossroads between student service and academic programming, is distinctly suited to use the data at hand to help shape discussions and decisions in the context of desired educational outcomes for the institution and students alike.

While serving and advancing higher education by safeguarding the academic integrity of the institution, there are broad professional principles of good practice, management, and conduct that should be followed. When these principles are not being followed, those served by the registrar’s office, majority of whom are students, are the ones that bear the consequences of a disengaged office. The registrar must be current, consistent and professional to ensure the integrity of degrees and maintain the ability to accurately advise students about degree requirements and other administrative requirements. Continuous professional development is central to enabling the registrar perform at optimal level for the overall benefit of his/her institution.

It is against this backdrop that the Association of African Universities (AAU) is organizing a capacity building workshop for university registrars in universities and colleges in Africa. The workshop addresses one of AAU’s strategic goals of strengthening the delivery capacity of HEIs through enhanced leadership and management capacity development.

The modules for this Capacity Building Workshop for University Registrars include:

Module 1: Students’ records management: Retention, Transcript Guide, Disposal, and Archive of Students’ records

Module 2: Managing Student Recruitment/Admission, Registration and Displacement

Module 3: Examination Management

Module 4: Curriculum Management and the Role of the Registrar

Module 5: Student Online Services

Module 6: Professional Development of Registrars and Administrators

Module 7: Graduation and Commencement

Objective and Expected Outcomes

The overall goal of the Workshop is to enhance the capacity of Registrars and HEI Administrators to deliver on their position as custodians of records in HEIs in Africa. To this end, AAU and Stellenbosch University, South Africa expect that at the end of the workshop the participants would return to their institutions with:

• Improved knowledge about student records management and processes of records retention, disposal, transcript guide and records archiving.
• Improved knowledge of innovative approaches to student recruitment, admission, registration and displacement.
• Enhanced awareness of examination management processes and best practices.
• Improved knowledge on how to organise effective online support services for students.

Methodology

The workshop will be held over a period of four days and would comprise the use of case studies, focused group discussions, experiential learning, presentations and ideas sharing. The workshop will develop a strategy of follow-up to ensure that university registrars are implementing good practices learned from the workshop at their various institutions of higher learning. The participants will have the opportunity to engage in dialogue with peers on the various challenges at their universities and strategies to overcome those challenges.

A post workshop report will be compiled and recommendations made will be integrated into improving subsequent workshops.

Target Group

The main target audience for this workshop are:

• Registrars
• Enrollment Managers
• Provost
• Deans and Faculty
• Academic Advisers
• Staff of the Registry.
• Examination Managers

Venue

Adam Small Theatre Complex,

Stellenbosch University, Victoria Street,

Stellenbosch (South Africa)

Recommended Hotel(s)

Oude Werf Hotel

Stellenbosch Hotel

Date

25^th-28^th June, 2019

Workshop Fees

The fees for this four-day workshop is $600 per delegate. This covers lunches; refreshments and workshop training material

There will also be a Team Tour at a fee of $100 per delegate (Optional and to be paid in cash on-site)

Working Language

The working language of the meeting is English.

Registration

Register by following this LINK : https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/FDPM7MC

Or Send an email to skankomah@aau.org

Contacts: Cell: +233200783270  Email: skankomah@aau.org