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The client

East Kent Colleges Group

The East Kent Colleges Group (EKC) comprises six community-based colleges across East Kent, stretching along the county's coastal belt. Core to its strategic mission, the Group’s focus is to enhance the economic and social prosperity of its local communities. EKC serves over 12,000 students, employs more than 1,500 staff, and has an annual turnover of approximately £55 million. 

The challenge

Increased college applications during the pandemic 

We originally worked with the EKC team to implement a digital solution that streamlined their application process. The initial digital solution system was used by the Group to manage 2019 and 2020 student intakes – providing college administrators the flexibility to create new application types as the Colleges expanded their offerings. Due to increased college applications, EKC wanted a separate portal for students to manage their registrations – particularly during the pandemic as the EKC pivoted to remote working.  

The solution

New portal for online registration for students 

The next phase of the project focused on building a separate EKC Group Applications portal to provide an easy and user- friendly way for students to apply and manage their application. The new online system would save administrative time by importing and consolidating applications from a third-party system used by various schools into a centralised system. Applicants would self-service by selecting interview dates from available slots, and both candidates and tutors would be able to fully manage offers of places. 

Close up of students looking at a laptop
Several students sitting in a classroom

The project

PDMS managed the project with six fortnightly development sprints. The development phase was guided by user journey research, involving the Student Experience Group, and included creating system flows on wireframes. Feedback was then used to refine workflows and screen designs. 

The benefits

The new portal significantly accelerates the application process for prospective students and college staff, delivering notable efficiencies by reducing the administrative burden on college administrators and tutors. Additionally, it supports remote working by providing a centralised system for all staff, enhancing flexibility and adaptability in various working conditions. 

Digital learning concept of laptop and learning icons

The results 

The new portal offers a smoother process for new students, facilitating online registration throughout the pandemic. EKC Group had to rapidly adapt to the pandemic, and the digital solution eased the transition to remote working. 

The portal simplifies the application process, allowing students to provide more information upfront and reducing the time spent collecting information during the interview. Applicants can easily change their interview dates, accept or decline offers, withdraw applications, or rebook interviews online, reducing the number of no-shows. 

Although the pandemic's impact makes it hard to compare results with previous years, application numbers have increased, and feedback from applicants and EKC staff has been positive. 

Client testimonial

Check out what our customers think

Having worked with PDMS over the past few years, we have been able to develop an application process that is easy for our applicants to use and offers us a greater level of flexibility. The PDMS design team developed a great understanding of our processes, the challenges we face, meeting strict deadlines and have consistently provided excellent service and intuitive solutions to a complex issue.

Ian Clover Head of Digital Systems at EKC

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