Thousands of would-be freshmen are invited to learn more about the university as they ponder whether to enroll.

After recently sending out admission letters, our campus is now preparing to host thousands of would-be students for Decision UC Davis, giving them the opportunity to learn more about the university as they ponder whether to accept and enroll.

The first Decision UC Davis, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. this Saturday (April 11), is for would-be freshmen, their families and friends. About 6,000 people are expected.

Decision UC Davis for transfer students is scheduled from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, May 15. About 800 people are expected.

More information is available online.

Students put Aggie Cards to new use

Students are being asked to voluntarily swipe their Aggie Cards at various locations around the campus to provide data on the use of student services.

For example, swipe count will give an indication of how frequently students are using academic advising and support services.

Student Affairs and the university’s four undergraduate colleges aim to get a better understanding of students’ use of support services, and how it relates to student success outcomes, including four-year degree attainment.

The data also will be used to help better integrate campuswide student services.

The swipe card initiative began as a pilot project last summer at the Student Recruitment and Retention Center, and recently expanded to Graduate Studies and Health Professions Advising.

Other units joining soon: the AB540 and Undocumented Student Center, College of Engineering Dean’s Office, Student Academic Success Center, and Campus Recreation and Unions.

The information collected at each location is being treated the same as student records: Only approved staff and faculty can access personally identifiable information, such as student names and contact information, and training in FERPA (the federal government’s Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act) is required before access is granted.

For more information, contact Ian Fleet by email at the Center for Student Affairs Assessment.

Stobo promoted at what is now called UC Health

The UC Office of the President’s Division of Health Sciences and Services has changed its name to UC Health to reflect its role providing leadership and strategic direction for UC’s five academic medical centers and 17 health professional schools.

UC President Janet Napolitano approved the name change and promoted the head of UC Health, John Stobo, to executive vice president from senior vice president.

“Our new name recognizes our mission to bring together UC’s medical centers and health professional schools to create something where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts,” Stobo said. “Our central office at UC Health is small but mighty, providing leadership and strategic direction to advance health in California and beyond.”

Read the complete news release.

Changes on the Travel Help Desk

The Travel Help Desk has begun using a ticketing system to track requests, much like other campus help desks are doing.

The ticketing system started April 1, and the Travel Help Desk launched a new email address — travelhelp@ucdavis.edu — at the same time.

“Please send all your travel and entertainment related questions to this new email address,” the help desk advised in a memo. “The old email address — mytravel@ucdavis.edu — will continue to be monitored for a short while, but will eventually be phased out.”

In addition, system-generated MyTravel emails no longer allow direct replies. If you have a question about a system-generated MyTravel email, send a reply to the new address: travelhelp@ucdavis.edu.

A follow-up email repeated the information about the elimination of direct replies to system-generated emails. Many people apparently missed that part of the first memo, and wondered why their responses were not going through.

“The system emails are still being sent to employees,” the Travel Help desk said in the follow-up email. “However, there is no mechanism to respond to those emails any longer. In order to email us any follow-up questions, please send the request to travelhelp@ucdavis.edu, or you can still phone our help desk at (530) 757-8888.”

Forbes cites UC Davis among ‘best employers’

Forbes, the company that keeps track of the world’s billionaires and their riches, has come out with a new list: “America’s Best Employers,” and UC Davis is on it, ranked 86th out of 503.

UC Davis is among 26 employers that made the list in the ”education” category. Washington University, St. Louis, is first in the category (and 13th overall); Stanford is fourth in the education category (and 50th overall), and the only other California institution to make the list.

The list, which Forbes prepared in partnership with Statista.com, is based on a survey of more than 20,000 workers at companies, nonprofit institutions, government agencies, and U.S. divisions of multinational companies — each with a minimum headcount of 2,500.

Each employee responded anonymously, using a scale of 0 to 10 to indicate the likelihood he or she would recommend his or her employer, or other employers in the same industry, to someone else.

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