Customer Service Plan Proposal

Customer Service Proposal

I have been a GSM student since the Spring 2007 taking classes in the classroom as well as online. Most of my encounters have been with GSM academic advisors since I spend the majority of my time studying off campus and I am currently do not participate in any UTD GSM sponsored events or activities. Overall I feel I have been treated fairly by the academic advisors. My initial meeting with a UTD advisor was in 2006. I had recently withdrawn from Dallas Baptist University because I was being forced by the university to complete the GMAT exam if I wanted to continue taking graduate level courses. When I met with the advisor I admit I was a little demanding. I explained my experience with DBU and that I had no interest in taking the GMAT because had over that I had over 10 years of corporate experience, and had a 3.5 GPA at DBU. Upon reviewing my credentials I was accepted into the UTD GSM program immediately. Although I have not had any truly horrific experiences while in attendance at UTD, I do have a several concerns regarding the level of service provided by the UTD staff. For instance the advisors are reactive when it comes to interaction with students. The advisors only initiate conversation (usually through email) during course registration. Otherwise I contact my advisor when I have questions or concerns. I would like to see advisors proactively contact students either through email, phone, and/or mail at least twice a semester to see if students have any problems or questions. This would give UTD an opportunity to gain feedback from students which could be useful in improving overall customer service. Furthermore, UTD could also create a database of graduate students sorted by academic advisor. Each list can be divided by into two groups: currently registered students and unregistered students. Advisors could contact unregistered students to possibly determine reasons why these students are not attending UTD this semester.

Another issue that I have with UTD academic advisors is their response time. I have experienced a few situations where I have received delayed responses to emails and phone calls made to academic advisors and Student Account Services. For example, last semester I sent an email with questions regarding my academic program design. Unfortunately, my advisor responded to my email three days later. Although the advisor did apologize for the late response she used the excuse of "being swamped with other work" which made me feel as if I was unimportant. I do understand that advisors are busy; however, making excuses takes the emphasis off the customer and reduces the sincerity of the apology. As a suggestion UTD should establish a list of rules that outline appropriate response times for all UTD staff as well as create a general script on what to say to students when these response times cannot be met.

One final concern I have is that I continuously receive billing statements for tuition during and after the semester ends from the Billing department. The company I work for offers a prepaid tuition assistance program. If UTD Student Account Services submits all required paperwork the payment is processed within 30 days of receipt of the paperwork. In addition statements via mail stating my account is delinquent or past due. I find this frustrating when I consistently complete and submit