Karatina University goes paperless to streamline operations

 Karatina University

Karatina University has now automated all its manual functions.

Photo credit: File | Nation Media Group

What you need to know:

  • The system is used in the finance, catering and medical departments and is also applied during lecturer evaluation.
  • The transition did not come without challenges, the first being that it was met with some resistance.

Karatina University is now paperless following its adoption of a digital system that aims to streamline all its operations.

The university’s operations are now managed by the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system, which has automated all its manual functions, from admission to graduation, and even tracks the alumni of the university.

The ERP software manages the day-to-day business activities of an organisation such as accounting, procurement, project management, risk management and compliance, and supply chain operations.

At the University, the system is used in the finance, catering and medical departments and is also applied during lecturer evaluation and during elections.

The process starts when a prospective student applies to join the university or is placed by the Kenya Universities and Colleges Central Placement Service, with the ERP generating a letter of offer.

The students are issued with a student number that is used to create access to the student portal where the learner uploads their documents.

“They report for admission with the papers for verification, after which they head to finance to register for programmes in the student portal,” Micheal Gitau, the ICT director at the institution says.

Once they have paid their fees, it reflects in their portals, and they are able to access the fee statements online.

“The system also gives the lecturer a list of all the students allowed in the examination room to avoid fake exam cards,”  added Mr Gitau.

Teething challenges

While the continuous assessment tests are done online, the main examination is done physically, after which lecturers mark the examination and upload the results online. The system then processes and classifies them in the right graduation honours at the end of the course.

“Students who are graduating are also cleared online, they do not have to visit the university,”  added the director.

The university has also introduced Microsoft Power Business Intelligence, an interactive visualisation system that allows live monitoring of registration. The system also breaks down the data into charts and graphs and maps out where the students come from, which helps in planning, prediction and marketing.

This means that the administration can monitor the registration exercise remotely using a phone or a laptop and get real time data as the students register. It gives accurate and simplified data which is easy to follow and monitor. The university has also integrated a biometric system for the students and staff as well as a library system to aid in online learning.

The online learning programme is blended with physical classes to ensure that while some classes are physical, others are online. The system is also used to conduct elections, and allows students to vote for their delegates remotely, all they have to do is log in using their student IDs. 

The system ensures that the student can only vote once, and the results are projected in real time, which makes the process authentic. University staff used it during their pensioners’ elections last year.

The transition did not come without challenges, the first being that it was met with some resistance, as happens when change takes place. Another challenge is unreliable power, which the university has no control over.

“There were teething challenges, but we did a lot of training and sensitisation for the staff and the students. It is now the norm and everyone is onboard. To deal with the power issues, we have a standby generator which kicks in immediately power goes out.”

They also perform frequent backups to prevent ransomware.