How intelligent automation can transform student experience in higher education

How ARU Streamlined Admissions Emails, Saving Nearly £24K with AI

September 11, 2024
  • Case studies
  • money saving icon
    £23,917.25

    Saving

  • FTE Reduction
    94%

    FTE Reduction

  • reduction in handling time
    905.61h

    Time saved

  • calendar icon
    157.85 days

    Days saved on manual
    intervention cases

Overview

Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) is a innovative global university with students from 185 countries, providing a wide range of undergraduate, postgraduate, and professional courses to a diverse student body.

The Challenge

ARU faced a high volume of incoming emails in the admissions inbox, including emails needing forwarding to the international admissions team and requests for portal password resets.

The volume was increasing and taking staff away from other value-added tasks. Quickly and
accurately addressing these emails was essential to maintaining operational efficiency and ensuring a positive experience for prospective and current students.

What We Did

Niico deployed an Email management bot for ARU. The bot monitored the admissions mailbox and handled the inbound messages for password rests and student enquiries.

Using Niico AI capabilities, the email management bot used sentiment analysis to escalate for human resolution if required. This was achieved by not changing any of the existing systems and meeting the institution’s strict security policies.

What impressed us most about working with Niico is their deep understanding of the higher education sector. While many companies can build AI bots, understanding the unique characteristics of the HEI space is essential. The automation library Niico has built addresses many of the key challenges we face as an institution, enabling us to focus on delivering the best possible student experience.

ARU