Frequently Asked Questions

Yes! The Slate implementation group  has built a Change Agent Network (CAN) Team which will convene monthly to review implementation progress and provide ongoing feedback. Each school will have a representative on the CAN. You can share your feedback with your school’s CAN representative to ensure your voice is heard.

CollegeNet will remain open until October 2024; University administration will be making a plan for data migration from CollegeNet. However, all admissions operations will be managed through Slate starting July 2024.

Please reach out to the Slate implementation leadership team via the Contact Us page.

Yes. Slate has more integrated automation than previous tools which should address past challenges relating to time consuming manual entry requirements.

The primary goal of the new Slate instance is to create a more comprehensive and user-friendly platform to make all admissions decisions, without leaving the system. Any data downloads from Slate should be for admissions reporting needs only.

Using Slate, Penn Engineering’s recruitment team can create automated, sequential communications to target specific prospective students based on what’s known about them, such as interests, potential majors, or location. Slate population filters also allow users to configure messages to send dynamically, based on when individual records meet certain criteria. 

Yes! There will be multiple tiers of support provided including on-going training, Slate office hours and a help desk. 

Once the initial configuration and pilot testing is complete, a comprehensive training calendar will be administered for the various user groups of Slate (e.g. Program Coordinators, Readers, Faculty). Each user group will receive unique training related to their functional roles in the admissions process. Onboarding training is currently scheduled for Summer and Fall 2024, before admissions requirements for the fall cycle increase.

In Fall 2023, Penn Engineering undertook a comprehensive analysis of all SEAS graduate programs. Results indicated that most schools share common workflows. These common workflows will be integrated into the initial build out of the Slate interface. The tool will be pilot tested by user groups to ensure that the design, to the best of our ability, meets each department’s needs in the first year of implementation.

Slate is currently scheduled to go live in July 2024, initiating a full transition to Slate for the 2024-2025 application cycle.

Slate has proven to be a more efficient and integrated system compared to previous CRMs used at Penn Engineering. It allows all department and school recruitment efforts to be consolidated into one easy-to-use system. It also enables all stakeholders involved in student recruitment and admissions to have easy access to the same information, at the same time.

Yes, all Penn Engineering graduate programs will be transitioning to Slate for admissions. The University-wide contract with our current admissions system, CollegeNet, is ending this year, and all Penn Graduate programs are moving to Slate for graduate admissions.

Penn Engineering Online has utilized Slate as its admissions CRM for the last 2+ years and overall they have had a very positive experience. Staff have reported increased efficiency, ease of use, and increased productivity in the Slate interface. Additionally, Slate has been used by Penn undergraduate admissions for over 10 years.

Slate is a comprehensive customer relationship management (CRM) system designed to optimize communications, streamline application processing, and simplify decision release for admissions teams. The tool allows staff engaged in the admission process to manage prospective student information from the initial point of contact and through the application, admission and enrollment phases within one interface.