Working in a bursar's office in early September can be like working for the IRS in mid-April. During this chaotic time, bursars are not only collecting and disbursing hundreds of thousands of dollars, but they're also responding to myriad customer service complaints, reconciling incorrect student mailing addresses and lost checks, and paying top dollar for paper and postage, check processing, and credit card fees.
Managing information technology departments increasingly requires business and political skills. Major concerns include security, staff training, and keeping up with ever-evolving user needs.
The information technology (IT) leader on campus today is more likely to spend his or her time preparing business plans than checking server configurations. As high technology has embedded itself into the day-to-day teaching, learning, researching, and administrative tasks of colleges and universities, there has developed a need for IT managers to be able to speak the language of return on investment (ROI), as well as understand the many and varied needs of faculty and students.
Pick up any newspaper and you'll see headlines that scream about skyrocketing tuition costs and cuts to aid programs. University Business Editor Tim Goral recently spoke with a panel of tuition experts to find out what these changes hold in store for for higher education.
Stephanie Huck knows a deal when she sees it. Or rents it.
After transferring in from another school, Huck was excited to learn that she would save 60 percent on her textbook bill each semester thanks to Southeast Missouri State University's rental program. Now, she pays only $85 per semester for all of her books.
