Document Type

Conference Paper

Publication Date

2008

Publication Title

2008 Annual Conference & Exposition

Pages

13.215.1 - 13.215.13

Conference Name

2008 ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Abstract

Time and quality are two important metrics for improving a company's production and profit performance. Six Sigma is one of the most powerful continuous improvement tools that have been used to improve the quality of products and business processes. Six Sigma methodology provides the techniques and tools to improve the capability and reduce the number of defects in any process. It was originally developed by Motorola to systematically improve processes by eliminating defects. Although, originally developed for manufacturing processes, the tool has been effectively applied to improve business processes also. Evaluation of applications for admission in higher education is often a long and time consuming process. Long lead times and number of errors can be very frustrating for prospective students and their parents. This paper addresses the issues and concerns related to the admissions process at a University and makes recommendations for implementation. This study was completed as part of a master's project. The paper first outlines Six Sigma principle and then discusses various tools and techniques that can be applied to the admissions process. The delays in the application evaluation process are caused due to several factors, student not submitting credentials on time, delays at processing stations and delays due to un-necessary routing. A process map was created followed by data collection at various stations along the value stream. Finally DMAIC (Define, Measure, Analyze, Improve and Control) principles were applied to identify sources of bottlenecks and to suggest improvements to the process.

Comments

"ASEE holds the copyright on this document. It may be read by the public free of charge. Authors may archive their work on personal websites or in institutional repositories with the following citation: © 2008 American Society for Engineering Education. Other scholars may excerpt or quote from these materials with the same citation. When excerpting or quoting from Conference Proceedings, authors should, in addition to noting the ASEE copyright, list all the original authors and their institutions and name the host city of the conference. - Last updated April 1, 2015"

Original Publication Citation

Verma, A. (2008). Applying Six Sigma methodology to the admissions process in higher education. Paper presented at the 2008 ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

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