Case Study: University of Michigan Political Science Department
The University of Michigan's political science department, facing inefficiencies from manually processing up to 400 diverse-format applications, adopted ApplicantStack's cloud-based applicant tracking software to digitize and streamline their application review process, enabling faster, more organized, and remote access to candidate information and thereby improving their ability to identify top talent.
About
The University of Michigan is a public-research facility in Ann Arbor. The university’s political science department is a highly competitive program that consistently ranks among the nation’s best. With a commitment to both teaching and research for undergraduate students and graduate students, the political science department searches for the top talent needed to maintain its academic ranking.
Challenge
The University of Michigan’s political science department previously accepted applications in hardcopy and through email. The department’s search committee was forced to sort through the applications (most of which came in different formats) and compile all the data by hand. Reading through different kinds of handwriting and transcribing the emails required too much time and prevented the department from finding the best applicants. Compiling and organizing up to 400 applications took over a month for the committee.
Solution
The department’s search committee recognized the need for a more efficient system. Elite universities cannot remain competitive if they struggle to accept the most qualified candidates. In order to save time and streamline the application review process, the department decided to invest in applicant tracking software. They also needed a program they could begin using over the summer before the start of the academic year. With ApplicantStack, the political science department found ways to make their application process more efficient and effective.
Results
With the help of ApplicantStack, the University of Michigan’s political science department implemented a completely digital application process. They began accepting and reviewing applications online, instead of by hand. The committee also utilized ApplicantStack’s cloud features, which allowed them to view applications from anywhere on any device. Investing in ApplicantStack technology helped the political science department spend less time organizing their applications and more time reviewing them and finding the best possible candidates.
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