Glasgow University's new IT system slammed by users
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Scottish university's updated campus system described as "frustrating" and "unacceptable" by students and faculty
Students and faculty at the University of Glasgow have slammed a new campus IT system, with many students reporting difficulties with enrollment.
The MyCampus system was implemented earlier this year, promising to provide a single portal for students to manage their enrollment, lectures and classes and payments to the university.
However, the £13 million system has been criticised for "overwhelming technical failures" and "for using commercial terminology that is not appropriate for a educational setting".
"We request that the technical problems be resolved immediately, and that the university demand an explanation from contractors regarding these failures," a petition set up to protest the system asserts. "Secondly, we regard the use of consumerist language in the programme as entirely unsuitable to an educational institution such as Glasgow University."
The Scottish branch of lecturers' union UCU has described the system as "cumbersome, frustrating and unreliable”, and a Freedom of Information Act response reveals that the university's IT support desk received 3578 complaints about the system between August 6th and August 26th.
The provenance of MyCampus is something of a mystery. According to a separate document released under the Freedom of Information Act, software giant Oracle was contracted in 2009 to develop a system for the university based on its Campus Solutions product. However, the university parted ways with Oracle Consulting Services last year, after the first phase of the project was complete. It is unclear whether the system in question became MyCampus (Oracle declined an opportunity to comment).
Students posting on Facebook have identified a US company called CampusEAI, which sells a product called MyCampus, but Information Age has found no evidence that this is the same software.
Meanwhile, the login link for the system redirects to a SharePoint login box.
Information Age is awaiting a response from the University of Glasgow.
