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Technology

Workday Student selected as MSU Denver’s new SIS

A project team will begin work on the modern student information system in January, with onboarding and planning throughout spring.

Two students outdoors on the Auraria Campus looking at a computer screen

After years of careful consideration, Metropolitan State University of Denver has selected Workday Student as its new student information system, known as an SIS. It will replace the decades-old Ellucian Banner platform and provide students, faculty members and staff members with a modern, mobile-friendly, cloud-based solution that simplifies navigation and streamlines key processes such as admissions, registration, financial aid and more. 

The transition to Workday Student, a major technical and process-improvement initiative known as the Student System Modernization Project, will take three years to complete. A dedicated project team will begin work in January in collaboration with Accenture, the University’s third-party implementation partner. Design, configuration and testing will begin in May.

The Student System Modernization Project comes on the heels of another major system transformation: the implementation of the University’s new finance and human-resources enterprise resource planning system, also from Workday. 

A cross-functional team of University representatives spent more than three years rigorously evaluating two top contenders for the student information system — Workday Student and Banner SaaS — through system demonstrations, feature reviews, conferences and reference calls to institutions with similar profiles to MSU Denver.  

While both systems offer advantages and disadvantages, this decision prioritized the long-term solutions, streamlined navigation and optimal student experience that Workday Student will provide, said Chief Information Officer Kevin Taylor. 

Kevin Taylor

“Workday Student aligns well with our new Workday ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning), and we will build on the lessons we learned from that project as we implement this new system,” Taylor said. “We’re committed to a smooth transition to this long-term solution that will best serve our students for the next 10 to 20 years.”   

Student System Modernization Project Timeline

Flowchart showing a timeline. It reads Planning and Readiness Spring 2025; Design, Configure and Test 2025 to 2027; Project Complete Fall 2027

Why Workday? 

Implemented in 1998, the University’s current student information system, Ellucian Banner, is plagued by persistent bugs and extensive customizations that create ongoing challenges. According to a third-party review, the system no longer meets the demands of today’s students and staff. 

In contrast, Workday Student offers a forward-looking alternative, Taylor said. 

“Built with modern best practices, it provides a user-friendly design and real-time operations,” he said. “Unlike Ellucian Banner’s batch processing, Workday’s near-real-time capabilities enhance efficiency across key processes, including student employment, work-study and financial-aid disbursement.”  

Workday Student’s guided student-journey platform is designed to help students with critical tasks such as registering for classes and accepting financial-aid awards. The system also offers a more intuitive and supportive experience, Taylor added. The student journeys can be tailored to each student and their experience. For example, a customized self-guided journey with embedded videos can help students who are ready to graduate and have certain steps they need to complete.   

Over the course of the project, Workday is committed to addressing areas of opportunities that impact MSU Denver’s specific needs. By following an evolving improvement road map, Workday continues to enhance critical areas such as financial aid, readmission and student-transfer processes. 
 
Additionally, higher upfront implementation costs of Workday Student are offset by the system’s substantially lower long-term licensing costs, making Workday Student a fiscally sustainable long-term solution, said Chief Financial Officer Jim Carpenter. 

To support this critical transition, the University has secured $9.2 million in state funding to cover implementation and initial licensing costs. 

“After such a thorough evaluation, we’re confident that Workday will be a transformative upgrade for MSU Denver,” Carpenter said. “The system’s streamlined features and focus on user experience will deliver real benefits for students, faculty and staff.” 

A collaborative and thorough evaluation process 

Since 2021, dozens of representatives from Administration, Student Affairs, Academic Affairs, student government and Business Intelligence have worked together to evaluate student-information-system options. The team considered system demonstrations, feature reviews and input from other institutions to weigh the pros and cons of each platform. 

Based on lessons learned from the recent transition to Workday for Finance and Human Resources, the University is prioritizing efforts to ensure a smooth implementation of Workday Student. These include providing ongoing user support, increasing communication and feedback loops, offering tailored training, and modernizing and streamlining processes with the end-user experience in mind. The University is also budgeting to augment staff to support the transition.