For Immediate Release October 17, 2005

For More Information Contact: Rich Schneider, 317-278-4564 rcschnei@iupui.edu

College Application Process Gets Easier; Donahue Says E-Transcript Works Well

IUPUI's Mike Donahue comments at a news conference announcing the e-Transcript Initiative

INDIANAPOLIS - The Indiana Commission for Higher Education and the Indiana Department of Education have joined forces to facilitate the electronic transfer of Indiana high school transcripts to the state's participating colleges and universities - at no cost to either the student or the school.

IUPUI is among the first universities in Indiana to accept the electronic transcript transfers and the process couldn't be going any smoother, said Mike Donahue, director of admissions at IUPUI.

"Colleges are excited about it," Donahue said a news conference October 17, 2005 to announce the initiative."

Advantages to the electronic system, Donahue said, include the ability to take the electronic transfer of a transcript, which arrives as an email, and then hit a button and transfer it to the student's application file.

"We don't have to open an envelope, see what it is, date stamp it, and then have other folks work on it to process it," Donahue said. "It goes right to person who is processing the application."

Indiana e-Transcript will make the college application process easier," said Stan Jones, Commissioner for Higher Education. "Streamlining this process is good news for our students and their families, our high schools, our colleges and our state."

Beginning this month, the implementation schedule will allow the state to install about one-fifth, or 100 of Indiana's high schools each quarter, with the goal of having all high schools e-Transcript ready by the end of 2006. All of Indiana's public colleges and universities are participating in the initiative, and the state's independent colleges have been invited to participate and are in the registration process. ###