Florida Atlantic University pilots student orientation registration in CampusESP
Florida Atlantic University, a large, public institution in Boca Raton, Florida, has used CampusESP for Student Enrollment and Family Communication since 2023, enhancing family communication across the student lifecycle.
When Maura Flaschner, AVP of Undergraduate Admissions and Student Success at FAU, attended the 2024 CampusESP Summit, she wasn’t expecting to come away with a whole new vision for orientation. But after seeing how CampusESP’s event management is used to power Family Weekend, she had a lightbulb moment: “Could we use CampusESP for orientation registration, too?”
We jumped at the opportunity to partner with FAU and co-create an orientation registration experience that makes things easier for both students and staff. In April 2025, we launched the CampusESP for Student Orientation pilot to over 30,000 admitted FAU students, with promising early results.
To celebrate our first CampusESP for Student Orientation pilot customer, FAU has been named our Q2 ESP MVP!
The Challenge: Simplify and modernize orientation registration
Orientation is one of the most critical impressions you can make on students and their families. Before CampusESP, FAU felt like they were delivering a clunky orientation experience to students that were still at risk of melting.
FAU’s New Student Transitions and Family Engagement team was looking to:
Deliver a modern, easy-to-use registration experience to tech-savvy students
Consolidate all new student and family orientation registration into one system
Reduce summer melt by making it easier for students to register for orientation
Go live quickly as FAU transitioned away from their previous system
Jordan DiPentima, Director of New Student Transitions and Family Engagement, shared, “We needed to provide an easier reservation experience for students and their families. With CampusESP, we flipped the typical reservation strategy by utilizing a platform families were already familiar with, so families could encourage their students to remain active in their onboarding experience. We saw more students successfully reserving earlier than usual, fewer incomplete forms, and fewer questions about navigating the platform.”
FAU knew CampusESP provided a tried-and-true parent experience and trusted we would deliver that experience for students too.
The Pilot: What does CampusESP for Student Orientation entail?
With a tight timeline and big goals, FAU and CampusESP partnered to pilot a sleek student orientation experience. Here’s what we built together:
Single sign-on login for students, linked in their OwlDone next steps portal
Smart registration forms that display personalized sessions and fees for each student
Payment integration for students to submit orientation fees right when they register
On-site event check-in that’s fast and paper-free
Seamless integration with Banner to facilitate students’ post-orientation steps
Purchase limits and registration caps ensuring students only register for one session and sessions don’t exceed capacity
Guest registration for families and supporters
Conditional per-product questions to collect names, emails, and other information on each guest ticket
Volume pricing to offer discounts to larger parties of attendees
“Using CampusESP for Student Orientation has been transformative for processing student reservations. It’s straightforward, branded, and removes barriers to students getting to orientation and enrolling at FAU that had existed before.” DiPentima said.
Early Results
Though still in pilot mode, FAU’s early results are impressive:
Quick implementation. FAU launched their registration form to students in just 4 weeks.
Students registered quickly. In the first two weeks after launch, FAU saw a 21% increase in orientation registrations year-over-year.
Fewer students left forms incomplete. By consolidating a multi-step process into one form and payment screen, FAU saw a decrease in incomplete/abandoned forms.
Check-in lines moved quicker than ever. At their busiest session, FAU staff checked in 10 attendees per minute, for an average 6 second check-in process.
The FAU team is committed to providing the easiest, most engaging experience for students – with support from reliable technology and partners. “This summer orientation was a simpler process for students, and on top of the positive student results, we get to work with a team that is actively involved in the process. It’s been really fun working with CampusESP.” DiPentima said.
Congratulations to Florida Atlantic University for winning Q2 2025 ESP MVP, and a HUGE thank you to Maura Flaschner, Jordan DiPentima, Nelson Barahona, and Jenna Bambis for their hard work and innovation!
Interested in improving your student orientation registration and communication?
CampusESP is now working with 6 colleges to pilot CampusESP for Student Orientation. If you’re interested in exploring the opportunity, reach out to our Product Team at product@campusesp.com!