Robust Product with Excellent Support

We use Blue to manage the course evaluation process across the entire university. I am one of about a dozen users who each manage an individual school within the university. Mine is the largest (comprising about 60% of courses offered and closer to 75% of courses evaluated). Our university has been using Blue for about three years now. We chose this software after negative experiences with our last vendor, and we were specifically looking for something that could provide all of the below: 1) Automated data feed from our student information system (SIS) to Blue. 2) Customization for each school using the software. 3) Unified email messaging (one email per student per school regardless of number of courses involved). 4) Ability to handle large and complex questionnaires with built in triggering to ask the right questions for each individual course and instructor. 5) Ability to customize opening and closing dates for evaluations down to the course level. 6) Ability to manage both mid-term and end-of-course evaluations. 7) Ability to evaluate multiple instructors for a single course with a seamless experience for students (course and all instructors on a single questionnaire) and automatic distribution of data to separate reports per instructor (all receive course responses but each sees only their instructor responses). I am the most advanced user on our campus, both based on training and based on the extensiveness with which I use the software. For most users here, the cour

Pros

The robust amount of features. Ability to copy setup from one term to the next. Ability to extensively customize evaluation process. Ability to correct an error, add a course, or otherwise update data after evaluations have started. Commitment of Explorance to improving the software based on customer feedback. Variety of training options and levels, including customer and Explorance staff led monthly webinars.

Cons

High learning curve for new users. Some of the limitations in reporting (less direct control of size/layout of displayed graphics, inability to do certain calculations in export to excel reports).

Blue Course Evaluation

Our organization is with Explorance since 2009-2010. It has been a long journey and demonstrates the product effectiveness to us. We have been extensively using BLUE for feedback surveys, commonly, for us as well, the most important survey is the course evaluation survey. We have been conveniently deploying the course evaluation survey to the students and then successfully publishing the reports to the relevant faculty accessible online. Our overall experience is extremely satisfactory with this product in terms of what it generally offers, and in particular with its excellent customer support center and people, who are 24/7 ready and available to answer and resolve customers' queries.

Pros

It's ease of use. Additionally, it is very handy to publish the course evaluations to the students, which I reckon is the most desirable feature to the Higher Education Institutions. BLUE gives one a robust control over the project even after it is published, it smartly and intelligently allows the users to handle the project subjects (courses) and members (instructors). Apart from the course evaluations one can conveniently execute and publish hundreds of feedback surveys to the intended audience privately or publicly. Report creating features using the survey response data are excellent and are sufficient enough to suffice the institutional reporting features. The most valuable thing is there customer support - no doubt it's one of the best I have ever experienced, staff responsiveness and effectively resolving the queries is unmatchable.

Cons

There is nothing such as the least one. Instead, I believe that there is always a room for improvement, in this era of Business Intelligence. Explorance understands, knows and has always been continuously endeavouring to optimally improve its product to address the market and customer needs.

So far so good

My overall experience is good, the adoption of Blue has since alerted me that the university needs to rethink its filing systems like linking people to departments and modules that they teaching. This will in turn makes reporting on academic activities easy and enhance alignment with the university's teaching community.

Pros

At the University of Johannesburg (UJ) we began using Blue Course Evaluation this year, 2019 after a trial in 2018. Compare to our previous Course Evaluation mechanism, Blue is in a class of its own. Personally, I like the fact that it is simply to manage once it is set up, it organizes the whole evaluation experience. For example, after loading an evaluation, a lecturer can track the progress of his/her evaluation, have an accurate number of students enrolled in the programme, how many have completed the survey, how many in progress and how many still outstanding. With this information one can work towards improving the response rate. Linked with the University's ITS system, the data is very accurate as only registered students can complete the evaluation. Blue does not only provide course feedback, the system can do way more. For example like providing depth analysis as to which browser used, when the evaluation was completed, the channel used. This information is helpful because we get to know what needs to be done for students to respond positively and to improve so to get constructive feedback from these evaluations.

Cons

Setting up Blue Course Evaluation is not easy. It needs lots of system and information which the university had but not organized in a manner that Blue wanted it. Currently, we do not have a data base that links academic staff to the module that they teach. Without this information there was a little bit of confusion and we ended linking wrong people to modules as we relied on Blackboard information. Perhaps Blue must have a ready made template which institutions can used to sort their data before administration of Blue. This will help as institutions have their own filling systems which are sometimes in conflict with Blue requirements.

the software has a steep learning curve; not intuitively obvious.

it does everything I need it to do, and fairly conveniently.

Pros

It has many functionalities - supposedly, once set up, a "one touch" and it does everything for you, which is true. It is hard to accidentally make a mistake -- that is, it just won't work, rather than working incorrectly. Tech support is good, although their communication style is a bit hard to get used to.

Cons

Even now that I am very familiar with it, I still often have to check with tech support about one thing or another. I don't like the report , and I wish it could be more customizable. I am the only one who knows how to use it, and to show its quirks to another would be difficult.

Exemplary Customer Service Supporting Impressive Software

The Customer Service and Support are extraordinary and have taken a novice user to advanced with their comprehensive training, knowledge base, as well as ongoing engagement with the product and community of users. It is a solid company with exceptional products.

Pros

The Blue Course Evaluation tool is mobile friendly and multi-platform, as well as very intuitive for end-users. The surveys can be executed and accessed in multiple ways, and those being asked to respond report very few access issues. It works! The Customer Service and Support are extraordinary.

Cons

The admin. side can be clunky, with essential safeguards restricting auto-updates and often multi-step changes if project needs modification after publishing. These are avoidable if you do the work before you publish, but this is often not feasible.