This July, Katie Seibel brought OAR insights to the national stage at the 2026 Encoura + RNL National Conference, held in Chicago, IL. 

The Encoura + RNL National Conference highlights how institutions are addressing their greatest challenges and meeting their goals. Allowing professionals to explore the innovations and solutions that will help do more with less, uncover opportunities for success, and interact with higher ed professionals and experts.

Katie co-presented with Anders Voss, advisor in the Wisconsin School of Business. Their session was titled “Building a Bridge from Admissions to Academics: A Collaborative Approach to Pre-Transfer Advising.”

The session focused on the fact that while research highlights the importance of pre-transfer advising, many institutions do not have the support or funding for standalone pre-transfer advising services. OAR transfer admissions staff saw a need to provide earlier access to advising for students interested in transferring to our School of Business, in order to help them understand the complexities involved. 

The session covered the process that was developed to address this need with earlier access to advising, including insights from the transfer advisor who coordinated with our staff.