See the final report

Our diagnosis yielded several insights and potential avenues for behavioral intervention design. Students may interact with several of Valencia’s student services
while selecting courses. More active counseling may help reinforce students’
intention to register for the right classes; course browsing materials could do a
better job of guiding students towards the courses that matter for their financial
aid awards; and a more streamlined online interface might reduce the chance for
distraction, hassle or loss of focus in picking courses.
To change each of the above would involve substantial operational challenges and
investment. However, email communications from the administration to students
provide a low-cost venue for testing how appropriate outreach can “nudge”
students to use existing technology and materials more fruitfully, yielding results
that are relevant to many other institutions beyond Valencia. We therefore chose to
re-design two simple emails sent by Valencia to students: (1) a pre-registration
email blast sent out to all students laying out instructions and procedures for the
upcoming registration cycle, and (2) a post-registration email generated when a student has registered for
a course outside of those eligible for financial aid under their declared major, intended to help the student take
corrective action.
Both re-designed emails used simple phrasing, clear layout, and a conversational tone to make it easier for
students to understand what they need to do and why. To spur students to action, they combined a friendly,
personalized touch with a clear mention of the possibility of losing “hundreds of dollars” in financial aid eligibility.
Numbered action steps—with embedded links so students could take action right at the moment of reading
them—framed the most important information in the order that would produce best results for the student, for
example:
Step 1. Choose the right courses
Step 2. Visit “My Education Plan” to make sure you’re not repeating classes
Step 3. Check your ticket time