Overview and Problem

The HM Hochschule München University of Applied Sciences lacks a central point of contact that can provide information on all areas of study. Students at the university currently have to search through various websites and platforms for information. There is no central place that can provide information 24/7 and that can quickly provide answers to questions regarding studies. A chatbot could be the solution to this problem.

Procedure

The challenge ran under the main title "Chatbot". A total of four student teams were commissioned to create chatbots, each for a topic related to the university. Through the results of a survey and the "empathy map" created by the students, it became clear that students have problems e.g., in creating the right timetable or frequently search for information about the library and the university's career centre. For this reason, the third team was given the task of designing a chatbot to help with questions on these topics.

In the further course of the challenge, several user cases were identified and described by means of user stories. In three sprints, the students also specified so-called "conversation flows" and developed the prototype of the chatbot "Ednic" on the basis of AWS Lex. At the end of the challenge, the prototype was tested and integrated into the university's learning platform (Moodle). The student teams were supported by Amazon Web Servics (AWS).

Innovation in action

At the beginning of a conversation, Ednic proposes four different topics in the form of card groups for which it can offer its help. These topics are "Organisational matters", "Lectures", "Library" and "Career Centre". After the student has selected a category, he/she can ask the chatbot a question regarding this category and receives an immediate answer. Possible questions the student might ask include exam registration dates, lecture schedules and scripts, the procedure for borrowing books from the library, and dates for Career Centre courses.

Next steps

The prototype needs further technical refinement in the future.