The International Office of Ulm University is breaking new ground in digital counselling throughout Germany: it is the first international office to put a chatbot based on a large language model into operation. The chatbot appears in the shape of an owl with a bachelor's hat and bears the name "Ulma" - in reference to the owl as a symbol of knowledge and orientation. The digital owl was developed in collaboration with chatbot specialist Kauz.ai and the digitalisation partner KnowSo.
"With Ulma, we want to take communication with our students - whether from Ulm or from all over the world - to a new level," explains Daniela Englisch, Head of the International Office. "Generation Z has long been used to digital communication: they expect fast, uncomplicated answers that are available around the clock. This is exactly where our hybrid chatbot comes in, allowing students and prospective students from Germany and abroad to chat at any time." Contacting the digital owl, which speaks 30 languages, is easy. One click on the owl sign and off you go: enter your question and the answer is quickly there. The chatbot automatically recognises the language in which it is being addressed and responds accordingly - from Arabic to Ukrainian. The counsellor owl can be found at the bottom right of the International Office homepage at www.uni-ulm.de/io/.
As a hybrid tenderer, Ulma combines the benefits of a rule-based chatbot with the possibilities of generative AI. While simple, recurring questions are answered reliably using fixed decision trees, the Large Language Model (LLM) intervenes for more complex requests. By using so-called Retrieval Augmented Generation (RAG), Ulma only uses verified and up-to-date information from Ulm University. This special AI process combines the properties of a search engine with the generative potential of an LLM. This ensures that the answers are also correct and reliable in terms of content.
The chatbot primarily serves as a first point of contact for various target audiences. In addition to students and prospective students, researchers, substitutes from partner universities, partner institutions and other interested parties also use Ulma as a quick source of information. Topics range from study programmes, stays abroad and scholarships; (Erasmus:) grants to questions about student life at Ulm University. Ulma responds flexibly in around 30 languages - in the way it is addressed. Ulma provides support for Human Resources in the International Office on a day-to-day basis, as routine enquiries can be answered automatically. This leaves more time for what personal support is all about: individual counselling for more complex issues.
Innovation grown out of the coronavirus pandemic
The idea for Ulma was born back in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic, when the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) provided Ulm University with additional funding for digital innovations for communicating with students as part of a funding project - at a time when the emergence of ChatGPT was not yet foreseeable. Ulma has now successfully completed the pilot phase, undergone several usability tests and is actively used by students, prospective students and other target audiences of the International Office.
"We see AI-supported solutions as a great opportunity to improve our support services in the long term," says Daniela Englisch. But Ulma is more than just a technical tool. "It is successful proof that we are actively shaping digitalisation," emphasises the Head of the International Office. Ulm University is thus sending out a clear signal as a pioneer of digital transformation in university management. Other international offices and non-profit organisations such as uni-assist are now showing great interest in the polyglot owl. In addition, the successful project has already been presented at various national and international conferences, for example at conferences organised by the DAAD or NAFSA - the Association of International Educators - in the USA.
Further information:
Daniela Englisch, Head of the International Office, email: daniela.englisch(at)uni-ulm.de, phone: 0731/50-22013
Text: Daniela Englisch/red
Media contact: Andrea Weber-Tuckermann