Development of a virtual assistant (chatbot) to improve access to re-curring information by students of Higher Education Institutions

Abstract

This project focuses on the creation of a virtual assistant (Chatbot) aimed at the student community of Higher Education Institutions as a tool to facilitate access to frequently requested information on the enrollment and qualification processes of HEIs during the periods peak attendance. For this, a descriptive methodology was used to carry out an investigation of the subject, which included data collection approaches such as surveys and interviews. The Scrum approach was adapted for project development, allowing the flexibility of assured progress and regular interaction with project stakeholders, resulting in a high degree of productivity. The interaction with the chatbot is done through a smartphone application that looks like an instant messaging chat and was created using the Ionic framework and Google's Dialogflow conversational interface technology.