Months can pass between when students are accepted into an online program and when they begin. How can you use this time to learn how to best support their success? Institutions are turning to internal programs or social media platforms to connect with students. We’ll explore and share success stories.
Using Social Media to Keep Prospective Students Interested
Keeping Interest: Engaging with Higher Ed Candidates Between Acceptance and Start Months can pass between when a student is accepted into a college or university program and when they actually begin their courses. How can you keep them interested in their education? How can you use the time to learn how to best support their success? An increasing number of institutions are turning to private, internal programs or public social media platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn to connect with students in their own environment. These tools can be used to share information and promote discussion, but they can also be used to better understand students, their expectations, and what they need from the institution to be successful. Our panel of social media experts, learning designers, and online operations professionals will share the following insights related to staying connected with incoming students:
- Public tools and resources that can be leveraged by educational institutions to stay connected to students like Facebook and LinkedIn
- Internal tools that support discussions between prospective students and college/university staff as well as each other
- Choosing content that engages students and drives important conversations
- Setting community guidelines and managing negative content
- Analyzing conversations to uncover themes that will support student success
- Specific examples from the Saint Mary’s University MSW program (and more) will be discussed.