This presentation highlights the need for personalized and empathetic support for nontraditional students in higher education, who face higher dropout rates. Attendees will meet Ana, Upswing's virtual SMS assistant. We'll share more about how Ana has provided on-demand support, creating a sense of community and helping students self-select resources.
Today, more nontraditional students attend college than traditional students and enrollment is increasing faster for these students than their traditional peers. However, these students are dropping out at much higher rates and most student support resources are not designed to support nontraditional students. At Upswing, we’ve found that tutoring and academic support aren’t enough. Students need on-demand support that provides empathy and helps create community and belonging.
In this presentation, attendees will meet Ana, Upswing’s virtual SMS assistant. Ana has sent over 2 million messages in the last year and we’ve received hundreds of thousands messages back. During the presentation, we’ll share more about how we’ve used Ana to help more students self-select the resources they need and what we’ve learned in return from the students seeking support off and on campus. The presentation will be data focused, with insight into student engagement data. We'll show you the most commonly asked questions and pain points students faced throughout the 2023 spring semester and share results from our end-of-the-semester spring survey where we collect data on the likelihood of students continuing on next semester.