Digital student support designed for the new student experience
How to deliver 24/7 support to maximise student engagement and success
The uncertain future and what it means for the student experience
A blended approach to teaching at university campuses from September 2020 seems to be the norm (for now), with students and universities facing new challenges in this environment. Students who under normal circumstances wouldn’t be at risk, may now experience financial, mental health or virtual learning hurdles which will create an unprecedented demand for university support.
An NUS survey of higher and further education students found that up to 85% of working students may need additional financial support due to income loss under lockdown. The same survey highlighted harm to wellbeing with 91% of students responding that they are worried about a family member and 63% sharing that they are worried for themselves.
Pre-pandemic, universities already struggled with the resources to keep pace with yearly increases in mental health needs. According to a 2019 data analysis by ex-health minister Sir Norman Lamb, the average wait time was 7.5 weeks for students seeking mental health support. Coronavirus creates additional bottlenecks as mental health professionals try to accommodate a rush of demand while still adapting their services to meet social-distancing rules.
Be it demand for IT, financial, mental health or academic services, active communication with students as they search for resources and wait for service appointments will be critical to student engagement and progression. Universities that can rapidly scale targeted student engagement will be the best positioned to mitigate the negative impacts of the COVID-19 crisis and fulfil their long-term student success goals.
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What is a scalable student support operation?
A scalable student support operation seamlessly integrates technology, people and processes to deliver consistent, proactive and personal communications to all students.
Regular contact with students improves their sense of belonging and increases participation in university services, reducing attrition and increasing student success. In our conversations with students, we find that students in need of welfare and academic support often aren’t aware of the relevant University services or how to get in touch with the right department contacts. Proactive outreach identifies students who might otherwise slip through the cracks and gets them to the help they need.
‘I really appreciate the university ringing me up. When I lost focus it was helpful to have them come to me as I feel that I would not have taken the necessary steps to progress myself.
Student, Creative Writing/English Lit
Responding to student needs at scale requires:
- 24/7 response to students seeking support
- Technical support for the whole student population who are adapting to virtual learning environments and other digital tools
- Early identification of at-risk students to inform priority interventions by appropriate support services
- Multichannel communication responsive to students’ preferences
- Proactive messaging that ensures students feel supported with relevant resources
The UniQuest approach
UniQuest’s platform, expert people and proven processes work in harmony to deliver effective student communications at scale that nurture engagement across the student journey – from first enquiry to enrolment and through to graduation.
Acting as an extension of the university team, we communicate – with great care – with thousands of students every day. When the COVID-19 crisis hit, our agile and cloud-based operation enabled us to seamlessly continue with critical student engagement activities, supporting our university partners who have been working hard managing multiple priorities and demands on their time. In just the second half of March 2020 alone, we managed over 28,000 multichannel, one-to-one communications.
‘Thank you for getting back to me during all this madness, you are the only University that actually got in touch.’
Student feedback
We believe that student success is driven by personal interactions. We help universities deliver this faster and more cost-effectively, partnering with institutions to deliver all the capabilities needed to accelerate personalised communication and triage students 24/7.
UniQuest’s Student Advisers work as part of dedicated teams for each university partner, encouraging students through their studies, using integrated data capture to inform the right-fit, right-time interventions. We handle daily student engagement through proactive communication and 24/7 enquiry response, giving university student experience leaders time back to focus on specialist support across mental health, career, academic and financial services.
UniQuest’s student support and success service delivers:
- 24/7 student support across all enquiry channels including WhatsApp, live chat, email, phone, video.
- Proactive communication with students via data-driven engagement journeys that deliver right-fit, right-time interventions to encourage progression.
- Student intelligence reports to identify common challenges and inform support strategies.
We tailor our approach to meet the unique needs of every institution and its students. Contact our team to discuss how we can support your student success goals.