How universities can use edtech to meet the digital expectations of students

Recent research shows that universities in both the UK and US are failing to meet the expectations of their increasingly digitally focused students. These students use advanced tech to perform all kinds of everyday tasks but find their university's educational apps and study tools to be far less advanced and often a hindrance to their study experience.

Here's an excerpt of an article which explores how universities can solve this issue by utilising edtech. It's published in its entirety on the Glisser blog.

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Cohort by cohort, higher education students are becoming more digitally proficient. Today’s students use intuitive apps to perform all sorts of day-to-day activities, from ordering lunch to banking or finding a lift home. As technology continues to change the job market, students are aware that their careers will demand a high level of digital competency. As Jisc stated last month: “we know that around 90% of all new jobs require good digital skills”.

As a result of these factors, students have high expectations of how a university will use technology to aid the student experience. A university’s digital competency has become an important factor in an HE applicant’s application decision. However, not all institutions are getting it right.

A recent Jisc survey found that 75% of UK students believe that having staff with the appropriate digital skills is an important factor when choosing a university. In the US, EdTech Magazine reported that one-third of college students say they think less of their universities because of their digital strategies or lack thereof.

There ways universities are failing to meet the digital expectations of their students fall into three broad categories: data; learning resources; and administration systems.

To learn how universities can improve their use of technology in these three areas of the student experience, read the full article on the Glisser blog.