A new report by Cappex shines some light on the impact of mobile trends on college admissions. Cappex.com reports a student user base greater than 3.5 million that use their free online higher-ed matchmaking service that links teenagers with colleges. Cappex doesn’t specifically share in the report how many students were surveyed, but this report shares a lot of similarities that we’ve seen in recent Noel-Levitz reports. As always what we specifically want to focus on is the data related to virtual tours.
Available Tools to Learn More About Campus
Cappex asked students which tools they would like colleges to offer for getting to know a campus better. Virtual tours were the highest ranked, with 36 percent of students saying they would “really like it,” and 30 percent of students calling it a “must have.” Student-produced videos came in second. Only 21% of colleges surveyed placed a high priority on virtual tours, which isn’t really surprising because we saw a similar data point in the 2012 E-Expectations Report.
More Information Available on Mobile
The report also tells us the kind of information that students want available on a mobile. Right in the mix are virtual tours. Note: our product produces great virtual tours that are mobile friendly.
Most requested information by prospective students for a mobile device
Spending on Virtual Tours is Increasing
The report shared that since 2010 spending on virtual tours has been increasing along with other channels like Facebook, student videos and mobile. The report also makes clear that the virtual tour still does not completely replace the student-led physical tour of campus. 65% of students surveyed still said that they prefer this version even if a GPS-enabled mobile tour is available.
Virtual Tour Spending Change 2011 to 2012
Closing
So here we have more data pointing to virtual tours being valuable to prospective students and schools undervaluing them. It is hopeful to see more spending going this direction but what is it going to take for colleges and universities to fully embrace this powerful recruitment tool?
Want to view the full report for yourself? Download – The Increasing Impact of Mobile Trends on College Admissions in 2012