Global Young Minds have launched a new technology platform that aims to bring higher education institutions into the era of hyper-personalisation. The company believes that universities need to engage better with the next generation – Gen Z, and to do so they are providing an all-new way for them to engage with students.

The current generation of students has grown up accustomed to highly personalised communication from AI-supported brands such as Netflix, Spotify and TikTok. For most universities, the resources for these seamless user interactions have been out of reach.

Global Young Minds will bridge this gap by providing institutions with the tools needed to make students feel valued at every touchpoint in the student journey. The platform – developed by a team with decades of experience leading digital marketing efforts for universities across the UK, US and Australia – will transform student engagement and improve student outcomes.

“The pandemic has laid bare the impact of decades of under-investment in digital solutions,” said Anthony Lee, the founder of Global Young Minds. “The issue is exacerbated by the coming of age of the most digitally adept generation in human history. Considering the digital tools that Gen Z students have grown up using, it’s easy to understand their frustration with the slower pace and generic nature of engagement from their universities.

“I spent some time studying Digital Disruption Strategy at Oxford University, and it became clear to me that AI-enabled technology was going to revolutionise how educators and students connect.”

The sector is undergoing digital acceleration while regulations and data compliance are tightening, meaning that tactics to attract and retain students will significantly change in the near future.

University staff have risen to the challenges of the pandemic, often poorly equipped for the multitude of problems they needed to solve. With the availability of both teaching hours and accommodation hampered by restrictions, significant numbers of students have publicly sought refunds. Meanwhile, reports of incidences of assault and racist abuse have made the news after being handled inappropriately or ineffectively.

“If we are going to learn lasting and meaningful lessons from the pandemic, listening carefully and responding to students’ views will be essential,” said Nicola Dandridge, Chief Executive of university regulator, the Office for Students.

Meanwhile, Alison Johns, Chief Executive of Advance HE said “We have all learnt a great deal in the past year and we now need to engage and listen very carefully to students when building the post-pandemic recovery and shaping the academic experience.”

“We now have the technology to digitally listen and engage at scale, which was not technically feasible or was too resource-intensive just a couple of years ago,” Anthony Lee concludes.

Global Young Minds has recently published a white paper developed in partnership with Sussex Innovation, which offers an in-depth examination of this ‘pandemial’ generation of students and their changing needs.