Higher Education Report_2014_lowres

An investigation into the level and importance of user experience for UK universities

Higher Education Report 2014

University websites: making the grade?

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Contents

Introduction ....................................................................................................................................03

GuidelinesHomepage .................................................................................................................................08 Course finder ............................................................................................................................11Course details ..........................................................................................................................14Fees .............................................................................................................................................17Applying .....................................................................................................................................20Accommodation ......................................................................................................................23Campus & Facilities .................................................................................................................26Visual design ..............................................................................................................................29Social media ..............................................................................................................................32Mobile .........................................................................................................................................35

Conclusion .......................................................................................................................................39

Appendix ..........................................................................................................................................40

About Webcredible .......................................................................................................................42

www.webcredible.com 3


Why is UX important for the university marketThe journey for potential undergraduates, from researching and applying to different universities, is complex and at times emotional. Universities need to make it as easy as possible for prospective students to get the information they need to make the right decision.

In October 2014 UCAS published its first statistical release from the 2015 undergraduate cycle for courses with an October deadline only. This deadline is applicable for most medicine, dentistry and veterinary courses, as well as courses at the University of Cambridge and the University of Oxford. Overall there has been a -3% fall in applications from the previous cycle, whether this is reflected in overall application numbers for 2015 undergraduate cycle we do not yet know.

Introduction

Millennials are digitally savvy and connected, emphasis on the online experience is crucial for engagement and can make the difference between your Institution being shortlisted.

Millennials are digitally savvy and connected,

emphasis on the online experience is crucial

for engagement

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For universities, this means:

• Competing for students in a market where universities set their own tuition fees and an increase in competition to attract high-paying international students

• Providing a joined-up customer experience throughout the full student lifecycle is essential, from shortlisting universities through to making a decision on which university to attend

• Students are more careful with their course choices and want to know they’re getting value for money through having sufficient contact time. According to the 2014 Student Academic Experience Survey, students felt they gained educationally when attending tutorial sized classes of up to 15 students

Introduction continued

Providing a joined-up customer experience

throughout the full student lifecycle is essential

• With so much choice and different considerations affecting potential students’ decision, universities need to engage across all student touchpoints to stand out in this busy market. Information needs to be comprehensive yet engaging and optimised for online reading, but as important is the novel use of video, photography and social media to engage with prospective students



To benchmark the level of user experience in the Higher Education Market, Webcredible analysed the websites of 10 of the UK’s universities in October 2014. The University User Experience Index table of results, ranked the universities as follows:

Rank University Experience index* Score %

1 Cardiff University 43 86%

2 University of Oxford 37 74%

3 City University London 34 68%

4 Aston University 34 68%

5 Durham University 34 68%

6 Oxford Brookes University 32 64%

7 University of Birmingham 33 66%

8 University of Cambridge 28 56%

9 University of Surrey 28 56%

10 Anglia Ruskin University 25 50%

Average score rounded up 33 66%


Results & methodology

* Out of 50

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The 10 universities we chose provided a varied sample and includes old and new universities, collegiate and non-collegiate, single campus and multi-campus, varied ratings in terms of league-table position, and a geographic spread across the UK.

Each university website was evaluated against the following 10 best practice guidelines and assigned a score of 0 to 5 for each guideline, with 5 being the maximum. With 10 guidelines in total, the universities were assigned a total University User Experience Index rating out of 50.

The guidelines against which we benchmarked the 10 university sites were:

Finding a course1. Homepage: Clear starting points

to engage students 2. Course finder: Helping students

find the ideal course 3. Course information: Comprehensive

& optimised for on-screen reading

Making a commitment4. Cost of studying: Easy-to-find information

about fees and additional information 5. Applying for a course: Comprehensive

information and clear instructions

University life6. Accommodation: Availability,

options & costs explained7. Campus & facilities: Showing where

learning (and leisure) takes place

Multi-channel design and brand perception8. Visual design: Modern & readable design

that showcase’s the university brand9. Social engagement: Meeting

prospective students on their terms 10. Mobile & tablet experience: Tailored

for touch & diverse screen sizes




This report sets out to answer whether universities are making the most of digital touchpoints to attract prospective students and help them choose between universities.

Universities are complex institutions and have a wide audience to cater to. However, given the focus of the university market at present, this report focuses on the journey of how prospective home/UK and international students would go about choosing a university for an undergraduate or postgraduate course.

This report is key for anyone involved with creating a great customer experience for universities both online and offline. This includes web managers, marketing

References2015 cycle applicant figures - October deadline: http://tinyurl.com/op7ywwd

2014 Student Academic Experience Survey: http://tinyurl.com/k28top6

managers, admissions office, schools and department managers.

Although the focus of this report is on the universities’ digital channels (e.g. websites, mobile channels, social media), it is key to make sure that these touchpoints are joined up with the other channels (both online and offline) that university customers are interacting with.

The report assumes no prior user experience or technical knowledge.

About this report


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Clear starting points to engage studentsWhy it mattersThe homepage is often the first impression prospective students get of a university, so it’s crucial that it conveys all the messages they want to know and offers a clear link to finding a relevant course. It might also be the starting point for other audiences, who will need to be swiftly directed to the relevant section of the website.

1. Homepage

Tip Even though you should strive to optimise your homepage, don’t ignore the other pages on your website. Check the analytics to see other key pages where people land on your website

What we looked forUniversity homepages should be aimed at prospective students (the university’s largest and most important audience) and should provide:

• A course finder• Links to sign-up to open days• A downloadable prospectus• “Credibility enhancers” such as

employment prospects and positions in league tables

• Links or teasers about what the student experience is like

• Clear navigation that gives distinct starting points for each audience



1. Homepage

Who does this well?The Cardiff University homepage is clearly focused towards prospective students. A prominent course finder is balanced with persuasive content showcasing this university’s proposition.

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Homepage continued

Who needs improvement?Even though the University of Cambridge has an interesting homepage, prospective students will struggle to find links relevant to them in-between a lot of news content.



Helping students find the ideal courseWhy it mattersProbably the most crucial task for prospective students is to find courses that interest them. A good course finder tool will help students navigate what’s on offer and even discover courses that they might be interested in but didn’t know existed. If there’s no course finder or it doesn’t work well enough, prospective students will return to search Google, and may end up on a competing university site.

2. Course finder

300+ undergraduate courses are offered by some of the universities we looked at.

It’s impossible to look through all of these courses without a good

course finder tool!

What we looked forGood course finders should:

• Enable students to get an overview of the range of courses offered

• Help students define their search criteria (e.g. undergraduate, part-time only)

• Provide a relevant and useful set of search results

• Help students refine and narrow their search

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Course finder continued

Who does this well?The City University London course finder shows a short summary for each course to help students decide if a course is of interest to them. When there are too many results useful filters can help narrow down the list.



Course finder continued

Who needs improvement? The Oxford Brookes University course finder is powered by Google, but the presentation of the results isn’t fit for understanding and comparing between different university courses.

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Comprehensive & optimised for on-screen readingWhy it mattersWe’ve run a lot of user research sessions with students and have seen more and more students looking into the details of each course – down to the modules they’ll study each semester. Meanwhile, parents investing in their children’s education are looking for reassurance that a particular course is a good choice that will lead to a satisfying career. In essence, a university course is now a product that is placed under increasing scrutiny from many angles.

3. Course information

Tip A course page is really a product page, even if the actual “transaction” (applying for that course) doesn’t happen on the university’s website.

What we looked forProspective students must be able to get clear and actionable information about:

• Entry requirements and fees• Course outlines and year-by-year

breakdown• Structure of learning and related activities• Career prospects• What makes a course different from others

With a lot of information to provide online it’s essential to optimise for reading on-screen by:

• Summarising key facts into lists or tables• Breaking up copy with sub-headings • Using short sentences and bullet points • Utilising well-spaced lines so pages

don’t look dense and off-putting



3. Course information

Who does this well?The University of Oxford course pages contain a lot of detail but they’re well structured and it’s clear how to jump to a relevant section. The advantages of studying Physics at Oxford are explained quite high up on the page, in both text and video format for instance.

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Course information continued

Who needs improvement?The University of Surrey course pages are long and difficult to scan - there’s no way to navigate directly to important pieces of content. The “Why Surrey” section only appears at the very end of the page, and students interested in contacting the university for more information will struggle to find contact details in the website footer.



Easy to find fees & any additional information neededWhy it mattersWith universities being able to set their ownfees (up to £9000 per annum), the price ofgoing to university is now at the forefront of many students’ minds. Prospective students need to know what universities charge for their courses and to get a sense of how much it might cost to live at that university.

4. Cost of studying

>£53k

The total cost of studying a 3-year course in a UK university

Source: insurer LV=

Also, many students may not be aware that they have to pay for additional supplies and equipment for some courses (e.g. sketchbooks and paints for an art course).

What we looked forGood university sites will show not just the course fees but will also try to explain additional information about the costs of:

• Accommodation • Insurance• Study materials and travel• Living expenses (food, local travel,

personal expenses etc.)• Scholarships may be available for

certain courses and these should be listed together with information on eligibility and how and when to apply for them

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Cost of studying continued

Who does this well?Cardiff University offers a useful “Funding calculator” on their website which guides students towards the information about fees and scholarships that are relevant to their personal circumstances.



Cost of studying continued

Who needs improvement? The University of Surrey lists fees quite low on their course pages, so they’re not easy to spot. The links from this section aren’t very clear and can often send people to more generic (instead of more specific) information.

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Comprehensive & clear instructionsWhy it mattersOnce prospective students have made a choice to apply to a university, they need to know how to make their application. Although most students will receive some support around the application process from their school and family, the level of support will vary. There’s also international and mature students to consider, who often receive little or no support. When a university steps in offering useful information, applicants are more likely to stick around on the university site and consider it in their application.

5. Applying for a course

What we looked forAt the point of application students may need to know:

• Term dates• Entry requirements• English requirements for international

students• Timescales and application deadlines• Whether there is an interview process

and what it involves• Clear explanation of applying through

UCAS for undergraduates• Contact information if help is required

Tip As the application process is generally long, spanning a few months, universities should consider how they can support students throughout that process – not just at the beginning.



5. Applying for a course

Who does this well?Durham University has a comprehensive “How to apply” section that covers the entire application process, and clearly explains the collegiate system that some students may not be familiar with. Further queries are encouraged through prominent contact information.

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Applying for a course continued

Who needs improvement?Anglia Ruskin University directs prospective applicants straight to the UCAS website, or to internal application forms without giving any additional context or instructions. This may discourage people who aren’t already familiar with the process.



Availability, options & costs explainedWhy it mattersFor most students, going to university will be the first time they are living away from their parents. Understandably, it’s not unusual for both students and parents to have anxieties about the availability of accommodation, and what the standard is like at a particular university.

In addition to availability, quality and costs, location and issues around safety are considered when choosing where to live.

6. Student accommodation

35%

of university students stay with their family or in their own home while studying. The rest

will have to find somewhere to rent during their studies

What we looked forProspective students and parents will likely want to be able to:

• Find out if first year undergraduates are guaranteed a place in halls of residence

• Know how much private accommodation may cost in subsequent years

• View the location of accommodation relative to the university campus

• Compare options on eligibility, price, location and quality

• Find out if it suits their needs (e.g. for couples, disabled students, female-only flats)

• See actual pictures of the inside of the accommodation

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Student accommodation continued

Who does this well?In addition to all the essential information, Oxford Brookes University shows a good selection of realistic photography of their student halls, and even has 360 degree images of rooms.



Student accommodation continued

Who needs improvement? At the University of Oxford, accommodation is arranged through colleges but this isn’t made clear throughout the site. Even in the section talking about colleges, there’s only one small mention of accommodation.

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Showing where learning (& leisure) takes placeWhy it mattersWith the increase in student fees, prospective students (and their parents) are rightly expecting universities to invest in infrastructure. The university campus is where students will spend a lot of their learning time, so they’ll want to see if they can spend this time in a pleasant and productive environment. At the same time, universities need to offer space for extra-curricular activities such as sport and socialising, both important aspects of university life for many students.

What we looked for• It should be easy to find details about

the university’s campus and facilities, especially those that are essential for all students (such as libraries)

• Investment into infrastructure projects should be clearly highlighted, explaining the tangible benefits to students

7. Campus & Facilities

£9bn

The amount Russell Group universities are investing

in infrastructure projects for the next 4-5 years.

• Facilities that are relevant to specific subjects and courses should be showcased on the course pages

• Images and maps should be used to help prospective students imagine themselves at the university campus



7. Campus & Facilities

Who does this well?Durham University has a clear landing page telling prospective students what they can expect on campus. They showcase a mixture of essential and extra-curricular facilities, and there’s a page with more details for each of the facilities.

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Campus & facilities continued

Who needs improvement?This page from Aston University gives little information about their campus and facilities, with no links to find out more. It’s also hard to find, as it’s placed under a misleading top-level category named ‘Birmingham’.



Modern & readable design, showcasing the university’s brandWhy it mattersAt a practical level, many elements of visual design contribute directly to the usability of the website. For example, good typography contributes to better readability and comprehension of text, and good choice of colours helps highlight important information.

At the same time, choosing a university is both an emotional and a practical choice. When prospective students don’t have the chance to visit the campus, the design of the website is probably the only way for a university to communicate their brand.

8. Visual design

What we looked forVisual design can be a highly subjective matter, but there are a few basics that we looked for in a good university website:

• Good typography that makes it easy to read text

• Consistent application of visual design across different pages and sections of the website

• Judicious application of multiple colours and typefaces within the same page in order to establish a clear visual hierarchy

• Appropriate use of white space to distinguish between different sections and avoid a sense of clutter

• Imagery is high-quality and used to reinforce content

According to research by Google in 2012, people get a first impression of whether a site is appealing or not in just

50 milliseconds

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Visual design continued

Who does this well?In the recently-redesigned Oxford University website text is set in a clear and legible typeface, and colour is used appropriately to highlight key information and calls to action. There’s enough white space to clearly separate content, and high-quality imagery is used throughout.



Visual design continued

Who needs improvement? The Anglia Ruskin website uses about 10 different colours on their homepage, which don’t seem to be part of a consistent palette. Text is set in at least 3 different typefaces and styles, which don’t match with each other.

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Meeting prospective students on their termsWhy it mattersSocial media is an invaluable marketing tool for universities to help attract new students, be they international, undergraduates or postgraduates. Simply having standard Twitter and Facebook accounts will not cut it.

Universities need to think about how they can best engage with potential students, be it via large overarching social media campaigns, making conversation or integrating social media into their websites.

9. Social engagement

Social media meets students on their terms and if done right can give potential students a positive, colourful picture of university life.

What we looked forThings to consider a priority are:

• Ensuring that links to social media are easy to find, with recognisable branding

• Having social media accounts for undergraduate and postgraduate admissions

• Engaging with potential students on social media rather than just publishing 1-way campaigns

• Integrating social media into the website beyond simple social links

• Having a local presence on the most popular social media networks used by international students

Tip In addition to attracting prospective students, social media can be a powerful tool to engage current students and publicise the research a university does.



9. Social engagement

Who does this well?Cardiff University have recruited a number of ‘Student Insiders’ that help bring an authentic voice to the university’s social media presence, using: blogs, videos, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram

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Social engagement continued

Who needs improvement?Social media links on the University of Birmingham website are not placed in avery prominent position (on the top right of the page). There’s no mention of social media on the body of key student recruitment pages. Meanwhile, social sharing links include websites that are no longer relevant to a student audience, such as Delicious and Stumbleupon



Tailored for touch & diverse screensWhy it mattersWith websites now being viewed on multiple devices – desktop PCs, laptops, tablets and smartphones – it’s essential that prospective students have an optimal viewing experience however they choose to view a website. In some of our work on the higher education websites, we’ve seen that as much as 50% of traffic comes from mobile devices, especially around key dates on the admissions calendar (e.g. UCAS deadlines and results day).

10. Mobile & tablet

What we looked forWebsites optimised for mobiles & tablets should:

• Consider the context in which prospective students will be using different devices

• Prioritise functionality and information so that important features are immediately visible even on smaller screens

• Use appropriate navigation mechanisms for different screen sizes

• Have buttons, links and other interactive elements that are big enough for touch screens and don’t rely on hover interactions for viewing essential content

Tip Don’t forget to make sure that any externally-hosted media that you’re including on your website, such as videos and maps will also work without problems on mobiles and tablets.

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Mobile & tablet continued

Who does this well?Oxford Brookes is one of the few universities in our survey that have an entirely responsive website, so it works well in different screen sizes. Navigation is adapted so that people can expand sections of content rather than scroll through a very long page.



Mobile & tablet continued

Who needs improvement? Cardiff University haven’t yet adapted their site to work well on smaller screens. Prospective students attempting to see the site on a phone will view a cropped view and might miss important information.

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Results overviewIn first place is Cardiff University with 86%, scoring a full 5 points in 7 out of the 10 the guidelines. In bottom position is Anglia Ruskin University with 50%, scoring 2 points or less in 5 of the 10 guidelines. The average score was 56%.

There were some key areas of poor user experience that all universities should prioritise:

Where do I start? We were surprised that several homepages didn’t have clear starting points targeted at students’ needs. Cardiff University’s homepage is clearly focused towards prospective students and features both a prominent course finder whilst showcasing its proposition. In contrast with the University of Cambridge and despite having an interesting homepage, prospective students will struggle to find relevant links due to the amount of featured news content.

What do I want to study?In the competitive university market, courses are what universities sell and what students buy.

Conclusion

Course finders are critical pieces of functionality that bring buyers and sellers together.

Good course finders should: • Actively help students in their

decision-making • Help students get an overview of the

range of courses available • Find relevant courses (and similar ones)

and compare courses • Remember what courses users have

looked at between browsing sessions

Course finders are critical pieces of functionality

that brings buyers and sellers together



Conclusion

City University scores a full 5 points for its course finder (an improvement from 3 points in the 2013 report), it features a short summary for each course and utilises filters which helps narrow down course selection. Given how absolutely critical a good course finder is to a university’s business, it’s incredible that the average score for this category is only 2.6. 3 of the 10 universities we evaluated scored just 1 point, one of those being the University of Oxford.

Where will I live?Universities appear to be much more aware of the importance students place on accommodation. 5 of the 10 universities received a full 5 points, and this contributed to an average score of 4.0 for this category. The University of Oxford scores badly in this category with a score of 2, this is however a vast improvement on 2013’s score of 0. We were impressed with the comprehensive information some universities provided, comparison tables to help students decide amongst different accommodations and the novel use of multimedia to showcase rooms and facilities.

What will life be like on campus?The majority of a student’s life will be spent on campus so being able to gauge what it’s really like to be there will not only allay their own anxieties but also their parents. There are three universities that really excel in this: Durham University has a very clear landing page telling prospective students what they can expect on campus, both Oxford University and City University score a full 5 points a piece.

Some universities were leading the way in tailoring their websites to smaller screens, such as smartphones. Oxford Brookes is one of the few universities in our survey that have made their website responsive so it works well in different screen sizes, with fluid content and mobile-optimised navigation mechanisms; it’s great to see a university acknowledging that up to 50% of their traffic comes from a mobile device.

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Conclusion continued

Strategic implicationsThe creation of a customer experience strategy to support prospective students in choosing and preparing for university is essential as the market becomes more competitive. Such a strategy should include:

• The use of user experience guidelines (for both web and mobile)

• A rich understanding of students’ online needs

• User testing to validate the effectiveness of online channels

It’s clear that web and mobile user experience are only parts of the overall customer experience that increasingly involves interactions with customers over multiple channels.

A truly integrated and successful university digital strategy that matches users’ needs with business objectives can best be achieved through a user experience design approach that examines the whole student journey across all channels. Using a user experience design approach helps to ensure

University Homepage Course Finder Course details Fees Applying

Cardiff University 5 3 3 5 5

University of Oxford 1 1 4 5 5

City University London 3 5 4 3 2

Aston University 3 2 4 4 4

Durham University 2 4 3 3 5

Oxford Brookes University 2 1 3 3 4

University of Birmingham 3 4 4 3 4

University of Cambridge 1 1 4 2 5

University of Surrey 3 2 1 2 3

Anglia Ruskin University 3 3 2 3 1

Mean 2.6 2.6 3.2 3.3 3.8

Appendix: Full results



Conclusion continued

Online, mobile and even in-university processes must form part of an overarching

multi-channel strategy

Accommodation Campus & Facilities Visual design Social media Mobile Total*

5 5 5 5 2 43

2 5 5 4 5 37

5 3 3 3 3 34

3 2 4 4 4 34

3 4 3 3 4 34

5 3 3 3 5 32

5 3 3 2 2 33

3 2 4 3 3 28

4 3 3 2 5 28

5 3 1 2 2 25

4 3.3 3.4 3.1 3.5 32.8

consistency across student touchpoints (points in the journey where students interact with the university in some tangible way).

Online, mobile and even in-university processes must form part of an overarching multi-channel strategy, ensuring that all channels provide a consistently high quality experience. That is, an experience that allows students and parents to easily access course and university information, when they want and through whatever method they want.

* Out of 50

Webcredible creates people-centred, efficient and delightful digital experiences.

In a nutshell, we carry out research with your customers and then design websites and digital solutions based around their needs and goals.

As an insight-led customer experience agency, Webcredible delivers demonstrable success for our clients time and time again:

• 44% conversion improvement and a 168% uplift in leads for Countrywide

• 36% increase in made-to-order online revenues for Laura Ashley

• 50% reduction in mobile homepage drop-offs for Macmillan Cancer Support

• 80% increase in hotel ‘look-to-book’ conversions for Thomson

Founded in 2003, Webcredible is one of the UK’s original specialist user experience agencies. We work across websites, mobile web & apps, applications, intranets, in-store interfaces and more.

Webcredible’s way of working is completely unique, with collaboration and knowledge sharing built into everything we do.

About Webcredible

www.webcredible.com+44(0)20 7423 6320

[email protected]

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