As an institution with a strong reputation for embracing diversity, Boston University hosts thousands of foreign students and scholars on our three campuses. Over 45% of our international students come from China, where people have limited access to almost all the main U.S. social networks due to internet censorship. To address the need for our institution to have an active presence on Chinese social media and to communicate with this important constituency, we launched the Chinese social program in 2013. In the years since, WeChat, the most popular social platform in China, has become the main channel we use to connect and engage Chinese students.
From the Judges
This was a thoroughly planned project, which targeted the intended students very effectively and the communication tool was most likely much appreciated by the prospective students. The program serves as a model for other institutions and the results can be replicated. With such a large percentage of the student body being international students, initiatives like this are crucial to the admissions process.
