Open Day is the premier annual event to showcase everything universities have to offer, and a key factor in the decision-making cycle for prospective students in Australia. In 2020, COVID-19 restrictions caused all universities to rethink their strategy.
As a regional university, the University of Newcastle has to work harder than its metropolitan counterparts to attract students to our campus–so going virtual was always going to need an edge. After consulting the secondary schools in our region, we developed a virtual experience to meet the needs of their students and give us the chance to showcase our best assets: our people, our environment, and our support.
We didn’t try to replicate the physical experience. We turned our Open Day into an Open Week Online, and planned a series of live and on-demand digital sessions in direct response to the feedback. Many universities were turning to off-the-shelf platforms for their virtual Open Day experience. To gain our edge and ensure we could access our digital content for future events, we established an in-house project team, and designed and built the platform ourselves.
With nearly 30 live sessions, more than 7.5 hours of live-streamed music performances, and almost 130 recorded sessions, Open Week Online generated 33,000+ page views, and 88% of survey respondents said they were more likely to preference the University of Newcastle after participating. The in-house technical developments transformed the way we view digital engagement, and gave us a springboard for future blended student recruitment activity.
From the Judges
Impressive website experience, with easy navigation and seamless integration. Well-done communication tools, particularly the Ask a Student/Ask an Academic platform. A successful transition from in-person, with many moving parts, and creative web/engagement data.
