With students dispersed to far-flung corners of the world, it can be difficult to maintain a sense of community during the summer months.
This is especially true when it comes to the university’s social media accounts; what exactly do you post about when your campus looks like a scene out of a western...minus the tumbleweeds.
It is important though to keep the lines of communication open with current and future students during the summer months to ensure they don’t become disconnected or disillusioned with their chosen institution.
We recently came across Loyola Marymount University’s social media campaign which encourages students to tag their summer travel photos with the #LMULionsRoam hashtag to be in with a chance to win end-of-summer prizes for being the most intrepid LMU explorers.
The university has been sharing photos of students and even the school’s mascot, Iggy the Lion in a variety of travel destinations including Paris, London, Bali, Honduras, Amsterdam, Croatia and Bali on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.
This campaign is a fun but simple way to keep students engaged over the summer months when traditionally a large number of prospective students change their minds about their chosen school and when current students can begin to feel alienated and start questioning whether or not they really belong.
Using social media over the summer months can help keep students engaged while they wait for classes to start. It’s easy for students to begin to question their decision once the excitement of being accepted dies down.
A campaign such as this can remind students that there is a place for them when the Fall semester begins and ultimately reduce ‘summer melt’ of class size.
This is such a simple campaign that has been executed really well by Loyola Marymount University. We can’t wait to see where Iggy visits next!