Prospective students who want to know more about what it’s like to study at Queen Mary University of London (QMUL) can get all their questions answered by talking to current students online, using a new digital interactive platform called Unibuddy.
QMUL is one of the first universities to partner with Unibuddy, a platform that allows peer-to peer communication, which is directly embedded into the university website.
Students have been asking about a wide range of academic matters, such as reading lists and study abroad opportunities to work placements. They have also been discussing life in London from living costs, safety and accommodation.
It allows honest, informative and personalised information about university life to be shared between prospective students and current student ambassadors.
A team of 30 student ambassadors, speaking more than 14 languages, have answered more than 2,000 questions in the past month. Unibuddy allows prospective applicants to connect and chat with current students on their course of interest, join group discussions to meet future classmates and read blog posts about the QMUL student experience.
Students thinking about applying to QMUL can select a student ambassador who they think best matches their interests or social and academic background and send them a question via the website.
At the other end, the student ambassadors will get a SMS text or email to alert them to respond. The easy-to-access and flexible system means ambassadors respond within 24 hours from anywhere in the world. The platform also includes a live chat forum.
Ambassador and second year QMUL Law student, Charlotte Perfect, said: “No matter how many prospectuses and marketing booklets you read, the simple fact is that you don’t know the truth until you experience it for yourself. Or until now…with the launch of Unibuddy, you can hear it straight from the student's mouth through the friendly and honest platform.”
QMUL’s student ambassadors represent seven different countries and speak over 14 languages, and as such the platform has a truly international reach, having already interacted with applicants from over 50 countries in the world, including Argentina, Senegal and the United Arab Emirates.
As well as one-to-one communication, the platform also allows a group chat function, which allows applicants to join a larger community of prospective students and current student ambassadors. They can also scroll through existing questions about specific subjects, join group chats to receive notifications and meet their future class-mates.
Student blogs give a further insight into life at QMUL, with a range of topics from ‘a guide to vegetarian eating in East London’ to ‘a day in the life of a law student’, the blogging feature allows ambassadors a chance to discuss issues that are close to their heart and might appeal to future students thinking about applying.
Video diaries and vlogs will soon be available, which will bring the student experience to life.
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