When we think of customer service, higher education isn’t usually the first place our minds go, but maybe it should be.
Students are, in many ways, the customers of colleges and universities, and like any customer, they expect top-notch service.
From navigating the admissions process to dealing with financial aid questions, housing, course registration, and career counseling, students are looking for personalized support at every step.
So, how can colleges and universities deliver the kind of service modern students expect?
Here are eight practical steps to take your student support to the next level and create an environment where students feel valued and engaged from day one.
What Does Customer Service in Higher Education Entail?
Customer service in higher education means making sure college students get the help they need, when they need it, across every part of their experience – from admissions to graduation.
It’s about providing quick, clear answers to their questions, streamlining processes, and ensuring they feel supported at all times.
Think of it like this: Just as a store would offer help to its customers to keep them happy, colleges and universities need to do the same for their students. Whether it’s answering questions, helping them register for classes, or offering tech support, schools should be as responsive and helpful as possible.
With students having more choices and higher expectations, especially in today’s digital age, higher education needs to prioritize good customer service. It’s not just about teaching. It’s about creating an experience that shows students they matter. When schools get this right, students are more likely to stick around, succeed, and spread the word.
Why Is Higher Education Customer Service Important?
Higher education institutions are more like businesses than ever before, operating in a competitive market where students are the customers. And like any business, schools need to understand what their customers (students) are struggling with to help them succeed.
A study from the National Bureau of Economic Research found that three of the top four barriers to student success can be solved by improving customer service in higher education:
- Enrolling in the wrong course – Many students are unprepared or don’t fully understand what a course involves. Good guidance and advice could prevent this.
- Difficulty navigating systems – The process of enrolling, applying, and registering for courses can be overwhelming. Streamlining these systems and offering support makes a huge difference.
- Financial challenges – Many students struggle with tuition costs. By offering clear, accessible information about financial options, schools can help students stay on track.
When colleges and universities treat students like customers, they can tackle these issues head-on and start meeting student expectations.
Plus, with so much competition out there, high-quality customer service is one of the best ways for schools to stand out from the crowd.
How to Provide Excellent Customer Service in Higher Education
1. Develop a customer service mindset
In higher education, students are the stars of the show. To make your institution successful, you need to support them every step of the way.
The first step is to adopt a customer-centric mindset that filters down from leadership to every staff member. When everyone is on board with putting students first, everything else falls into place. This focus ensures you’re meeting your customer service goals and avoiding poor customer service that can lead to student dissatisfaction.
Here’s how to get started:
- Know your students – Understand their backgrounds, needs, and concerns.
- Communicate effectively – Timely, clear, and efficient communication is key.
- Be proactive – Anticipate what information they need and share it before they even ask.
Most importantly, remember your role is to empower them throughout their academic journey.
2. Understand your student persona
Just like businesses create buyer personas to attract and cater to the right customers, colleges and universities need to create student personas to better understand and support their students.
To build these personas, start by:
- Digging into your data – Pull info from various departments.
- Talking to administrative staff – They interact with students every day and can provide valuable insights.
- Interviewing prospects – Get first-hand feedback from potential students.
When creating student personas, answer questions like:
- Who are they? – Age, background, location, education, etc.
- What are their goals? – Career aspirations and personal objectives.
- What challenges do they face? – Time, money, personal constraints, etc.
- What’s their story? – A brief look at their journey so far.
Student personas are semi-fictional representations of your prospective students and will help you connect with them more effectively at every touchpoint. Once you’ve identified these personas, you can tailor your approach to serve different groups, like non-traditional students, disabled students, or first-generation international students.
Consider addressing these personas directly on your website, blog, and social media to show that you understand and support their unique needs.
3. Start an educational blog
These days, every business is hopping on the blog bandwagon – and for good reason. A well-crafted blog doesn’t just benefit the institution. It helps students too.
As a higher ed institution, you likely have all your courses and program details listed on your website. But an educational blog lets you go beyond the basics and connect with your audience on a deeper level.
Here’s how a great blog can make a difference:
- Build trust and authority – Set yourself apart as a thought leader in education.
- Share study tips – Provide insights and skills for different programs to help students succeed.
- Feature alumni stories – Showcase real-life examples of how your programs lead to success.
- Introduce your faculty members – Highlight your teachers, their qualifications, and their personal stories.
- Highlight your teaching style – Show off what makes your institution’s approach unique.
- Offer solutions – Address common student challenges and offer helpful advice.
The possibilities are endless.
A blog gives you the chance to showcase everything that makes your institution stand out. For example, some of the best higher ed blogs even offer separate sections for students, parents, and teachers. This makes it easy for everyone to find what they need.
4. Make use of customer service tools
What’s the best way to connect with your students? Making them wait in long lines or giving them an instant way to reach out? Obviously, it’s the latter.
That’s where live chat comes in.
It’s one of the most effective and satisfying communication tools between schools and students. Here’s why colleges should be using live chat:
- Instant responses – Live chat, often with chatbots, provides fast replies to student queries. Chatbots have a high satisfaction rate for answering FAQs quickly.
- Better resource allocation – While chatbots handle common questions, your live agents can focus on more complex issues.
- 24/7 availability – Live chat lets you respond to students at any time, and with multilingual chat options, you can talk to international prospects in their own language.
- Efficiency – You can even use live chat to transfer documents and handle financial transactions in real-time, speeding up administrative processes.
Social Intents offers one of the best live chat platforms on the market. It lets you integrate your favorite apps like Microsoft Teams directly. This way, your team can start chatting with students quickly, with no need for additional training.
Learn more about Social Intents’ features here.
5. Personalize for an exceptional customer experience
Higher education is often known for being frustratingly impersonal. Admin offices tend to move at the slow pace of bureaucracy, and students can spend hours – sometimes even days – trying to get things like admissions, enrollment, or finances sorted out. It’s no wonder students can feel like just another number in the system.
That’s where live chat can change the game.
It offers a personal touch, every single time. With features like pre-chat forms, you can greet even first-time visitors by name, and those little details can make a world of difference in how students feel about their experience.
Another big win? No more making students repeat themselves.
It’s incredibly frustrating for students to explain the same issue over and over. By using website data, chat history, and transcripts, you can jump into a conversation already knowing their past interactions and concerns. This kind of personalization makes students feel seen, heard, and valued, which goes a long way in creating a stress-free experience.
6. Train your customer service team
Training your staff for customer service in higher ed is crucial, and it’s a two-part process.
First, you’ll need to train your existing teams in departments like admissions, finances, and advising. Second, it’s smart to hire new staff with customer service backgrounds, especially for roles like live chat or front-line support.
But here’s the thing – customer service training isn’t a one-time thing. It should be ongoing, adapting to the needs of students and the educational institution. Here’s how you can break it down:
For existing staff, set up both general and department-specific protocols. For example:
- General protocol: Friendly greetings, personalized support, and a thoughtful farewell.
- Department-specific training: Focus on making sure staff know the ins and outs of their processes, like how easy it is for international students to access information, how simple it is to submit documents, and how quickly inquiries are answered.
For live chat executives, the focus will be more on tech skills, like:
- Using a knowledge base to confidently respond to queries.
- Understanding admissions policies and explaining them clearly.
- Handling multiple chats at once while maintaining a personal touch.
At the core of it all, a positive attitude and a helpful undertone are essential. No matter the role, these live chat values should be the foundation of all student interactions.
7. Mentor your prospects (and don’t forget your alumni)
Students face a ton of pressure during the admissions process – they’re making big decisions fast and need guidance on things like career paths, financial aid, and why your school is the best choice. This can be so overwhelming that many turn to independent educational consultants for help.
But here’s the thing: you know your institution and its programs better than anyone.
Why not step up and become their go-to education consultant? Whether it’s through face-to-face meetings, live chat, or video calls, you can provide personalized advice that makes students feel supported and confident in their decisions.
And don’t stop there. Striving to meet customer service expectations doesn’t end when students enroll. It should extend to your alumni too, because:
- They’re your biggest promoters – Alumni can advocate for your school and spread the word.
- They might come back – Whether that is for another college degree or continued education.
- Community matters – A strong alumni network is better than any marketing campaign. When alumni feel valued, they create a loyal, thriving community that promotes your educational institution organically.
Keep in touch with your alumni, mentor your prospects, and build lasting relationships that go beyond the classroom.
8. Encourage student feedback
One of the best ways to improve your student experience is by asking for feedback.
Students are the ones directly interacting with your services, so they’re the best source of information on what’s working and what’s not. Encouraging feedback helps you understand their needs, fix any pain points, and make them feel heard.
Here’s how you can do it:
- Create easy feedback channels – Set up quick surveys, feedback forms, or live chat options so students can share their thoughts at any time.
- Be proactive – Don’t wait for students to come to you with problems. Actively ask for their opinions after important interactions like registration or advising.
- Show you’re listening – It’s not enough to just gather feedback – you need to act on it. Share updates or improvements based on student suggestions to show you care about their experience.
When students feel like their voice matters, they’re more likely to stay engaged, satisfied, and loyal to your institution. Plus, the feedback you get will help you continually improve.
The Future of Customer Service in Higher Education Institutes
In today’s competitive world of higher education, delivering great customer service is necessary for making students happy, but also standing out in the education sector.
From putting students at the center of everything, understanding their unique needs, and to using tools like live chat, we’ve covered several steps you can take to boost your institution’s success.
All these add up to creating a smooth, stress-free student experience.
But let’s be real: you can’t do all this manually.
That’s where automation software comes in. It takes the pressure off your staff and ensures students get quick, efficient service every time. With Social Intents, you can provide 24/7 live chat, AI-powered chatbot support, and even handle multiple conversations at once – all while keeping things personal and efficient.
Plus, it integrates with apps like Microsoft Teams, so you can get started without any hassle.
Curious to find out more? Give Social Intents a go with our 14-day free trial today.