1. The 2013 Social
Admissions Report
March
2013

2. Methodology
Background:
Objec&ve
is
to
get
greater
insights
into
high
school
students’
use
of
social
media,
in
general,
and
in
selec&ng
a
college
or
university
Methodology:
Survey
invita&ons
were
emailed
to
Zinch
high
schools
students
and
Chegg
college
students
Survey
Dates:
January
-­‐
February
2013
• 2012
Social
Admissions
Report
was
fielded
in
early
Fall
2012.
Trends
are
highlighted
throughout
the
presenta&on.
High
School
Students:
-­‐
4,025
surveys
completed
-­‐
63%
gradua&ng
2012
or
2013
-­‐
36%
gradua&ng
2014
or
2015

3. Male,
23.00%
Female,
75.10%
Gender
Year
of
High
School
GraduaHon
10%
10%
1%
1%
12%
13%
53%
18%
Prefer
not
to
answer
Two
or
more
races
NaHve
Hawaiian
or
Pacific
American
Indian
or
Asian
Black
or
African
American
White
Hispanic
or
LaHno
Ethnicity
9%
54%
24%
13%
2012
2013
2014
2015
Top
States
of
Residence
48%
31%
14%
6%
1
to
3
4
to
6
7
to
10
More
than
10
Number
of
Schools
Applied
to
Respondents
represent
ethnic
and
geographic
diversity
of
students
CA
:
16%
TX
:
8%
FL
:
7%
GA
:
4%
PA
:
3%
NY
:
5%
MI
:
4%
OH
:
3%
IL
:
4%

5. Rise of mobile
Yes
70%
No
21%
N/A
-­‐
I
don't
own
a
mobile
device
10%
Q4.
Do
you
access
social
media
on
your
mobile
device?
(iPhone/Android/Tablet)
Q5.
Have
you
accessed
a
school's
site
on
your
mobile
device?
(among
those
who
access
social
media
on
mobile)
Access
social
media
on
mobile
Access
school
site
on
mobile
Yes
87%
No
13%
7
in
10
students
access
social
media
on
mobile.
Among
those,
9
in
10
of
them
access
school
sites
on
mobile
More
students
access
school
site
on
mobile:
71%
to
87%
YOY

6. 65%
78%
68%
73%
60%
74%
60%
69%
Asian
Black
or
African
American
White
Hispanic
2013
2012
Social media and ethnicity
Q4.
Do
you
access
social
media
on
your
mobile
device?
(iPhone/Android/Tablet)
Access
social
media
on
mobile
Social
media
on
mobile
device
varies
by
ethnicity

7. 8%
11%
19%
22%
24%
48%
6%
5%
8%
6%
9%
22%
7%
5%
6%
5%
8%
9%
4%
3%
3%
2%
4%
2%
10%
10%
12%
7%
14%
6%
64%
66%
53%
58%
42%
13%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Pinterest
Tumblr
TwiSer
Instagram
Google+
Facebook
Mul&ple
&mes
a
day
Once
a
day
Once
a
week
Once
a
month
Every
once
in
a
while
Never
Social media usage
Use
of
Social
Media
Q3.
How
oden
do
you
use
the
following
different
social
media
websites?
Half
use
Facebook
mulHple
Hmes
a
day
Instagram
passes
Twifer
as
second
most
acHve
true
social
network

8. 88%
43%
30%
24%
30%
87%
47%
42%
36%
34%
Facebook
TwiSer
Instagram
Pinterest
Tumblr
2012
2013
Shifts in social media usage
Use
of
social
media
(2013
vs
2012)
Q3.
How
oden
do
you
use
the
following
different
social
media
websites?
Facebook
maintains
importance,
use
of
visual
plagorms
increases
by
50%
In
our
2012
study,
Instagram
and
Pinterest
were
barely
on
the
map.
In
2013
both
networks
saw
an
increase
in
adopHon
of
over
50%

9. 8%
22%
37%
21%
12%
1
=
not
at
all
influenHal
2
3
4
5
=
extremely
influenHal
Social media and college research
Influence
of
social
media
to
research
college
Q1.
Have
you
used
social
media
to
research
college/universiHes?
Q2.
How
influenHal
was
social
media
to
your
college/university
search?
Yes
72%
No
28%
Use
of
social
media
to
research
college
Nearly
three-­‐quarters
use
social
media
to
research
colleges;
a
third
find
it
influenHal
Overall
use
is
up
from
68%
in
2012
33%
show
strong
influence
of
social
media
during
research.

10. Should colleges have a social media presence?
Q8.
Do
you
think
colleges
should
have
a
social
media
presence?
Please
explain
why
you
feel
that
way.
(among
those
graduaHng
in
2013
and
later)
Why
Not?
77%
4%
19%
67%
7%
26%
Yes
No
Unsure
2013
2012
Should
colleges
have
social
media
presence?
Why?
Over
three-­‐quarters
think
colleges
should
have
a
presence
on
social
media
to
reach
students
Because
of
social
media
sites,
I
found
colleges
that
I
would
have
never
heard
of
otherwise.
I
think
social
media
allows
schools
to
become
too
personal
with
their
students.

11. 2%
2%
4%
4%
11%
7%
11%
2%
2%
3%
4%
7%
5%
10%
3%
3%
3%
4%
8%
9%
14%
2%
2%
2%
3%
4%
8%
8%
5%
6%
6%
10%
10%
21%
21%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
Pinterest
Tumblr
Instagram
TwiSer
Google+
YouTube
Facebook
Mul&ple
&mes
a
day
Once
a
day
Once
a
week
Once
a
month
Every
once
in
a
while
Facebook maintains relevance
Frequency
of
viewing
social
media
for
colleges
considered
afending
Q12.
How
oden
do
you
view
the
following
social
media
sites
for
college/universiHes
you
have
considered
afending?
Facebook
ranks
first
among
social
media
sites
visited
for
college
informaHon
followed
by
YouTube.

12. 49%
42%
38%
32%
32%
24%
18%
14%
4%
37%
47%
49%
44%
54%
49%
43%
40%
20%
14%
11%
13%
24%
14%
27%
39%
46%
76%
Conversa&ons
I
had
with
students
(in
person
or
on
the
phone)
who
aSend
the
school
News
and
updates
from
the
college
Conversa&ons
I
had
with
my
friends
(in
person
or
on
the
phone)
about
the
school
Conversa&ons
I
had
with
students
that
aSend
the
school
(through
social
media
-­‐
facebook,
twiSer
etc.)
Photos
I
saw
of
the
school
Conversa&ons
I
had
with
my
friends
about
the
school
(through
social
media
-­‐
facebook,
twiSer
etc.)
Student
blogs
I
read
YouTube
videos
TwiSer
feeds
Major
influence
Some
influence
No
influence
Social media and student conversions
Q7.
How
much
did
(or
will)
each
of
the
following
influence
where
you
decide
to
enroll?
Influence
on
deciding
where
to
enroll
Three-­‐quarters
say
student
conversaHons
on
Social
media
influence
school
they
enroll
at

13. Social media and enrollment
Q9.
Did
you
(or
would
you)
use
social
media
as
a
resource
when
deciding
where
to
enroll?
Q10.
How
influenHal
was
social
media
during
your
college
search?
(among
those
who
did
use
social
media
to
decide
where
to
enroll)
7
in
10
use
social
media
in
deciding
where
to
enroll;
up
nearly
2x
from
2012
Yes
59%
No
41%
Use
social
media
in
deciding
where
to
enroll
39%
75%
class
of
2012
(2012
data)
class
of
2013
(2013
data)
All
2013
respondents

14. Social media and enrollment
Q9.
Did
you
(or
would
you)
use
social
media
as
a
resource
when
deciding
where
to
enroll?
Q10.
How
influenHal
was
social
media
during
your
college
search?
(among
those
who
did
use
social
media
to
decide
where
to
enroll)
Nearly
40%
of
the
2013
respondents
that
used
social
media
said
it
has
influenced
their
decision
Class
of
2013
Of
the
75%
of
the
class
of
2013,
38%
of
those
respondents
said
they
were
influenced
by
social
media.

15. 61%
60%
58%
62%
44%
39%
31%
38%
Asian
Black
or
African
American
White
Hispanic
2013
2012
Variation in ethnicity in social media usage
Q9.
Did
you
(or
would
you)
use
social
media
as
a
resource
when
deciding
where
to
enroll?
Use
social
media
in
deciding
where
to
enroll
Lifle
variaHon
by
ethnicity
in
use
of
social
media
to
decide
where
to
enroll;
huge
increases
year-­‐on-­‐year

16. Relevancy of social media posts
Relevance
of
informaHon
posted
on
school’s
social
media
sites
Q13.
How
valuable/relevant
do
you
find
the
informaHon
posted
on
school's
social
media
sites?
(Among
those
who
use
social
media
to
research
colleges)
6%
13%
39%
28%
14%
1
=
not
at
all
relevant
2
3
4
5
=
extremely
relevant
Class
of
2013
42%
4
in
10
students
find
informaHon
posted
on
school’s
social
media
sites
relevant
While
many
find
content
relevant,
there
is
room
for
improvement

17. Improve colleges’ social media presence
Q15.
What
could
have
been
improved
about
colleges'
social
media
presence?
The
college
could
have
posted
about
scholarship
and
internship
opportuniHes
much
more
oden
as
the
opportuniHes
became
available
More
informaHon
for
students
who
are
applying
as
undergraduates
and
give
brief
explanaHons
of
the
process.
Newer
videos,
videos
about
more
specific
subjects
like
classes
How
to
improve
colleges’
social
media
presence
More
photos
of
the
campus
It
could
be
more
publicized
because
I
didn’t
realize
there
was
college
social
media.

18. Most valuable information
Q14.
What
informaHon
was
valuable
for
you
from
schools'
social
media
sites?
Most
valuable
informaHon
on
schools’
social
media
sites

19. What potential students find important
InformaHon
from
colleges
on
social
networking
sites
that
resonates
most
with
students
Q16.
What
informaHon
from
colleges
resonate
with
you
on
social
networking
sites?
(select
all
that
apply)
10%
41%
51%
66%
68%
69%
Other
(please
specify)
Athle&cs
Career
services
Campus
visits
Deadlines
Clubs
and
organiza&ons
Scholarship,
financial
aid,
costs/tuiHon,
housing,
pictures,
social/on
campus
life
Info
on
clubs/organizaHons,
followed
by
deadlines
and
campus
visits
resonate
most
with
potenHal
students

20. 12%
15%
17%
23%
33%
38%
41%
48%
49%
61%
82%
CollegeView
College
Confiden&al
US
News
and
World
Report
MyCollegeOp&ons
CollegeWeekLive
Fastweb.com
Cappex
CollegeProwler
Scholarships.com
College
website
(i.e.
www.school.edu)
Zinch
Zinch is a top online resource
Online
resources
used
to
review
college
informaHon
Q27.
Please
tell
us
which
of
the
following
online
resources
you
used
to
review
college
informaHon?
(select
all
that
apply)
Zinch
is
a
top
online
resource
used
for
college
informaHon,
followed
by
college
sites

21. Pages and groups for admitted students
Q17.
Did
your
college/university
provide
a
Facebook
page
or
group
for
admifed
students?
Q18.
Please
rate
your
experience
on
your
school's
admifed
students
page/group.
(among
those
with
a
group)
Q19.
Would
you
(or
did
you)
join
a
social
network
created
by
your
college/university
specifically
for
accepted
students?
Your
school
has
a
Facebook
page
for
admifed
students
Likelihood
of
joining
a
social
network
for
admifed
students
Early
in
year;
class
of
2013
not
yet
fully
admifed
72%
9%
19%
39%
11%
50%
Yes
No
Unsur
e
Class
of
2012
Class
of
2013
70%
18%
12%
60%
24%
16%
Yes
No
Unsure
A
third
say
their
school
has
a
page/group
for
admifed
students

22. Pages and group experience
Comments
on
experience
in
group
21%
33%
37%
7%
2%
5
=
great
4
3
2
1
=
terrible
Class
of
2013
in
2013
Experience
on
school’s
admifed
students
page/group
Most
like
the
experience
in
the
page/group
for
admifed
students
Q17.
Did
your
college/university
provide
a
Facebook
page
or
group
for
admifed
students?
Q18.
Please
rate
your
experience
on
your
school's
admifed
students
page/group.
(among
those
with
a
group)
Q19.
Would
you
(or
did
you)
join
a
social
network
created
by
your
college/university
specifically
for
accepted
students?
I
love
it!
It
had
been
a
wonderful
opportunity
to
start
meeHng
others
and
has
given
us
a
place
to
share
our
ideas.
It’s
okay.
I
read
about
the
acHviHes
on
campus,
it’s
not
wicked
useful
to
me
yet.

23. 20%
32%
31%
41%
33%
48%
40%
43%
39%
41%
35%
45%
32%
42%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Alumni
Administrators
Faculty
Guidance
Counselors
Other
admiSed
students
Admissions
Counselors
Currently
enrolled
students
Very
important
Somewhat
important
Social media interaction
Q20.
How
important
was/is
it
for
you
to
interact
with
the
following
people
via
social
media?
Importance
of
interacHng
with
people
via
social
media
Increased
since
2012
Students
and
counselors
are
most
important
to
interact
with
on
social
media

24. 49%
48%
36%
42%
53%
61%
41%
58%
43%
40%
31%
33%
Asian
Black
or
African
American
White
Hispanic
Current
Students
Admissions
Counselors
AdmiSed
Students
Ethnicity and social media interaction
Very
important
to
interact
with:
Q20.
How
important
was/is
it
for
you
to
interact
with
the
following
people
via
social
media?
(very
important)
Hispanic
Students
and
African
Americans
most
value
interacHon
with
admissions
counselors
on
social
media

25. Following schools on social media
Schools
students
follow
or
like
on
social
media
Q22.
Did
you
“follow
or
like”
a
college
you
were
considering
going
to
on
a
social
media
service?
Q23.
Which
schools
did
you
"follow
or
like"
on
social
media?
(leave
blank
if
none)
Yes
49%
No
51%
Follow
or
like
a
considered
college
on
social
media
Half
follow
or
like
a
school
on
social
media

26. Schools’ performance on social media
Schools
doing
a
good
job
on
social
media
–
by
number
of
menHons
Q24.
Are
there
any
schools
that
did
a
parHcularly
good
job
with
social
media?
Please
specify
the
school,
the
plagorm
and
why
you
thought
it
was
good.
(e.g.,
San
Jose
State
University
updated
their
facebook
page
frequently
with
photos)
UCLA,
NYU,
Cal
State,
Stanford,
Yale
cited
as
good
on
social
media
UCLA
TFT
program
Facebook
page
was
extremely
helpful
in
that
the
school
is
so
big,
we
came
in
already
part
of
the
department.
NYU
They
give
lots
of
pictures
and
quotes
from
students.
Stanford
constantly
updates
on
new
findings
and
things
done
by
both
students
and
alumni.
Yale
tweets
a
lot
about
how
great
their
students
are.
2
2
22*
2
19*
2
2
14*
2
2
14*
*
Number
of
comments
school
received

27. Most valuable information
Q14.
What
informaHon
was
valuable
for
you
from
schools'
social
media
sites?
Most
valuable
informaHon
on
schools’
social
media
sites

28. Key insights
Nearly
three-­‐quarters
use
social
media
to
research
colleges
and
two
thirds
find
it
influenHal.
Half
follow
or
like
a
college
on
social
media.
7
in
10
students
access
social
media
on
mobile.
Nearly
9
in
10
of
them
access
school
sites
on
mobile.
Nearly
three-­‐quarters
think
colleges
should
have
a
presence
on
social
media.
Info
on
clubs/organiza&ons,
deadlines
and
campus
visits
resonate
most
with
students.
Zinch
ranks
first
among
most
common
sites
visited
for
college
informaHon.
7
in
10
view
Zinch
for
colleges;
4
in
10
do
so
weekly.
A
third
say
their
school
has
a
page/group
for
admifed
students;
56%
of
students
would
join
such
a
group.
Most
like
the
experience
in
their
group.

29. 6 Ohio State posted a bunch of videos on
YouTube a while ago for prospective
students that were very helpful.
6 Penn State updated their twitter constantly.
It helped give me a inside look at the
school and its activities.
6 Portland State has a great housing
facebook page with updates
6 San Diego State had current info that had
just happened.
6 San Jose State University updated their
facebook page frequently with photos
6 SUNY Oneonta also has Youtube videos
for campus tours and their website has a
virtual tour.
6 University of California is always showing
something new every week.
6 University of Florida Google+ showed
some of their style of playing basketball.
6 University of Illinois and because it
constantly put up posts and sometimes
pictures.
6 University of Miami; give a lot of insite as to
what goes on within the school and lets
you know about the campus activities.
6 University of Wisconsin Madison seemed
to update photos often
6 Xavier University does update photos
and informative statuses, which is
always fun!
5 Biola did a good job with the
information they presented about the
classroom settings and dorming
situations.
5 Cal Poly kept their page up to date
5 Columbia College Chicago
5 Georgia Tech University constaly
updated theit v.i.p admissions page
with current events.
5 Loyola University- Maryland updated
their Tumblr frequently and Georgia
State University and the students who
attend post videos on YouTube
frequently also.
5 Michigan State was able to
communicate with all it's potential
students more efficiently.
5 Monterey State University displayed
social and educational programs and
interests often, and they were very
easy to attain.
5 Northwestern University updated
events occurring on campus on
Facebook.
5 Savannah Collge of Arts and Design
because they add pictures often, and they
talk about the upcoming activities/
accomplishments the school has done.
5 SDSU updated their site with photos
5
University of Houston updates their
facebook page frequently with photos,
statuses, and shared links from students
and staff regarding Cougar Pride and the
Keep Houston Red project. Fans are also
reminded of sporting events and recitals on
the page, which is awesome.
5 University of michigan leaves updates
constantly
5
University of Texas was informative on
facebook with pictures and posts of athletic
events and achievements.
5 University of Washington has several
student-made Facebook pages and a
complete profile on college social media
sites like Zinch and Cappex.
5
Whitworth University has a lot of outreach
for seniors to get them interested in their
educational program.
Schools’ performance on social media
UCLA,
NYU,
Cal
State,
Stanford,
Yale
cited
as
good
on
social
media
Schools
doing
a
good
job
on
social
media
–
by
number
of
menHons,
cont.

30. Schools’ performance on social media
Schools
doing
a
good
job
on
social
media
–
by
number
of
menHons
22 UCLA TFT program Facebook page was extremely
helpful in that the school is so big, we came in already
part of the department.
19 New York University. they give lots of pictures and
quotes from students
15 Cal state
14 Stanford constantly updates on new findings and things
done by both students and alumni.
14 Yale University twits a lot about how great their students
are.
12 Arizona State University
11 Harvard University did a great job in inspiring me through
its student success stories.
11 Texas A&M University keeps their Facebook page up to
date with reminders of deadlines and also with the status
of their sports teams.
10 Duke University updates their website with valuable
information.
10 University of Southern California updated their Summer
Program for high school students.
9 OSU does great updating campus visitations.
9 UT- updates on going events frequently
8 Florida State University kept up to date posts on events
and student life
8 Liberty University- updates very frequently and makes it
look fun to go to!
8 Marquette University updated the admissions twitter feed
often
7 Ball State constantly highlighted important events, news
updates, and deadlines
7 Brown University did a good job at incorporating post that
people could interact with.
7 MIT uploaded cool videos about their experiments in
YouTube
7 Purdue University gave admitted students a good facebook
group to talk and learn about the school.
7 UC Berkeley had many people similar to me on their blogs
giving me advice!
7
University of Minnesota always had their day-to-day activities
and events. They were always posting deadlines do things
and new inspirations in why to choose that college.
7 University of Oregon updates student events frequently
6 Full Sail University, they update frequently and I can find
other people interested or already enrolled at the school.
There are also people there to provide helpful information,
that could be useful to someone interested in the college.
6 Johnson and Wales University has faculty available to
answer any questions you have when it gets posted in
facebook
6
Ohio State posted a bunch of videos on YouTube a while
ago for prospective students that were very helpful.
Q24.
Are
there
any
schools
that
did
a
parHcularly
good
job
with
social
media?
Please
specify
the
school,
the
plagorm
and
why
you
thought
it
was
good.
(e.g.,
San
Jose
State
University
updated
their
facebook
page
frequently
with
photos)
UCLA,
NYU,
Cal
State,
Stanford,
Yale
cited
as
good
on
social
media

31. Application decisions and social media
Q11.
What
social
media
resources
did
you
(or
would
you
use)
at
different
phases
of
the
college
admission
process?
(select
all
that
apply)
(among
those
who
did
use
social
media
to
decide
where
to
enroll)
Social
media
resources
used
at
phases
of
college
admission
process
66%
34%
37%
27%
48%
23%
30%
21%
43%
18%
19%
19%
39%
23%
32%
21%
27%
15%
22%
18%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
When
deciding
where
to
apply
Aler
applying
Aler
being
accepted
Aler
deciding
where
to
enroll
Facebook
pages
from
the
college
Facebook
pages
of
current
students
Google+
Facebook
pages
of
accepted
students
TwiSer
Mul&ple
write
ins:
Zinch
Instagram,
YouTube,
Pinterest
Self
ini&ated
vs.
outbound
outreach
by
the
college
Students
turn
to
social
media
most
when
deciding
where
to
apply

32. Most valuable information
Q14.
What
informaHon
was
valuable
for
you
from
schools'
social
media
sites?
Campus
Students
InformaHon
Events
Social
Most
valuable
informaHon
on
schools’
social
media
sites

33. What students want on social media sites
Q25.
What
are
some
things
you
would
like
to
see
more
of
on
college/university
social
media
sites?
Students
want
to
see
more
about
student
life
and
acHviHes,
photos
Students
School
InformaHon
Events
Photos

34. 26%
35%
33%
39%
35%
47%
47%
42%
39%
42%
36%
43%
33%
36%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Alumni
Administrators
Faculty
Guidance
Counselors
Other
admiSed
students
Admissions
Counselors
Currently
enrolled
students
Very
important
Somewhat
important
Posts by students and counselors
Q21.
How
important
was/is
it
for
you
to
read
comments/posts
by
the
following
groups
on
a
school's
social
media
site?
Importance
of
reading
comments/posts
by
people
on
a
school’s
social
media
site
Students
and
counselors
are
prioriHzed
the
same
way
in
ranking
importance
of
posts

35. 6%
8%
11%
19%
22%
24%
48%
14%
6%
5%
8%
6%
9%
22%
33%
7%
5%
6%
5%
8%
9%
11%
4%
3%
3%
2%
4%
2%
25%
10%
10%
12%
7%
14%
6%
12%
64%
66%
53%
58%
42%
13%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Zinch
Pinterest
Tumblr
TwiSer
Instagram
Google+
Facebook
Mul&ple
&mes
a
day
Once
a
day
Once
a
week
Once
a
month
Every
once
in
a
while
Never
APPENDIX Social media usage
Use
of
Social
Media
Q3.
How
oden
do
you
use
the
following
different
social
media
websites?
Half
use
Facebook
mulHple
Hmes
a
day
Zinch
ranks
second
only
to
Facebook
in
regular
use
(half
use
at
least
weekly)

36. 2%
2%
4%
4%
11%
7%
11%
7%
2%
2%
3%
4%
7%
5%
10%
11%
3%
3%
3%
4%
8%
9%
14%
22%
2%
2%
2%
3%
4%
8%
8%
10%
5%
6%
6%
10%
10%
21%
21%
19%
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
Pinterest
Tumblr
Instagram
TwiSer
Google+
YouTube
Facebook
Zinch
Mul&ple
&mes
a
day
Once
a
day
Once
a
week
Once
a
month
Every
once
in
a
while
APPENDIX Zinch ranks first among social media sites
Frequency
of
viewing
social
media
for
colleges
considered
afending
Q12.
How
oden
do
you
view
the
following
social
media
sites
for
college/universiHes
you
have
considered
afending?
Zinch
ranks
first
among
social
media
sites
visited
for
college
informaHon
7
in
10
view
Zinch
for
colleges