We often rely on students to manage social media for various accounts — from university-wide channels to department and academic program pages. However, busy schedules, limited resources, and time constraints can make providing these students with the training they need difficult.
Enhancing Social Media Skills
Reyn, a Social Media Specialist Intern at the Daniels School of Business, highlights the Academy’s strength in catering to diverse learning styles. The course utilizes a blend of videos, photos, and readings, ensuring that every student can effectively grasp the concepts. Furthermore, the Academy goes beyond basic social media tactics. As Reyn emphasizes, the program offers a comprehensive approach, enabling even experienced students like himself to refine their skills and gain a well-rounded understanding of best practices.
“I really enjoyed how the coaches made the learning modules very easy to comprehend. The mix of videos, photos, and readings makes it so that no matter what learning style a student has, they will learn effectively in this academy. I also really like the use of a Discord server so that students can easily reach out to any of the coaches or other students, and how thorough the program is. I felt like even though I was already an advanced social media marketer before the academy, I still was able to gain a more well-rounded understanding of various practices and level up my skill set.”
Reyn Smith
Results and Strategic Planning
Reyn’s experience showcases the transformative power of the Academy. Prior to enrolling, he admits to minimal campaign planning. However, the Academy equipped him with the tools to develop a strategic, semester-long campaign.
A post shared by Daniels School of Business (@purduebusiness)
Reyn has become adept at leveraging trending topics. By cleverly repurposing viral moments and tailoring them to his institution’s brand voice, he’s created highly engaging content that resonates with their target audience. This is exemplified by some of his most successful posts, generated with significantly less time investment thanks to the Academy’s content creation strategies (Module 4 specifically).
A post shared by Daniels School of Business (@purduebusiness)
A post shared by Daniels School of Business (@purduebusiness)
Quantifiable Success and a Supportive Community
The impact of Reyn’s newfound skills is undeniable. He’s seen a remarkable 8.7% increase in engagements and a staggering 242.3% increase in engagement rate on the Daniels School of Business Instagram. Most notably, he created their highest-performing post ever across all metrics (views, likes, comments, and shares).
A post shared by Daniels School of Business (@purduebusiness)
While the student academy offers a wealth of knowledge, Reyn also highlights the value of the Discord community. This online space allows students to connect with coaches and peers, fostering a collaborative learning environment. Although Reyn wishes more students utilized the Discord server, his experience underlines its potential as a valuable resource.
“I thought it was wonderful to be able to connect with coaches as well as other students enrolled in the academy in an instant. I wish that people utilized the Discord community more, because there is a ton of potential with it.”
Reyn Smith
Empower Your Students and Elevate Your Institution
Reyn’s story is a testament to the Academy’s effectiveness. It equips students with the skills and strategies they need to excel as social media strategists. Students gain the confidence to take ownership of complex projects, while supervisors benefit from having a skilled and well-prepared intern. The Academy offers a flexible, self-paced learning format with a supportive online community.
The Student Social Media Academy is a self-paced online course designed to address this very challenge. Social media is a powerful tool for colleges and universities to connect with students, alumni, and the broader community. But managing social media effectively requires specialized skills. The Academy equips college students with the knowledge and strategies they need to manage social media for their institutions. With over 220 students enrolled and success stories like Reyn Smith’s, the Academy is making a positive impact on students, institutions and supervisors alike.
To learn more about how this can benefit your students and your institution, visit the Student Social Media Academy webpage.
“I really enjoyed the Student Social Media Academy! I love that I could complete it at my own pace, while having a Discord community full of people that are passionate about social media marketing to chat with. I hope that the academy grows exponentially and continues to educate a new generation of social media managers!”
Reyn Smith
Developing Students, Supporting Supervisors
The Student Social Media Academy understands the challenges supervisors face in equipping student strategists with the necessary skills. That’s why we created the companion to the Academy, the Supervisor Toolkit, to operate alongside the student program.
The Toolkit provides supervisors with valuable resources, including lessons on recruiting, training, and retaining student social media strategists. Plus, hear from a panel of Guest Coaches and get access to downloadable templates that will help streamline your supervision process.
By providing student training and supervisor support, the Student Social Media Academy creates a win-win situation for everyone involved. Students gain valuable skills and confidence, while supervisors benefit from a well-prepared and empowered social media team.
