Consumer Trends in Education in 2024

The education industry is undergoing significant challenges. Universities are facing a decline in student enrollment and an increase in competition, as well as concerns around the affordability of courses, accessibility issues, and technological barriers.

In response to these challenges, marketers are striving to make their institutions stand out in a crowded field. And there are plenty of opportunities to do so.

Online and hybrid learning, flexible curriculums, and brand-new courses are all part of the mix of strategies that institutions are implementing. And listening to the evolving needs of students and promoting new initiatives properly can help universities attract and retain talent. 

In this report, we’ll tackle some of the biggest trends in the higher education industry and help you identify how you can maximize your brand strategy to stay ahead of the competition. 

You’ll learn about:  

The state of online conversations about education

• An overview of online mentions about education
• Subreddits discussing niche education topics are on the rise 
• Social media benchmarking for brands in education

Popular topics within the education conversation

• How AI is impacting the education sector 
• Online learning and self-paced courses

Pain points for the education sector 

• Money
• Acknowledging accessibility issues 

Leveraging education influencers

An overview of online mentions about education

We used Brandwatch Consumer Research to see how conversations about education have changed over time. 

Subreddits discussing niche education topics are on the rise 

When looking deeper into conversations about education, Reddit is a great place to start. The platform is often used by individuals wanting to discuss niche interests in active communities. 

And the number of conversations about education is growing across subreddits. 

As well as an increase in subreddits dedicated to education-related topics, people are also talking about their experiences with education across non-dedicated subreddits. 

For example, popular subreddits like r/teachers and r/AskAcademia are complemented by lesser known subreddits, like r/OnlineEducation. But education-related questions crop up across the platform. For example, people discussing high school reunions in r/Millennials, or how to improve the education system in r/AskAnAmerican. 

Here are the most popular subreddits when it comes to education-related posts in the last year.

Topics that are discussed in these communities include: 

• Talks about professors
• Educational applications
• Campus affairs, including strikes, protests, and incidents taking place at various schools and colleges
• Student testimonials, including reviews on apps which aid in education
• Recommendations and reviews, including feedback on eateries near campuses 

People are looking for communities where they can discuss these education-related topics, and brands in the education space can tap into these groups to connect better with their target audience.

For example, in the Reddit thread below which was posted in r/learnprogramming, a user is concerned that school and online courses aren’t actually preparing students well for the real world.

By analyzing these threads and conversations – both broadly, and specific mentions about your institution or brand – you can discover unbiased student feedback which can help you improve your services, such as your courses, teaching styles, and even cafeteria options. You can also understand the best ways to position your offering, addressing these concerns directly in your marketing. 

Social media benchmarking for brands in education

Universities, schools, and other brands help to facilitate online conversations about education. Using Brandwatch Benchmark, we can analyze these brands to set social media benchmarks for the industry. 

Here are some quick stats for social media benchmarking in the education sector: 

• Schools and education institutions post an average of 53 times per month on X, and 21 times per month on Instagram 
• The average Instagram post engagement rate is 12.25% 
• Education brands post 12 videos per month on YouTube 

Brands can use these stats to understand how they are performing against competitors.

Check out more interesting social media benchmarks for education and other industries here.

How AI is impacting the education sector 

There have been over 1.3 million mentions about artificial intelligence and education since the start of 2023. And this conversation is growing. 

With the rise of accessible AI to assist with everything from homework to lesson planning, people are curious about how AI might help – and hinder – learning. 

While some mentions praise how AI is making students’ and teachers’ lives easier, most mentions about AI are negative. In fact, almost 75% of sentiment-categorized mentions about AI and education since 2023 have been negative. 

One concern which crops up across disciplines is how AI might become detrimental to learning. People question if students are using AI in ways that hamper learning, and some head to social media to ask about ways they can learn without relying on AI too much. 

Plagiarism regarding AI is also a popular concern among professors, with many teachers expressing curiosity about other school’s policies on AI use. As accessible AI is gaining popularity, this is an ongoing topic among educators. 

While it’s easy to jump to negative conclusions about how AI might impact education, there are plenty of positive ways it can be used to facilitate learning. And these are often celebrated online, for example in this thread about using ChatGPT for information on sources and argument points. 

Some schools in the UK have even implemented AI tutors so “students could ask questions when one-on-one time with their teachers was not available.” 

Utilizing AI in education presents plenty of possibilities, and brands can monitor online mentions about these topics to provide insight into how students, schools, and consumers will react to their AI efforts in education. 

Online learning and self-paced courses

The COVID-19 pandemic and technological advancements paved a new path for online and hybrid learning models. Schools were forced to try online learning options, and now – years after the pandemic has ended – self-paced, online courses allow a more accessible form of learning. 

This is a topic which is well-discussed online, with there being over 3 million mentions about online learning and other related topics since 2020. Diving into these mentions can help education providers understand what’s expected from them. 

For example, people take to social media to discuss both positive and negative experiences with online learning – from shorter courses to full-blown degrees. And brands can learn from this quality feedback to improve their offerings. 

Studies have found that students prefer blended learning over remote-only options. Yet, it’s important to remember that online courses help with accessibility when not everyone can attend in-person classes – be it for medical reasons, time constraints, or the inability to travel.

With the growth of free online courses, universities need to work on making their in-person and online curriculums as appealing as possible to attract students. This might be by launching new or in-demand courses, launching higher quality online offerings, or adjusting curriculums to fit student expectations. 

For higher education providers, paying attention to online conversations about your brand can provide invaluable insights. 

Money

The affordability or education – including everything from student loans to limited university budgets – is a hot topic online. In fact, there were over 6 million mentions on this topic between June 2023 and May 2024. And the sentiment is mostly negative.

Topics which come up frequently in these online conversations include:

• The different paths and tools which provide relief to student borrowers
• The cost of living and its impact on student expenditure
• Higher education providers struggling with limited budgets
• Free school meals

One of the highest-ranking topics is student loans and the affordability of higher education. The increasing cost of living is hitting students hard. Offering financial advice and assistance as a higher education provider can help your students deal with their money concerns. This, in turn, will help your students’ wellbeing. 

As well as money concerns on behalf of the consumer, it’s also important to consider the limited budgets held by education providers. And combining these limited budgets with smaller marketing and research teams leads to these brands having to do a lot with less. For example, social media teams in universities might only have a small advertising budget and just a one-person team. 

In these situations, utilizing all-in-one social media management platforms can help to relieve some of the stress which comes with having a smaller team. These systems can help streamline engagement processes and help with posting schedules. 

Acknowledging accessibility issues 

Another pain point for education providers is trying to make their offerings accessible – working on everything from inclusive learning resources to designing a disability-friendly campus. So, how can educators do this? 

Times Higher Education writes that there are a few phases that come with attracting and supporting students with disabilities: 

• Phase 1: Assessing the needs of students with disabilities, and listening to this feedback and input so that all design decisions represent their needs. 
• Phase 2: Communicating progress effectively to students with disabilities to promote transparency.
• Phase 3: Asking students with disabilities to test the design to ensure adherence to disability-friendly design.  

By implementing these steps, you can ensure every student with accessibility needs is catered to. 

Providers which don’t take inclusion seriously will face the repercussions of this as a brand online. Students are keen to discuss the shortcomings of colleges when it comes to disability accommodations – or lack thereof. 

Take the conversation below for example, which has over 4 million views.

Leveraging education influencers

With Brandwatch Influence, we looked for influencers on Instagram with at least 100k followers who publish education-related content in English.

Here are the top eight influencers that discuss education and learning on Instagram, based on average engagement (data gathered in June 2024):

The nature of education means that there are a variety of different niches to explore – and these influencers cover everything from art to engineering. Yet, by studying how these influencers promote educational content, we can get an idea of what audiences relate to. 

For example, at the top of the list is Fynn Jackson, an origami sculptor with an impressive average engagement rate. Fynn's simple videos provide easy-to-digest inspiration for both artists and art enjoyers. 

Natasha Graziano is second on the list. Natasha is the host of the 5th most popular education podcast, and is also a motivational speaker promoting life advice. 

From conservationists to students, the variety of influencers on this list show that education content is huge online. Users are keen to learn more about their chosen subjects, and brands or influencers which do so in an easy to digest way receive impressive engagement results. 

As well as influencers, plenty can be learned from brands pushing educational content too. Take UNSW Sydney for example. Their account has grown to over 123k followers, and sees impressive engagement online. By knowing their audience, and sharing everything from educational content on sea walls around Sydney to videos around campus, the university is thriving on social. 

UNSW even set up a separate account for their Platypus Conservation Initiative, which has more followers than the university’s own account (animals always go down well on social media). 

On a different side of the internet sits language learning app Duolingo that’s earned over 3 million followers on Instagram. The app is well known for having an impressive social media presence – and this is also because they know their audience inside and out. By sharing meme content and leaning into content which is less polished, the team are paving the way for education brands.