7 Essential Features to Consider when Designing College/University Branded Apps
Incoming students to colleges and universities today are probably the most connected students in terms of personally owned networked devices that give them 24×7 access to information. Facebook, Twitter, Instant Messaging, and gaming apps are one click away, and are constantly being accessed by students either using their own data plans or wifi networks that are ubiquitous on college campuses. College branded mobile apps can provide tremendous opportunities to bring academic, administrative, and social functions under one mobile app umbrella. This article provides essential features that would most benefit the institution by engaging students in the institutional social network. Based on my experience as an educator for over 25 years in small and large universities, as well as review of research literature in the areas of usability, information technology, instruction, and administration, the following features are being recommended as essential for college and university apps. [click to continue…]