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Think about the last time you had a frustrating customer experience; maybe a bank that put you on hold for an hour, or an airline website that somehow made it impossible to book a flight without a degree in cryptography. Now imagine that level of friction stretched across four (or more) years of a student’s life.
That’s the reality in many universities today. Students are expected to navigate a maze of applications, financial aid paperwork, course registration, and support services—often with minimal guidance and maximum red tape. And yet, universities spend enormous resources attracting students while neglecting the experience that keeps them engaged, supported, and ultimately, successful.
The truth is, higher education isn’t just about delivering knowledge anymore. It’s about delivering an experience, something the corporate world knows a lot about.
Much like the world’s leading brands, universities must rethink the student journey, applying lessons from customer-centric companies that excel at personalization, responsiveness, and proactive support.
Because in a world where convenience and immediacy are the norm, students expect the same level of service from their universities as they do from their favorite streaming platforms.
So, what does a student support CX playbook look like? Let’s start by identifying where the real pain points lie.
Universities love to talk about student success. They invest in glossy brochures, flashy recruitment videos, and enrollment marketing campaigns that paint a picture of boundless opportunity.
But once students arrive, many quickly realize that the road from orientation to graduation is riddled with potholes: bureaucratic delays, confusing processes, and a support system that often feels like a game of hide-and-seek.
Unlike businesses that obsess over customer experience, many universities still treat student support as a collection of disconnected services rather than a seamless journey. And that’s exactly where the problem begins.
Let’s start from the top and recap just some of the challenges that students have to go through.
For many students, their first real interaction with a university isn’t in a classroom; it’s in the admissions process. And for too many, this experience is defined by long silences, confusing requirements, and a general feeling of being left in the dark. Students often find that they’re moved from one department to another, only to repeat the same query again and again.
The corporate world figured out years ago that customers don’t like waiting. Amazon sends real-time updates on a $10 order.
Yet, students applying to universities are often met with vague status updates—if they receive any at all. Application deadlines are clear, but response times? A mystery. The result? A frustrating introduction to university life that sets the tone for what’s to come.
Once students are accepted, another challenge emerges: figuring out how to pay for it all. Financial aid offices are meant to be a lifeline, but they often become another source of stress.
Complex forms, unclear deadlines, and long processing times leave students feeling like they need a finance degree just to understand their options.
For a student on the edge of affording tuition, a delayed response can mean the difference between enrolling and dropping out.
And if they try to push for answers? They’re often met with endless phone trees and generic email responses; hardly the personalized support they need during one of the most critical moments of their academic journey.
Let’s face it: very few of us went through a smooth course registration process. I’ll never forget mine: it felt like a high-stakes competition. The second the portal opened, I was ready: list of courses, backup options, even a backup for my backup.
And yet, within seconds, every required class was gone. I refreshed. I panicked. I checked Reddit. The top advice? Email your advisor.
Easier said than done. Appointments were booked weeks in advance—long after registration would close. When I finally got a meeting, I expected a roadmap. Instead, I got vague reassurances:
“Keep checking the waitlist.”
“Maybe try again next semester.”
I left with more questions than answers. And I wasn’t alone.
Every semester, students scramble through the same chaos: overloaded registration systems, vanishing courses, and overwhelmed advising offices. Universities promise guidance, yet too often, students are left piecing together their academic future through trial and error.
Higher education can’t afford to leave success up to luck. In the next section, we’ll explore how universities can take a page (and some that already are) from customer experience playbooks to make student support seamless, proactive, and, dare I say, actually helpful.
In the corporate world, companies obsess over seamless interactions, personalization, and proactive support. Meanwhile, universities, despite competing for students, still expect them to tolerate slow responses, clunky systems, and a “figure it out yourself” approach.
It’s time for higher education to take a page from customer-centric businesses and rethink student support the way companies approach customer experience (CX).
Think about how big corporations like Amazon or your bank interact with you. They don’t force you to call a single phone number during business hours; they offer live chat, AI chatbots, mobile apps, and self-service portals.
Universities, on the other hand, often rely on outdated email chains and office hours that don’t fit students’ schedules.
Students need support on demand, across multiple channels, whether that’s chatbots for quick questions, live chat for real-time help, or AI-driven virtual assistants that guide them through processes like financial aid or course registration.
Neel Burton, an acclaimed author, psychiatrist, and educator, wrote a fantastic piece last year on The Lost Virtue of Patience. He touches on a key point: most of our economy today is geared towards eliminating what we call “dead time,” or as the common person would call it: waiting.
In a world where we seek instant answers and resolutions to everything, patience is fast becoming a lost virtue. Students, especially those below 30, really don’t like to wait. And, while most students do have a preference about where they’d like to enroll, it’s very likely they’ll switch their allegiances if they don’t get prompt answers.
When was the last time you called customer service to check your bank balance or get an update on an order? Probably never, because self-service tools make it easy to get answers without waiting on hold.
Instead of forcing students to dig through outdated FAQs or send yet another email, institutions should invest in intelligent knowledge bases and AI-driven search tools that provide instant, relevant information.
A well-designed self-service portal means fewer students hitting dead ends, and fewer overwhelmed support staff answering the same five questions on repeat.
The best way to get started is with a dedicated Knowledge Base. With Comm100, universities can create knowledge bases for multiple audiences, from students to support agents.
This gives you double the benefits: not only does it improve support for students, but it also allows agents to quickly reference articles and offer more accurate responses to queries.
Yes, yes, I know. AI’s all the buzz right now, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention just how impactful it has been in the student support space.
From handling repetitive inquiries to offering real-time guidance, AI-powered systems are streamlining services in ways that human teams alone simply can’t. It’s been said time and again, but in a world where students expect instant answers and personalized assistance, universities that fail to adopt AI risk falling behind.
Imagine a student struggling with a financial aid deadline at 11 p.m. or panicking over a course registration error on a weekend.
In a traditional support system, they’d have to wait for office hours, send an email into the void, or sift through outdated FAQs. But with AI chatbots, students can get answers immediately.
At Comm100, we’ve seen firsthand how AI-powered chatbots are transforming student support. Our AI Chatbot can:
✅ Handle repetitive queries instantly: No more waiting in long phone queues for basic questions like “When is the tuition deadline?” or “How do I reset my portal password?”
✅ Reduce staff workload: Advisors are drowning in student inquiries. The Comm100 AI Chatbot handles the routine ones so staff can focus on the real challenges.
✅ Provide personalized responses: Unlike those generic FAQ pages, AI chatbots analyze student inquiries and offer relevant, tailored guidance.
✅ Engage students in real-time, across multiple channels: Whether through web chat, SMS, or social media, AI chatbots integrate seamlessly into the platforms students already use.
The best part? AI chatbots don’t replace human support; they make it better. Instead of spending hours answering the same queries, advisors can focus on real conversations that make a difference. As for students, AI chatbots enable them to get fast, reliable help, 24/7.
Learn how McMaster University uses our AI Chatbot to answer 39% of all incoming chats.
Learn moreNetflix doesn’t just throw every movie at you — it suggests content based on your preferences. Universities can apply the same principle to student support.
Using AI and data analytics, institutions can deliver personalized nudges: reminders about deadlines, suggested resources based on academic progress, and alerts when students show signs of struggling.
Instead of students scrambling for help, universities can be proactive, reaching out before small issues snowball into major problems. Comm100 Outreach makes it easy for organizations to support students at different stages.
You can send messages directly to their devices, or on specific apps like WhatsApp. Because it’s two-way communication, students can respond and send follow-ups right away. No more “dead time.”
You can deliver messages and key updates at the moments students need them most. Provide them with essential information, resources, and guidance, keeping them on track and engaged with smart, proactive student support. Better support directly impacts acceptance rates for American universities, and greatly improves a university’s overall reputation.
Download our guide to discover a proven framework that enhances student advising and support at every stage of their journey.
Download nowUniversities pour time, money, and effort into attracting students, but keeping them engaged, supported, and on track to graduate? That’s where the real challenge lies.
A frustrating registration process, unclear financial aid guidance, or slow support response times can make students feel like they’re navigating a maze with no exit. And when students feel lost, they disengage, or worse, drop out.
However, this isn’t an unsolvable problem. By borrowing the best practices from customer experience leaders, universities can create a seamless, proactive, and personalized student support system; one that meets students where they are.
It also doesn’t mean that universities have to completely overhaul their existing support system. The Comm100 student engagement platform was designed for higher ed institutions, and helps them optimize support at every stage of the funnel: from admissions to post-graduation.
See how our AI-powered solutions can transform student engagement at your university. Request a personalized demo and experience it firsthand.
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