Imogen Withers is the Student Communications Manager at LSE
LSE student ambassadors at the LSE Volunteer Centre stand at the London School of Economics Fresher’s Fair 2015.
Students are central to life at LSE – we wouldn’t have a university without them! As key contributors to our School community, it’s important that students remain at the forefront of our activities, have the right information when they need it, and know all about what LSE has to offer.
As term begins, here are some simple tips to help make your student communications as effective as possible.
Know your audience
Our student body is diverse, so it’s important that our communications are relevant to the students that we want to reach.
We often group students into specific programmes or undergraduate, postgraduate and research cohorts, but are there other ways to think about student audiences? For example, segmenting students into those who study part-time rather than full-time can help us provide better support by providing relevant information at the appropriate time.
Personalise messages as much as possible (it’s easy to address large mail-outs to individuals using Mailchimp and Outlook). If not messaging students directly, blog posts can also be a useful way to engage with student groups based on interests that cut across level of study. The Volunteering Centre is a great example of this.
Short and Sweet
Keep things concise and clear. Use simple language, and don’t assume students know what LSE terminology means in the first instance. If you’re unclear on style, check out the LSE guidance on the website.
If you have to send something longer, make sure key information (such as deadlines or calls to action) are at the top of your messages. Use headings or bullet points to break things up – it makes it much easier to find points of interest or scan through quickly, especially if you’re reading something on a mobile phone.
Timings
We all have important things to say, but shouting the loudest at the beginning of term might not be the best way to engage with LSE’s community. Students are overwhelmed by information during Welcome Week, so taking a gradual, staggered approach to communications may be more effective in getting your message across.
Think carefully about where students are in their lifecycle. Wishing students good luck in their final exams, or congratulations after they’ve submitted their dissertations, are quick ways to remind students that they are valued members of LSE’s community, and that their experiences are important to us.
However, be aware of who else might be communicating with students at the same time as you. Unsure of who else is sending what? Ask! Whether that’s a colleague who sits next to you, works in another division, or the internal communications team, it’s useful to consider who else is communicating with students and plan around other activities. You never know, contacting others could provide an interesting opportunity to collaborate!
Communications is about conversations
Students experience their time at LSE differently to professional services staff and academic faculty. As a result, student insight is invaluable and I would encourage you to work with students as much as possible to enhance the diverse, vibrant, and stimulating LSE experience.
Involve students in discussions early, meet them face-to-face, listen to their views, and continue dialogue throughout the year. There are mechanisms by which you can do this already – Staff Student Liaison Committees are designed to act as a means by which we can consult students and seek their feedback. If you’re not in an academic department and are planning on setting up a group to deal with a particular issue, invite a student representative along. Even if it’s not appropriate for students to attend every meeting, consider inviting them to some.
More generally, ask students their opinions when you speak to them during your day-to-day activities, whether that’s when they come to your reception desk, after an event, or when you’re waiting in line for a coffee at the Garrick. You can always follow up discussions via email if conversations need to continue.
Make food an extra, not the focus
I’ve been told many times that the secret to improving student engagement is one thing – providing food! Whilst this might be an added extra (who doesn’t like the odd biscuit at a meeting?), it clearly can’t be the sole reason why students turn up to things.
We are lucky that LSE students are engaged, articulate, and willing to tell us what they think, so to use food as the key ‘pull’ for their involvement is misguided. Students are adults, and truly interacting with them means bringing them into conversations as valued members of the School community, highlighting why taking part is beneficial to them (whether that’s contributing to meaningful School change or improving their CV), and showing how we act in response to their input.
If after that you want to mention food – do it! Just don’t make it the focus of what you’re saying.
Share your success with us!
The internal communications team is always looking to share student-related stories across the School community via our internal channels, so if you’ve got some good news or an interesting case study, from Welcome Week and beyond, please do get in touch with us at communications.internal@lse.ac.uk
I hope everyone has an enjoyable start of term!
