How universities can build a UGC strategy that students actually trust

In higher education, user-generated content (UGC) is content created by real members of your university’s community, usually current students but also staff and alumni, rather than by your marketing team. Think day in the life videos, campus tours filmed on a phone, student Q&As on Discord or alumni career stories on LinkedIn.

In this guide, we explain how university marketing and recruitment teams can build a UGC strategy that works, from finding the right student creators to measuring results.

Why UGC works for student recruitment

Prospective students are spending more time than ever on social media while researching where to study, but that doesn’t mean they trust everything they see there. Our own State of Student Recruitment 2026 report found that, while over half of prospective students now use AI or social media in their search, these are some of the channels they trust the least. Meanwhile, the universities’ own websites are rated “very” or “extremely” trustworthy by 72% of students.

So what does earn their trust? Well, real people. Bazaarvoice’s 2024 Shopper Experience Index found that 80% of Gen Z consider user-generated content crucial to their decision-making. For universities, that’s where having a great UGC strategy comes in – after all, current students sharing their honest, everyday experiences are the closest thing to a recommendation from a friend.

And by linking their content back to your university website, you get the best of both worlds: peer credibility on social media and trusted, detailed information on your site.

How to find the right student creators and ambassadors

To build a successful student ambassador program you need to start with the right people. But how do you find them, and how do you know who to work with? There are two main options, and it’s good to work with a mix of both.

Open recruitment to current students

Put the word out among your current students and invite them to get involved. You’ll find students who are genuinely enthusiastic about your university, even if they haven’t built a following yet.

It’s also important to keep the process simple. London Metropolitan University moved away from resume reviews and formal interviews, setting up a stall at its Welcome Fair instead and following up with interested students by email.

“It really helped diversify our pool of ambassadors. Students might not interview very well because they don’t have interview skills.”

Nicole Hemming, Social Media Manager, London Metropolitan University

Headhunt students who are already creating

Investigate your current students and find out if any of them are already doing well on social media. These student influencers already know what works and they bring their audience with them.

Prioritize students who are immersed in university life, or who have just arrived and can offer a more authentic point of view. For international recruitment, focus on international students that can speak to their specific experiences and relate to that cohort and their specific concerns.

How to motivate student ambassadors

Should universities pay student ambassadors?

If you can afford to, you should pay UGC creators for their work, even if they’re students. If you really can’t stretch your budget, students may be willing to work in return for expenses for filming activities, such as travel, activities or meals.

If your ambassadors include international students, it’s also important to check their visa considerations, as they might not be allowed to be directly paid for their work.

Showcase the career benefits for potential student ambassadors

Talk to them about what joining your creator program can do for them, such as helping them with their professional development and giving them marketing and comms experience. It’s a great way to start building a resume while at university without taking on a traditional part-time job.

This is especially true for international students, who will be getting much-needed, locally recognized experience that often carries more weight with potential local employers.

Invest in developing their skills

Let them in on any industry training or workshops your internal social and marketing team will be doing. You can also set up a system where their UGC experience counts as credits toward a class or an internship program, which can serve as extra motivation, too, if you can’t pay them directly for their work.

Help them form a community

Get your student ambassadors to work together and form relationships. This will not only help make their experience at your university better overall, but can also positively impact their UGC work, as they can help motivate each other, share ideas and push each other’s creative boundaries. Helping your student ambassadors and creators form a community can also be especially valuable if some of them are international students or new to the city.

Balancing creative freedom with brand guidelines

Don’t overbrief

Let them be themselves first, and correct with feedback later. This helps prevent the student from coming across as unnatural or even dishonest, when what you really want is for them to be themselves – after all, that’s why you decided to work with them in the first place.

Penn State University follows a “first draft rule”: creators get full freedom on their first draft, and feedback only comes in if they seem stiff or unlike themselves.

“If we’re not going to let them be themselves, then we might as well hire actors. There’s no reason to have students who aren’t speaking like students and acting like students and connecting that way.”

Kellen Manning, Director of Digital and Social Media Content, Penn State University

Prioritize niche content and diverse voices

Make sure that content is diverse across fields of study, ambassador backgrounds and interests. Students want to feel seen; they want stories and people they can relate to. Content shouldn’t be sweeping and broad, because the more people you’re trying to target, the fewer people that content will actually resonate with. Lean on niche content and ambassador diversity.

“The only way to showcase the entire scope of what you are is to let everyone be niche.”

Kellen Manning, Director of Digital and Social Media Content, Penn State University

Building a social media UGC strategy for higher education

Which types of UGC work best for colleges and universities?

1. Day in the life and trend-based content

   Showcase what makes your university special through the eyes of the students who live it every day: lectures, community spaces, social events and more. According to our State of Student Recruitment Report 2026, campus and student life is one of the top things students want to learn about on social media.

2. Employee-generated content

   Including staff, especially lecturers, will give prospective students a good idea of the people they’ll meet at your university. Learning about faculty was the number one answer in our SSR data (26%), so don’t leave your lecturers out!

3. Repurpose and caption your content

   Share student content across blogs and other channels to reach more people and show a seamless link to the university.

   And always remember to caption your videos, since many people watch with the sound off or on fast-forward.

Which social platforms should universities use for UGC?

1. Reddit and Discord for student communities

   Reddit and Discord are great for community-building, sharing experiences and even letting prospective students ask your ambassadors questions directly.

    

   Our SSR data backs this up: asking questions and discussing applications (23%), networking with current students (15%) and networking with other prospective students (13%) all feature among what students want from social media.

2. LinkedIn for career outcomes and alumni

   LinkedIn is often overlooked in higher education marketing, but it’s now the most-used platform when researching universities on social media, according to our State of Student Recruitment 2026 data (33%, up from 26% in 2025), as students are increasingly motivated by the potential return-on-investment of their higher education decisions.

    

   This is a great chance to get alumni involved, too. Highlight career outcomes, work experiences and work opportunities, and invite successful alumni to post about their careers and how your university helped them get there.

3. Local platforms for international student recruitment

   It’s important to remember that Instagram and TikTok aren’t universal. For students in China, for example, platforms like RedNote and WeChat matter far more.

    

   International ambassadors creating content on the platforms and in the languages of their home markets can reach audiences your main channels won’t.

Reach beyond your target audience

Content should be a good mix of what you want your target audience to see, and what you think will get wider, more diverse eyes on your university.

This may mean dropping institutional guardrails a bit and being more flexible about leveraging trends and memes, or finding opportunities to share unique aspects of your university in “did you know” formats (for example, celebrity alumni or interesting history).

While leaning into memes and trends can be great at giving you a sudden boost in visibility, educational content tends to have a longer life on socials, so make sure to balance these accordingly.

Paid vs organic UGC: do you need an ad budget?

You don’t have to start with a budget for ads. Good organic content is powerful enough, especially if you’re working with student ambassadors who know what they’re doing and have cultivated their own following.

“I think organic has a huge machine behind it, a lot of power. I would not assume that for success, you have to do something that’s paid. That’s absolutely not the case.”

Stephanie Herta, National Marketing & Community Manager, DEGIS

If you do have a budget, work with ambassadors to boost content on their own channels. Despite being paid, it will feel more authentic than an ad coming directly from your brand, especially on TikTok, and lets you target niche audiences such as particular fields of study.

Measuring the success of your UGC strategy

It’s important to look beyond “likes” into what constitutes real, attentive engagement. A post can get a like from someone just because they found it entertaining for a few seconds – it doesn’t necessarily mean they’re interested in attending your university.

Saves, shares and comments with real questions show that content is resonating with prospective students, not just performing well in the algorithm.

Track the journey to your website, too. Use UTM links or dedicated landing pages on ambassador content, so you can see how many people click through and whether they go on to inquire or apply.

Practical considerations when working with students on UGC

Trust your student creators

If you’re working with a particular student, it’s because you saw something of value in what they do, whether that’s a large following, great storytelling or a unique on-camera personality. Don’t be afraid to trust them to do their thing and be themselves!

Want to learn more about how universities are boosting their social media strategies, including working with students to create UGC? Watch the recording of our webinar here.