What Do Students Want from Your Website?
When prospective students land on a college’s website, what are they actually hoping to find?
We recently asked more than 1,000 prospective students to tell us exactly that. Using a Top Tasks survey design, we sought to uncover what matters most in two high-stakes areas of the website: Admissions & Financial Aid and Academic Programs. Then, we gave the same task list to nearly 100 higher ed professionals, asking them to predict what students would choose. (Thank you to those who took the survey!)
The results? Sometimes higher ed professionals were right-on. Other times…not so much.
This side-by-side comparison offers a revealing look at how well higher ed professionals understand student priorities and where institutional assumptions may be out of sync with reality.
WHERE WE GOT IT RIGHT
There were encouraging signs of alignment across both Admissions & Aid and Academic Programs. For example, nearly everyone recognized that cost matters deeply. “Tuition and fees for the major/program” was selected by 22% of students and 24% of higher ed professionals—close alignment on a core concern. Similarly, “acceptance rate,” “application status,” and “types of financial aid” ranked high among both groups.
In other words, we’ve internalized that price and access are top-of-mind for students. But beyond that, the picture gets more complicated.
WHERE GAPS EMERGE
Admissions & Aid: Higher Ed Professionals Overvalue Process, Undervalue Affordability
Higher ed professionals overestimated how much students care about deadlines, application portals, and admissions requirements. In fact, these were among the most overestimated tasks in the entire survey:
Meanwhile, students showed more interest in practical affordability questions such as their eligibility for aid, payment plan options, and actual cost of attendance after aid. Many of these concerns were undervalued or even overlooked entirely by professionals.
Academic Programs: Higher Ed Leads with Story, Students Want Structure
When it comes to academic program information, higher ed professionals believe students were most interested in program listings, rankings, and career outcomes from alumni—classic storytelling material. But students gravitated toward more logistical and tangible details:
course descriptions and requirements
modality and schedule (online, in-person, time commitment)
Support services and funding options
practical implications like licensure or credit transfer
(BTW, if you’re like me, you might have thought, “This sounds like it applies to grad students or adult learners.” The twist? Traditional-aged undergrads care about these tasks just as much.)
In some cases, the gaps were vast. Only 15% of students prioritized a “list of all majors offered” as a top task, compared to 55% of professionals. Meanwhile, “financial aid options for specific majors/programs” was selected by 19% of students and just 2% of professionals.
WHY IT MATTERS
None of this is a rebuke. Many of us who work in higher ed were students. However, that doesn’t mean we always remember what it feels like to navigate the process or fully know what it’s like for students today.
Students aren’t just scanning for selling points, but they are evaluating the product. They’re trying to decide if they can afford the institution, succeed in the program, and make an informed choice.
The better you understand those goals, the better you can engage students and simultaneously position your institutions successfully.
MORE TO COME
This post only scratches the surface. The full findings explore the complete list of tasks as well as how student priorities shift by segment—like undergraduate vs. graduate, 2-year vs. 4-year, and funnel stage. Together with our partners at Echo Delta, we also share specific insights into how to build a more student-centered digital experience.
We’ll be releasing the full report soon, which I will share in a follow-up newsletter. If you’d like a preview or want to dig into the findings together, I’d love to talk.
Thanks again to everyone who participated—we hope these insights spark meaningful discussions and look forward to sharing the full results.