Digital poverty comes in many forms. Access to good tech and devices, support to use the technology, and the cost implication of this, all affect a student’s learning experience and their future career.
The 2023/24 digital experience insights surveys shed light on the current state of students’ learning using digital technologies but what can we take from this into 2025? Here are some of the top findings from the surveys that could inform HE’s digital transformation for 2025.
Connectivity issues
The core of digital learning is connectivity. Without it, the obstacles to participation are considerable.
Connectivity issues impacted more than half of students at HE institutions with (55%) overall (34% on campus, 30% off campus) experiencing issues. Younger students, 18 and under and 19-21, were most impacted (55%/58%). However, undergraduates were more impacted on campus (39% UGs, 26% PGs), and postgraduates were slightly more impacted off campus (32% PGs, 30% UGs).
73% of students use a smartphone regularly for learning, so reliable mobile data access is also essential. However, 42% of students are impacted by mobile data problems. It also may be worth noting that international students are more impacted by this than UK (39% of UK students, compared to 50% of international students.)
With wifi issues putting a dampener on students’ learning experience, it’s clear that more needs to be done for HE’s IT infrastructure to ensure a seamless experience. Seamless connectivity should be high on the agenda for HE’s digital transformation in 2025. Jisc’s connectivity services can be a good starting point for more information on this.
Cost of commuting to campus
As the cost of living continues to rise, the impact it’s having on students is clear.
Overall, 40% of HE students said they avoided travel to campus to reduce costs. Students aged 22 or over were much more likely to be kept away from campus due to travel costs than younger students; 22-29 year olds were most impacted at 47%, compared to the 18 and under age bracket who were least impacted at 26%. There was an undergraduate and postgraduate split along similar lines (37% UGs, 45% PGs).
A strong digital infrastructure is key to ensure that any student, even the students who can’t afford daily travel, are supported and able to access education and the learning they’re paying for. The cost-of-living crisis should be a catalyst for better digital infrastructures across education providers. A strong base was built when push came to shove, during the Covid pandemic, but 2025 is the time to further enhance these systems and infrastructures. Some steps could include improving device loan schemes (availability, less restrictive loan periods and ability to use these off campus) and reviewing access hours for on-campus facilities that may include high spec machines and specialist subject software to ensure they are as widely available as possible
Digital skills support for students
We asked students to say whether they had received support in a range of areas related to digital skills. In many areas, less than a half said they had. This included questions on whether or not students felt they had been given opportunities to build digital skills for future employment (37% said they had), an assessment of their training needs (37%), and formal recognition or accreditation of their digital skills (28%).
When we looked at different categories of student, there were some differences in their experiences of digital skills training. In all questions, postgraduates were more likely to have said support was given compared to undergraduates. Men were generally more likely than women and non-binary students to have agreed that supported was given. In many areas, international students were much more likely to report that support was given, compared to UK students.
Without the support to develop digital skills, students are less likely to fully utilise and benefit from learning technologies. More training on how to use digital tools and platforms effectively is needed to ensure a level playing field for all students using technology in their course. A simple step to bolster this is to simply sign post digital skills courses more clearly for students in all years and level of study and to build digital confidence. Jisc’s Building Digital Capabilities discovery tool helps students and staff pinpoint how to develop their digital skills and build their confidence in adapting to new technologies. It asks students questions on their digital skills then provides direct links to recognised training courses.
Also, software necessary to complete study should ideally be free to students, but the findings revealed that some software required additional licensing to be used by students off campus. Universities need to consider the implications of software licenses on students’ ability to access the technology they need from anywhere.
The report, while highlighting digital inequalities in education, also provides institutions with a good indication of where improvements are needed in the higher education sector in 2025. Digital transformation plans should ideally include connectivity and reliability, cost implications on students, and diverting support where it is most needed to ensure digital technologies are being used to their full potential.
Your institution can sign up for the 2024/25 surveys to provide powerful data that can give insights to organisations on how students use the technology on offer, what is making a difference and where improvements can be made, and take a deeper look at digital poverty as experienced by HE students, here.
If your institution is interested in seeing how data can shape digital strategy, you can join us on 23rd January in Salford, Manchester for our Data Matters conference. The event is for strategic data leads in HE and FE sectors to consider challenges, opportunities and navigate the ever-evolving education landscape. Join the event here.