University of WA turns to student content creators to promote its brand after ‘elitist’ image problem

The University of Western Australia is turning to student content creators to spruik the institution’s merits, after revelations it has an image problem. The West last month revealed UWA’s own brand research had found that school leavers were shunning the university because of perceptions it was “elitist, aloof and stand-offish.” UWA recently posted an Instagram call-out for student content creators with a video aimed at international students. The video highlights one unnamed student’s top five reasons why he fell in love with UWA and with Perth. They include the “beautiful and iconic” Winthrop Hall for its “history vibes”, Reid Library and Matilda Bay, considered “perfect for relaxing after classes”. The student also gave a shout-out to the free purple CAT bus connecting the campus to the CBD and to Perth’s weather and sunsets, described as “just out of this world”. UWA’s post said: “Are you an international student who loves making social videos like this one or wants to learn how? “We want you to help us show what life at UWA and in Perth is really like!” The post stated making videos would be a “paid opportunity”, with no experience needed. Free training would be included, “great for building your skills”. Last week, the university also posted a casting call for “a diverse group of UWA students to feature in our upcoming TV ad”. It said the advertisement would run for up to two years across TV, YouTube and cinema. “You would appear as background talent helping bring our story to life,” it said. A spokesperson for UWA would not reveal how much it was paying students to create social media videos or appear in the TV commercial, nor how many students it hoped to recruit. “The University of WA often features real students in its videography and photography, a standard practice in university marketing to reflect an authentic student experience,” the spokesperson said. “As part of this process, we invite students to participate and provide a small remuneration, ensuring a fair and transparent procedure while also giving students an opportunity to gain experience in professional content production. “UWA also regularly works with advertising agencies to produce promotional marketing material and the recent callout for a television advertisement is part of this collaborative approach.” UWA’s own marketing research, unveiled at a recent graduates’ forum, showed the institution’s brand health metrics had been in decline since 2017. It also revealed some students found the traditional older buildings on UWA’s campus “intimidating” and were put off by its prestigious status. In an email sent to staff after The West’s story appeared, Vice-Chancellor Amit Chakma said the university needed to “better tell our story of connection to the State.” Other WA institutions also engage student content creators. Curtin University recently called for students fluent in Chinese to make content for Chinese social media channels, to be reimbursed in gift vouchers. A Curtin spokesperson said the university had also been running a paid program for student content creators for three years, which ran nationally and world-wide. A spokesperson for Edith Cowan University said it engaged a small number of students each year to create social media content.