Students Online Usage Global Trends Report 2013 Nc

7/28/2019 Students Online Usage Global Trends Report 2013 Nc

1/23

Contents

1

Studen ts On lin e

Usage

Global Market Trends Rep

ort

Q S TopUniversities

.com 2013


2/23

Contents

2

About the report

Key findings

Part 1: Time Spent OnlineTrends by age

Regional comparisonVariation by subject

Part 2: Device UsageTrends by age

Regional comparisonFocus on Asia

Focus on EuropeFocus on the Americas

Variation by subject

Part 3: Social NetworksUsage trends by age

Reasons for use: variation by ageRegional trends in network usage

English speaking/non-English speaking regionsReasons for use: regional trends

Conclusions

3

4

5678

9101112131415

161718192021

22


3/23

3

About the report

The Students Online Usage: Global Market Trends Report is based on a survey of attendees at QS World Grad School Tour events during2012-13.

A total of 918 surveys were completed at events held in 26 countries across Europe, Asia, Latin America, North America and Africa.

As well as coming from a broad range of locations, survey respondents were also diverse in terms of the variety of subject areas and study destinations theywere interested in. They also varied in age (from 18 upwards) and in level of education and professional experience.

All were at the World Grad School Tour in order to gain information about graduate-level degree courses (both master and PhD programs) includingapplications advice, information about funding and visas and detail on speci c courses.

The following report highlights some of the most interesting ndings from this international survey, offering insights into internet usage trends of current and

prospective students worldwide.

Three key areas covered in this report include:

Time spent online Internet device usage Global social network preferences

Each section focuses on the differences and similarities across age groups and also between different world regions.


4/23

4

Key Findings

Time Spent Online

0-3 hours most commonly reported time spent online per day for allage groups.

Older respondents more likely to report spending 5+ hours onlineper day.

Respondents in Latin America and Africa more likely to report 5+hours online per day.

Those interested in engineering & technology courses most likely toreport 5+ hours online per day and arts & humanities applicants least.

Device Usage

Laptops most commonly reported primary device across all agegroups and regions.

Smartphones more prevalent among younger respondents, desktopsamong older.

Tablets emerging as a primary online device for at least somerespondents in most regions.

Arts & humanities applicants less likely to report smartphone asprimary device.

Social Networks

In every region, more than 50% of respondents say they use ve keynetworks (Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest)a ll thetime.

Younger respondents more likely to report high usage of YouTubeand Pinterest, while older respondents more likely to report frequentuse of LinkedIn.

African respondents generally report lower levels of social network usage compared to other regions with exception of Facebook.

Main motivation for social network usage in all regions is keeping upto date, except Latin America where interest is key driver.

Older age groups slightly more likely to identify useful connectionsas main reason for use.

Respondents in Asia and Africa most likely to value chance to Have asay.


5/23

5

T i m e S p e n t O n l i n e


6/23

6

Time Spent Online: Trends by Age

On average, how many hours do you spend online per day? 0-3 hours most commonly reported time spent online per day across all age groups. Respondents aged 31+ most likely to report 5 or more hours spent online per day, youngest group least likely.


7/23

7

Time Spent Online: Regional Comparison

On average, how many hours do you spend online per day? Respondents in Latin America and Africa most likely to report 5 or more hours online per day. Respondents in Europe and Asia most likely to report 3 or less hours online per day.


8/23

8

Time Spent Online: Variation by Subject*

On average, how many hours do you spend online per day? Engineering & Technology applicants most likely to report 5+ hours online daily and Arts & Humanities applicants least likely.

*Based on respondents answer to the question, Which courses are you interested in?


9/23

9

D e v i c e U s ag e


10/23

10

Device Usage: Trends by Age

Which internet device do you use most?

Laptop most commonly reported most-used device across all age groups. Smartphone more prevalent among younger respondents. Desktop more common among older. Tablet least reported as a most-used device, fairly consistent trend across age groups.


11/23

11

Device Usage: Regional Comparison


Laptop is still the dominant primary device across all regions. Respondents in Latin America and Africa most likely to report smartphone as most-used device. Tablets are certainly emerging as a primary online device in Europe, North America, Asia and Africa .


12/23


13/23

13

Device Usage: Focus on Europe


As is the case worldwide, laptops are by far the most important online device across Europe. Smartphones and tablets emerging as primary online devices in all European countries surveyed, while

desktops also remain signi cant across the region. Respondents in Spain most likely to report smartphone as most-used device; those in France, Italy and

Ukraine most likely to choose tablet.


14/23

14

Device Usage: Focus on the Americas


No respondents in Latin America selected tablet or desktop as most-used devices; in this market, laptops andsmartphones dominate even more than elsewhere.

Tablets emerging as a primary online device in both US and Canada, while older devices such as desktops clearly remain important, meaning a greater variety in responses.


15/23

15

Device Usage: Variation by Subject*


Laptop most commonly reported primary device for all subject areas. Arts & humanities applicants less likely to report smartphone as most-used device compared to other

subject groups.

*Based on respondents answer to the question, Which courses are you interested in?


16/23

16

S o c i a l N e t w o r k s


17/23

17

Social Networks: Usage by Age

Which social networks do you use all the time?

Younger respondents more likely to report frequent use of YouTube and Pinterest ; older more likely to befrequent LinkedIn users.

Facebook slightly more used by younger group, Twitter relatively constant across ages.


18/23

18

Social Networks: Reasons by Age

What is the main reason for you to join a social network?

Younger respondents more likely to be motivated by opportunity to Have a say , and older by opportunity tomake Useful connections.

Across all age groups, most common reason for joining is to Keep up to date .


19/23

19

Social Networks: Use by Region

Which social networks do you use all the time?

In every region , more than 50% of respondents say they use each of these ve key networks all the time. Overall, Latin American respondents report highest use most likely to report frequent use of Facebook,

YouTube, Twitter and LinkedIn . YouTube and LinkedIn most important networks for respondents in US & Canada; YouTube and Facebook most

important for respondents in Europe and Asia . African respondents generally report lowest levels of use; exception is Facebook, for which US & Canada report

least frequent use.


20/23

20

Social Networks: English-Speaking/Non-English Speaking Regions

A direct comparison of social network trends across native and non-native English language countries shows very little variation of usage.


21/23

21

Social Networks: Reasons by Region

What is the main reason for you to join a social network?

Keeping up to date main motivation in all regions except Latin America, where interest is key driver. Respondents in Asia and Africa most likely to value chance to Have a say , Latin American respondents least likely. Respondents in Africa most likely to value Useful connections .


22/23

22

Conclusions

Perhaps the most powerful message of this rst edition of the Students Online Usage: Global Market Trends Report is simply to underlinethe huge and global signi cance of social media for current and prospective students. In all of the ve world regions covered, more than 75% of respondentssaid they used Facebook not just sometimes but all the time and rates were almost as high for other popular networks. Even Pinterest (a relatively youngplatform even by social media standards) gained all the time responses from more than 50% of respondents in every region.

When compared across age groups, the social media trends shown here are fairly intuitive younger respondents reported higher use of YouTube andPinterest, older respondents were more likely to be frequent LinkedIn users, while Facebook and Twitter hold a more constant appeal.

Perhaps more surprising, especially in light of the high levels of social media use reported, is that the most commonly reported average time online perday was just 0-3 hours, with those in the highest age range being most likely to report ve or more hours. (This older group were also more likely to be

employed and presumably using the internet more for work).

In terms of device usage, the report con rms the continued importance of laptops the most commonly reported most-used device across all regions andages while also highlighting the emergence of both smartphones and tablets as primary online devices in many parts of the world. However, there is somesigni cant variation both between regions and countries within the same region, which is likely to be of interest to organizations targeting speci c markets.

Finally, for the many kinds of organizations investing in developing social media strategies, one of the most interesting aspects of the report will be theresponses given for the question on reasons for social network use. Here, while there is again some variation depending on age and region, its clear that forall audiences, keeping up to date, interest and useful connections are all signi cant drivers of social network membership.


23/23

Report authors

Monica Vannozzi & Laura Bridgestock

A special thanks to Ben Sowter, Head of QS Intellingence Unit, for his valuable contribution to the data analysis, and to Louise OConor, TU Online Marketing

Manager, who carefully supervised the project.

Thanks to all who contributed to the creation of this report and to all who answered our questionnaire at the QS World Grad School Tour.

QS Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd

QS connects prospective and current students with top universities and graduate schools worldwide, through online platforms and events such as the WorldGrad School Tour and World University Tour. TopUniversities.comseeks to aid students in making well-informed decisions about their future, covering the fullspectrum of subjects, locations and educational levels. Annual QS publications and research include the Top Grad School Guide and QS World UniversityRankings.

For more information about this report, please contact [email protected].

TopUniversities.com

All information QS Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd 2013

Documents

Students Online Usage Global Trends Report 2013 Nc