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Contents
About the report 3 Key findings 4 Part 1: Time Spent Online Trends by age Regional comparison Variation by subject Part 2: Device Usage Trends by age Regional comparison Focus on Asia Focus on Europe Focus on the Americas Variation by subject 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Part 3: Social Networks Usage trends by age Reasons for use: variation by age Regional trends in network usage English speaking/non-English speaking regions Reasons for use: regional trends
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Conclusions 22
Key Findings
Time Spent Online 0-3 hours most commonly reported time spent online per day for all age groups. Older respondents more likely to report spending 5+ hours online per day. Respondents in Latin America and Africa more likely to report 5+ hours online per day. Those interested in engineering & technology courses most likely to report 5+ hours online per day and arts & humanities applicants least. Device Usage Laptops most commonly reported primary device across all age groups and regions. Smartphones more prevalent among younger respondents, desktops among older. Tablets emerging as a primary online device for at least some respondents in most regions. Arts & humanities applicants less likely to report smartphone as primary device. Social Networks In every region, more than 50% of respondents say they use five key networks (Facebook, Twitter,YouTube, LinkedIn and Pinterest)all the time. Younger respondents more likely to report high usage of YouTube and Pinterest, while older respondents more likely to report frequent use 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 up to date, except Latin America where interest is key driver. Older age groups slightly more likely to identify useful connections as main reason for use. Respondents in Asia and Africa most likely to value chance to Have a say.
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*Based on respondents answer to the question, Which courses are you interested in?
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A direct comparison of social network trends across native and non-native English language countries shows very little variation of usage.
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Conclusions
Perhaps the most powerful message of this first edition of the Students Online Usage: Global Market Trends Report is simply to underline the huge and global significance of social media for current and prospective students. In all of the five world regions covered, more than 75% of respondents said they used Facebook not just sometimes but all the time and rates were almost as high for other popular networks. Even Pinterest (a relatively young platform 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 and Pinterest, 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 per day was just 0-3 hours, with those in the highest age range being most likely to report five 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 confirms the continued importance of laptops the most commonly reported most-used device across all regions and ages while also highlighting the emergence of both smartphones and tablets as primary online devices in many parts of the world. However, there is some significant variation both between regions and countries within the same region, which is likely to be of interest to organizations targeting specific 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 the responses 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 for all audiences, keeping up to date, interest and useful connections are all significant drivers of social network membership.
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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 World Grad School Tour and World University Tour. TopUniversities.com seeks to aid students in making well-informed decisions about their future, covering the full spectrum of subjects, locations and educational levels. Annual QS publications and research include the Top Grad School Guide and QS World University Rankings. For more information about this report, please contact onlinemarketing@qs.com. TopUniversities.com All information QS Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd 2013