Newsletter #39: Abertay University built a Minecraft campus; Apple ran the best privacy ad; 7% of men think they can better a grizzly in a fight

📰 HE news

University of Sunderland’s trialling a new “reverse mentoring” scheme that sees students giving senior staff career guidance. Like it. Feels like it’s in its early stages though, treading familiar territory of “empowering students to take ownership of their learning”, rather than the transformative effect the initiative could have on university leadership. Read

The Office for Students reports that in, many cases, a graduate’s choice of university is more influential than their preferred course. Check. Oxford’s philosophy and religious studies students have a staggering 85% employability rating, despite the area having few directly linked careers. Check. The creative arts falls off a cliff because temporary and freelance positions are not recognised as “graduate-level” by the report’s methodology. Erm… Check. Read

💻 Digital marketing news

Google showcased its latest algorithm update - the Multitask Unified Model (MUM). Essentially, it’s BERT on steroids, so if you’re the kind of person to Google “I’ve hiked in the peak district and now want to climb Ben Nevis next summer, what should I do differently to prepare?” Google will surface relevant results about fitness and equipment, as well as generate its own content to help you (😱). Read

If you want to explain app tracking to a non-marketer, just sit them in front of Apple’s new privacy ad. In 1 minute - the ad explains how tracking works, makes it relatable and offers up the iPhone as the solution to a problem you didn’t know you had. Brilliant marketing. Look

Coinbase is on the hunt for a senior editor to head up its new media division. Personally, I think it should save itself the trouble and buy Coindesk. It has the money. Either way, it’s another example of a company that gets the business of content. Strategically, it makes sense for Coinbase to own a financial publication - crypto saw a market-wide crash the other week, just because China reaffirmed its position on a potential ban. If you operate in a sector that sensitive, you need some way to sway the narrative. Read

🏫 What unis are doing

Abertay University has built its campus in Minecraft… YESSSSSS. Created by 9 masters students, it’s the level of user-generated content no ambassador programme could replicate. The model is so good that Abertay promotes it alongside its virtual open day. Look

Rochester Institute of Technology has gone a bit extra with 50 vertical videos on a single page. The quality of each piece is on point but WOW. If you’re a mobile user, you’re going to be waiting a week for this page to load and a year to scroll to the end. Look

University of Toronto has a student video series that prioritises backstory and personality. My favourite is the dude setting out to major in Law, but who clearly wants to be making movies instead. Look

🧑‍🎓 What students are saying

“[My university] has told us they plan a ‘blended’ learning approach - which of course doesn't rule out remote studying. I would not accept that at all. I would be happy to do some of the core content online, because that's the stuff that's easiest to teach. Reading from a screen all day though kills your interest in a subject.” Students on the new norm of blended learning. Read

👾 Culture shock

A new study by YouGov shows that 7% of men feel like they could take a grizzly bear in a fight, while 24% feel like they would be battered by a rat. Read

Microsoft will no longer support Internet Explorer from next year. Read

Google’s Starline is a “magic window” that makes video calls feel like the person is in the same room. Mind. Blown. Look