According to a recent report by American Council on Education, Mapping New Directions: Higher Education for Older Adults, the proportion of the population over the age of 55 is expected to grow by 50% over the next 20 years. As many in continuing education and community colleges know, older students are starting to make up more and more of their student body. However, 40% of the institutions surveyed by ACE do not make any efforts to ID these students’ needs and offer them outreach or help with financial aid. This group, with their varying experiences and needs, can seem like a challenging group to reach but help is coming from an unexpected place- Generation Y.
When it comes to social media, much of the coverage focuses on Facebook, blogs and wikis as they relate to the technology generation, Generation Y. But often overlooked is social media as it relates to baby boomers. While these two generations have very different qualities associated with them, it’s important to remember one vital linkage- Generation Y are the children of baby boomers.
Boomers are quickly being turned onto the world of social media by their children. The boomer demographic, especially women, is the fastest growing group of social networkers. Entertainment Trends in America, a study by the NPD Group, found that 41% of boomers have visited social networking sites and 61% had visited sites with streaming or downloadable video. Although this group can be found frequenting the same sites as their children, it’s still important to understand what makes them different. While younger people can be found blogging, leaving comments and uploading video, the older crowd is more likely to be passive, visiting sites to extract information only.
With this in mind, an institution’s social media presence should not only cater to 17-21 year olds, but also their parents. While this group may not want to interact with each other on Facebook or comment on an admissions blog, chances are that they’ll be more than willing to watch short videos on you institution or read what other students write on a Facebook wall. Although these prospects may be “quieter” than their younger counterparts, admissions departments should be aware of their presence in social media and provide them with relevant content.
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