FAQs
General Questions
While the phrase virtual fair is almost omnipresent in the Covid-era, it can be difficult to pin down. We’ve given it much thought, and conclude a productive virtual fair must include:
1) A digital format to disseminate information during a set time or time range. (Note: This does not necessarily mean one day, and can mean throughout a term.)
2) A registration process for all parties with sign in capabilities. This is necessary to understand the attendees “at” the fair.
Our system ties in both.
Let’s describe it in terms of a normal fair that we can relate to. At a normal fair, the elements of a fair that we replace are:
- Space to meet (student union, ballroom, etc.)
- Registration table with University Fair Information
- Tables for Approved Programs
- General fair materials for each Approved Program
Our system organizes together Universities, Students and Approved Study Abroad Programs to meet at a specific time frame.
It’s a simple system with a lot of power.
The system is tied together in 3 steps:
- Study Abroad Programs enter their information.
- Universities enter their fair details, general study abroad information, and select which Study Abroad Programs are approved. Immediately after this is done, a Virtual Fair Landing page link is generated and can be promoted to students.
- Students can sign in, indicate their areas of interest, including location, courses, time frame, level of interest. They will then be given program matches, as well as a list of overall partners, based on the information they provide. They will have a profile they can log in to, and see their matches after the fair – a digital version of the catalog stack we see students carrying around at fairs!
The real power could be in the backend Admin system, where Universities will be able to see a list of all of their student attendees, and their interest level. Program Partners will also have an admin and will be able to have a list of the student matches for their programs. Note: Program Partners will not get a list of all Virtual Fair attendees, only those who are a match for your program.
It’s important to note that we have not built Video Chat or Text Chat functionality, so we are not a replacement for Zoom, etc. We are a complementary system to those tools.
We encourage Universities and Program Partners to utilize their Zoom accounts, etc, and those can be promoted through Virtual Fair, and link off of the landing pages.
We also encourage Universities and Program Partners to include text chat, if they have that capability.
Every party has significant benefits:
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Universities: There is a simple solution to setting up a Virtual Study Abroad Fair landing page. You just fill out a form, and the landing page is complete. You can make the content of your Fair Information as simple or robust as you’d like. You can always edit it later with updated content, schedules, etc.
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Students: Students will immediately know which programs have matches for what they are looking for. If you’ve ever been to a real study abroad fair, you’ve seen the glossed over eyes of many students, conveying the thought, “What is going on here?! What are all of these options and letters?”
Also, students can use it all semester long – if the fair conflicts with their schedule, they don’t have to miss out.
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Program Partners: Connecting with students is a vital part of running an overseas program, and this enables that. Students who match their program offerings will automatically be connected to the institution’s Program Partners.
Great question! Quick answer: all semester long. There will be an fair end date towards the end of each semester.
We are no longer limited by the space and time that we are able to run a physical fair. This means, we are willing to have our system up and running throughout the semester, and not just on one day or time.
Having said that, it’s important to give some time boundaries so that a) Representatives will be available to chat virtually; b) students will have a time frame, or deadline, in which they can dedicate to understanding their international education options.
You can start today!
If you’re a University, you can start your fair here.
If you’re a Provider/Partner, you can create a profile here.
Admin Questions
For the initial launch, there will be one admin sign-in, so we’d recommend either to keep it to a generic email that multiple people have access to, or use the primary student outreach contact’s email.
Feel free to edit away! You can make updates to your information from your Admin Dashboard, and the edits will be available immediately.
There is a field where you will be able to input your Zoom/Video link.
This will produce a button/link for the student to connect to during the fair.
That link can be updated throughout the semester on the Admin Dashboard of the Universities and Program Partners.
Similar to the video link, there is a field where you will be able to input your Google Slides/Prezi link.
This will produce a button/link for the student to connect to during the fair.
That link can be updated throughout the semester on the Admin Dashboard of the Universities and Program Partners.
Universities
Yes! We have worked with University offices, and have made sure Faculty-Led information can be represented.
Yes! Exchange partners will be able to be represented.
Yes!
While Google Slides, Prezi, etc, are good landing pages for a studying abroad fair, there is no registration functionality. Even if you have a “Sign Up Form” linked off from that page, there is no system that will automatically filter the information to the appropriate parties.
Yes!
Our system can link off to those pages for in your Fair Info section, and you can still utilize the registration form and program matching system of Virtual Fair.
We have a comparison below, but in short, we’d like to say there are two pieces of a fair:
The Fair Content/Engagement
The Fair Registration
When thinking of a fair, most of us naturally focus on #1, but it’s important to recognize that without some form of registration, there will not be a way to understand the success of the event. Also, without an effective registration that directs attendees to the appropriate parties with ease, the actual engagement will not be optimized.
It’s important to note that we are in a new era with Covid, and what was once seen as an acceptable amount for charging a Program Partner may no longer be the case.
So, for starters, it’s recommended that you understand the costs and the Partners who will be able to attend at the price range.
Secondly, just make sure that your system does not require a major time commitment for Partners to create their information in a new system, as many are understaffed in the current environment.
This tool was created specifically for study abroad, which means it may fit your needs a bit better than a platform designed for another audience or service (such as Handshake for Career Services jobs and events.) This system is also intended to have a long-term duration (all semester) and not be tied to one date / time like some other platforms may require. We hope this tool offers increased accessibility and flexibility!
Program Partners
There are several benefits, and here are a couple:
1) This is the only system out there created by members of the study abroad community, who have worked for years in “real world” fair settings, and have translated that knowledge on how to connect the parties in a virtual fair setting.
2) You have the potential to automatically connect with students throughout the semester, rather than on just one window on one day.
No! You only have to set up one profile, and the information will be brought into each partner University’s Virtual Fair.
Virtual Fair Comparison
The chart below illustrates the differences of virtual fair platforms, and how they can complement each other.
