In 2025, video is no longer just one piece of a student recruitment strategy, it’s often the first impression a prospective student will have of your institution. And more often than not, that impression comes in the form of short-form video.
Students are turning to TikTok, YouTube Shorts, and Instagram Reels not only for entertainment but to research their future. In fact, 84% say video plays a significant role in their college decision-making process. (Forbes, Axios, Deloitte)
But what resonates today isn’t glossy, polished promos. It’s real stories, told authentically, in formats that feel personal, not produced. If your institution hasn’t yet embraced short-form content as a regular part of its communication, this may be the year to reconsider. Treat graduation as a strategic content engine: with Gradcut, every graduate can receive a branded, share‑ready instant graduation video—typically within an hour of the ceremony, turning a milestone into thousands of authentic stories that amplify your brand.
Why short‑form is now your first impression
For Gen Z and the rising Gen Alpha cohort, social platforms are not just for entertainment—they are search engines. In 2024–2025, multiple surveys reported significant shifts toward social search (TikTok, YouTube) for discovery and evaluation, especially among 18–24‑year‑olds. For marketers, that means the channels where short videos live are often where prospects start their research. (Forbes, Axios)
At the same time, industry trend reports show that social video platforms dominate attention in 2025, challenging traditional media and reshaping how people consume information. That’s exactly where your first impression is being formed. (Deloitte)
Rethinking the Video Landscape in Higher Ed
TikTok continues to be the most powerful platform for peer influence. Students trust what they see from others in their shoes, current students sharing campus life, daily routines, or spontaneous moments.
Institutions that empower students to tell their own stories, participate in trends, or take over the university’s account for a day tend to see greater traction and trust. Hashtag strategies, quick campus tours, and even casual Q&As can go a long way in building a digital connection.
While TikTok captures attention, YouTube nurtures curiosity. It’s where students dive deeper, researching programs, exploring faculty perspectives, and imagining themselves on your campus.
Organizing content into helpful playlists (program overviews, accommodation tours, student testimonials) can help viewers self-navigate. Incorporating SEO-friendly titles and descriptions increases visibility for students actively searching.Reels offer a balance of spontaneity and curation. They’re a great space to spotlight events, student achievements, or moments that reflect your institution’s personality.
Partnering with student clubs, adding captions for accessibility, and leaning into short storytelling formats can help create a relatable, mobile-friendly experience.
What’s Working in 2025
Several key themes are shaping video engagement across platforms:
- Authenticity over perfection – Audiences prefer content that feels genuine, even if it’s a little unpolished.
- Short-form first – Videos under 60 seconds are leading in views and retention.
- Student voice matters – Content created with students, not just about them, tends to resonate more deeply.
Not every institution has a video team on standby—and that’s okay. Small, consistent efforts can go a long way:
- Consider building a student creator program – Even a few trained student contributors can bring fresh energy and authenticity to your social channels.
- Repurpose what already exists – Previous long-form videos or recorded events can be re-edited into bite-sized clips.
- Watch the data – Beyond views, look at metrics like watch time, shares, and comments. They reveal what content is truly connecting.
Why This Isn’t Just a Trend
This shift toward short-form and authentic video reflects a broader change in how people, especially younger audiences—search, learn, and engage online.
Today, students are searching TikTok for “best uni in Australia” or watching YouTube to get a feel for dorm life. Social platforms are becoming search engines in their own right, and universities that adapt to this behavior are the ones students will notice.
At the same time, employee-generated content is starting to play a bigger role. Whether it’s a quick video from a faculty member or a behind-the-scenes glimpse from an admissions officer, content that shows the human side of your institution helps build trust.
And it all starts with showing up, not perfectly but consistently, and with intention.
In this broader conversation about video, it’s also worth reflecting on milestone moments—like graduation. These events are some of the most emotional and shareable moments in a student’s journey. Yet for many universities, capturing and sharing those moments at scale has traditionally been expensive, time-consuming, or simply too complex.
Gradcut was created to change that.
It’s a simple, automated solution that delivers personalized video clips to each graduate within an hour of the ceremony. There’s no added work for your AV team, Gradcut integrates with your existing livestream setup and handles the rest.
Each student receives their own branded video, ready to share. For universities, this means thousands of proud, joyful moments being amplified across social media within minutes, not days.
What’s especially compelling is how little infrastructure change is needed. The University of Sydney, for example, used Gradcut to deliver over 140,000 personalized graduation clips without adding any extra production staff.
And while graduation is the starting point, the same approach can be applied to awards nights, formal events, or any moment worth capturing.
Graduation: your most powerful short‑form moment
No moment generates more authentic, high‑intent content than graduation—students, families, faculty, and alumni all share it. Historically, turning that ceremony into content at scale took days of editing and distribution.
With Gradcut, it takes about an hour. Gradcut captures your existing livestream and automatically produces personalised, branded stage clips for each graduate delivered via a secure portal, ready to share on TikTok, Reels, Shorts, and alumni channels. There’s no additional AV crew; the platform integrates with what you already run.
Real‑world proof: The University of Sydney partnered with Gradcut to deliver 140,000+ instant video clips across ~155 ceremonies to 23,500 graduates a modern layer on a 150‑year tradition.
Learn more: Watch our on‑demand webinar walking through the University of Sydney case study and implementation lessons.
Why it matters for marketing
- Every clip is an authentic story from a trusted voice (the graduate), carrying your brand into peer networks.
- Clips are short, vertical, and share‑ready the exact format platforms reward.
You turn a single event into thousands of moments that fuel recruitment, alumni engagement, and advancement campaigns.
The result is more than just a video, it’s a way to celebrate students, strengthen brand presence, and build a sense of community around moments that matter.
If you’re curious to learn more, there’s an on-demand webinar available that walks through the University of Sydney’s experience and what made it successful.
In the end, it’s not about keeping up with trends, it’s about meeting students where they are, sharing stories that matter, and creating content that feels as real as the experiences it reflects.
