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Higher Education Website Development and Design

Differentiate yourself, and communicate your vision

Key Features

Modernize your website, improve user experience and strengthen your brand

Focus on content delivery for internal and external users. Enhancing the usability of university websites is one of the top priorities for academic institutions worldwide. Our website design process focuses on usability which involves remaining at the cutting edge of the ideas and innovations that are pushing the industry forward.

Sheridan site on apple devices.

Recruit new students, increase engagement with alumni, corporate/industry partners, foundations, and the community

Your users demand value, innovation and new delivery models from your website. Students and staff expect you to deliver a digital experience that will match your institutions' innovation and creativity. Our User Experience Professionals (USP's) conduct comprehensive research and deliver insights based on your company's unique audience, market, competitors and business objectives to inform you best on how to adapt to industry changes.

User Experience Web Design

Present and reinforce an institutional brand that focuses on the transformational value of high education

Your website will often be one of the first interactions for your customers and all of your stakeholders, it is one of the most important elements of your marketing and communications. Highlighting the quantity of choice and quality of your programs and experience and celebrating the highly skilled and credentialed faculty; highlight award-winning staff. At OPIN we help you hit the ground running and construct a Website Design System for longevity, which allows you to continue to leverage it for years to come.

Brand Development

Sheridan College website presented on multiple Apple Devices.

Security

Address the growing complexity of security and mitigate risks to your organization. Free up people and resources and focus on things that matter to you regarding process improvement and innovation.

Scale

Position your organization for the future by responding to new challenges and opportunities without scaling costs. Build continual process improvements that are agile that can be tested, refined or retired as it brings value.

Experience

Transform yourself to become a community and information hub on a base to brand build and become top of mind to members and stakeholders, helping you to become a relevant part of their lives.

Working on this project with OPIN's design team was fantastic. They were able to show us what is possible and what the new site should look like so it was much easier to envision. He helped us break out of our images of what it had to be, and helped us look towards what it could be.


Nick Mirkovic

Manager, Project Office

Creating Empowering Digital Experiences

Double Student Applications: University of Northern British Columbia

Provide a streamlined user experience and adapt seamlessly for devices and integrating legacy information. User profiling provides more targeted information for students interested in university programs, entrance requirements and admissions procedures. The more than two-fold increase in student applications, attributed largely to the improvements to the website, has exceeded the university's expectations. The increase has provided the university with higher calibre students, increased visibility and a better ability to promote research outcomes.

University of Northern British Columbia Case Study

University of Northern British Columbia website on multiple apple devices.
Image of york region district website school board on apple devices.

Migrating over 200 Sites to Drupal 8: York Region District School Board

Multisite architecture, adds exciting new tools, significantly improving the design and navigation of your site, making it easier for contributors to update content keeping it fresh while meeting users' needs properly. With improved information architecture and sustainable web design, York Regional District School Board is now able to meet the needs of its web users (including students, families, community and Board staff) to understand their needs and requirements in order to drive its message, share content and engage with their users in the most compelling way.

Drupal Web Development Agency for University Websites

We live in a world of amazon dot com expectations; audiences expect a digital experience to be fast, relevant and provide continual value.

In a post-pandemic world, meeting this expectation is more critical than ever. Today, the only way now to effectively grow and engage audiences is through digital channels. 

Audiences will instinctively connect the quality of their digital experiences at a University website, with their expectations of attending.

Nearly 70% of current students cite the school’s website design as the primary influence on their decision-making, yet most colleges fail to meet basic usability standards as desired by students.

Therefore, the quality of the University's digital web presence will determine the success of its digital strategy and competitiveness within the marketplace.

Helping Learners Chart Their Course

The University website should be a place where a diverse set of prospective students can envision their future and how to make it a reality. The site must connect with audiences seeking a non-traditional pathway and connect them to a community of supportive and like-minded resources.

Opening the door to creative fields for those seeking opportunities can have a transformative effect on an entire community.  The site should enable and empower those in supportive and stakeholder roles to help grow the higher education institution's reach and audience.

These would include international students, prospective students, graduates, parents, teachers and partners.

A More Competitive World for Post-Secondary Institutions

Competition for enrolment, particularly for domestic students, has become a challenge for many post-secondary institutions, considering that skill shortages continue to exist for many of our top industries, such as healthcare, information technology, agriculture, and manufacturing.

Stigmas and misconceptions have deterred students from enrolling or participating in higher-level of education. To combat this message, institutions must ‘rethink’ how they communicate and provide outreach to potential students.

Students today are not limited by linear career development where they choose one job title for life. Instead, they want to find inspiring challenges to work on, and then determine what they need to learn to be able to do that.

Institutions that can help students create these unique paths will differentiate themselves. By putting students’ stories at the center of their recruitment efforts, these institutions will send them a clear message: who you are and what you want matters. 

The Pandemic is Accelerating Pressure for Change

Furthermore, the current global healthcare crisis is challenging recruitment models and strategies. Colleges and universities can no longer depend on in-person events, information sessions, or campus visits to establish a connection with potential students. At the same time, online learning options have increased competition for students.

Today, the website is one of the first engagement points prospective students have with a post-secondary institution. Your online presence is fundamental to capturing attention and generating enthusiasm.

Most importantly, the website plays a critical role in forming the initial personal connection between institution and student.  Thus, the rationale for enhancing the existing digital presence becomes ever more pressing.

Technology is a Double-Edged Sword

Technology has had a positive impact on improving higher education communications. However, technology has also been a double-edged sword. Due to the high volumes of content published daily, audience expectations have changed at an unprecedented pace.

As a result, it is more difficult to engage audiences in meaningful ways via digital channels, content strategy is shifting. Today, impactful digital communications must have:

  • Edge - Able to cut through all the noise and capture attention.
  • Specificity -  Personalized messaging that is easily relatable and repeatable.
  • Lift - Messaging that connects to the heart and the mind of the audience.
     

We have also seen a shift in the way people consume digital content. Audiences have moved from desktops to new internet-enabled technologies, such as home automation (Alexa, Google Home), mobile applications, VR/AR, and wearable technology. 

For many communication teams, adopting these emerging technologies is unattainable given current tools, resources, and available time. 

Our Formula

Our combination of technology, process and expertise is the secret to delivering ambitious digital projects. Learn about our formula below.

Drupal

The open source CMS supports the largest, most complex multisite infrastructures. Drupal reduces IT costs and accelerates time to market for our clients. Users don't depend on IT to publish content, and robust content management enables reusable assets across sites and platforms.

Agile

The methodology helps us deliver client solutions as envisioned. Development timelines are reduced and collaboration ensures that the project exceeds client expectations across the board. Our project teams are cohesive and work together on every project, meaning guaranteed results for clients.

Expertise

Our unparalleled expertise means that we understand the challenges faced by the largest enterprises. OPIN's track record of delivering projects on time and on budget eliminates risk. We deliver solutions that are designed to drive revenue for North America's largest enterprises.

Talk with an expert!

To learn more or to discuss your next project; send us an email and talk to an expert!

Ottawa

135 Laurier Ave. West, Suite 100
Ottawa, ON K1P 5J2
TEL: 1 (877) 257-6746

Saratoga Springs

153 Regent Street
Saratoga Springs, NY 12866
TEL: 1 (877) 257-6746