In a new report by TouchNet, a card system vendor, college-age students enrolled at both two- and four-year institutions overwhelmingly agreed that technology on their campuses was as good or better post-COVID-19 pandemic.
The Connecting the Dots survey was conducted in the spring of 2020, with students being asked a range of questions to determine what is most important to students when it comes to payment technology, how long students use it, which apps are most useful, and their preferences for paying for activities, goods, and services on campus.
“One of the most encouraging takeaways from our first student survey is that 89 percent of students surveyed believe technology on their campus is as good or better post-COVID,” said TouchNet President Adam McDonald. “There’s no doubt the pandemic sped up the shift toward contactless payments and credentials among the schools we work with, so knowing our efforts are playing a role in these positive student experiences is incredibly rewarding.”
The survey also found that 40 percent of students surveyed felt that their university has improved its use of technology and 40 percent of students surveyed have used or plan to use mobile payment apps more often following the COVID-19 outbreak.
The survey was intentional in uncovering the opinions for a full range of students. Not only were they from two- and four-year universities, but also traditional and non-traditional and both full- and part-time students. TouchNet said that the survey provides an understanding of students’ financial responsibility perceptions, as well as how those perceptions could alter over the course of each student’s college career.
“Overall, the survey provides data that TouchNet hopes can be used to inform decision making around the transition to safer, more contactless campuses that better meet student needs,” the survey said.
