Should You Still Start a College-Tok Account?

One of our strategies at Making Waves Education Foundation is to meet students where they are, and Gen Z is on TikTok, including College-Tok. It’s where they spend a significant amount of their time and where they’re open to discovering new things.

With all this said, you might be thinking, “Should I continue to invest in TikTok, when there’s a possibility of it being inaccessible in the future?”
The short answer: Yes.
TikTok makes  higher ed content more relatable, and through micro-learning, and videos can help young people get a real feel for college and careers. For example our TikTok video topics range from how to battle imposter syndrome to senioritis, as well as problems with the FAFSA.
Now that more than half of Gen Z chooses TikTok for search, higher ed can use the platform to provide even more peer-to-peer and expert-level support. It has been a major turning point for us, and it may be for you too. 

So, how do you launch a TikTok account to reach students?

1. Research College-Tok
2. Assemble a team
3. Hold regular brainstorming sessions
4. Invest in a social media scheduling tool
5. Create video content
6. Edit, optimize and post videos
7. Track video performance
8. Be spontaneous

1. Research College-Tok 

Spend time getting to know the ins and outs of the TikTok platform and do a deep dive into college-related content. There are many micro-niche topics within College-Tok. From admissions advice and day-in-my-life videos to financial aid tips and step-by-step FAFSA instructions, there’s no shortage of topics to research.

Look to see what is trending and popular in these categories. Note which videos have the most views, comments and shares. See what other colleges, universities or educational organizations you admire are doing on TikTok, and whether you can produce something similar but with your spin on it. 

Sign up for regular creator email updates from TikTok about what is trending on the platform. You should consider leveraging your organizational value and expertise and translating it into TikTok videos.

2. Assemble a Team

We first sought a range of staff, including high school counselors, college coaches, financial aid coordinators and career specialists, who could consistently provide video content based on the work they were already doing. We then complemented this with peer-to-peer content from our student visual content creator intern who handles video editing.

Creators can contribute a set number of videos per month, which editors then optimize and schedule for publishing. We use CapCut, a cloud-based video platform tool to film, edit and store these videos, but there are many mobile video editing platforms that allow social media managers to use TikTok collaboratively.

Most importantly, TikTok has a specific style and requires an editor and creator with fluency in that style and the memes and references that it requires. So, make sure you find the right person to coordinate the effort.

3. Hold Regular Brainstorming Sessions

One of the hardest parts of managing a TikTok account is consistently planning and creating content. 

First, research your topic and similar videos and really think about what you want to discuss. Create bullet points for yourself but remember that authenticity matters most — genuine, unpolished content tracks better than anything meticulously crafted. 

Finally, Consider using generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, to save time developing a video script for your topic. 

4. Invest in a Social Media Scheduling Tool

Right off the bat, you need to know how many videos you will create per week. Remember that in your initial growth phase, you will post more frequently. 

A social media scheduling tool, such as Later, can help you plan your videos. This includes hashtag research and generation, titles and anything TikTok factors into its search engine optimization.

5. Create Video Content

Once you’re ready to film, give yourself a solid 30 minutes if you’re just starting. Think more off the cuff, not too high energy. 

But it’s OK to mess up! Trust that your editors will create something amazing if you give them content to work with. 

Currently, TikTok is prioritizing videos that are longer than one minute. We recommend three-fourths of your content be long-form and the last fourth scrollable, fun content that grabs people’s attention. 

6. Edit, Optimize and Post Videos

What’s important here is thinking about the time members of your organization are being asked to invest in TikTok. Many in higher education are stretched thin, so even a couple of hours a week can add up. 

Because of this, our content experts across teams spend their time giving advice and our marketing and storytelling team handles the rest. We work on video editing in batches with our paid student interns.

7. Track Video Performance

For many people, being on camera and giving advice doesn’t come naturally. It’s OK if a video doesn’t perform well — you will get better at it. When you first start, your videos likely won’t get millions of views. 

We found that tracking and sharing video performance is the best way to increase organizational buy-in and give insight into what topics we should continue to focus on. Sharing video performance and celebrating wins helps build comfort within your organization. 

Ultimately, our videos received thousands of views, and more staff wanted to pitch in and help.

8. Be Spontaneous!

Part of creating TikTok videos is finding your voice and figuring out who you are as an organization. TikTok has allowed us to get information out to young people quickly and remove more traditional gatekeeping from the content creation pipeline. 

In the beginning, we studied a variety of companies on TikTok. Our research noted those companies use a different tone on the platform compared to their corporate tone. 

Recognizing that difference allowed us to create a process that embraces imperfections. We permitted ourselves to create more authentic, spontaneous content, which has helped increase production speed.

It could take some time before a major decision is made about TikTok. Use that time to reach new audiences and make them aware of your other social media platforms. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket. Invest in growing a range of your platforms, cultivating content, and cross-posting where possible.

It’s worth it because millions of users log into the app daily, and it continues to be the top platform to reach Gen Z.