Crowdsourcing Benefits for College Students, Case Study Example

As individuals and businesses search for and develop innovative solutions to utilize new technologies, one resource that has become essential to success in a competitive economy is social networking. Since social networking has become common in everyday society with websites such as Facebook and Twitter, many businesses have begun to recognize the strength of disassociated groups of people as a resource towards developing new ideas and solutions. These ideas do not come from one individual or defined business entity, but a disperse group of people working around a common theme through a web-based network affecting many areas of society.

One type of web-based business model that takes advantage of this phenomenon is crowdsourcing. When people are able to access information from a collective group, they are better able to take advantage of others experience and apply it to their own benefit. This gives both individuals and businesses access to information that would have otherwise been unavailable. Crowdsourcing has been used for a variety of reasons from developing profitable businesses to volunteer groups creating novel solutions for a charitable cause. Crowdsourcing projects do not always to have to be driven by profit. Many non-profit crowdsourcing projects are initiated by merely creating a website and by attracting people with common interests.

Colleges and universities are increasingly making use of crowdsourcing, allowing students, faculty, and staff to share information such as the effectiveness of classes, scheduling, and administrative matters. Faculty may use crowdsourcing as a way for students to interact and assist each other with class materials and learning procedures. Crowdsourcing may even be used as a sounding board for students, faculty and staff to express their concerns about the school anonymously without any repercussions. According to Schaffhauser (2013), students at the University of Virginia use crowdsourcing to express concerns from topics ranging from maintenance problems in the dormitories to faculty grading procedures. Students can share their concerns about pertinent matters such as available tutoring, library hours, and textbooks sales.

Tutors can advertise their availability, subjects, and rates to other students. Students will be able to access tutors which will be best suited to their personal needs. They will also be able to share information on the effectiveness of the tutoring sessions. Because of the anonymity, students will also be able to provide tutors with constructive suggestions on how to improve their instruction.

Students may use crowdsourcing as a way to redistribute and sell used textbooks. Since textbooks are expensive and are often required for a single term, students often desire to sell them. However, by using crowdsourcing, students may be able to collectively provide each other with information on the best places to sell used textbooks or be able to conduct transactions with each other.

Crime, though an unfortunate occurrence, is a reality on many college campuses and their surrounding communities. Having access to information may not only help to keep students informed, but may also assist in the prevention of crimes and catching criminals. For example, by sharing information, students may be made aware that certain areas of campus should be avoided or approached with caution because of the high occurrence of crime. By avoiding certain areas on campus, or making sure they have an escort, many students can prevent themselves from becoming a crime victim.

Crowdsourcing in relation to criminal activity can also be beneficial for campus security to exchange information. If campus security knows the locations of where specific crimes are likely to occur, then they may be better able to police those areas and prevent criminals from conducting their devious acts.

Victims of crimes may be able to use social media as a place to anonymously find support from their fellow students. Students who were victims of crime would be able to form online communities and exchange information and support for one another. Crowdsourcing may allow students to obtain a sense of resolution and community without having to reveal their identities.

The anonymity of communication via the Intranet can lend a sense of security to not just crime victims, but students suffering with emotional and psychological problems as well. Counseling centers can make use of crowdsourcing by providing students with a means to communicate with one another about their personal problems. For example students dealing with social anxiety are often hard-pressed to discuss their problems with their peers. Though speaking with a counselor is often helpful, sharing thoughts and feelings with those who are experiencing the same troubles is extremely beneficial to management and recovery.

Crowdsourcing is especially helpful for concerns related with a school’s information-technology (IT) department. If students are experiencing technological difficulties, they may post online where the IT department can view the problem first-hand. For example, if a dormitory is having difficulty with its wireless connection to the Intranet, students can post online and the IT department can quickly make corrections.

IT departments can also use crowdsourcing as a cost-effective way for students to answer each other’s questions. When students are able to independently resolve their technology problems, the IT department can use their time and resources for more urgent matters, saving the school money. According to Young (2009), questions to the help-desk cost Indiana University at Bloomington approximately $11.41 per phone call and $9.39 per email.

The scientific and research departments at schools could also use crowdsourcing as a means to enhance the distribution of information. Students and professors would be able to share ideas for research and access journal articles to benefit their experiments and studies. They would be able to assist one another with information on solving problems with research, experimentation, and the development of publishing articles for peer-reviewed journals.

Another area that crowdsourcing would be beneficial for students is when searching for employment after graduation. When a student graduates and is searching for a job, the obstacles they face can be daunting. Though students may have resources such as career counseling and internships available, they are often unaware of crucial information that will help them to get hired. Because of the competitive arena of finding work, having access to information about the company’s hiring process and work environment can benefit students in both getting hired and having a successful future with the potential company. For example, knowing the preferred layout of a cover letter and resume, the company culture and decorum, and the atmosphere of the work environment can be beneficial to any potential employee. If students had a better idea of what it was like to work within a certain company, they may be able to better able to make decisions regarding where they will work.

If a crowdsourcing website was available where employees could be recruited from companies anonymously, then students would have a resource where they could find answers to their questions and receive a competitive edge in the hiring process. Students could anonymously post questions on a website about a potential employer and employees could anonymously volunteer responses to those questions. The anonymity would protect employees from retaliation from their company if negative comments were posted. Because there would be no financial incentive, a volunteer’s motivation would lie in directing potential employees towards companies for which they would be compatible.

The prototype for connecting students to anonymous employees would be started by creating a website where students and employees of targeted companies could anonymously exchange correspondence. The website itself could be advertised by making use of pertinent social networks, such as Facebook or university networks boards to advertise to both to students and employees of targeted companies. These companies would be potential employers that regularly advertise to graduating students to hire them for entry level positions. Students would be invited to place anonymous, open-call questions about concerns they have about particular companies.

Employees from these companies would then be invited to address these concerns anonymously. Students then could be guided through the hiring process or given a clear account of the actual work environment once they had gone through the hiring process. Once the students receive a response, the companies that receive anonymous better reviews have a higher success rate of hiring and retaining new employees which would in turn receive more business from the universities they work with, since they would have a higher success rate of hiring students graduating college.

By combining resources and information, crowdsourcing allows for a better experience to not just students, but faculty and staff as well. The sharing of information can help all affiliated with a college or university in solving problems and forming community bonds which will ultimately serve in the betterment of the institution.

Work Cited

Schaffhauser, Dian. “Student Crowdsourcing on Campus.” Campus Technology. 01 30 2013: n. page. Web. 25 Mar. 2013. <http://campustechnology.com/articles/2013/01/30/student-crowdsourcing-on-campus.asp&xgt;.

Young, Jeffrey. “Colleges Try ‘Crowdsourcing’ Help Desks to Save Money.” Chronicle of Higher Education. 01 Nov 2009: n. page. Web. 25 Mar. 2013. <http://chronicle.com/article/Colleges-to-Try/48982/>.