Dependable Wi-Fi connectivity is a must in higher education. Learners do not ask whether colleges have Wi-Fi but rather how to connect to it.
Learners assume that their educational institution will have Wi-Fi connections available for them as part of the package. That is why many institutions are investing in fast Wi-Fi to accommodate their internet-dependent learners without hassle.
Learners Need to be Connected
The University of Montana surveyed learners who were accepted but who did not enroll at the school. One of the main reasons learners did not enroll was the lack of wireless connectivity in their halls.
What was also found is that around 90% of learners own laptops and more than 70% own smartphones. This meant that the standard network ports for every dorm bedroom were no longer enough for the learners.
Thus, most university officials started to shift their focus to strengthening the Wi-Fi access in the living quarters of their institutions.
Drastic Increase of Mobile Devices
An explosion of mobile devices connected to the Wi-Fi of universities took place, with 90% of learners being simultaneously connected at some point in time. This is an increase of around 8,000 to 40,000 mobile devices connected to the network.
This type of increase forced universities to invest in much faster networks, and some of them even upgraded to 250 megabits per second for their Wi-Fi connections. This is about 20 times more than the average throughput in the US of around 10 MBps to accommodate all devices.
This was a much-needed upgrade, with new learners bringing along all their unique mobile devices that need Wi-Fi connections. This is the minimum of what learners of the future will expect when they consider enrolling in universities.
Leverage for Smart Campus Tech
One of the benefits institutions will have when they install faster Wi-Fi networks is better tech on campus. This will improve their chances of having better connectivity for worldwide interaction with universities in other countries.
It will also help improve learners’ chances to collaborate with learners in other educational institutions worldwide. Faster Wi-Fi connections will supply a strong backbone for the multitude of devices being used.
Most universities are already investing and implementing the IoT to help with campus facility management and provide a better experience to their learners.
This will help learners do online studies and stay connected to their university even when they are not there. Institutions will also be able to accommodate their off-campus learners with much faster connections.
Conclusion
Faster internet connections can benefit both the institutions and the learner while improvinglearning strategies and methods for educators. Most larger universities are already improving their connectivity options and speed to accommodate more unique mobile devices.