Chatbots on Campus

Key takeaways

• Today’s students are already using voice assistants daily
• Students appreciate the instant responses they receive from chatbots
• Colleges should invest in chatbots to meet students’ expectations

Students, College of Science, Technology, and Applied Arts, Trinidad and Tobago

Ronika St. Hilaire: I own a Echo Dot from Amazon and I use it in my room. So I use it to turn on my lights, my fan, in some cases I even use it to set reminder and alarms.

Rhonda Victoria Metivier: I use OK Google and I use it to locate places-- well, I use the maps and I also use it to answer particular questions that I need.

Daniela Woolford: If I need assistance in an assignment, I will use it on my phone asking Google various questions get the answers. It's a lot faster and less time consuming.

Ronika St. Hilaire: COSTAATT's chatbot answers the average questions that students would ask. “When does registration start? How do I pay my school fees? Where do I get academic advisement?”

Paula Joseph: Where is the El Dorado Campus?

Alexa: This campus, the Academy of Nursing and Allied Health, is located on the corner of College and S-T Cecelia Roads. A directional map can be viewed in Maps on the Ellucian App via Google.

Paula Joseph: Before the chatbot trials, I used to actually visit school or call into school, which was a disadvantage because when you call maybe a lot of other students are calling as well, so the phone lines would be busy. Sometimes they wouldn't be answered.

Keanu Belle: It's less frustrating, it takes less time, and the answers are right there at your fingertips. You don't have to go and leave home to find your lecturer. You don't have to wait in a long line. So you will have people in front of you, it would take time, and be frustrating, and this just shaves down all of that. So it's quick at it's at your fingertips.

Colleges should invest in chatbot technologies because of the time we are in now. Millennials, we are so quick for information. We are slightly less patient and with these chatbots, you ask the question, and it's an instant. And by the snap up your fingers, you get your answer. So I just think is the time—we are so wanting, and so quickly able to get information, and colleges should invest in that.