Key findings:

The devices students use for study

• 90 per cent of students and recent graduates said they use, or used, a laptop or desktop the most for their management course studies
• 56 per cent of students and recent graduates believe a mobile phone is, or was, essential to completing their management course

The usability of digital services

• 83 per cent of current or recent students and graduates said they use, or used, digital services to access learning resources
• Half of respondents rated the ability to access their grades through digital services as “excellent”

Use of apps in business schools

• App usage among business schools has risen by 37 percentage points, when comparing the experiences of those who graduated in 2018 and those who were studying in 2022
• Students and graduates most commonly use, or used, their apps to access personalised timetables (74 per cent)
• 79 per cent of respondents said they find, or found, their institution’s app useful

Alumni relations

• 78 per cent of respondents said they have, or would like to stay connected to their business school by using digital services or tools

Overall experience using digital services

• 78 per cent of respondents said they find, or found, accessing learning resources to be the most helpful aspect of a school’s digital offering for their overall experience
• On the flipside, students and graduates said they find, or found, connecting with their peers the most difficult aspect of using digital services

Matthew Sherlock, Product Strategy Director, Ex Libris campusM, said of the survey results, “There are exciting digital disruptors emerging that will change learning and teaching. As business schools evaluate how new platforms like ChatGPT are impacting their curriculum, it is important to keep one digital disruptor on the radar: the smartphone. While mobile devices aren’t new, they are a steady presence in our lives. Over half (56 per cent) of students and recent graduates believe a mobile phone is, or was, essential to completing their management course. If business schools want to capitalise on their students’ mobile real estate, we recommend that they start by listening to what their students want and expect from the digital experience within their MBA programme. This report is a good place to start.”

Ellen Buchan, Insight, Content & PR Manager, AMBA & BGA, also said, “Learning through an app is still a relatively unexplored territory for business schools. As technology becomes ever-more sophisticated, it is likely that we will see expansion in this regard. People are going to expect to have information at the tip of their fingers, wherever they are. There might come a time when opening up a laptop is not considered quick enough for accessing information and students will expect to be able to connect with their fellow students and professors, receive pertinent information and access their school’s library from a simple swipe of their smartphone.”