2025 Engagement Case Study
How “Class” Instagram Communities Outperform Paid Ads & Reimagine Siloed Student Engagement
Introduction
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This case study is an annual review of how MeetYourClass Instagram communities performed during the Fall 2025 admissions cycle. Rather than focusing solely on communities that excelled, this case study looks at results across all MeetYourClass communities—even the ones that performed relatively worse than others.
The performance and return on investment of MeetYourClass Instagram communities will be juxtaposed throughout this study against:
The direct costs incurred by university marketing and communications teams on Meta advertisements.
Admissions teams investing in student engagement strategies that are not integrated with the social media apps students already use.
Note: This case study highlights the significant impact MeetYourClass has had on students and the reach of our communities. In the coming months, we'll release a follow-up case study detailing specifically how MeetYourClass is used by our partner institutions and its effect on enrollment outcomes throughout the Fall 2025 admissions cycle.
Key Results Summary
Across our partner institutions:
The average MeetYourClass Instagram account engaged 91x more individuals than the size of each respective school’s incoming freshman class.
The average featured student made connections with 51 other prospective students.
The average MeetYourClass Instagram account was actively followed by as many individuals as 85.6% of the incoming class size.
Each featured student individually generated an average of $49.60 of value in terms of equivalent advertising spend.
Bonus: Across all colleges, including the ones that do not partner with MeetYourClass, our Instagram communities reached approximately 59 million unique individuals.
Background
How MeetYourClass Connects with Instagram
For each institution that partnered with MeetYourClass during the Fall 2025 admissions cycle, our team created an Instagram account specifically for their incoming class (typically the “Class of 2029”).
The primary function of each Instagram account was to “feature” prospective students of the university. It varied by each partner institution, but students were typically granted access to post and be featured on the accounts once they had applied to the institution.
Each feature post was submitted by the student and included 1–10 photos of themselves along with a brief description of their background, interests, excitement about campus, whether they’re looking for a roommate, schools they are considering, and anything else interesting to them about going to college.
MeetYourClass connects with Instagram’s back-end infrastructure to automate the process of featuring students. From a student’s perspective, they visit www.meetyourclass.com/[college_name]/instagram, make a profile, and then can be featured with the click of a button (pending approval and verification from the MeetYourClass team).
The above visual is an example of a “feature” on a “class” Instagram account. In this case, the feature was of MeetYourClass’ CEO, Blake Mischley, posting to a page for the University of Michigan’s Class of 2025 four years ago.
The Status Quo: Meta Advertisements (for Top-of-Funnel Brand Awareness and Driving Inquiries)
In a 2024 survey, the Primary Research Group found that 4‑year colleges and universities spent on average $130,000 per year on Meta (Instagram and Facebook) advertisements. A similar 2022 study by Ruffalo Noel Levitz found that private institutions on average allocate 19% and public institutions allocate 9% of their marketing and recruitment budgets to digital advertising and lead generation.
Paid social media ads work on a pay-per-impression model—universities pay for each view or click their content receives. On Meta platforms like Instagram, the cost per thousand impressions (CPM) averaged $12.78 per 1,000 views in August, 2025.
These advertisements are not only remarkably expensive, but the exposure stops when the budget stops—you’re essentially renting attention. Every new admissions cycle or marketing campaign means renewed ad spending to maintain visibility. In short, buying impressions can be an expensive and continuous effort, with costs scaling linearly for each additional prospective student reached.
In contrast, MeetYourClass offers universities a solution to proactively gather student-generated content and use it to generate organic impressions on Instagram—providing a more affordable and arguably more effective approach to building brand awareness and driving applications.
Emerging Trend: “Siloed” Student Engagement Strategies (for Mid- to Late-Funnel Engagement)
Meta advertisements are typically placed top-of-funnel to build university brand awareness and garner inquiries. In order to convert inquiries into enrolled students, many universities have invested in student engagement strategies that aim to help students meet each other, find friends and roommates, and converse in group chats. Whether it is creating a singular Facebook group or investing in an engagement app invented solely for the college admissions journey, the goal of these strategies is to increase affinity and create an easier bridge for students to attend the institution—which has been linked to improved enrollment outcomes.
MeetYourClass is the first student engagement platform that builds on this concept without a major sacrifice. MeetYourClass is still connected to the social media apps students already use, and allows students to connect on multiple platforms of choice. This case study focuses specifically on the marrying of Instagram with the MeetYourClass platform. By bringing Instagram into the equation rather than solely requiring students to download and adopt a whole new system, MeetYourClass was able to capture high levels of engagement in a completely organic way, which are dissected in the Results section of this case study.
Methodology
We assessed all 335 “Class of 2029” MeetYourClass Instagram accounts to understand how our student communities impacted enrollment decisions throughout the Fall 2025 admissions cycle. To quantify the impact of our communities, we analyzed six key metrics—Reach, Views, Visits, Follows, Features, and Connections. We collected data from August 19, 2024, to August 18, 2025 and broke our findings out for MeetYourClass partner and non-partner institutions.
Metrics Analyzed
Reach: The number of unique, individual people who saw MeetYourClass content at least once.
Views: The number of times content from an Instagram account shows up on someone’s screen and they actually play or look at it.
Visits: The number of times people navigated to and looked at a MeetYourClass Instagram account profile.
Follows: The number of people who followed a MeetYourClass Instagram account during the selected time period.
Features: The number of admitted students who featured themselves on a MeetYourClass Instagram community.
Connections: The number of times a featured student both followed and was followed back by another prospective student (similar to a connection on LinkedIn).
Note: MeetYourClass has never paid for Instagram advertising or promoted its accounts. All metrics reflect purely organic discovery, adoption, and engagement from prospective students and others interested in the 335 respective colleges.
For our analysis, we also considered Students—the number of “first-time degree/certificate-seeking undergraduate students” per IPEDS (2022-2023)—and Partner—whether or not a given university is an official partner of MeetYourClass.
A table detailing all metrics for each of the 335 colleges can be requested in the Raw Data section . The data points for Reach, Views, Visits, and Follows were aggregated directly from the official dashboard for viewing Instagram account engagement metrics, Meta Business Suite, an example of which is shown in the Appendix.
Results
There are four key metrics that we believe are of significance for institutions that formally partnered with MeetYourClass: Reach per First-Year Student, Connections per Student, Account follows per First-Year Student, and Views per Feature.
Each metric was broken down in our analysis to provide an average across all partner institutions, as well as by quartiles of the first-year class size—which for our partner base is reflected by <300, 300-500, 501-1,200, and >1,200 first-year students.
1. Reach per First-Year Student
Across partners, the average institution’s MeetYourClass Instagram account reached 77,576 individual Instagram users. This figure is approximately 91 times greater than the size of the average first-year incoming class.
First-Year Students
Avg. Reach
Avg. Reach/First-Year Student
Under 300 students
19,824 individuals
Approx. 116 times more
300 - 500 students
27,338 individuals
Approx. 66 times more
501 - 1,200 students
50,982 individuals
Approx. 60 times more
Over 1,200 students
245,808 individuals
Approx. 120 times more
2. Connections per Featured Student
Across partners, the average student who was featured on a MeetYourClass Instagram account made 51 new connections with other prospective students.
First-Year Students
Average Number of Connections
Under 300 students
43 connections
300 - 500 students
38 connections
501 - 1,200 students
48 connections
Over 1,200 students
66 connections
3. Account Follows per First-Year Student
Across partners, the average institution’s MeetYourClass Instagram account had 85.6% followers as a percentage of the number of first-year students who matriculated in the fall. Each of these students were actively engaged by MeetYourClass nearly every time they opened Instagram.
First-Year Students
Avg. Follows/First-Year Student
Under 300 students
102.0%
300 - 500 students
75.8%
501 - 1,200 students
75.8%
Over 1,200 students
91.3%
4. Views per Featured Student
Across partners, the average student featured on a MeetYourClass account garnered 3,881 total views. With Instagram’s current CPM averaging $12.78 per 1,000 views, this means that each MeetYourClass feature on average saved:
($12.78 * 3,881 Views) / 1,000 Views = $49.60
in equivalent amount of ad spend for that many impressions.
First-Year Students
Avg. Views/Feature
Equivalent Ad Spend
Under 300 students
3,041 views
$38.86 per feature
300 - 500 students
2,468 views
$31.54 per feature
501 - 1,200 students
3,523 views
$45.03 per feature
Over 1,200 students
4,432 views
$56.64 per feature
Bonus
Across all 335 MeetYourClass Instagram accounts during the Fall 2025 admissions cycle, our communities reached 58,679,314 individual people on Instagram, had 565,177 individuals actively following them, and garnered 882,531,776 views across all student features (representing >$11 million of equivalent ad spend).
How MeetYourClass Achieved These Results
MeetYourClass significantly boosted the organic visibility for the universities where we managed “Class of 2029” Instagram communities during the Fall 2025 admissions cycle. As outlined above, the average piece of student-generated content published on MeetYourClass partner communities was viewed 3,881 times. This content not only reached the hand-raisers who deliberately chose to “follow” MeetYourClass communities, but also had the opportunity to reach the near three-quarters of 15-17 year olds in the U.S. who already actively use the app. There are three primary situations that lead to MeetYourClass content reaching prospective students through Instagram:
1. Students Actively Follow the Account
A student who follows the account will see nearly all posted content. This bucket typically accounts for around 30% of total content viewership, and importantly, these are hand-raisers—students who have proactively chosen to follow the page, signaling genuine interest in the institution.
For pre-application students, the content they see serves as a qualitative representation of the university—they are getting a glimpse into the actual people they will be surrounded with if they choose to enroll at the institution. For our partners, this reach develops awareness, acts as repeated touchpoints, and serves as an ongoing reminder for the student to apply to their school.
For admitted students, the content they see helps them identify individuals they may want to be friends with, room with, carpool to events with, etc. For our partners, the content serves as ongoing reinforcement for the students they are trying to recruit and can play a critical role in yield strategies and summer melt prevention. For instance, for our first partner, students who used MeetYourClass melted at 61% lower of a rate relative to their peers who did not use MeetYourClass.
2. Instagram’s Algorithm Suggests It
Social media algorithms amplify relevant, popular content. Individual posts within a class community can get picked up by Instagram’s algorithm, appearing in the Explore feeds of other prospective students interested in similar content. The platform does the work of distribution, at no cost to the university.
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3. Students Broadcast Content to their Personal Networks
Most impactfully, students featured in class communities often share content of themselves to their personal networks—dramatically widening the reach. For instance, when a student is featured, they typically re-post their feature to their personal Instagram friend list:
The above visual is of Instagram’s recently released “reposting” feature. When a student clicks the repost button, the post will appear in the feeds of nearly their entire friend list. Students can also broadcast content to their entire friend lists by sharing posts to their 24-hour expiring “story” or by adding themselves as a “collaborator” on posts—something MeetYourClass actively encourages when students sign up.
When a student reposts their feature to their personal friend list, the student essentially becomes an authentic, organic billboard for the university. Each feature, therefore, can tap into the personal networks of the student, reaching not just fellow applicants but also family friends, friends of their younger siblings, younger classmates from their high school, etc.
Significance Beyond the Numbers
The above analysis on our “Class of 2029” Instagram communities during the Fall 2025 admissions cycle demonstrates how MeetYourClass communities have the opportunity to outperform status quo engagement solutions from a quantitative standpoint. In this section, we want to shed light onto the additional qualitative advantages.
Relative to Meta Advertisements (for Top-of-Funnel Brand Awareness and Driving Inquiries)
It’s Not Just About the Cost of Impressions, It’s About Authenticity
Beyond the raw numbers, not all impressions are equal. An impression from a friend’s Instagram Story and an impression from a glossy paid ad likely do not have the same impact. Student-generated content carries a level of authenticity and trust that branded advertisements often lack. In fact, 81% of consumers say they trust user-generated content more than content created by brands or even influencers. We believe prospective students scrolling through Instagram are more likely to stop and engage with a post from a fellow student than a polished university ad. It feels real and relatable—a peek into the lives of actual peers rather than marketing messaging.
With a class Instagram community, prospective students are exposed to a steady stream of authentic posts—featuring peers sharing why they’re excited to apply, why they chose to attend, showcasing their personalities, or connecting with future classmates. This consistent visibility builds social proof—the phenomenon where people are influenced by seeing others’ experiences. If a student sees “a bunch of positive reviews, testimonials, and success stories about a specific institution,” it can significantly sway their decision.
Insights Down to Individual CRM Records, Not Just Vanity Metrics
What’s more, engagement with MeetYourClass content is not in a black box—it’s actionable and trackable, unlike the vanity metrics that often come with traditional advertisements. Every student who joins the MeetYourClass platform or follows the class Instagram is a known individual (since MeetYourClass verifies identity and ties social accounts to real prospective students). This allows for admissions and enrollment leaders to match interactions to individual CRM records.
For example, with MeetYourClass, you can see that Student A followed your Instagram community two months ago but shortly unfollowed after clicking on your institution’s net price calculator—all synced to your Slate or Salesforce instance. In contrast, a Facebook or Instagram ad might tell you how many people clicked a link, but it won’t tell you which specific admitted students are warming up to your school unless they explicitly fill out a form.
Relative to “Siloed” Student Engagement Strategies (for Mid- to Late-Funnel Engagement)
The Opportunity for Organic Adoption
Instagram removes the adoption friction inherent to siloed engagement strategies. Students already use it daily, so discovery and participation occur without a separate download or onboarding flow. When a class Instagram account launches, its content reaches both intentional joiners and students who encounter posts via reposts from friends and algorithmic suggestions—creating sustained exposure within existing habits. As outlined in Results, the average feature was viewed approximately 3,881 times; partner accounts reached audiences about 91x the size of their incoming class; and, in aggregate, MeetYourClass communities reached roughly 59 million unique individuals. This level of organic visibility is difficult for siloed engagement strategies to replicate, which depend on schools pushing against the grain for adoption and relying on intermittent use that will inherently be less frequent than Instagram for the average student.
The Butterfly Effect of Students Following Each Other on Instagram
When a prospective student follows a peer they discovered through a MeetYourClass feature, an entire secondary layer of influence emerges that extends beyond the MeetYourClass community itself. Once that student-to-student connection is made, it creates a psychological tether between the individuals and the university. Ordinary content—prom photos, family outings, senior-year milestones—becomes indirectly associated with the school once the viewer knows that student is part of the incoming class. In effect, each student becomes a persistent, authentic brand impression for the institution. This dynamic represents the “butterfly effect” of MeetYourClass communities—where each connection multiplies into countless untracked, authentic brand touchpoints that universities replicate at all through paid ads or as efficiently through siloed engagement strategies.
In contrast, admissions-specific apps confine interactions to a walled garden students open infrequently. The identity-rich, day-to-day content that drives affinity lives on Instagram for a higher percentage of students, not inside a standalone tool. Even when students meet in admissions-specific apps, they often exchange Instagram handles to continue the relationship—adding a handoff that reduces connections. MeetYourClass removes that handoff by featuring students directly on Instagram, putting each student one click from friending/following a peer and allowing relationships—and impressions—to compound.
Frequency of Engagement Data
Because the average student opens Instagram every single day, MeetYourClass generates a continuous stream of behavioral signals on a platform they are bound to use and update more frequently than apps purpose built for the college admissions process. Our platform captures follows and unfollows, link clicks, and bio updates, and ties changes to verified MeetYourClass profiles, then mapped to institutional CRM records. The resulting cadence of high-frequency, identity-resolved data stands in contrast to the sparse events typical of standalone engagement tools that see sporadic logins. This richer, near real-time telemetry enables timely next-best actions (e.g., campus visit nudges, housing steps, FAFSA, deposits) without asking students to adopt a new system.
Appendix
The below visual is an example of a Meta Business Suite report. In this instance, for our University of Dayton Class of 2029 Instagram account from August 19, 2024 to August 18, 2025:
