How the Geneva Graduate Institute Influenced 1 in 4 Admits to Enroll with Unibuddy

The Challenge

The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies needed a better way to transition admits into enrolled students and streamline their communications. As a small, graduate-only school in Geneva focused on international affairs and development, they also wanted a space where admits could truly get to know them. A place where they could follow updates, feel supported, and start building connections before arrival.

Their existing tools weren’t cutting it:

• Facebook groups that once worked were losing traction.
• WhatsApp groups quickly spiralled into unmanageable streams of hundreds of messages.
• Staff were stuck repeating the same answers, while students lacked a structured, welcoming space to connect, ease anxieties, and start building a sense of belonging.

They needed one central hub to serve as the official onboarding space to give students the best possible start to their enrollment journey while easing the burden on staff.