Instagram rolled a new feature for college students across the United States last year, aimed at helping students connect with their peers in a more meaningful and secure way. Originally focused on universities, this initiative expands Instagram’s School Partnership Program (SPP) in collaboration with educational organizations like ISTE and ASCD. The new student-only space allows verified students to add their school to their Instagram profile, making it easier to connect with fellow classmates, join campus clubs, and foster a sense of community.
People added their college to their bio, now they will have a banner.
College and high school students just need to clic on “Add your school” in their settings (under Account type and tools or Business tools and controls), so their Instagram profiles show a custom banner that displays their university or school. Students can opt into this feature by completing a verification process through the student verification platform UNiDAYS, which ensures that users are genuinely enrolled at the school they claim.
Once verified, students can choose who can view their school banner, giving them control over their privacy settings. For added protection, directories and school banners are only visible to other verified classmates and mutual teen followers. As Instagram stated, the verification process is designed to maintain a safe and trusted environment for students to interact online.
Doesn’t it remind anyone of when Facebook started? Nostalgia entered the chat.
In addition to the school banner, students will gain access to a directory of other verified students from their university or high school. This directory provides a simple way to browse and connect with classmates, whether they are looking to make new friends, find study partners, or join campus groups. Students can also explore a dedicated Clubs & Teams hub (e.g., finding their school’s math team or sports club) to stay updated on campus events.
To address concerns about distractions and safety, Meta is also giving participating schools direct tools to keep their communities informed:
Instagram’s goal with this new feature is to foster authentic connections between students, allowing them to interact in a way that reflects their real-world college experience. To reinforce safety, these tools integrate with Instagram’s Teen Accounts and Family Center, notifying parents if their teen joins or leaves a school directory, while allowing parents to block app access during school hours.
This aligns perfectly with their recent updates: Reposts, friends map, suggested reels, and picks.
In order to achieve this, Instagram has partnered with UNiDAYS, a leader in student verification, to ensure that all users who access the directory and display their school are genuinely enrolled. UNiDAYS’s world-leading verification technology plays a key role in promoting digital trust and safety within this new student space.
According to UNiDAYS, the partnership represents a commitment to creating safer, more rewarding digital experiences for young people. By verifying student identities and establishing digital trust, Instagram and UNiDAYS are working together to empower students to make meaningful connections without compromising their privacy or security.
This sudden “step up” in safety measures for minors and young people on social media is likely a result of the recent lawsuit Meta faced for causing harm to teenagers with their addictive algorithms.
Image: Instagram
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