TikTok is introducing a “Campus Hub,” as confirmed by the company in an email to TechCrunch on Thursday. This new hub includes college group chats and customized feeds to help students maintain connections with their campus communities during summer breaks.
This development builds on TikTok’s campus verification feature, launched last August, allowing users to add their college to their profile and view a list of students at their school for easier connections. The feature is accessible across over 6,000 universities through TikTok’s partnership with UNiDAYS, a student verification service.
After confirming their student status, users can access the new campus hub. Students can form and join group chats of up to 300 classmates, limited to verified students from the same institution. TikTok suggests using these chats for maintaining contact, planning reunions, or continuing discussions during summer.
The chats may encourage students to utilize TikTok for everyday school communication, such as class or club discussions, which are usually held on platforms like Discord, Facebook Messenger, or Instagram.
Regarding the new college feeds, users will have a personalized feed with content from verified students and university-related posts. TikTok states these feeds ensure students remain connected to campus life, trends, and news from any location.
These features hearken back to Facebook’s initial days when it was exclusively campus-focused, requiring a “.edu” email to join and connect with classmates.
Notably, TikTok isn’t alone in enhancing connectivity for college students. Instagram, owned by Meta, launched a similar feature last year in the U.S., letting students add their college to their profile banner and browse a list of peers at their school.