How KTH Creates a More Connected Journey from Admission to Arrival

Hear from KTH

In our conversation with Julia Hahrs and Sofia Zangrande from KTH Royal Institute of Technology, we spoke about the engagement signals they find valuable, the questions students have before moving to Stockholm and how Goin' fits into KTH's wider pre-arrival activities.

▶️ Watch the conversation below

What Student Engagement Tells KTH

When asked which engagement insights are most useful to their team, Sophia and Julia started with the connections students make with each other.

"I would say the connections that the students make, one-on-one connections on the app."

They also look at registrations, participation in programme-specific groups and how active those groups become after students are invited. The conversations themselves provide another useful signal. Are new students asking questions? Are current students getting involved and sharing their experiences? What is the general activity like within each group?

This sits alongside other pre-departure engagement, such as webinars and social media. From their experience, students who take these steps also tend to be the students who eventually arrive and enrol at KTH.

In KTH's previous cycle report, 75% of students said connecting with other students on Goin' made them more likely to choose KTH, while 85% said using the community reassured them that choosing KTH was the right decision.

Sometimes Students Aren't Looking for a New Answer

One point from our conversation with KTH stood out. Students often ask questions even when the answer is already available.

From a university perspective, the information might be easy to find online. But Sophia and Julia pointed out that students are often looking for something slightly different.

"Sometimes we feel maybe they ask the same kind of questions or everything is very searchable or easy access to finding the answers... but they still want this validation and maybe clarification or even just confirmation of everything."

For an international student, the context behind those questions matters. Moving abroad to study can mean spending a significant amount of money, leaving an existing support network and moving to a country they may never have visited before.

As Sophia and Julia put it:

"Not forgetting that it's a huge decision. And we want to be there all along the way. And Goin' is one part of that."

The student survey shows a similar picture. 87% said talking to other students on Goin' helped reduce concerns about making new friends, while 79% said it helped with concerns around cultural differences, local language and social norms. Another 88% said it helped with concerns about student life and experiences, and 89% said Goin' improved their sense of belonging to KTH.

Making One of the Biggest Challenges of Moving to Stockholm Easier 

When Sophia and Julia were asked what they would fix for students before they arrive, there wasn't much hesitation.

"Housing. A hundred percent."

Finding accommodation in Stockholm is a recurring topic among incoming students, and this shows in the activity within the KTH community. Sophia and Julia highlighted housing, finding roommates and housing swaps as some of their strongest groups, with activity remaining high throughout the period leading up to arrival.

Looking at the conversations in these groups gives a clearer picture of what students are trying to figure out. They discuss housing offers in different parts of Stockholm, the housing process, accommodation close to KTH, roommates and shared apartments. There are also questions connected to moving to Sweden, including residence permits, personnummer and coordination numbers.

KTH's report found that 87% of students said Goin' helped them find information about housing or accommodation. Some students also reported using the community to find a housemate or someone to search for housing with.

For students, the conversations provide something different from an information page. They can hear what others have experienced, compare options and learn from students dealing with many of the same challenges.

Adding Another Layer to the Pre-Arrival Experience

KTH already supports admitted students through direct communication, webinars and other pre-arrival activities. Goin' adds a peer-to-peer layer where students can connect, exchange experiences and get advice from others going through the same process.

Sophia and Julia describe it simply:

"Goin' is a complement to everything else we do."

That additional layer also gives students another place to find answers. 92% said Goin' helped them get answers to questions they would normally have asked university staff, while hundreds of Champions were active in the community to share their own experience with incoming students.

KTH can continue building its relationship with admitted students, while students have their own space to build relationships with each other.

Keeping the Student at the Centre

Towards the end of our conversation, Sophia and Julia explained why Goin' fitted easily into KTH's existing processes.

A large part of that came down to a shared focus on students.

"We really keep the students in mind, like first thing in mind... for everything when we plan, when we report on the activities we do."

They saw a similar approach in Goin':

"You can really see that the students are the center of it all... I think that's what made it very easy for us to integrate it in our processes."

KTH's results give a good indication of how students themselves view the experience. 89% said Goin' improved their sense of belonging, while 85% said it reassured them that KTH was the right decision.

For KTH, the community has become another part of supporting students between admission and arrival. It gives the team insight into what students are thinking about and gives students a place to connect around the questions and concerns that come with moving to a new country.

And as Sophia and Julia pointed out, sometimes students aren't looking for more information. They simply want to hear from someone who understands what they're about to do.

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About Goin’

Goin' is a friendship and community platform for higher education, helping universities strengthen student recruitment, engagement and retention with little additional effort from their teams. 

By connecting prospective and admitted students with their peers, Goin' helps students build friendships, find answers and feel more confident about their decision to enrol. Universities gain insight into student engagement and concerns, while students support and connect with each other throughout the journey. The result is stronger conversion, belonging and retention, without adding significant workload for university staff.