Five Tech Companies With Student Partnerships

With the fall semester commencing soon, student inquiries about fall internships and career opportunities start rolling in. A continuing trend in campus communities is to participate in student ambassador programs.

For companies, an ambassador program is a great way to attract the student population as potential employees and as consumers. It’s also a smart marketing tool: Companies can utilize a social media-savvy group to spread the word about their products. Implementing a student ambassador program can help companies tap into a new market, create relevancy, and set the foundation for a deeper root in the community.

Here are 5 tech companies that have student ambassador programs:

1. Facebook

Facebook provides many opportunities for university students, including partnerships. The company uses student brand ambassadors to help generate awareness and create engagement for new products. One example is College Communities, a tool that helps students connect with the people at their school. Ambassadors are at the forefront of marketing new services and they even gather test results for these new products.

2. Uber

Uber encourages its campus brand ambassadors to make connections with community members and local businesses by offering free ride coupons. By utilizing this ambassador program, Uber is able to expand its presence into new communities and acquire new users.

3. LinkedIn

LinkedIn runs a program called “Campus Editors,” which appoints college students to operate like journalists. A Campus Editor works with LinkedIn’s editorial team to pitch ideas, write articles, and publish stories on the company’s Student Publishing Platform. This platform is a place where students can market themselves beyond their usual LinkedIn profile. Campus Editors bring awareness to this platform by creating content and by engaging peers to write about things that matter to them.

4. Microsoft

Microsoft has run its student ambassador program called Microsoft Student Partners (MSP) for more than 17 years. MSP has evolved into a program that gives students career training and hands-on experience with new technologies. Students grow their dev skills, receive mentorship, and get early access to new Microsoft products. In return, they help expand Microsoft’s customer base.

5. Google

Google’s student ambassador program started as “Google Pizza Program” in which Google ambassadors bought pizza for their computer science peers during exam periods. Though the program discontinued after 2017, Google was able to form ties with talented programmers that it would later hope to recruit. The ambassadors increased Google’s brand awareness, and helped the company create bonds with the next generation of consumers and employees.

Students are constantly looking for ways to develop their work experience, especially at the height of a new school year, so ambassador programs provide value for students. In return, students help companies get the word out about new services and help expand their reach into an ever-evolving demographic.

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