As part of higher education digital transformation, institutions are modernising how they recruit, support, and engage students. Microsoft solutions for higher education can improve operational efficiency, student engagement, and service quality across digital higher education services throughout the student lifecycle.
Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms are now widely adopted across universities as a higher education crm for managing recruitment, engagement, and student services. A well-designed CRM helps institutions recruit, engage, and support students across every stage of the student lifecycle. However, many CRM deployments fail to meet higher education requirements—missing critical data structures, workflows, and reporting needed to run the full student lifecycle.
Fortunately, Microsoft has created a solution – the Dynamics 365 for Higher Education Accelerator. It includes entities for student engagement, internships, scholarships, grants, and accomplishments. Moreover, Microsoft solutions for higher education also cover specific entities, fields, forms, views, and dashboards required for institutions.
How can Microsoft solutions support higher education digital transformation and improve outcomes?
First, the accelerator helps institutions support student success by improving how services and resources are targeted and delivered. It also improves decision-making by providing a unified view of student interactions, progress, and needs across departments. Crucially, the accelerator consolidates student data into a single, governed record—a core requirement in digital higher education—enabling reliable insights into the student experience. Last but not least, it supports coordinated engagement across key stakeholders—students, academic staff, and (where appropriate) parents or guardians.
Key advantages of the Higher Education Accelerator
Drive higher student satisfaction
Collect, store, and analyse student data in a consistent, structured format. Gain a 360-degree view of the student journey—including scholarships, courses, events, internships, and support interactions. Understand how students engage across the institution, and identify where experience or outcomes are breaking down.
Unify communication across the student lifecycle with a higher education crm
Create personalised communications for prospects, applicants, and current students based on stage, intent, and needs. Strengthen alumni relationships with targeted outreach and ongoing engagement journeys. Manage both student and alumni engagement through one coordinated platform—without duplicating work across teams.
Improve recruitment by focusing on the right prospects
Segment prospective students and prioritise those showing the strongest intent and fit. Focus investment on the channels and campaigns proven to generate qualified applicants.
Plan, promote, and manage events
Centralise events, invitations, registrations, and attendance—and report on impact and ROI with confidence.
Automate communications and follow-ups
Integrate the accelerator with tools your teams already use, such as Outlook and Teams, to streamline communication and collaboration in digital higher education teams.
Maintain accurate student information in one place
Capture student information consistently at the point of interaction to reduce loss, duplication, and rework. In addition, automate reminders, notifications, and invitations to the right cohorts based on rules and lifecycle stage.
Be better prepared for disruption
Stay resilient and adaptable as circumstances change—without losing visibility or control. With the Higher Education Accelerator, you can maintain high engagement and continuity of service—even during disruption. Whether learning is remote or in-person, the right data remains accessible, secure, and shareable across authorised teams. Contact us to schedule a free consultation for your business.
Data-driven dashboards and reports
In digital higher education, view real-time metrics for applications, offers, and conversion performance. Track progress against recruitment targets using interactive dashboards and decision-ready reporting in your higher education crm.
