- eCampus News - https://www.ecampusnews.com -

Does Gen Z value a degree over a digital connection?

Internet, or education? If you ask Gen Z, the internet wins: an astonishing 64 percent of Gen Z would rather have unlimited internet access and no college degree than a college degree and no internet access, according to a new study.

According to Reality Bytes: The Digital Experience is the Human Experience [1], it seems the internet and being connected are absolutely necessary for Gen Z-ers. The study, conducted by The Center for Generational Kinetics and commissioned by WP Engine, is a follow-up to a 2017 study.

“Gen Z is the first generation to view the digital and physical worlds as one,” the study’s authors note. “For Gen Z, being digitally connected is an essential part of life.”

This is the first generation to view the people who manage or build the internet as more important than political leaders around the world, with 54 percent of Gen Z reporting that belief.

An internet-dependent generation

Gen Z remains the most internet-dependent generation–55 percent of Gen Z can’t comfortably go more than four hours without the internet, while 22 percent of Baby Boomers can go a week or more. Twenty-seven percent of Gen Z can’t go without the internet for more than an hour without becoming uncomfortable.

This near-dependence on the internet may be due to the fact that Gen Z strongly associates the internet with social media (85 percent) and entertainment or content websites (81 percent)–the internet is an extension of their lives, and this generation doesn’t distinguish between “online” and “offline” in the way other generations do. In fact, many educators are trying strategies such as using social media to engage Gen Z in class [2], while others are turning to experts for advice on the best ways educators can reach Gen Z [3].

Gen Z and internet habits

Gen Z not only expects 24/7 digital access, but expects that within five years everything–including clocks, refrigerators, vacuums, dishwashers, and other appliances–will be connected online. These expectations for digital access and how they’ll evolve into everyday life could have important implications for campus technology and future educational innovations, as well.

This generation also has a powerful tech-centric view of the future. When thinking about how websites will function five years from now:

Gen Z has grown up in the hyper-personalized world of targeted advertisements and social platforms. As a result, members are willing to trade privacy for personalized experiences–44 percent will provide their personal data to enable a more personalized experience over an anonymous one. Forty-four percent of Gen Z say they would stop visiting a website if it didn’t anticipate what they needed, liked, or wanted.

Building a personal brand is also highly instinctive, but members of Gen Z are much more purposeful and conscientious about it than their Millennial counterparts. Seventy-two percent of Gen Z worry their online actions, including social media posts and past purchases, will affect job offers, and 53 percent believe their online reputation will determine their dating options.

Authenticity matters when it comes to services, brands, and products–79 percent trust a company more if the images it uses are not photoshopped and 84 percent trust a company more if it uses actual customers in its ads.

Sixty-nine percent of Gen Z are more likely to buy from a company that contributes to social causes, and 33 percent have stopped buying from a company that contributes to a social cause they disagree with.

“Gen Zers are empowered, connected, practical, empathetic self-starters who want to stand out and make a difference in the world,” says Jason Dorsey, president at The Center for Generational Kinetics. “They merge the human and digital experiences – it is all one combined reality for them. They are fueled by technology engagement and value uniqueness, authenticity, creativity, shareability and purpose. And they look for that from the world around them.”