If colleges and universities want to achieve their strategic goals in the digital era, they need a reliable, high-speed network infrastructure. But with the demands on campus networks growing exponentially, how can higher-education CIOs stay ahead of these requirements and plan effectively for future needs?
Students and faculty now expect seamless, ubiquitous WiFi access across the entire campus, and residential students arrive with an ever-increasing number of devices requiring connectivity. Plus, college and university CIOs have to plan for the Internet of Things, the research needs of faculty, and the capacity to handle future technologies as well.
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According to the most recent “State of the Residential Network Study” from the Association of College and University Housing Officers International (ACUHO-I), the average student brings five to seven internet-connected devices to campus — and students have come to expect reliable wireless access on all of them.
“With student expectations for ‘always-on’ WiFi for any device anywhere, campus networks have become one of the most challenging initiatives for universities today,” says ACUHO-I Chief Executive Mary M. DeNiro.