TikTok has introduced Campus Verification, a new feature designed to help college students find and connect with classmates.
Highlights
- New Feature: Campus Verification lets students add university details, verify with an academic email, and access a dedicated campus page.
- Student Directory: Verified users can browse classmates, filter by graduation year, and sort by follower count—echoing early Facebook’s model.
- Global Rollout: Covers 6,000+ universities worldwide through a partnership with student verification platform UNiDAYS.
- Privacy Options: Students can choose to hide their academic info, but concerns remain over TikTok’s extensive data collection practices.
- Security Concerns: Some universities restrict TikTok on campus devices or advise deleting it due to potential risks.
- Competitive Context: Mirrors Instagram’s tested (but limited) school-connection features, reviving Facebook’s campus-networking strategy.
The tool allows users to add their university and graduation year to their profile, verify enrollment through an academic email, and access a dedicated campus page featuring other verified students.
Once verified, students can browse peers from their school, filter by graduation year, and sort by follower count—creating a digital directory that echoes the early growth strategy of Facebook in the mid-2000s.
The rollout covers more than 6,000 universities worldwide through a partnership with UNiDAYS, a student verification platform. TikTok says the goal is to strengthen students’ sense of belonging and position the app as both a creative outlet and a networking hub.
Privacy and Data Concerns of Campus Verification
While optional, the feature raises privacy questions by linking academic details to social profiles. TikTok emphasizes that users can keep their student information private if they prefer.
Concerns are not unfounded – research shows young users already adopt strategies to guard their privacy on TikTok, such as maintaining multiple accounts or sharing content privately.
TikTok’s data collection extends beyond profile details to include device information, location, browsing patterns, keystrokes, and in-app behavior. This breadth of data collection has drawn scrutiny from institutions worldwide.
Several universities have restricted TikTok on campus devices, and some advise removing the app entirely due to potential security risks.
TikTok’s move comes as other platforms test similar ideas. Instagram, for instance, was seen trialing a feature that let users display school details and connect with classmates, though it has not expanded beyond testing.
