As higher education institutions navigate a return to learning this fall, they are faced with a host of challenges and, at times, competing priorities of learning and research continuity, financial solvency and—above all—safety amid a global health crisis. The time-honored tradition of America’s young adults packing up and moving to college to immerse themselves in a rich, in-person campus life has given way this fall to staggered starts, modified schedules and everything from class to research to events being moved to a virtual environment.
Higher education was already on a clear path to digital transformation pre-pandemic, but the fundamental disruption of the entire education infrastructure has put campus leaders in a race to build and bolster network infrastructure that can support ballooning demand and seamless transitions between in person, hybrid and remote learning and campus activities.
Network investments are more critical than ever
Today, 63% of campuses are using smart technologies to improve their learning environments and outcomes.1 What’s more, 41% of students rely on three or more devices to complete their coursework.2 That growing demand is putting a strain on legacy networks: nearly 70% of higher education leaders anticipate they’ll need an increase in bandwidth over the next 12 to 24 months.3
How to build a smarter educational infrastructure
The most successful colleges and universities will adapt to these unprecedented conditions through smart network infrastructure, leveraging an adaptive network foundation and wavelength services with an SD-WAN overlay to gain the flexibility, resilience and data intelligence needed to meet the demands of higher education in an increasingly demanding and unpredictable environment.
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