Mobile student apps: Zimbabwean institutions lag behind

Student services in many universities globally now include college mobile apps that enhance the student experience, but not all Zimbabwean universities are using them, according to Dr Vusumuzi Maphosa, the information and communications technology (ICT) director and app developer at Lupane State University (LSU) in Zimbabwe.

Students interviewed by University World News said some of their universities rely only on websites to provide crucial student services.

However, some international tech companies working on higher education applications claim the globe is fast moving towards a world in which mobile apps will be important features of the modern-day university.

Where is the world headed?

E2sapp, a mobile application owned by global provider of student lifecycle solutions for higher education Engag2Serve Inc, maintains college mobile apps are pervading universities.

According to the E2sapp website: “The next big thing on the campuses is going to be university mobile apps that cater to students’ administrative needs as 98% of millennials now own smartphones and use apps to do virtually everything.”

Maphosa, the developer of MyLSU (the college app used by students at LSU), told University World News that, “Internationally, mobile apps are now part of student services.”

He said that, in Zimbabwe, however, few universities have developed and integrated apps with their systems. He blames this on a lack of developers and emphasis on the importance of student mobile apps.

What role can student apps play?

Maphosa said student apps “can serve as a marketing tool, a central point for information access and improve digital skills of students”.

Specific services student apps can provide include student registration, voting in student representative council elections, sharing of class material such as lectures and presentations, viewing of examination results and coordination of social activities.

Some colleges use only web-based solutions, but apps can save on mobile data.

Former student representative council president of Women’s University in Africa in Marondera, Zimbabwe, Paidamoyo Masaraure, said her college has no mobile apps for students.

“We have a website called My Hope; that’s where we get all the information that we want; that’s where we get our timetable, our results, transcripts and the modules that we are learning at that particular time.”

Masaraure, however, feels that student apps, when compared to web-based platforms such as her school’s website, save mobile data. In Zimbabwe, a country with a struggling economy, students struggle to afford data.

Calvin Muvheyi, who studies at the Great Zimbabwe University (GZU) in Masvingo, said they did not have mobile apps designed for students at his school. “At GZU we have the student portal ... It is the only online platform we have. This is where we find information concerning the fees structure and timetable.”

Apps necessary for integrated services

Munashe Mhazo, a student at Bindura University of Science Education (BUSE), said his college has at least one functional student application called the BUSE Module.

The app, however, has limited information and is not widely used. “BUSE Module is a platform for lecturers and students to interact regarding education material but not much is displayed on that platform. In fact, it’s not even used to its full capacity, but that’s what we have.”

Mhazo said most of the important information is shared on the university website or student portal. However, he said, students prefer a situation where all the important services are provided on one application. “If the student application included everything, it would be easier for students to accomplish many tasks,” he said.

“The fact that these things are done on different platforms makes it difficult for people to know what’s happening, like when students are voting in SRC elections, for instance.

“If everything is on one application, when you are checking on your academic material, perhaps you will also see voting notifications in the same application. All in all, to have one application for most student services would be effective and we would benefit from such a scenario.”

A solution to underperforming web platforms

God’swill Maponde, who also studies at BUSE, said some of the university’s web-based solutions often fail to perform when overwhelmed by online traffic.

“Sometimes, when it’s time for registration, the portals will be overwhelmed, especially when registration is nearly closing, and we will be struggling to gain access. If we have an application that can be used to register, vote and access university news, among other things, it will make our lives easier,” he said.

The University of Zimbabwe (UZ) in Harare mostly develops apps for events and causes, such as the app named University of Zimbabwe Research Week 2019, or UZ Idai, that was designed to consolidate relief efforts from the college during a natural disaster. The university has no app with integrated services to cater for student needs, however.

Allan Chipoyi, a student at UZ, said students at his college get most of their services from a web-based platform called Emhare. “When I enrolled at the UZ in 2019, there was a web-based platform called Tsime where we could find lecture notes, but the platform is no longer working. We are only left with Emhare.”

He said the Emhare platform was not sufficient to cater for student needs. “What we must take into consideration is that we are now living in the 21st century, we are now living in a world that is technologically advanced. It’s not viable to have one portal for all student services. We need more apps so that the lives of students are simplified.”

Several successful integrated apps are used

There are universities in Zimbabwe that use mobile applications effectively. MyLSU features a consolidated array of student services.

Among others, it allows students to access transport timetables, notifications, academic records, voting platforms and campus entertainment updates. Maphosa developed this through a dual process of app development and research.

At various stages of developing the app, he gathered input from students to make the necessary modifications. The research and app development process are captured in Maphosa’s article ‘Using MyLSU app to enhance student engagement and promote a smart town at a rural university in Zimbabwe’ published in the journal Cogent Education in September 2020.

Midlands State University in Gweru also has an app with integrated services, which is called MyMSU. It is available on Google’s app store and, according to the description, “it brings all the university’s information technology services and every other information you may need together in one easy-to-use interface.

“It is designed to allow students to access comprehensive information about the university, including campus information, timetables, educational material, latest news and other e-learning resources in a more convenient way.”

The National University of Science and Technology (NUST) in Bulawayo and Chinhoyi University of Technology (CUT) also have apps with consolidated services dubbed NUST – Students App and CUTHero, respectively.