Acclaimed author Jim Stovall once said, "Education is a lifelong journey whose destination expands as you travel."

It's not just a profound truth, but also a sentiment that deeply resonates with today's students who will shape the future workforce.

However, studying abroad comes at a considerable cost, one that many students and their families cannot bear alone. That's where ISEP Study Abroad steps in, playing a vital role for over four decades by opening doors to students who need assistance.

Connecting Universities and Students Worldwide

Connecting over 300 universities in over 50 countries, ISEP has helped over 60,000 students participate in semester-long, full-year and summer programs.

But it’s not only about connecting universities; it’s about connecting the students to each other as well. Participants and applicants want to know just what the ISEP experience is all about from the students currently enrolled all over the world. How is it to study abroad? What’s the journey like? Will this really be a life-changer?

Transforming Student Storytelling: Cinebody and the Worldwide Connection

It was this “worldwide connection” that first brought the ISEP to Cinebody. Scott Kesselman, Director of Digital Marketing for ISEP, realized that filming the stories of students who are scattered around the globe would be incredibly beneficial, but also prohibitively expensive and time-consuming. Capturing this footage in traditional ways, using camera crews, multiple locations, and incurring heavy travel expenses, would be way too costly to achieve. 

But using a crowdsourcing video production tool like Cinebody vastly shifted the paradigm. The students all have smartphones. They’re “app-savvy.” Having them just download the app, record a story, and share it with ISEP remotely was a fantastic way to showcase the stories of students studying abroad. The result speaks for itself. 

And then…the eureka moment came. What if this remote video collaboration tool could be used not only for information, but to raise funds? 

Fundraising using user-generated content from students worldwide.

ISEP relies on fundraising and donations to support its scholarships. It’s a year-round process, and like any other charitable organization the ISEP needs to stay on top of the latest tech for video production strategies and content marketing to stay alive. 

Embracing Technological Innovations: A Resource for Non-Profits

For non-profits, budgets are always tight. They want the most bang for their buck so that more of the money they raise goes directly to the recipients. 

After seeing the results of the student video collaboration created through Cinebody, Kesselman realized how powerful authentic video footage of the students could be in raising funds. 

These are people whose lives were literally changed forever through the program. They’re real testimonials from real people with real hopes and dreams.

“This new way of capturing genuine footage from our students was a game-changer for ISEP,” said Kesselman. “Using Cinebody we were able to get some truly inspirational testimonials from students studying in South Korea, France, Belgium, Washington, and Alaska. We sent the shot lists and could even control the camera settings making sure we captured exactly what we needed. We couldn’t have got that any other way.”

Furthermore, anything uploaded to the Cinebody app is downloaded in the original format, meaning the highest-quality files are available for editing in real-time. The end result of this new student collaboration was a truly inspiring scholarship video that really resonated with prospective students and donors. 

As the world continues to grow smaller thanks to technological innovations and 5G speed, these kinds of video production strategies will be an invaluable resource for non-profits everywhere.