In that environment, one of the biggest challenges isn’t what universities want to say, but how they reach the right people at the right time.
Digital signage has become one of the quiet success stories in campus communication. Ten years ago it was a novelty: a screen in the student union or a menu board in the canteen. Today it has evolved into a reliable, estate-wide communications tool that supports teaching, student experience, and even emergency messaging.
Below is a look at how universities are using it in practice, why it works, and what they gain by managing it through a single platform like CleverLive.
1. Meeting students where they already are
Students don’t use email the way institutions would like them to. Social media channels fragment the message. Posters get missed or are removed within days.
Digital signage fills the gap by placing information directly where students already spend time: entrances, lecture hall foyers, libraries, common rooms, café queues, and the routes between buildings.
When the University of Malta began expanding their digital signage estate, their main goal was simple: keep students informed without relying on inboxes. Angela Xuereb, Senior Executive in the Marketing, Communications & Alumni Office, put it plainly:
“CleverLive suits our needs – we can communicate our message easily and quickly.”
— University of Malta
It’s this immediacy that has made digital signage so valuable. A student might scroll past an email, but they can’t scroll past a display in the foyer of their building.
2. Creating consistency across a complex estate
Most universities are not a single building - they’re small towns.
Each faculty tends to handle communication differently. One building might have a screen, another might use printed posters, another relies on spreadsheets pinned to noticeboards.
This inconsistency creates friction for students and puts more pressure on communications teams.
Digital signage helps standardise how information is presented.
With CleverLive, universities can manage:
Different buildings
Multiple campuses
Libraries and study centres
Halls of residence
SU buildings
Outdoor or window-facing signage
…all from one central dashboard.
The University of Sheffield team summed up the advantage of this clearly:
“CleverLive is a great system with all of the functionality we need — and great service.”
— Mark Cawkwell-Burns, IT and Business Systems Analyst
For Sheffield, the benefit wasn’t just the hardware, it was having one system that removed the chaos of multiple disconnected screens.
3. Supporting academic life
Digital signage plays a practical role in academic rhythm:
Timetable changes
If a lecture theatre becomes unavailable, signage can display re-routes and room changes without relying on mass emails.
Live campus messaging
Universities use signage for:
Assessment windows
Library opening hours
Research events
Guest lectures
Enrolment or registration deadlines
Opportunities for volunteering and internships
Faculty-level updates
Departments often need to push subject-specific messages, but without losing consistency across the wider estate.
CleverLive’s role-based access helps maintain central control while still giving local teams flexibility.
4. Improving wellbeing and belonging
Student wellbeing teams increasingly rely on signage to get messages in front of students without overwhelming them.
Common uses include:
Where to find support today
Drop-in counselling hours
Exam stress reminders
Mindfulness events
Support contacts for crises
Because these appear in communal spaces, they reach students who may never read an email asking them to “reach out if they need help”.
Universities have also noted that digital signage helps shape the campus experience. Warm welcome messages, inclusive campaigns, and targeted reminders all contribute to a feeling of belonging, something that has become a priority across the sector.
5. Emergency communication and Protect Duty
With the introduction of Martyn’s Law, universities are examining how quickly they can spread a message across an estate.
Digital signage often becomes part of that strategy because:
It is highly visible in public areas
Messages override scheduled content instantly
Staff don’t need to be in the building to activate it
Instructions can be displayed clearly and calmly
While signage isn’t the only tool universities rely on for emergency communication, it is one of the most effective ways to reach students who aren’t on their phones.
6. Reducing print waste and improving sustainability
Universities can spend tens of thousands of pounds annually on printed posters, banners, and reprints. Most posters are used for a week or two and then thrown away. Digital signage removes this cycle almost entirely.
Instead of reprinting materials for:
Open days
SU events
Room changes
Department announcements
Campus initiatives
…universities simply update a template in CleverLive.
Reducing paper is not only the environmentally sensible choice, it also makes communication more flexible. Messages can be updated hourly, not weekly.
7. Retrofitting old screens instead of replacing everything
Many universities already have screens installed from earlier signage attempts, often in lecture foyers, receptions, or corridors. These screens usually rely on USB playback or outdated players.
Rather than rip everything out, CleverLive integrates with Pico XI players so institutions can modernise existing hardware at low cost.
This approach helps universities develop a long-term communications plan without a huge upfront investment.
8. What a real university signage network tends to look like
From recent deployments, a practical HE signage estate usually includes:
CL Pro screens in entrance foyers, libraries, and teaching hubs
CL Totems in reception areas and navigation points
Smaller displays or Pico XI retrofits in lecture corridors
Outdoor or high-bright units for wayfinding and visitor information
Category-based content (estates, SU, wellbeing, academic, emergency)
A campus-wide playlist that updates automatically each day
Local content for specific buildings
Once everything is connected to CleverLive, universities typically find that the time saved on emails, posters, and individual screen management is significant.
9. What universities appreciate most
Across institutions, a few themes consistently come up in feedback:
Speed
IT or Comms teams can push messaging across an entire estate in seconds.
Clarity
Screens become a single point of truth: live, accurate, and consistent.
Simplicity
Staff don’t need complex design skills; templates and schedules remove the guesswork.
Service
Universities value vendors that respond quickly and support long-term projects.
Scalability
Screens can be added over time without replacing the core platform.
Digital signage won’t replace email, but it fills the communication gap that universities have struggled with for years: the need for timely, visible, campus-wide messaging.
From quick updates in building foyers to content that supports student wellbeing, signage has become a practical part of how universities operate day to day. The feedback from institutions like Malta and Sheffield shows its value: it’s simple, it works, and, when managed through CleverLive, it gives universities a reliable way to communicate in an environment where timing and clarity matter.
