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Are students using AI to search for college?
Absolutely. The student journey has fundamentally changed. More than nine out of ten prospective students begin their search with AI — asking where to study, how to pay, which programs fit their goals, and what outcomes they can expect.
"We’re invisible in AI search, and our paid clicks keep getting more expensive."
If your programs aren't part of those answers, you’re invisible at the exact moment decisions are being shaped — even if your institution is visible.
AIMGEO weaves your programs into the AI ecosystem — so when students ask, your programs become part of the answer.
Are students really using AI instead of Google?
92%
ADOPTION →
92% of university students now use AI search — proof that discovery and search habits have shifted.
HEPI Student Generative AI Survey 2025 (up from 66% a year prior)
88%
BEHAVIOR SHIFT →
88% of students use AI for assessments — if they trust it for coursework, they’ll trust it to guide college choices.
HEPI Student Generative AI Survey 2025 (up from 53%)
69%
DISCOVERY →
69% of students use AI specifically to search for information — the start of the enrollment funnel journey.
Campus Technology / University Business
52%
QUERY INTENT 🎯
52.2% of ChatGPT queries are informational — replacing the questions students once asked Google (vs ~36% on Google Search).
BreaktheWeb
AI mentions are great, but do they actually convert into Applications?
Visibility alone doesn’t change outcomes — Continuity does.
AIMGEO doesn’t just improve visibility — it delivers discovery that turns into measurable outcomes through our Conversion Engine.
"WOW! This is the future of institutional visibility."
Every Student Journey starts with a question.
AIMGEO makes sure that question doesn’t end in AI search.
We greet each visitor with context — picking up where the AI left off.
Continuing their discovery and turning curiosity into enrollment.
The Engines That Transform AI Search Into Enrollment
What does AI visibility for a University look like?
The Visibility Engine
It starts at the institutional level.
AIMGEO’s Six Dimensions of Visibility℠ reveal how AI engines assess university credibility and whether your programs are eligible to appear in AI answers:
Program clarity, cost transparency, online options, local presence, outcomes, and reputation.
Use your AIMGEO Index Score to see where you stand — and what to improve.
It’s free. It’s diagnostic. And it prepares you for what comes next.
What is your readiness? See your score.
Once we're visible, how do our Programs surface in AI?
The Discovery Engine
AI Search is looking for programs — not webpages.
Even if your .edu never changes, AIMGEO makes each of your programs AI-ready by placing them across a GEO-optimized network of trusted, verifiable sources.
This creates program-level discovery pathways AI engines can retrieve, reference, and surface as answers — consistently and at scale.
This is the engine that drives measurable program discovery. Each program becomes AI-findable — even without changes to your .edu website.
Each Program becomes a Discovery Engine.
How do we actually convert traffic from AI?
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The Conversion Engine
Continuing the conversation is key—picking up where AI left off: “Would you like to continue exploring the Nursing Program?”
Seamlessly continue a student’s conversation from AI Search within your program pages.
This trackable continuity transforms the AI-driven discovery pathway into real conversations, and real conversations into enrollment intent.
For schools that want governed continuity and measurable ROI from AI-driven discovery, this engine completes the loop.
Show real ROI from AI-driven student discovery.
What is good Institutional Visibility?
Institutional visibility is the first step in AI Search — the baseline AI uses before it will surface any program.
These universities demonstrate a range of strengths in institutional visibility as measured by the AIMGEO Index™, using the same Six Dimensions of Visibility℠ that you can apply to your own institution.
They illustrate how the Index evaluates the signals AI engines rely on and produces a visibility snapshot any university can run.
If these schools look strong, it’s because their signals are present and clearer.
Most institutions aren’t — and the gaps are larger than they expect.
If yours aren't, the Index will show you instantly — and provide clear steps to improve your institutional visibility.
Click any university below to view its Visibility Score.
(Give the report a few minutes to run.)
How Visible is My Institution?
Get your AIMGEO Visibility Report Free — a fast, automated snapshot that shows how your institution scores on the Six Dimensions of Visibility℠.
You just saw how the Index evaluates other universities.
Now see exactly where your institution stands — and what AI is likely to surface first.
This report is your starting point.
But remember: institutional visibility is only the foundation.
Program Visibility is where real Discovery, Intent, and Enrollment Growth happen in AI Search.
The AIMGEO Index Visibility Report
Why Most Programs Don’t Show Up in AI Search
Program Signals Aren’t Distributed Across Trusted Sources.
AI relies on cross-source verification, not single pages.
Most programs:
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exist only on the .edu
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have no external signals
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have no knowledge-panel equivalents
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lack citation-worthy data
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fail the “trusted answer” threshold
Authority Gap
Programs Aren’t AI-Readable Entities.
AI can’t surface what it can’t understand.
Program pages on .edu sites are:
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unstructured
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inconsistent
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unclear
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missing critical fields
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not mapped to student-intent language
Technical Gap
AI Cannot Verify Outcomes, Relevance, or Fit.
AI ranks answers based on:
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outcomes
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clarity
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local relevance
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reputation
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value indicators
Most program pages bury these or omit them entirely — so AI avoids surfacing them.
Confidence Gap
These are the gaps the Discovery Engine solves — making each program visible, verifiable, and surfaceable in AI Search.
AI-Ready Program Profiles
AI can finally find your programs because they now exist as clear, structured, verifiable entities that align with student intent.
Distributed Visibility Signals
Your visibility rises across networks that feed AI search systems as Program details are verified and referenced across trusted sources.
Program Microsites
Dedicated, GEO-Optimized sites — machine-readable pages that AI can interpret, cite, and surface as answers.
Surfaceable Programs
When students ask questions, your programs get returned as answers — not hidden behind your institutional website.
What Are Experts Saying About GEO + AI Search?
AI IS THE NEW SEARCH HABIT
“The majority of students, some 85 percent, indicate they’ve used generative AI."
"Treating it like an advanced search engine also ranks high.” Source
Inside Higher Ed
Student Voice survey (2025)
GEO ISN'T THE SAME AS SEO
"Generative engine optimization isn’t SEO with a new hat. It’s a fundamentally different game—brand marketing expressed through generative interfaces." Source
Andrew Holland
Director of SEO at JBH
VISIBILITY REQUIRES A SYSTEM
"To be visible in the era of AI search requires content that is well-structured, expertly written, and machine-readable so entities and relationships are easy to interpret." Source
Bruce Clay
Author of "Content Marketing Strategies for Professionals"
Frequently asked questions
How Can I Talk With the AIMGEO Team?
Let’s start the conversation about transforming discovery into measurable enrollment growth.
813-433-0954
BOSTON, MA
1 Washington Mall, 2nd Floor
Boston, MA 02108
AUSTIN, TX
5900 Balcones Dr., Suite 27039
Austin, TX, 78731
ST. PETE'S, FL
7901 4th St N, Suite 30285
St. Petersburg, FL 33702
ATLANTA, GA
8735 Dunwoody Place Suite 7078
ATLANTA, GA, 30350, USA