'They know the right codes'

How can we reach younger audiences with videos on social media? At UiT, collaboration between senior and junior communications officers is yielding great results. Now, they are sharing their experiences with support from Erasmus+ and EUGLOH.

Fire personer sitter og ligger på en sofa. — Setting viewing records with videos at UiT: Trude Haugseth Moe (left), Kaja Alexandra Halvei-Larsen, Elisabet Aaraas, and Jakob Bjørvig Henriksen. Photo: UiT

Bredesen, Kim kim.bredesen@uit.no Rådgiver

Published: 28.11.25 13:00 Updated: 02.12.25 14:37

Arts and culture International cooperation Studentliv / Studier

Video is a medium that can reach a large audience and convey thoughts, facts, and ideas with lightning speed. In June, communications officers at UiT held a workshop at the Hamburg Networking Conference, supported by Erasmus+ and EUGLOH. At the conference, they demonstrated what it takes to create a video that can reach far and wide.

Kvinne som holder mikrofon. — Trude Haugseth Moe, Communications Officer at UiT. Foto: UiT.

Cracking Generation Codes

While senior staff members Elisabet Aaraas (48) and Trude Haugseth Moe (49) spoke about UiT and the university's work with social media, it was the apprentices Kaja Halvei-Larsen (19), who taught how social media trends work, and Jakob Bjørvig Henriksen (24), who trained participants in filming and video editing.

The team believes there are numerous advantages to having a diverse group in media production.

'It’s incredibly important when trying to reach very different target audiences,' says Haugseth Moe.

She believes that reaching young people and the youngest adults requires a completely different approach compared to reaching older audiences – and that seniors must collaborate with young people to effectively engage a young audience.

'They know what’s trending and the right codes for form, style, and humour. Without them, we don’t stand a chance, ' says Haugseth Moe.

Jakob Bjørvig Henriksen is one of the two content production apprentices in the group.

'It’s a great experience to collaborate with senior staff. We’re willing to try out new things and be a bit different to reach the target audience – even though we’re a serious university, 'he says.

Videos with Record Viewership

The collaboration between seniors and juniors has resulted in several videos that have set records for the number of viewers on UiT’s social media platforms.

En mann som står foran inngangen til et stort bygg. — UiT's Rector, Dag Rune Olsen, in a video where he uses the language of Generation Z. Foto: UiT.

The first video the team created featured UiT’s rector, Dag Rune Olsen, welcoming viewers to UiT using slang expressions from Generation Z’s vocabulary – a social media trend at the time. The video received ten times more views than usual for the account, providing a clear indication that this was something they could continue with. You can watch the video on Instagram here.

Since then, the team has produced several videos, including one where the rector dances to a TikTok trend and others featuring various staff members.

Inspired by Thon Hotels, they created the video “This is Tromsø”, in which they enlisted a colleague, Lars Nordmo, as the "main character."

This video has become the most viewed on UiT’s social media to date, with nearly 800,000 views and 15,000 reactions on Instagram and Facebook combined.

At the workshop, the UiT team shared advice with their international colleagues on how to produce a video step by step, with the aim of reaching younger audiences.

Participants were also challenged to create their own “This is Hamburg” video.

They know what’s trending and the right codes for form, style, and humour. Without them, we don’t stand a chance.

Portrait of a young woman. — Jessica Mann, Communications Officer at Universität Hamburg. Foto: Xing.com

Took Risks and Found Inspiration

The Hamburg Networking Conference is held every other year by Universität Hamburg and brings together academics from around the world. Topics highlighted during the conference include international collaboration and the development of sustainable ideas for future projects in academia.

Jessica Mann, a Communications Officer at Universität Hamburg, believes the workshop conducted by the team from UiT was very well aligned with the conference’s themes.

'Many were inspired by the team from Tromsø and their workshop. The interaction was designed to allow people from different universities and countries to meet and test their practical skills. We also had the opportunity to share experiences in an area where we have significant expertise. Additionally, we were able to take risks and try something new,' she says.

Publikum som ser på en skjerm. — Workshop in Hamburg. Foto: Ui

'A Great Experience'

'It was a very positive experience, and we received great feedback. It was a valuable experience, both in planning the workshop and delivering it,' says Bjørvig Henriksen.

Haugseth Moe greatly appreciated that a great interest was sparked among the participants, for UiT’s social media project.

'The participants expressed that it was both useful and inspiring, and that the collaboration between juniors and seniors was unique,' she says.

The participants had the opportunity to create their own videos and expressed that they were eager to work more on this afterwards.

The team also visited the communications department at the University of Hamburg, and for Haugseth Moe, it was interesting to learn how Universität Hamburg operates. This opened a window where she could identify both similarities and differences in how colleagues at the partner university approach their work.

'The exchange of practices, ideas, and knowledge is what drives Europe and the world forward,' she says.

Bredesen, Kim kim.bredesen@uit.no Rådgiver

Published: 28.11.25 13:00 Updated: 02.12.25 14:37

Arts and culture International cooperation Studentliv / Studier