Virtual Reality (VR) has the potential to transform the way we learn and teach, from providing in-depth knowledge and helping us understand complex subjects to facilitating language immersion and virtual trips.
It’s already widely used in schools for younger children, but we’re seeing its use more and more in higher education for a variety of reasons, including its ability to enhance learning and help students build their real-world skills and employability.
In this article, we make the case for using VR in higher education, illustrating how and why it’s being used, with real-life examples of universities, business schools, and colleges that are already taking full advantage of the technology.
Benefits of Immersive Learning Tools
Immersive learning tools like Virtual Reality (VR) are transforming education by creating dynamic, interactive environments where students can engage with content in ways traditional methods cannot offer. These tools open new possibilities for various aspects of learning, from remote education to skill development.
Enhancing Learning through Immersive Experiences
One of the primary benefits of VR in education is its ability to transform traditional lectures into immersive, hands on experiences, bringing abstract concepts and complex subjects to life. By allowing students to engage with 3D simulations and virtual environments, VR enhances interactivity and boosts engagement, making it easier for students to grasp and retain information.
The practical applications of VR span across disciplines. Civil engineering students can design and visualize buildings in 3D environments, while history students can virtually navigate Roman ruins or other historical sites, deepening their understanding through exploration. Physics students can use VR to explore the universe, making abstract concepts more tangible. These immersive experiences make learning more impactful and accessible.
For example, Arizona State University (ASU) recently partnered with Dreamscape to launch the Dreamscape Learn Lab, where students learn biology through VR-enhanced experiences incorporating hand tracking and haptic feedback. Data from the program showed that students participating in the VR labs had significantly higher engagement and improved lab grades compared to their peers in traditional lab courses.
Beyond STEM subjects, VR is making an impact in other fields as well. ESADE business school has implemented VR content for students, faculty, and staff to practice key skills and build employability through immersive, repeatable experiences. This approach allows for consistent, realistic practice, making it easier to develop soft skills and prepare for real-world challenges.
VR for Distance Learning
As global education expands, VR’s ability to support distance learning is becoming increasingly important. VR removes geographical barriers, allowing students from anywhere in the world to attend classes, participate in discussions, and collaborate with peers in real-time, as though they were physically present.
Leading institutions have already embraced this technology. For example, Stanford School of Business offered a certificate program delivered entirely through VR as early as 2016, and in 2022, medical students from Queen Mary University of London experienced their first lectures in “the metaverse”.
A lecture at iLRN’s virtual campus hosted on the Virbella platform.
Social VR platforms like AltSpace and VR Chat, along with tailored applications, create virtual spaces where students and lecturers can meet, communicate, and collaborate. These tools provide a highly interactive and accessible experience for remote learners, making distance education more engaging and effective.
Further advancing this concept, the Immersive Learning Research Network (iLRN) developed a year-round Virtual Campus that supports lectures, events, networking, and their annual conference. This ongoing virtual presence offers an innovative model for continuous learning and global collaboration.
VR for Collaboration and Teamwork
Another key benefit of VR is its capacity to enhance collaboration among students. VR platforms enable learners to engage in group projects and brainstorming sessions within shared virtual environments, no matter their physical location. This not only promotes teamwork but also exposes students to new perspectives and problem-solving approaches in ways that traditional methods can’t match.
One notable example is a collaboration between Harvard University and Zhejiang University in China, where students used rumii, a social VR software, to conduct an anthropological lesson. Half of the students were at Harvard, while the other half were at Zhejiang, working together in a VR-equipped classroom as avatars to study ancient Egyptian characters found in a tomb.
Using standalone Oculus Go headsets, they collaborated to identify specific hieroglyphics. Through the use of avatars with mapped facial expressions, students on opposite sides of the world were able to engage in real-time discussions, synthesize information, and learn together, despite the physical distance.
These collaborative spaces foster a sense of belonging and reduce the isolation often experienced in remote learning environments. Whether students are working on joint business presentations or creative design projects, VR offers a platform where they can interact and communicate seamlessly in real time.
Enhancing University Success through Immersive Solutions
Student Recruitment
Recruiting students is highly competitive, and campus tours play a crucial role in the decision-making process. However, visiting multiple universities can be both costly and time-consuming for prospective students and their families. Virtual Reality (VR) tours offer a solution by allowing students to explore campuses from the comfort of their homes, enabling them to narrow down their options more efficiently. For some, a virtual tour may even provide enough information to make their final decision without needing to visit in person.
Inside YouVisit’s virtual tour of Harvard.
Companies like EAB have already created VR tours for prestigious institutions, including Harvard, Princeton, Yale, and Columbia. On average, these virtual tours engage users for 10.4 minutes, result in an 18% increase in inquiries, and lead to a 27% increase in physical visits to the universities after the virtual experience. These numbers demonstrate the impact of virtual tours on student recruitment, offering a cost-effective way to attract prospective students while enhancing their decision-making process.
Maximizing ROI on Training Costs
Universities and colleges must continually invest in modern equipment, such as lab apparatus, medical devices, and chemistry sets, to provide hands-on learning experiences for students. However, budget constraints often mean students have limited access to this equipment, sharing it with others and reducing valuable practice time.
VR training simulators provide an innovative solution by allowing institutions to scale training programs at a much lower cost. Through virtual labs and simulations, students can engage with the same equipment and scenarios they would in the real world, but in a controlled and cost-effective environment. This not only increases access but also enhances learning opportunities, making VR a valuable tool for maximizing return on investment in educational resources.
Empowering Professional Growth through VR and Soft Skills Training
Preparing Students for the Workplace
As the demand for VR and AR technology grows, universities are increasingly offering VR courses and establishing dedicated VR labs, demonstrating their confidence in the role of immersive technology in shaping the future job market. Opening VR labs is one of the most impactful ways universities can integrate VR into higher education, encouraging content creation, fostering innovation, and setting a global standard for VR-based learning.
One key initiative driving this progress is VR First, which has facilitated over 50 VR/AR labs worldwide, involving more than 5,000 developers. These labs not only provide students with the opportunity to explore and interact with VR technology, but they also help equip them with essential skills in the creation and implementation of immersive technologies. This practical experience is crucial as VR and AR are expected to play a significant role across industries in the coming years.
VR and Soft Skills Training
Virtual Reality also opens up a world of possibilities for students to enhance their soft skills at their convenience while receiving valuable feedback on their performance. Unlike traditional theory-based or role-play exercises, VR provides a powerful training tool that immerses students in controlled, realistic environments, offering a practical way to improve communication, leadership, and teamwork.
One of the key advantages of VR for soft skills training is its ability to deliver tangible feedback. With features like speech analysis, VR systems can comprehensively evaluate students’ verbal communication skills, including pace and filler words. This immediate feedback helps students identify strengths and areas for improvement, empowering them to refine their skills within a safe, controlled environment.
The combination of VR and AI, such as ChatGPT, further enhances this experience. AI-powered virtual characters can act as tutors, mentors, or even simulated job interviewers, allowing students to engage in conversations and simulations. These interactions provide personalized feedback and guidance, helping students develop communication skills tailored to their specific needs. Moreover, VR experiences are helping many individuals overcome speech anxiety. By practicing in a virtual setting, students can desensitize themselves to real-life audiences, gradually building confidence and reducing fear.
Instructors across Europe, North America, and Australia are already using VirtualSpeech to enhance their students’ soft skills. VirtualSpeech offers courses specifically designed for this purpose, including the public speaking and job interview courses., which provide students with immersive, practical learning experiences.
Soft Skills Use for Business Schools
While soft skills are valuable in all fields of study, they are especially important for students in business schools, where the emphasis is not just on technical knowledge but also on leadership, communication, and interpersonal effectiveness.
Business professionals must navigate complex negotiations, lead diverse teams, and communicate effectively across multiple levels of an organization. Virtual Reality, specifically VirtualSpeech, offers business schools a unique way to prepare students for these challenges by immersing them in realistic business scenarios, such as mock presentations, negotiations, or client meetings.
One of the main advantages of virtual reality (VR) in business schools is the opportunity for students to practice essential skills such as sales calls and elevator pitches. These simulations enable students to refine their presentation abilities, not only to peers or professors but also in scenarios that closely resemble real-world interactions with potential clients, investors, and stakeholders.
This immersive practice helps students feel well-rehearsed and confident in their delivery, ensuring they are ready to present their ideas effectively in any professional setting.
Further Uses for VirtualSpeech and Higher Education
VirtualSpeech for Education
While business schools may seem like the most obvious use case for VirtualSpeech, its applications extend far beyond that, benefiting a wide range of academic disciplines in higher education. VirtualSpeech provides an immersive platform where students can practice essential skills in realistic environments, offering unique opportunities for personal and professional development.
Medical Roleplays
One innovative application of VirtualSpeech is in medical roleplays, where students can practice talking with patients about difficult subjects in AI-powered avatar roleplay rooms. These immersive experiences allow medical students to engage in clinical scenarios, such as delivering news about a serious illness like cancer, explaining complex diseases, or discussing advanced care planning.
By simulating these challenging conversations, students can enhance their communication skills, empathy, and decision-making in patient interactions, preparing them for real-world medical situations. After each difficult conversation, participants receive valuable feedback on their performance, highlighting areas for improvement and reinforcing their learning. This hands-on practice equips students with the essential skills needed to navigate sensitive discussions with confidence and compassion.
Job Interview Practice
For those preparing to enter the workforce, VirtualSpeech offers an effective platform for practicing job interviews tailored to specific job descriptions. Rehearsing for a job interview can significantly improve your chances of success. With practice, students can better understand how to answer common questions, behave appropriately during the interview, maintain the right level of eye contact, and manage their nerves.
By uploading their resumes and relevant job descriptions, students can participate in mock interviews that simulate real-world scenarios, allowing the platform to customize the experience to their career goals. Engaging in these mock interviews helps students refine their responses and build confidence, ultimately increasing their chances of success in competitive job markets.
Presentation Skills
Effective presentation skills are essential in the modern workplace, and VirtualSpeech provides a robust platform for students to practice and improve these skills in various virtual environments, including a conference room, meeting room, lecture hall, classroom, and a TEDx-styled theater. In addition to interview practice, students can use VirtualSpeech for presentation practice, allowing them to perfect their delivery, pacing, and body language in front of virtual audiences. After each practice session, participants receive feedback on their performance, covering aspects such as pace, filler words, pitch, listenability, and eye contact (in VR). This immediate feedback enables students to repeat practice sessions as often as needed to enhance their skills.
By engaging in these virtual presentations, students build confidence and improve their overall performance, whether they are presenting in a classroom, pitching ideas in a business setting, or participating in academic conferences. This comprehensive approach not only prepares students for various professional scenarios but also equips them with the communication skills necessary to succeed in their future careers.
By offering these diverse use cases, VirtualSpeech is helping students across various fields develop the practical skills they need to thrive in their future careers.