Graduate student Alexia Kadota-Browner (Medill ’24) initially started posting on YouTube as a junior in high school. Her goal was not to build a following or become an “influencer.” Rather, she said she hoped she would improve her skills as an aspiring video journalist.
“The best thing I could do for myself during the pandemic was to do something from home where I could get better at speaking to a camera, being on camera and also editing videos,” Kadota-Browner said. “Naturally, I said, ‘Okay, let me start a YouTube channel.’”
She has since amassed over 2,500 subscribers on YouTube, with some of her videos reaching over 100,000 views.
For several “micro-influencers” at NU, their platforms have become a resource for incoming students to learn more about the university. From new types of content to changing their posting schedules, these creators learned how to adapt their content creation to college.
Kadota-Browner’s YouTube channel started as a fitness channel, where she would post videos related to nutrition and exercise. However, she said she started feeling “boxed in” only making videos related to fitness and later expanded her content to filming about topics relevant in her life: taking the SAT and getting her learner’s driving permit.
Once Kadota-Browner entered NU, she began producing campus-related videos, showcasing dorm tours and clubs she was a part of. She said these videos captured the attention of many incoming students and underclassmen frequently approached her about her content.
“I was never creating those videos with the intent of a wide audience seeing them,” Kadota-Browner said. “It’s great to know that the videos are actually helping people make decisions related to their college career, whether it’s informing them about the differences between North and South campus dorms or showing them the intricacies of Bobb-McCulloch Hall] or recommending my favorite courses.”
McCormick sophomore Crystal Cooper said that on campus, other students have come up to her to talk to her about her TikToks. Cooper, who has over 12,000 TikTok followers, creates dance videos on her account.
She said when she came to NU, she started frequently posting “get ready with me” videos, where she would often talk about life in college.
“I was surprised that tangible people actually saw it and also said something, because you can see it and not say something,” she said.
Cooper said she began posting content for fun in middle school. She said her favorite part of making content is that it keeps a “digital diary” of her life.
“I really like the fact that, especially the ones where I’m talking about my life. … I can just look back, and it triggers the memories from that day,” Cooper said.
Medill sophomore and former Daily staffer David Sun said he finds it harder to post content as a college student compared to when he started his TikTok as a high schooler. Sun started posting back in 2021, when his school was virtual due to COVID-19.
He currently has over 12,000 followers on the platform and has gotten over 4.7 million likes. Sun’s content over the years has ranged across college application content, “day in the life” videos and AP review songs.
Now he places less weight on his TikTok, he said. Previously, he said he would try to post every day and curate his content for a specific niche.
“I’m a lot busier here, which is part of the reason why I don’t post that much,” Sun said. “It was different back in high school because people already knew who I was. It was like seeing the same 200 people every single day. Whereas here, I feel like the amount of exposure is just a little bit scary for me.”
Despite decreasing his posting frequency, Sun said he is still proud of the content he created when he was younger.
“I feel like it was just a really fun way to flex my creative muscles,” he said.
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