吃瓜网 is taking its student recruitment into the metaverse with the release of OCU Virtual Campus 鈥� a fully immersive virtual reality experience that allows users to assume an avatar and drop in on the school鈥檚 campus at NW 23 and Blackwelder Avenue.
OCU collaborated with Oklahoma City robotics and technology company Human Mode on the project, which utilizes the company鈥檚 Massive Loop platform to allow users from anywhere in the world to virtually walk the sidewalks of the OCU campus, enter virtual lobbies in campus buildings and learn about the university through their desktop computer or VR headset.
The technology, which involved mapping out and digitally recreating every building and walkway on the OCU campus, is a process known as creating a 鈥渄igital twin鈥� of an existing environment.
鈥淭his tool places OCU on the leading edge of high-tech student recruitment,鈥� OCU President Kenneth Evans said. 鈥淲e know that traveling for college visits can be difficult for out-of-state or international students. OCU Virtual Campus gives our prospective students and their families a virtual first-person experience so they can really get a feel for our campus.鈥�
The OCU Virtual Campus experience is similar to dropping into a video game with an avatar. Users can select from a variety of avatars, customize their apparel with OCU-branded gear, and then drop in at the corner of NW 23 and Blackwelder Avenue near OCU鈥檚 Centennial Arch.
From there, users can walk, ride a scooter or drive a golf cart around campus, with all buildings on campus represented in life-like fashion. Interactive maps allow users to jump to different areas of campus 鈥� in case the walk takes too long.
Inside campus buildings, users can find virtual lobbies with interactive web-browser screens. The screens aid in prospective-student discovery by presenting information relevant to the school or building the lobby is in.
Users can also interact with other avatars. For example, several people from different parts of the world could drop in and explore the OCU campus together. If they have questions, the world features an AI chat assistant that can answer queries about the university.
Human Mode founder and Chief Executive Officer William Kerber said that while his company has animated numerous virtual reality worlds, the OCU project is the first he is aware of where an entire university campus is animated in this fashion.
鈥淲e are thrilled to partner with 吃瓜网 on this unique project,鈥� Kerber said. 鈥淎s a company, our mission is to advance technology and challenge the way things are done. Marrying the OCU campus with a virtual reality experience is a worthwhile evolution of the college recruitment process.鈥�
OCU Virtual Campus is free to use. Access to the virtual-reality experience, as well as additional information about OCU, is available through the university鈥檚 website at www.okcu.edu/virtualcampus.
More information about Human Mode is available at .
