:format()//media/Halloween-marketing-for-higher-education-rq.png)
Halloween is a golden moment for university marketing
Halloween campaigns aren't just fun—they’re strategic
Every October, higher education institutions get a unique chance to show off their personality.
Halloween content creates space to be playful, showcase student life, and build brand warmth—without needing a massive ad budget.
It’s not just about cobwebs and costumes.
Done well, Halloween marketing can:
- Boost your higher ed engagement across social platforms
- Strengthen emotional connection with prospective and current students
- Create authentic student-generated content (UGC)
- Support broader campaigns like fundraising or admissions
The key is to do it in a way that feels right for your university brand.
Let’s take a look at what some universities are doing on social media this year to capture a moment on Halloween.
Make heritage and place your hook
University College Dublin
Over in Ireland, home to the very roots of Halloween (Samhain), a University College Dublin professor of Archaeology brought history to life by carving out a ‘gruesome’ Halloween Jack O’Lantern modeled on an original from 1910, to ward off evil spirits…from a turnip.
(Yup, a turnip. The tradition changed to pumpkins when Irish immigrants brought the custom to North America.)
The mix of faculty authority and local culture makes the post feel unmistakably UCD and delivers bite-size learning without the lecture.
University of Cambridge
At University of Cambridge, the Fellows’ Garden stumpery got redecorated. Their post shows a slow pan through the ghoulish garden with atmospheric music, with a bit of levity. Nothing forced, just an on-brand familiar place that took on the Halloween vibes.
University of California, Davis
UC Davis went for something more mysterious, taking in a reel of hundreds of crows circling the water tower, hypnotic all by itself.
With ambient audio and minimal text, the post trusts the scene, resulting in a shareable “this could only be here” moment.
Turn history and art into entertainment
University of California San Diego
While each year, UC San Diego students create a popular haunted horror maze on campus, which is higly relatable and fun, and also plays to Instagram/TikTok’s narrative style and pacing, this year the University leveraged Halloween to to spark curiosity about their research across biology, engineering, music, oceanography, and astrophysics with an engaging theme.
Maynooth University
Maynooth University posted on historical spooky stories, with students sharing bite-size tales rooted in local history that could turn curiosity into clicks and campus interest.
Nottingham Trent University
Nottingham Trent went with a similar vibe, presenting its stately (and spooky) 140-year-old building with a cute and scary score. Because the tone is built with filters, the post delivers big atmosphere with almost no production lift, just a simple video.
Radboud University
Radboud University created its own Halloween film trailer to promote the Gothic Horror Festival, a collaboration between Bibliotheek Gelderland Zuid, LUX, and Radboud University’s English Language and Culture and American Studies programmes.
The structure feels “big” while staying place-first, proving you can ride a trend without losing its identity in the fog.
Use archives and nostalgia to rally alumni
New York University
New York University posted a series of archival Halloween photos dating back to the 1960s on Instagram and Facebook. Each post included a short caption placing the photo in historical context.
Costumes with community feel & playing up the party
Many universities leaned into student voice with Instagram Reels that captured Halloween outfits across campus.
Reels and captions stayed simple and inclusive—often along the lines of “Here’s what students dressed up as this spooky season.”
The format felt vibrant and real to prospective students because it was led by students, not the brand.
It's a sweep across campus life, an approach that scales well year after year: same format, fresh faces, new trends.
University of Leicester
University of Illinois Chicago
Emily Carr University
Nudge outcomes: admissions and giving (softly)
University of Hull
Hull played the season for a smile, pairing a cheeky “haunted by your uni application?” line with a friendly deadline reminder. The post keeps the tone light while removing friction, turning Halloween attention into finished applications without the hard sell.
Sam Houston State University
Sam Houston State University tied Halloween into a fundraising initiative with playful copy and a call-to-action directly on the post to give today.
Ride trends—without losing your brand
Right now, universities are going with the "friendly ghost motif," pairing student ghost overlays with Jack Stauber’s “Oh Klahoma,” creating a wistful, on-brand spooky vibe that’s all over Reels and TikTok.
It’s recognizable, easy to produce, and consistent enough to feel like a shared higher ed trend—playful and topical.
Edge Hill University
Loughborough University
Oxford University, St. Anthony’s College
University of Leeds
How can you make these trends work for you?
Across the board, the strongest content is specific to place or tradition, translating academics into story moments and centering student faces and voices.
That combination creates recognition and trust, and when you add soft outcomes—applications, visits, or giving—plus assets you already own, you can get repeatable Halloween wins with very little effort.
Treat your audience, don’t trick them!
- Keep it on brand: Fun doesn’t mean off‑message. Align the visuals, tone, and hashtags with your institution’s identity.
- Prioritize accessibility and inclusion: Ensure your visuals are accessible (captions, ALT text) and consider inclusive themes.
- Have a moderator/clear guidelines: Encourage students to post, but set clear rules for submissions and moderating content.
- Don’t force trends: If a social media trend doesn’t fit your culture or message, skip it. Authenticity wins.
- Connect back to your broader strategy: The Halloween push shouldn’t be isolated—tie it to recruitment efforts, student engagement, or alumni relations.
What Halloween campaign did your university or college run this year? Share them with us; happy Halloween, folks!