Georgia Wheadon founded Umii, the university-based networking app, in 2020 based on her own experiences in higher education.
As a student, when she joined university she struggled to make connections in halls and as part of her degree programme – and considered dropping out. Instead, it opened her eyes to the issue of loneliness, and she founded Umii as a way to help students meet people they’ll click with.
The platform, which lets students select their university, course, interests and societies and build a profile, had its pilot launch last year and was fully rolled out this year – with 8,000 members and having made 30,000 connections. Among those institutions which have trialled and endorse the app are Bolton University, UCLan SU, and the University of Hull.
We found out what a recent week in Georgia’s life looked like…
Monday
I start the week catching up with the product team and the app developers. Umii is an app that connects like-minded university students, to increase attendance and reduce isolation. It’s a really easy-to-use platform thanks to our developers and we want to keep it that way as we grow.
Our partners are already really engaged – we get regular suggestions and requests from universities, students’ unions and students themselves, which is fantastic.
We’re delighted to consider all suggestions; the app is for them after all. It’s important to make sure that we don’t swerve into the domain of other apps though – this is not a dating app, or a general UK-wide one. We are all about connecting students at their own university to help them make friends.
I go for a quick walk at lunchtime – I walk every day. The fresh air and quiet is good for my mental health. It’s important to switch off where possible and just relax.
I work late and it’s an early night, a busy week ahead!
Tuesday
The morning is filled with meetings with existing customers, to check everything is going well. There are a few plans – we’re keen to help students connect through the app then meet in person as soon as possible, so we’re discussing mixer events, two-for-one drinks promotions, and other ways to get people out and about, really enjoying the social side of university.
I’m working in our new HQ at Enterprise City. We have this shared space with Exchange, the startup programme we’re part of. I live in Salford so it’s really handy, but I’d travel miles to come here – it’s a great setup and after a very strange introduction to the world of work thanks to COVID, I’m delighted to be amongst other people, hearing their stories and getting inspiration from them.
There are lots of meetups, talks and workshops. I’m taking all the advice I can and thoroughly enjoying it.
After work I play tennis. I used to play when I was younger and I’m determined to have more hobbies in my 20s. It’s good fun, and I play at Fallowfield, student land – I should bring some Umii flyers next time!
