How LearnWise Supports Students and Institutions During The Holidays

Holiday periods such as Thanksgiving, Kwanzaa, Christmas, and winter break create operational challenges for universities. Student needs continue even when campus offices are closed, and institutions often see a surge of unresolved inquiries when staff return. LearnWise AI is built to provide continuous support so that services remain stable and students stay guided, even during reduced staffing periods. Learn how AI Agents, purpose built for Higher Education help institutions reduce the post-holiday workload, maintain steady support, and keep students safe and on track during the holiday season.

Why do holiday breaks create support gaps for institutions?

Student mental health takes center stage during the holiday period, especially during the end-of-year break. A November 2025 poll by the American Psychiatric Association found that 41% of Americans (and 49% of younger adults aged 18-34, a demographic encompassing many students) anticipated more seasonal stress than in 2024. In the UK, up to 78% of students reported experiencing mental health issues during this time (National Union of Students). During this time, students are often facing a break from the structure that schools typically provide, and some are unable to return home for the break, increasing a sense of loneliness. At the same time, holiday breaks reduce staff availability and students continue to require both academic and operational support - especially important during a sensitive time.

When traditional services pause, questions often accumulate in email inboxes and ticketing systems,creating large post-holiday backlogs. This impacts response times, strains support teams right when students come back to campus, which affects overall student experience. LearnWise helps institutions maintain continuity by remaining fully available throughout the entire break period.  When traditional services may be unavailable, AI platforms like LearnWise can provide:

• Always-On Student Support: LearnWise remains accessible through your LMS (including Canvas, Brightspace, Moodle, and Blackboard),, Websites, Student Portals, and online platforms like Microsoft Teams
• Academic Tools for Organization: Students can use LearnWise to generate flashcards, create course notes, summarize modules, and produce quiz questions. Helping them practice for exams that may be coming up in January in their own time.
• Mental Health and Well-being: LearnWise can identify students expressing mental health concerns and automatically direct them to appropriate external support services.
• Reduces Post-Holiday Support Surges: By providing self-service resources and guidance during the holidays, LearnWise helps reduce the pressure on support teams when staff return, ensuring a smoother transition back to campus operations.

24/7 student support accessible in the LMS, portals, and websites

LearnWise remains fully accessible through your LMS, including Canvas, Brightspace, Moodle, and Blackboard, as well as through student portals and institutional websites and communication apps like Microsoft Teams. Students can get help with assignments, deadlines, study planning, and general campus navigation at any time, even when staff are unavailable. This ensures students receive accurate, immediate support and that institutional services remain uninterrupted.

Academic tools that keep students organized during the holidays

While many universities host exams in December, others schedule term exams after the end of year break, making self study a big priority for students who need to stay on track come exam season in January. Universities such as US-based Princeton University or UK universities across the ocean all opt for this practice, scheduling the first semester to conclude with an exam period in the new year. Among them are the London School of Economics (LSE), Cardiff University, The University of Manchester, and beyond. As a result, this system provides a “reading period” over the break where students must self-study before returning to school.

During these breaks, LearnWise provides academic organization tools that continue supporting students when campus services are unavailable. These tools help students remain productive and reduce the number of questions that typically arise when classes resume, plus help prepare students for end of term exams. Here are a few ways tools like the AI Student Tutor help students stay on track during the holiday period:

Flashcard and quiz question generation

Students can instantly generate digital flashcards from course materials to support active recall and efficient revision across all LMS, using only their course content. They can also ask the assistant to generate practice questions to test their understanding and prepare for upcoming assessments during the holiday period, as many institutions finalize the fall semester and gear up towards the spring courses.

Concise course notes

LearnWise summarizes key concepts and module themes so students can easily review material and prioritize topics relevant to their current course progression. Here, students are able to access only the intended course content, including present and previous materials.

Structured study plans

LearnWise helps students organize tasks, set priorities, and manage deadlines, supporting more effective study planning throughout the break. These academic features are available 24/7 within the institution's LMS and reduce student uncertainty that often leads to increased support demand after holidays.

How to support student well-being when university campus offices are closed?

During the holidays, international students in particular might need additional support - especially those who do not return home for the end of year period. In these cases, receiving support is particularly helpful with loneliness or feelings of homesickness. LearnWise can identify language that signals mental health concerns such as anxiety or distress. Using custom escalation rules, the system can automatically direct students to external support services, human counselors, or 24 hour helplines.

Shortcut buttons provide direct links to important mental health resources, community events, or local activities to help students feel connected. LearnWise also offers a secure and private environment for students to express concerns without stigma, ensuring well-being support continues uninterrupted during holiday closures.

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How does LearnWise reduce post-holiday support surges?

LearnWise significantly reduces the increase in support volume that typically occurs immediately after holidays in several ways: providing ongoing self-service support, automating FAQ resolutions, and reducing support ticket volume and escalations for university staff upon their return to school.

24/7 Self-service support

Students can resolve common questions during the break instead of waiting for staff to return. This prevents unresolved issues from building up, helping students find answers easily and quickly during the holiday period. At one of our partner institutions, the University of Gloucestershire, we’ve seen up to 42% support ticket reduction.

Automated resolution of routine inquiries

LearnWise handles repetitive and frequently asked questions about deadlines, enrollment steps, IT issues, and campus resources. Institutions report AI resolution rates above 95%, with some achieving up to 98%.

Reduced ticket volume and escalations

By resolving questions instantly, LearnWise decreases the number of tickets that require human intervention. For example, at the University of Westminster, only 7 out of 700+ conversations required escalation to a human.

Actionable analytics

LearnWise provides real-time analytics delivering insights on support trends and knowledge gaps so teams can proactively refine resources for future breaks, resulting in a smoother return to campus operation and reduced strain on staff. In this way, institutions can gain insights into student needs, allowing for proactive improvements and better resource planning.

A few use cases include identifying emerging needs, allocating resources more effectively with data-driven decisions, and refining well-being programs proactively.

Quantifiable impact on support ticket volume

LearnWise consistently delivers measurable reductions in ticket volume and operational load in three ways: AI Resolution Rates, Ticket Volume Reduction and operational impact..

AI resolution rates

Institutions frequently achieve AI resolution rates above 95 percent, and in some cases as high as 99 percent.

Ticket volume reduction

Universities have reported a 30-50% reduction in Tier 1 support tickets after implementing LearnWise. Some institutions experienced ticket traffic dropping by nearly two thirds, with IT helpdesk queries decreasing by as much as 40 percent.

Operational Impact

Reducing support ticket volume allows staff to focus on complex or high priority cases, resulting in improved response times. Institutions using LearnWise typically see a reduction in support ticket volume ranging from 30% to 50%, and in some cases, even higher. Here are some key results to watch from our partner institutions:

• AI Resolution Rates: LearnWise consistently achieves AI resolution rates above 95%, with some institutions reporting rates as high as 98%. This means the vast majority of student and staff inquiries are resolved instantly, without human intervention.
• Ticket Volume Reduction: Universities have reported a 30–50% decrease in Tier-1 support tickets after implementing LearnWise. For example, some institutions saw ticket traffic drop by nearly two-thirds, and IT help desk queries reduced by 40% in specific cases.
• Operational Impact: This reduction allows support staff to focus on complex or high-priority cases, improves response times, and delivers measurable cost savings.

Real-Time Analytics That Help Teams Plan for Future Breaks

LearnWise provides actionable data and trend reporting throughout holiday periods, including granular data displaying days and weeks where student inquiries peak in volume. Leadership teams can see what students are asking, what resources are being accessed, and which mental health topics are emerging. These insights help institutions identify gaps, allocate resources, and strengthen support strategies for upcoming breaks and academic terms.

Why LearnWise Ensures No Student and No Institution Is Left Behind During Holidays

Holiday breaks introduce natural disruptions in service availability. LearnWise ensures continuity by providing 24 hour academic, operational, and well-being support through LMS platforms, student portals, and institutional websites. Institutions benefit from reduced post-break backlogs, more efficient staffing, and the confidence that students remain supported at all times.

In one particular case, one of our partner universities was able to provide support during a time of hardship: a number of students were actively homeless due to housing crises, leaving them especially in need of support. The AI assistant was able to provide key information about food bank locations and opening times, and how to access internet connectivity while the university was closed for the break. In these scenarios, assistants can provide information to help students navigate arduous circumstances, especially when institutions are unable to provide immediate guidance.

LearnWise keeps your support ecosystem active and reliable, even when your campus is on holiday. Learn more about our different solutions: the AI Student Tutor, AI Campus Support, and AI Feedback & Grader.