From UC Berkeley to USC, the University of Montana, and Amherst, colleges across the U.S. are partnering with ZeeMee to connect prospective and current students in safe, inclusive communities that foster real life relationships and boost mental health and wellness.

PALO ALTO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / September 6, 2022 / Unsurprisingly, the COVID pandemic created a loneliness epidemic in America. But Americans were in crisis long before "coronavirus" became a household word. According to a 2019 Cigna study, 61% of Americans are lonely. And younger generations are feeling more disconnected than older generations. Nearly 8 out of 10 Gen Zers (79%) and 7 out of 10 Millennials (71%) are lonely. On top of the social impact, loneliness has real economic impact. 1 in 4 college students doesn't return to school after freshman year. This attrition costs colleges $16.5B each year and loneliness is a primary cause. Loneliness-associated health issues cost the U.S. $960B each year. And it is estimated that loneliness costs companies $154B in lost productivity. They lose another $1T annually to employee attrition with lonely employees twice as likely to change jobs. The loneliness epidemic is one of the biggest issues facing American society today, yet, it is one of the least talked about.

Now meet ZeeMee, the app taking a big swing at this massive problem. ZeeMee was developed to support the population hardest hit by the loneliness epidemic: Gen Z students. Officially partnering with more than 160 colleges and universities and supporting active communities at more than 86% of 4-year campuses across the U.S., ZeeMee shimmied up the App Store social ranks last week to reach Top 20 status. It has been featured 4 times by Apple as the "Hot App of the Week" and, this week, made Top 3 on the "New & Noteworthy" list in the App Store.

CEO Vanessa Didyk, the serial entrepreneur and startup veteran behind ZeeMee, says that ZeeMee is successful because it is focused on building for real life: "Every person belongs to real life communities like college, neighborhoods, and the workplace that we're obligated to plug into. And that can cause a lot of anxiety. The real life communities are where people are feeling most disconnected, which has massive impacts on mental health and massive economic impact for our society. But the ZeeMee app is changing that, connecting students at more than 2300 colleges across the country so they can approach college confidently, worrying less about sitting alone in the cafeteria and focusing instead on what they'll be up to this weekend with their friends in their community."

ZeeMee reports that 73% of ZeeMee users find their close college friends in the app. Unlike social networks like Snap and Instagram, which are built to support existing friend networks, ZeeMee is the first app to help students find new friends and expand their real world communities. The app brings users in as early as sophomores and juniors in high school, before they even apply to school, and connects them throughout the recruitment journey to ease the transition into college. Students make friends before they set foot on campus, drastically reducing the fear and anxiety of the first day of school and increasing the chances that that student will retain in college and graduate. Students who connect in ZeeMee and build a strong social network before they get to campus are significantly more likely to persist after freshman year and succeed, ZeeMee's data shows. Once students get to campus, students unlock additional events, chat, and social app features restricted just to current students to help stay dialed into the campus community.

"People crave deep, personal, real world connection and we exist to make that happen, focusing first on helping students in college find long-lasting friendships. By building a new kind of social media that removes the toxic elements, focuses on safe, niche communities, and makes it comfortable to put your real self forward, ZeeMee is making a gigantic impact. And this is just the beginning," said Didyk.

After using ZeeMee, students report feeling more accepted and optimistic and less lonely, depressed, and unattractive than they do after using other leading social apps like TikTok, Snapchat, and Instagram. And their engagement in ZeeMee rivals major platforms, with more sessions per day and stronger retention.

"The community around ZeeMee is based entirely on helping one another in these trying times where we all don't know 100% of what's going on, and that is something I haven't seen on other social media platforms. ZeeMee is a social media app designed to grow communities and foster relationships where we aren't random people hiding behind our screens, we are college students," UCLA student Sam Lopez writes about his experience on ZeeMee.

Moving forward, ZeeMee will be continuing to enhance the student experience on the app, aligning with brands that will provide great value to students, organizations that will help students throughout the college experience, and entertainment partnerships so students can have some fun during one of the most exciting time periods of their lives.

For media inquiries please email info@zeemee.com.

About ZeeMee

ZeeMee is the #1 community app for students heading to college. Millions of students use ZeeMee to make friends, find roommates, chat with college administrators, discover hyper-local events, and plug into life on campus. Connected students thrive, and ZeeMee is helping make the connections that matter. In an effort to help more students succeed, ZeeMee partners with colleges across the country, building community for their students and dramatically improving recruitment and retention outcomes. With highly active students at more than 2300 U.S. colleges and universities, ZeeMee is changing the way students find each other and belong, giving every student the opportunity to find their best friends and succeed. ZeeMee is consistently a Top 50 most downloaded app in the App Store and has been featured numerous times as "Hot App of the Week" by Apple. ZeeMee is headquartered in Palo Alto, CA.

SOURCE: ZeeMee

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