Melbourne Business School’s AI chatbot

The challenge

The journey to becoming an MBS student is often lengthy due to the significant investment and high stakes involved. While the MBS site is rich in content, extracting specific details can be challenging for users. Leveraging AI to assist with common queries presented a clear opportunity to streamline the user experience and save valuable staff time. Our collaboration provides prospective students with an intelligent, 24/7 tool to navigate the complexities of graduate business education.

The existing search functionality on the school’s previous website, while sufficient for high level exploration, was not optimal for engaging with students in the conversation style in which we are all becoming accustomed to in the world of AI. Prospective students – often busy executives, are looking for intuitive ways to find answers to nuanced questions about scholarships, visa applications, and campus life. The challenge was to provide a consistent, professional digital experience that could address these needs outside of standard business hours in a measured and accurate way.

What we did

The project began with a workshop to define the chatbot’s objective as an 'expert advisor and friendly assistant'. We established a professional executive assistant tone that avoided jargon and matched the lived experience of the MBS admissions team.

To ensure absolute factual accuracy, Luminary implemented a Custom GPT solution with a strictly constrained knowledge base. The bot was instructed not to access any content published before 2020 and was set with a very low 'creativity lens' to minimise unpredictable responses. The team gathered 100 sample questions from admissions, sales, marketing, and search listening tools to rigorously test the bot’s persona. A critical part of our process was the mandatory response approval; every single answer was reviewed and signed off by client stakeholders to ensure the bot met legal and academic standards.

This testing also served as a content hygiene exercise, identifying gaps where the website lacked information, for example, on topics like on-campus prayer rooms. Luminary then helped MBS create new content to fill these gaps, ensuring the chatbot had a comprehensive and reliable source of truth.

The outcome

Following a successful pilot, the first 30 days of live data demonstrated the chatbot’s profound impact on lead generation and student engagement. The system handled 138 unique conversations, with a significant 41 percent of queries focused specifically on program details and curriculum.

The chatbot has proven to be a powerful tool for capturing high-intent interest. Approximately 21 percent of all queries were categorised as 'high intent' – including specific questions about application deadlines, entry requirements, and direct requests to speak with the admissions team. By providing instant, accurate answers to these critical questions, the chatbot effectively bridges the gap between casual browsing and formal application.

The chatbot’s international reach remains a standout feature, automatically adapting to the search language of the user to serve prospects across the globe. Beyond efficiency, the custom dashboard provides MBS with valuable insights into user behaviour, allowing the school to identify exactly what prospects are searching for and refine its digital and content strategy accordingly. The chatbot has now become a permanent feature of the MBS digital ecosystem.