It’s no secret that SEO is a critical part of how universities attract prospective students. Now, as we head into 2026, artificial intelligence (AI) is changing that landscape. Students are no longer relying solely on traditional search engines, such as Google and Bing, during their college search. They’re asking questions in large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT and relying on quick answers from Google’s AI Overviews to make sense of their options. For higher education leaders, this raises an important question: how do you stay visible and relevant when AI search sits between your institution and prospective students?

This is where concepts like Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) and Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) come in. AEO and GEO aren’t replacing SEO, but they’re impacting how institutions should think about content, structure, and digital strategy. In this article, we’ll explore what’s changing, what’s staying the same, and how you can start preparing your marketing and SEO efforts for an AI-driven future.

From Search Engines to Answer Engines: What’s Actually Changing?

For a long time, the search experience was pretty straightforward. A student typed a phrase into Google, saw the page of ten blue links, and clicked around to compare institutions. The goal of SEO was to get your content to rank on that first page and drive more traffic to your website. 

That model still exists, but it’s no longer the only way students search. Today, AI search is beginning to deliver direct, conversational answers. A student might ask, “What are the best online cybersecurity programs for working adults?” and receive an AI-generated, summarized response that pulls from multiple sources, along with a number of links. Instead of scanning ten results, they may only look at one or two.

Prospective students are also using more natural, complex questions when it comes to searching in LLMs. They’re not just searching “online MBA” like they would on Google. They’re asking things like, “Which online MBA programs are flexible, affordable, and good for career changers?” According to recent research, the average LLM search query ranges from 20 to 40 words, while the average Google search query is 3 to 4 words. 

As this behavior grows and search queries become more complex, visibility in the AI-generated answer itself becomes just as important as your position on the search engine results page (SERP). For enrollment marketing teams, that means your digital presence needs to be ready not only for traditional rankings but also for how AI tools interpret, trust, and summarize your information.

SEO vs AEO and GEO: How They Fit Together

As we head into 2026, you’re going to hear more about AEO, GEO, and AI search in general. The terminology can feel new, but all of it connects back to a familiar goal: making sure your institution is easy for both humans and AI tools to find, trust, and recommend. Traditional SEO is still the foundation, but AEO and GEO help explain how that work shows up in AI-driven results.

What Is AEO?

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) focuses on helping your content become the clear, direct answer to a specific question. It’s about structuring pages so search engines and Google AI Overviews can quickly pull a concise, useful response. In higher education, strong AEO often shows up on program, admissions, tuition, and financial aid pages that mirror common student questions and provide straightforward, student-friendly answers.

What Is GEO?

Generative Engine Optimization (GEO) is about how your institution appears in longer, AI-generated responses. When a student asks tools like ChatGPT or Gemini to compare programs or recommend options, those tools scan many sources and build a narrative. GEO focuses on making sure your messaging is clear and consistent across your website and third-party sites so AI systems can accurately describe who you are, who you serve, and what you offer.

SEO/AEO/GEO: One Connected Strategy

While SEO, AEO, and GEO describe different pieces of the puzzle, in practice, they work best as one connected strategy. In fact, at Rivetica, we see these terms as pointing to the same overall goal, and we’ve started talking about SEO, AEO, and GEO as one unified approach. SEO has evolved from search engine optimization to “search everywhere optimization” as the goal of SEO has shifted from just search engines to AI, LLMs, social media, and more. 

At Rivetica, we bring this together under the umbrella of SEO/AEO/GEO so you don’t have to manage three separate approaches. Instead, you get one cohesive strategy that supports visibility wherever students are searching.

SEO in an AI-Driven World: What Stays the Same and What Changes?

As AI evolves, it’s easy to wonder whether traditional SEO still matters. The short answer is that it absolutely does. There’s been speculation that “SEO is dead in 2025” but the truth is that SEO is still alive. AI is changing how SEO fundamentals are evaluated and used, but SEO is just as essential as ever. 

SEO/AEO/GEO is built on a familiar foundation. Technical health, site performance, mobile friendliness, and clear navigation continue to play a major role in how search engines and AI tools crawl your site. High-quality content that speaks to students’ needs is still the heart of a strong digital presence.

What is shifting are the expectations around clarity and usefulness. AI tools look for content that is well organized, focused on real questions, and written in a genuinely helpful way. Pages that are vague, overly promotional, or filled with internal jargon are less likely to be surfaced, regardless of how long they have been online. In other words, SEO and AI are now asking for the same thing. They both reward content that is relevant, trustworthy, and easy to understand.

How Rivetica Helps Institutions Navigate SEO/AEO/GEO 

Many higher education teams know that AI is changing the marketing landscape, but aren’t sure where to begin. At Rivetica, we help institutions translate these big shifts into clear next steps.

We start by reviewing your current SEO foundation and identifying where AI-related changes will have the most impact. From there, we help you update and prioritize content so it supports visibility in search results, answer engines, and generative tools. Throughout the process, we focus on the questions and concerns that matter most to your prospective students.

Our goal is to take on the complexity for you, so your team can stay focused on serving students and managing enrollment, rather than trying to track every new AI update on their own.

If you’re ready to prepare your institution’s marketing and SEO/AEO/GEO for 2026 and beyond, we’d be glad to talk. Rivetica can help you build an AI-optimized strategy that keeps your institution visible, credible, and connected to the students who are searching for what you offer. 

Let’s talk.