Abstract

A virtual tour is a digital feature that is increasingly easy to find everywhere due to technological advances that support daily life. During this pandemic, virtual tour features found their urgency as an essential promotion and branding. The focus of the study in this article is on the use of the Virtual Tour feature in higher education institutions (HEI) as a political economic means of branding, domestically and internationally. Digital browsing is intended to support visitors' understanding of the information and facilities of a higher education institution without having to visit the location physically. This study aims to review the differences in Virtual Tour features from various Virtual Tour services offered by multiple HEIs globally through observation of secondary data and analysis of survey results. This study aims to find the vital aspects of a high-quality Virtual Tour feature. The result is thus used to analyze and assess the readiness of the University of Pembangunan Nasional "Veteran" Jawa Timur Virtual Tour feature, also known as the Virtual Tour 360 UPNVJT. Secondary data analysis and survey results show that several elements are considered necessary in the best Virtual Tour feature service that is essential for branding and internationalization, thus contributing to HEI's political economy. However, not all higher education institutions implement these Virtual Tour features entirely and consistently. Likewise, Virtual Tour 360 UPNVJT has not fully implemented all these essential features but has implemented some of these aspects. This study concludes that the quality and completeness of a Virtual Tour features of an HEI is vital to ensure the quality of information delivered to HEI’s website visitors, one of the critical points of the political economy of higher education institutions.