University of York

Raising the profile of a new programme and boosting student numbers.

Situation:

The University of York received funding to deliver a new research and leadership programme: The Laidlaw Scholarship.

The University needed to make sure that students knew about the programme and how to apply for it.

Action:

I was asked to develop a marketing campaign to engage students’ interest in the scholarship. This needed to cut through the clutter of information that they received and communicate the benefits of the programme which included a paid stipend to deliver their own research activity and accredited leadership training and opportunities.

I focused on creating an online microsite for the programme which contained information on who the programme was for, the benefits of participating and support around the application process.

I created content to be used as hand-outs and worked with the team to determine how best to target students. This included careers fairs, social media and a stand where students could drop-in to find out more information at one of the on-site coffee bars.

As the programme evolved I developed stories on the first cohort of scholars. This gave the programme a human element and interested students could read all about successful scholars. Stories were used as case studies on the website and in social media and I also worked with a videographer to capture interviews with students on their motivations for applying.

Impact:

Students numbers applying for the programme were double the expected targets and this meant that the calibre of students was very high. In the longer term, the University has continued to receive funding to deliver the scholarship and the programme has continued to be oversubscribed.