Type of project: Copywriting, Storytelling, Articles
The problem
The marketing team was stretched thin: all English-taught programs needed a website update, and two large storytelling projects — one with current students and another with alumni — were waiting in the queue. The website copy for the English-taught master’s programs was outdated and too technical, written for the institution rather than for ambitious 22-year-olds deciding where to spend the next two years of their life. The team aimed for content picturing with vivid examples what the experience would be for students and what they would walk away with after graduation. So they needed a professional writer who could conduct thorough interviews and distill technical subject matter into sharp, vigorous copy.
The result
After interviewing professors, program directors, and students, I wrote website copy for six master’s programs tailored to prospective students’ search intent. What will they learn? What projects will they work on? What can they do with this degree? What impact can they make? Some of the new copy resulted in a 13-20% increase in website visits.
For the students’ stories project, I interviewed students of 41 master’s and bachelor’s programs and wrote articles that answer the question no marketing brochure does: what does it feel like to study here? The stories are brimming with personal anecdotes: a robotics student describing the moment their prototype finally worked at 3am, a communication science student who hadn’t expected to find her passion until a seminar changed her direction.
So, the students’ stories featured lab projects, competitions, course challenges, and friendships born in study groups, and the alumni’ stories spotlighted how graduates applied the knowledge and skills they gained at the university in their career. For the alumni’ stories, I conducted interviews with 30 professionals including specialists in the semiconductor industry, scientists, engineers, policy advisors, clinical technologists, and managers, among many others. I wrote Q&As going deeper than the generalities that can be read on any other website. The interviews highlighted the alumni’s challenges, tips for current students, and milestones such as landing a job at ASML right after graduation, becoming a city councilor at the age of 27, starting an AI company in a basement, and much more.
Deliverables
Website copy:
Philosophy of Science, Technology & Society
Student stories:
Noel Studies the Master’s in Water Technology: “There Is Still So Much To Figure Out About Water.”
Q&As with alumni:
About the University of Twente
The University of Twente is a public technical university in Enschede. It ranks as the best technical university in the Netherlands according to the national university ranking Keuzegids Universiteiten.
