Client: The Kennedy School of Government
Project/product:Viewbook

The project
The John F. Kennedy School of Government recruits actively for students among a wide variety of age groups and educational backgrounds. The School's administrators and admissions staff felt that their existing catalog didn't capture the energy and excitement of the institution -- and also failed to give prospective students a clear sense of what their educational experience at the School would be like.

Working with representatives of various departments, we outlined a new approach to the catalog. We conducted focus groups with current students and recruiters, and interviewed selected faculty members. Concurrently, we conducted interviews with several dozen alumni from around the world. We developed, tested, and refined key themes ("leading global change"). We then wrote a 56-page publication that was a departure for the School, and proved to be an effective recruiting tool.

Excerpt:
The international hub
Harvard University is widely acknowledged to be the leading international university in the world. At no other institution can students better prepare themselves for leadership in international affairs than at Harvard, and specifically at the Kennedy School.

The school is the hub of international, policy-related activities at Harvard University. Why? Because its multidisciplinary, integrative traditions make it an especially effective institution to delve into international issues. In its groundbreaking research and in its training of students from around the world, the school has made major contributions to building an international perspective.

Never has this perspective been more important. Consider the pressing issues of the day: environmental degradation, resource constraints, threats of terrorism, the global transmission of virulent diseases, the struggle of newly independent nations to build free-market economies, the risk of nuclear proliferation, income disparities within an increasingly interwoven global economy. These are issues that refuse to stay confined within national borders, or within academic disciplines. Because they are unruly, they create a powerful demand for what the Kennedy School does best.

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