Trademark Licensing

A circular graphic that highlights which domains of innovation are associated to the project.

We partnered with Trademark Licensing to explore student narratives and experiences of institutional pride. Students have a blended narrative of UofT—one that acknowledges both the real struggles and the opportunities. Their own narratives about UofT suggest areas in which the university can relate to the student experience. 

Circle put together by puzzle pieces, with two hands helping build it.

Fostering Connectedness

Students experience a sense of belonging and connection within the UofT community.

Our Findings

This project ran from 2018-2019. Click the buttons below, or scroll down to learn about the findings from each year.

2019

2018

2019: How does student pride manifest in U of T student's lives?

Based on previous project work and long-form, empathy-based interviews with students over the course of Fall 2018/Winter 2019, researches uncovered recurring themes and insights, which can be categorized into four spheres of student experience:

Academics: Students often feel isolated and alone in their struggles.
Social: Students value meaningful and reliable connections over shallow acquaintanceships,
and such relationships are valuable for personal growth and resilience.
Wellbeing: Students struggle to balance their schooling with healthy lifestyle practices such as
hobbies, physical activities, and spending time with friends and family.
Future: Students often feel it is impossible to consolidate personal fulfillment (e.g., majoring in a subject they love) with realistic future goals.

Access the report to learn more about these themes, along with personas, a journey map and next steps.

Research Team

Rachel Davis

Yifei (Maggie) Ma

Xiaodong (Jenna) Fu

Danielle Lum

Liza Brechbill

Alexandra Malinowski
Design Research Team Lead

Alex M.

Tina Keshavarzian

Janet Huang

Henry Guo

Design & Communications

Kaitlyn wearing long pink earrings, standing infront of a brick wall

Kaitlyn Corlett

2018: What stories do students tell about being "UofT Students"?

Insights & data from this stage of the project highlights that student experience is one of significant personal and professional growth, in which students overcome challenges and transition into societal roles. We offer some discussion questions at the end of the report to generate ideas about the role of U of T’s branding in the student experience, and to offer insight into what could be further explored during the 2019 stage of this project.