A new chapter in the University of Nevada, Reno’s story is taking shape. Built on years of market research, stakeholder feedback and strategic planning, the University’s new institutional brand positioning initiative aims to elevate its reputation, amplify its impact and strengthen its visibility. The effort builds on the priorities outlined in the Wolf Pack Rising 2023–2027 Strategic Plan.
State of the brand – a call to action
The farther one moves from Reno, the less understood and appreciated the University’s profound impact is as a flagship, land-grant, R1 research institution. Although the University has strengthened its national reputation through growth in enrollment and research impact, there remains an opportunity to elevate awareness of its achievements among audiences across the country.
In a landscape where higher education faces increasing scrutiny and attention is more difficult than ever to capture, it became clear the University needed a more distinctive, compelling brand to elevate awareness, strengthen differentiation and better reflect the excellence and momentum of the institution.
The success of the University and that gap of awareness created a significant opportunity to elevate the University’s visibility and more clearly communicate who it is, what it stands for and the value it provides to Nevada and beyond.
How did the University recognize that it had reached a critical moment to evaluate and expand its brand presence? It wasn’t based on intuition. It was driven by data. Comprehensive market research revealed a clear opportunity to strengthen awareness, differentiation and recognition of the University’s impact.
In 2024, the University’s Office of Marketing and Communications commissioned a comprehensive brand awareness and perception study focused on prospective students and caregivers in Nevada and across key out-of-state markets. The research explored what audiences know about the University, how they make decisions about higher education, and how the institution is perceived in the marketplace. The findings revealed a clear gap between the University’s growing impact and broader public awareness of its strengths, confirming a significant opportunity to strengthen the brand and tell the University’s story more effectively. Most importantly, the research made clear that the time to act was now.
Leading the charge
Since assuming her role in 2019, Executive Director of Marketing and Communications Kerri Garcia has overseen efforts to shape and steward the University’s brand, protect its reputation and elevate its profile as a premier public research institution nationally and internationally. In 2024, Garcia and the Office of Marketing and Communications team launched the University’s brand evolution initiative, leading a collaborative, research-driven effort to strengthen the institution’s brand, clarify its market position, and ensure it is well-positioned to achieve its long-term strategic goals.
"The University has changed dramatically over the past 20 years, and our brand needed to evolve with it."
“We realized we needed to do something different,” Garcia said. “The University has changed dramatically over the past 20 years, and our brand needed to evolve with it. We wanted it to authentically represent who we are today while capturing the bold vision we have for the future.”
This brand evolution is the culmination of more than a years’ worth of research, analysis and planning, setting the University up for success for the next 150 years.
“While research shows the University is highly respected, awareness and understanding of our impact are significantly lower outside Northern Nevada,” Garcia said. “This brand initiative helps us tell a clearer, more compelling and consistent story to strengthen our reputation, support enrollment growth, and position Nevada's flagship university for continued success in an increasingly competitive landscape.”
Research uncovered two key opportunities: increasing awareness beyond Northern Nevada and simplifying a fragmented visual identity that included multiple logos and brand marks.
Garcia acknowledges that “brand” is a loaded word. Everyone thinks of slightly different things when they think of it.
“From a marketing standpoint, through this process and the research we conducted at multiple stages, we tried to get at the core of what makes us different and how we can more consistently tell that story,” Garcia said.
Those core elements include the University’s location, deep history and roots in Nevada, and strong tie as an R1 research institution that is the flagship, land-grant in the state.
“Nevada doesn’t promise the future. Nevada starts it now!”
“You’ll see a lot about momentum in the brand. We don’t make promises that you might get a job – we proudly proclaim that we provide real opportunities, connections and hands-on learning and experience from day one, so your degree will be useful from this institution a lot faster and with higher value compared to other R1 institutions,” she said. “Nevada doesn’t promise the future. Nevada starts it now!”
Development of the new brand
Following a national request for proposals (RFP) process that attracted more than 30 advertising/marketing agencies across the country, the University selected R&R Partners of Nevada – for decades considered one of the preeminent leaders in the country for advertising, brand strategy, data science and marketing reputation – to help guide a comprehensive brand discovery process. Together with the University, R&R Partners conducted stakeholder and leadership workshops, in-depth interviews, market and competitor analysis, and consumer insights regarding the higher education landscape.
A wide range of stakeholders were engaged, including students, faculty, staff, alumni and donors, through focus groups and feedback sessions to better understand the values, experiences and strengths that define the University.
"When everyone is aligned behind a shared story and vision, it strengthens every corner of campus, from student recruitment and retention to fundraising and research."
“I enjoyed listening to the conversations with staff, donors, alumni – everyone. It’s fantastic to see the pride that we have for the University,” Garcia said, who has been intricately involved in every step of the research and development process. “The pride and passion people have for the University is remarkable. This brand project is much more than a marketing exercise. It provides a shared framework for how we tell our story, and its success depends on every member of the University community embracing and reinforcing that message. When everyone is aligned behind a shared story and vision, it strengthens every corner of campus, from student recruitment and retention to fundraising and research.”
After careful analysis of the findings, potential brand concepts were tested with prospective students and caregivers across Nevada and additional priority recruitment states. The feedback helped validate the strategic direction and ensure the new brand identity would resonate with the audiences the institution seeks to reach and inspire.
“We are strong. We know who we are, we are focused on the future, and we have grown tremendously as an institution,” Garcia said. “This institutional brand initiative is the culmination of an 18-month effort to bring the University’s story to the forefront and more clearly communicate who we are. At its core, we hope this initiative reinforces what makes the University of Nevada distinct and unique, while highlighting the transformational experiences that define our institution and set us apart.”
The next phase
Much of the work is just beginning. The University’s Office of Marketing and Communications will lead a thoughtful, multi-year phased implementation across the institution beginning with high-visibility items such as recruitment materials and digital communications.
The University is taking a responsible approach by incorporating updates for items on and off campus into normal replacement cycles whenever possible.
At the same time, the “Where World Changers Get to Work” brand campaign will be introduced starting January 2027 in key, in-state and out-of-state recruitment markets to build awareness and strengthen the University’s competitive position.
