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Web Site

Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College
Web site home page and Web feature

As a top-5 school of education, Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College attracts stellar faculty and students to its programs and research. However, their Web presence, while laden with factual information, didn’t tell the story of how Peabody’s people and traditions impact the worlds of education and human development.

After producing a strategic research and recommendations report for Peabody, Zehno created an admissions Web feature that built on the recommended content focus areas. This Flash-based “tour” of Peabody offered a highly visual and personality-driven glimpse into the school’s differences. The feature was promoted from the school’s home page and key admissions areas.

Then, working in partnership with the school and Ingeniux, a CMS company, Zehno redesigned the school’s entire Web site, including

  • a reworked architecture to better position and showcase the school’s attributes
  • look and feel elements that integrated closely with Vanderbilt’s overall identity
  • story-rich content and profiles, called “Peabody Reflections” to tie into the curriculum’s reflection component
  • an expanded news and events section that uses feature stories, podcasts and other content to continuously demonstrate Peabody’s messages and achievements
  • special focus on accessibility and Web standards (Peabody’s special education program is ranked #1 in the country)

The admissions Web feature launched in August 2006, and the entire Web site debuted in February 2007. Communications-savvy staff at the school are now empowered to manage their public Web presentation through the CMS.

As of February 2008, the Web site has received over one million visits to the site, with over four million page views. The average length of visit went from a little over three minutes to just under six minutes, almost doubling the average length of time spent on the site.

Undergraduate applications and yield are up 33% from last year, and the academic quality of applicants has improved greatly. Peabody has had a 45% increase from early decision this year, the largest early decision group in the institution’s history. This group of students has SAT scores with a mean 30 points higher than last year’s early decision group. Applications for graduate and professional programs are also up significantly.


Visit Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College Web site.