How storytelling is at the center of recruitment efforts.
At the University of Texas at Austin’s Moody College of Communication, recruiting new students isn’t about flashy ads or slogans. It’s about telling real stories and showing how a communications degree leads to real jobs.
Kathleen Mabley, the college’s chief marketing and communications officer, said her comms strategy is focused on helping prospective students understand what communications is and why it matters through real stories.
“Awareness of UT Austin isn’t the challenge,” Mabley said. “The challenge is helping students realize what communication really means and what they can do with it. No 17-year-old walks around saying, ‘I want to study corporate communication.’ They know business or engineering, but not necessarily that communications is the skill everyone needs. It’s the number one skill in demand by employers on LinkedIn in 2025.”
This year, the college recruited its largest freshman class to date, with about 1,000 students entering the communications department.
Mabley and her team have developed a set of simple, clear tactics to attract students and help them see the value of the industry.
Here’s where they’re focusing their efforts.
- Storytelling through alumni success
Storytelling is the most important aspect of college recruitment and something Mabley considers before launching every campaign.
This includes social listening, feedback from current students and identifying trends younger adults, students and parents are talking about. Learning what’s important to the audience informs how the university can set itself apart, she said.
From there, Mabley assesses the best strategy to make her message clear. Will this resonate with the right people? How does this show value? These are questions she asks constantly.
Tying those points together, the college launched a “Life After Moody” campaign, sharing profiles of recent graduates who are working in careers and using communication skills every day.
The goal was to provide legitimacy to the program, showcasing students who actually experienced it and what lessons they took with them, she said.
“We try to explain by example using alumni stories to show what’s possible,” Mabley said. “We want students to see themselves in those stories.”
Not only does the campaign show successes of former students, it offers networking opportunities, connection and greater reach.
Campaigns like “Life After Moody” are “helping students see themselves here not just for four years, but as part of a story that continues long after they graduate., Mabley said.
- Focused use of social media
The college concentrates its storytelling efforts on the platforms where students and parents actually spend time: Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube Shorts, she said.
Moody’s platforms have 19,000 followers, 13,000 followers and 3,400 subscribers, respectively.
“We always say we’ve got the happiest students on campus,” Mabley said. “It really feels like a community, and we want our social media to reflect that.”
Instagram is for prospective and current students. It highlights student life, campus culture and community events. LinkedIn reaches alumni, faculty and parents, focusing on career outcomes and professional success stories, and YouTube Shorts helps the college reach prospective students through short videos.
“We’d rather be excellent on the channels we use than spread ourselves thin,” Mabley said.
- Prioritizing authentic viewpoints
While the team experiments with AI tools for brainstorming and copy ideas, Mabley said they are cautious about integrating AI into external content because of how it would land, though they’ve dabbled with some AI graphics generation.
“Authenticity is everything,” she said. “College is a big investment, and we want to make sure what we show truly reflects the student experience.”
Moody often features students behind the camera, filming day-in-the-life reels, highlights from campus events or running “takeovers” on Instagram Stories during special weeks like orientation or graduation.
That peer-to-peer voice builds credibility with high schoolers. It also gives current students valuable experience in digital storytelling, Mabley said.
While the tone stays conversational, the strategy behind it is data-informed, she said.
The team tracks what types of content earns the most saves, comments and shares and then adjusts future content accordingly.
Posts about career outcomes and student wellness consistently perform best because they feel the most relatable, she said.
“Our audiences engage most when we show real stories that create impact,” Mabley said.
- Emphasizing care beyond classes
Part of the program’s comms strategy has shifted in recent years toward a more holistic approach. Eight years ago, mental health discussions were rare in colleges. But when COVID hit, that all changed, Mabley said.
Parents and students now want to know that colleges support mental health and student well-being, she said. This became an important message to emphasize.
She said the college now makes an intentional effort to highlight the programs and resources that support students’ mental health and sense of belonging.
Those include events like “Popcorn and Pups,” where students can relax with therapy dogs during stressful times like midterms and finals, and “Donuts with the Deans,” a casual meet-and-greet that encourages students to connect with leadership in a low-pressure setting.
“It’s a big university, and it can feel overwhelming. Having someone right here in our building that students can talk to makes a huge difference,” Mabley said. “We talk about those programs a lot. It’s about showing parents and students that we care about the whole person.”
Register now to hear Mabley and other industry experts speak during Ragan’s Future of Communications Conference, Nov. 12-14 at the Hyatt Regency in Austin, TX.
Courtney Blackann is a communications reporter. Connect with her on LinkedIn or email her at courtneyb@ragan.com.
The post Comms that convert: Inside UT Austin’s recruitment playbook appeared first on PR Daily.
