From the Nominator

"Connect magazine is the University of Nottingham’s alumni publication, distributed annually to around 145,000 alumni globally in print and digital formats (54,026 print and 89,245 digital copies in 2021). Our vision for Connect is a high-quality magazine that inspires readers to connect with Nottingham and their alumni community through thought-provoking stories that showcase how the university is relevant to alumni today. 

In spring 2021, the Campaign Office launched a new alumni proposition and brand identity, "Connected we thrive," designed to help alumni to develop professionally and personally. For the seventh edition of Connect, we aimed to bring the magazine under the new alumni brand through both design and content choices, while continuing to reflect the identity we had established over the previous six editions. 

The theme for our 2021 edition was "thriving in our professional and personal lives in a post-pandemic world," uniting both our proposition terminology with a focus on a topical subject of interest for our audiences. This guided the editorial choices we made to ensure that the stories we chose provided relevant content on a number of levels to appeal to readers across our community. We partnered with external agency Digitronix to develop a creative vision that complemented our editorial vision. Collaborating closely throughout the project, we ensured that the magazine design and content combined to produce a cohesive publication with a well-designed creative that showcased storytelling through both content and visuals."

From the Judges

The University of Nottingham’s Connect 2021 Alumni Magazine was rated within the top 5 of all judges–earning it gold award status. The magazine was engaging, dynamic ,and had great personality throughout. Great visuals and artwork, consistent in color and design, with stories that resonated with the judges. One judge stated, “I think the alumni would be really engaged by the balance of nostalgia-inducing pieces, such as the gig-going memories and the crossword puzzle and the in-depth, people-focused features.” Another judge noted the cover story about the world record holder could have been in Sports Illustrated. The sustainability efforts of delivery and overall compelling design were also impressive.