Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at TCU
Special Events, Projects, Programs, or Campaigns
Bronze
Through careful planning and implementation, the Anne Burnett Marion School of Medicine at TCU provided a unique Match Day experience for its inaugural class, which matched 100% in residency programs across the United States. The Office of Strategy and Communications team’s goal was to execute an innovative event that would highlight and promote the accomplishments of the medical students and encourage prospective students to attend our medical school. The team also launched a collaborative and creative marketing and promotional campaign, which increased video and website views, social media reach, and media hits.
A big challenge was having to keep the Match Day reveals a secret to students, while still planning media advisories, news releases, and storytelling in advance. The team had to pivot when some students opted out of allowing the communications team to promote their residency match. Ultimately, the team produced an innovative event that students extremely enjoyed and appreciated, while also promoting the medical school in a positive light to thousands of prospective students who applied to the medical school for 60 spots.
What was the most impactful part of your entry?
Match Day is a stressful, emotional time for medical students and their loved ones. To see the reactions of the students after the residency reveal was heartwarming. We were so fortunate to be able to experience their joy and document the 100% residency match rate of our inaugural class. It was icing on the cake to pull off a unique way of revealing their residency matches.
What challenge did you overcome?
A big challenge was having to keep the Match Day reveals a secret to students, while still planning media advisories, news releases, and storytelling in advance. The team had to pivot when some students opted out of allowing the communications team to promote their residency match. The weather also became a challenge for the outdoor event: On event day, the Fort Worth area experienced an unseasonably cold and windy spring day, with temperatures dropping to 38 degrees.
Contact: Maricar Estrella
m.estrella@tcu.edu