From the Nominator

The primary feature of the 2025 Pacific Magazine is “Journey to Pacific," a series of student profiles focusing on those who take nontraditional paths to college. To bring this feature to life, Strategic Communications reimaged in this print feature in the form of a “choose-your-own adventure” micro-site, placing the visitor in the shoes of a newly minted high school graduate beginning their higher education journey. Players are presented with a series of decisions that ultimately find them arriving at the University of the Pacific. With each decision made, they encounter the Pacific students profiled in the print feature. These students tell their stories through video interviews conducted especially for this interactive experience. All outcomes and journeys are programmed to end with the player finding their way to Pacific. But it is through the stories of the 15 profiled students and the 10,400 unique possible student paths that we aimed to show one key message: No matter what path life takes, anybody can find their home at University of the Pacific. The journey resulted in more than 1,000 videos views, and players have spent an average of more than 5 minutes in the experience--an enormous time for any webpage. As we market this interactive micro-site, we anticipate thousands more will be inspired to imagine how they might find their home at Pacific.

From the Judges

This entry presents a thoughtful and well-executed interactive micro-site that effectively brings student storytelling to life through a “choose-your-own-adventure” format. The experience is aligned with a clear goal—to demonstrate that students from a range of backgrounds can find a place at the University of the Pacific.