University of Oregon:
Opening the Door for Future Students
My goal at the University of Oregon (UO) was to redesign the public homepage to dramatically increase engagement with key prospective student actions: RFI submissions, campus visits, and application views/submissions. I used rigorous testing to transform the site into an effective conversion tool.
The Challenge:
Missed Opportunities and Misaligned Priorities
The previous homepage structure was failing to guide prospective students, often placing conversion CTAs like Request for Information (RFI) well below the fold, which resulted in a low usability score of 45% for that key task. This structure failed to align with the student's primary need to validate their degree before committing.
Missed Request for Info KPI by
6 : 1
Application page options buried Request Information options six to one.
Effectively removing the ability of curious students to learn more about U of O by assuming application engagement first. A cart before the horse situation.
Prioritizing the Student Journey
I worked within an 8-week Flight Plan, which included running 47 different surveys and engaging over 2,935 targeted student users. The goal was to align the homepage structure with the user's need to validate their choice before converting.
Elevating Core Needs:
The design strategy prioritized a clear path for students by making the 3 KPI areas the focus the primary entry point.:
Increase RFI (Request for Information) submissions
Increase likelihood of a campus visit information
Increase engagement with the application page (views + submissions)
Testing proved this alignment was critical for boosting conversions.
Message Validation:
Through rigorous testing, we moved forward with the highest performing headline that resonated with students:
"WHERE BOLD IDEAS BECOME BREAKTHROUGHS"
Conversion Optimization:
The final design strategically used language that encourages the next step (e.g., "Start your application" signaled less commitment than "Apply"). Final design variants incorporated strategic staff feedback, such as placing the recognizable Duck mascot prominently to spark curiosity and increase RFI intent .
