The Project
We partnered with the University of Toronto Scarborough (UTSC) to overhaul its digital admissions gateway, transforming a fragmented web of information into a high-performance recruitment tool. By consolidating three disparate program pages into a single, thematic Program Finder and mapping a complex ecosystem of marketing entry points, we streamlined the path from initial interest to application. Our work focused on shifting UTSC’s brand perception from a backup campus to a premier destination, using strategic UX design to highlight its unique co-op opportunities and stunning natural landscape. Through a deeply integrated collaboration with UTSC's internal design and technical teams, we delivered a comprehensive design system and strategic roadmap that empowers the university to meet ambitious enrollment targets and better convert prospective and admitted students into registered ones.
The Big Goal
As one of the three campuses of the University of Toronto, UTSC is a research-intensive institution serving approximately 14,500 students. Located in one of the world's most diverse communities, the campus is known for its close-knit community and industry-leading co-op programs. This project was a deeply integrated partnership: we worked closely with UTSC’s internal team, specifically collaborating with their User Experience Lead and Web Content Strategist. While Kalamuna did not handle the final coding, our role was critical in technical strategy and consulting. We conducted a thorough review of UTSC's technology infrastructure and provided a comprehensive design system that was ready for their internal developers to implement. This ensured that the high-fidelity visual designs remained accessible and functioned seamlessly within their existing Drupal environment.
Project Tour
A primary challenge identified by the internal team was that UTSC is often perceived as a backup to the downtown St. George campus. Our mission was to dismantle this perception by centering the digital experience on UTSC’s distinct value propositions. We highlighted the campus’s unique assets, its stunning natural landscape bordering the Highland Creek Valley and its global leadership in co-op and experiential learning. By weaving these differentiators into the user journey, we helped UTSC shift from a secondary option to a premier, first-choice destination for domestic and international students.
The prospective student journey was previously fragmented across a disconnected web of marketing landing pages, departmental sites, and central UofT gateways. We conducted an extensive audit to visualize their site ecosystem, creating a comprehensive diagram to track every possible point of entry. This allowed us to provide UTSC with a strategic roadmap for consolidation. We recommended integrating marketing campaign traffic directly into the main Admissions site, ensuring that the brand experience remained cohesive and that users never felt lost between different university domains.
The existing site featured three separate, overlapping program pages that created significant friction for applicants. We consolidated these into a single, high-performance Program Finder. Through iterative wireframing, we moved away from rigid administrative labels in favor of thematic searching; for instance, a student searching for business can now easily discover Management. We carefully balanced these individual program pages to create a dynamic landing page that has a sense of the vibrancy of the living, breathing, experience of a university to create an engaging first impression and showcase campus vibrancy. Additionally, we ensured technical admission requirements were clear while prominently featuring student success stories that inspire users to take the final step and hit "Apply." We worked collaboratively with UTSC to determine what filters to include, how they were worded, and utilized tooltips to aid comprehension. We iterated on this feature extensively through wireframing and prototyping to ensure that the order of filters and the visualization of results felt natural to a high-school-aged audience.
Final Thoughts
The final redesign provides UTSC with a digital gateway optimized to convert prospective and admitted students into enrolled ones. By creating a more intuitive and inspiring interface, UTSC is now better positioned to meet its specific enrollment targets for government-funded programs and the social sciences. More than just a functional tool, the new site ensures that every future student feels seen, supported, and welcomed from their very first interaction. Learn more about our diagnostic service and how we improve online enrolment at your higher education institution.