Abstract:

Tough competition between higher education institutions demands to strengthen universities’ visibility through the online and social media presence, benchmarks, or creative campaigns. Yet, the role of comprehensive public relations remains equally important, especially at local and regional levels. However, traditional marketing and PR techniques used in business are often perceived as being rather aggressive in the context of higher education. Universities are expected to implement the approach of ‘giving back’ to society by leading in the openness, social inclusion, and accessibility of studies and research.

The aim of the article is to analyze the PR campaign of the 440th anniversary of Vilnius University, which was implemented by carrying the university’s social mission in two main areas: openness to the society, and enhancing the accessibility of studies. We discuss the risks associated with running the campaign using only internal human and financial resources.

We present the techniques used in the implementation of the anniversary campaign and their links to the university’s social mission goals. We present the results of the implementation of the social mission through the anniversary PR campaign by measuring the impact on the university’s visibility and stakeholder engagement.

Keywords:

University, social mission, social responsibility, public relations, higher education marketing, PR campaign.