There were quite a few people from university press and comms teams at Delivering the New PR. They might be interest to see how the University of Michigan Medical School is using student bloggers to boost recruitment (thanks, Andrea). Under the banner Dose of Reality, 12 students "at each level of the program give you an intimate look at their med school lives - their insights, ‘ah-ha’ moments, frustrations and excitement."
The page says it is maintained by the UMHS Public Relations & Marketing Communications team but there is no real indication of how the students were chosen or if and how the blogs are edited, but it is an interesting initiative. UK universities currently involved in an industrial dispute may be less inclined to let the world hear how some of their students feel at the moment, but, as we kept saying yesterday, those conversations, both for and against the action, are happening anyway....
According to the American Medical News article I reference in my post, "the bloggers were recruited through a student-wide e-mail. Because only 12 students responded, all were given the chance, Dr. Remick [assistant dean for admissions and director of the blog project] said."
Let me know whether you'd like me to e-mail you a copy of the article.
Posted by: Andrea Weckerle | May 14, 2006 at 01:22 AM