National survey finds Baylor in highly regarded company

You likely have green and gold on your mind a lot, and could quickly explain to anyone why Baylor is special, why our football team deserves a playoff spot, or how a professor or program impacted your life.

But what do people who don’t have that personal connection think of when they think of Baylor? A national survey, commissioned by Baylor and conducted by M/A/R/C Research this past summer, explored that and other questions to discover Baylor’s brand recognition nationally and to uncover people’s perceptions about the university.

The good news for Baylor Nation is that the rest of the nation tends to see us a lot like we see ourselves: excellent in many different ways, having a strong faith-based mission with stellar academics and athletics and as similar to some pretty elite institutions — schools such as Notre Dame, Wake Forest and BYU.

“This was the first time we took a scientific look at what people have in their heads about Baylor, and I like the company we’re in,” says John Barry, Baylor’s chief marketing officer and vice president for marketing and communications. “It isn’t surprising, but it’s affirming of what we all believe about the quality of the Baylor experience.”

Americans know Baylor not only as a Christian school, but as an elite institution, rating our academics, athletics and campus life as overwhelmingly excellent. And when they think of similar schools, they think of other top national institutions that share a mental “sweet spot” of across-the-board excellence.

The survey’s complete results will be used to help identify areas of strength and opportunity in continuing to build national awareness and understanding of Baylor’s brand in the future.

Sic ’em, Bears!