USCA rebrand earns international award alongside major global brands

The University of South Carolina Aiken has received a prestigious MarCom Award recognizing excellence in marketing and communications for its recent brand refresh. 

USCA’s rebrand earned a Gold Award alongside national and global organizations named in the same category, including Tripadvisor and the Wells Fargo Center in Minneapolis. 

The MarCom Awards recognize outstanding achievements by creative professionals around the world. Each year, roughly 7,000 entries are submitted from dozens of countries and evaluated by industry experts. The competition is administered by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals, an international organization composed of thousands of marketing, public relations, advertising, and digital professionals. 

USCA launched its new brand identity during a community celebration in August 2025 in downtown Aiken, introducing a new logo and refreshed visuals designed to reflect the energy and ambition of today’s university while honoring its history and mission. 

“A brand truly comes to life when people embrace it, and we’re seeing that happen across our campus and community,” said Chancellor Daniel Heimmermann. “From students proudly wearing USCA merchandise to new signage and digital campaigns that share our story with prospective students and families, this identity reflects the energy, confidence and momentum of the university we are building together.” 

Since launching the new identity, USCA has seen a 48% increase in freshman applications and expanded its geographic reach dramatically, with applications from outside the traditional market up 84%.  

“The fresh, modern brand has given us a unified and compelling story to tell prospective students and families, energizing our recruitment efforts,” Heimmermann said. “By combining a strong brand identity with strategic recruitment initiatives, we've created the ideal conditions for growth.” 

The refreshed brand identity centers on the letters “USCA,” reinforcing the university’s distinct identity while providing clear, unified visuals for communications across campus. The logo design draws inspiration from the campus’s iconic Double Knot sculpture and incorporates typography influenced by the design aesthetic of the 1960s, the decade in which the university was founded. 

The rebrand also included updates to the university’s athletic identity to create a stronger, more dynamic look while maintaining the brand equity associated with Pacer Athletics. 

In addition to a new logo and visual system, the brand refresh introduced updated colors, signage, merchandise and other assets designed to bring the university’s identity to life across campus and throughout the community. 

Receiving recognition from an international panel of marketing and communications professionals highlights the strength of the university’s new brand and the strategic work behind it. 

Since its founding in 2004, the MarCom Awards program has become one of the largest and most respected creative competitions in the world, recognizing innovative campaigns and communications initiatives across industries. 

“The brand is quickly becoming a visible symbol of the pride, innovation and momentum we see across our campus,” said Heimmermann. “It reflects both the strong support from our community and the vision we have for continued growth and new partnerships in the years ahead.” 

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