The University’s Brand Identity Guidelines provide guidance on branding as well as proper usage of the University’s logos, colors, fonts, editorial, video, and photography. These guidelines allow units substantial design flexibility while preserving key institutional brand identity elements and consistent visual association with the University. For specific questions about applying web branding guidelines to UChicago websites, please contact UChicago Creative at identity@uchicago.edu or request a branding consultation using the button below.
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Web Branding Resources
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Web Brand Guidelines – A basic outline for expressing the University brand on websites. Additional specifications are within this document. For, for more detailed process information on creating a University website, email webhelp@uchicago.edu.
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Identity Guidelines – Hands-on resource to help campus communicators communications reflect and harness the reputation of the University of Chicago, including tips on using the UChicago website template and University identity elements (logo, color palette), and editorial style.
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For digital accessibility tips for content creators, please visit the Center for Digital Accessibility’s ten tips for Accessibility for Content Creators.
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To help test contrast ratios for backgrounds and foregrounds for the University color palette, please visit our quick reference guide.
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For brand assets and identity resources, please visit UChicago Creative’s Resources page.
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For identity guidance specific to RSOs, please see the Recognized Student Organizations Guidelines.
Basic Web Branding Conventions
To ensure consistent branding across UChicago websites, there are several areas of the site that may not be changed, including the header and the footer. Please see the website guidelines linked above for specifications.
- The maroon bar at top with the phoenix and University of Chicago’s wordmark should not be altered and should link to www.uchicago.edu.
- The search bar should remain in the upper right.
- The white space below the maroon bar and above the navigation should not be altered.
- The master brand logo system or heading should be centered within the white space.
- Logos should be University approved.
- For frequently asked questions about logo creation, please see UChicago Creative’s website FAQ page.
The area between the navigation and the footer is customizable. Any content and design elements should still follow the University brand guidelines.
- Gotham is the preferred font for web content.
- A license for the Gotham font can be purchased at typography.com.
- If Gotham is not available, Helvetica or Arial is an acceptable substitute.
- Font Awesome is the preferred font for icons.
The primary University color palette consists of Phoenix Maroon, Light and Dark Greystone, and Footer Grey. These should be the dominant colors on all websites. The secondary color palette can be used sparingly for digital applications and should complement our primary palette. For more information on how to use the University color system, please see the website guidelines linked above.
For all other questions about branding guidelines, please contact UChicago Creative at identity@uchicago.edu.