George Mason University’s homepage (www2.gmu.edu) is undergoing a facelift to make it more user-friendly, easier to navigate for visitors and a better resource with more functionality for students, faculty and staff.
The new design, unveiled Thursday, was based on data collected during the past three years that analyzed how homepage users—including visitors, faculty, staff and students—navigated the page. The redesign process also included direct feedback and recommendations from key users, administrators and academic leaders.
“The redesign will allow users more direct access to what is most important to them,” said Frank Neville, Mason’s chief of staff and vice president for communications and marketing.
The new homepage will
- align its structure more closely with how visitors, faculty, staff and students currently navigate the site;
- have more prominent links to the university calendar, MyMason, People Finder, the main library website and portals to set up campus visits and apply for admission and jobs;
- have a better-organized, more-streamlined design;
- provide more space to highlight important university news, faculty research and student accomplishments; and
- have a cleaner, more user-friendly mobile interface.
“Updating and improving the website will be an ongoing process,” Neville said. “We will strive to continually analyze usage and seek feedback, and use that knowledge to improve the user experience.”
Additional changes in the next stages of the redesign include an improved presentation and deeper content for academics and admissions; clearer pathways to content for undergraduate, transfer and international admissions; and an improved search engine and Faculty Resources site.