The challenge: Academic recruitment imagery tends to default to lab coats and sterile precision — which doesn't reflect the curiosity, energy, or personality that actually drives good researchers, and doesn't stand out to a generation of prospective PhD candidates scrolling past that same imagery everywhere.

The approach: I built a set of character-driven illustrations in a bold, comic/pop-art style — hand-drawn linework, saturated color blocking, and dynamic arrow motifs that visually echo scientific concepts (energy, momentum, structure) without being literal diagrams. Each figure carries its own attitude and identity, so the campaign reads as people, not stock icons of "a scientist."

The result: A distinctive visual identity for the institute's PhD recruitment site — playful and unconventional by design, aimed at making scientific careers feel exciting and human to prospective candidates.