TOW #6: "So Relaxed -- Yet So Organized" (Visual)

This visual is part of a college application guide from Wellesley College, a small, liberal arts women's college just outside of Boston, Massachusettes. Although the booklet is supposed to focus on a broad application process, the college intersperses advice with images of students and campus life. The "title" of this image is "So Relaxed -- Yet So Organized." Below the title is the caption, "Three recent seniors and their plans left to right: Paige is working in a neuroscience lab at Yale; Rachel is doing research at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute; and Emma is a research assistant at the White House with the Council of Economic Advisers."

Because this booklet was distributed by Wellesley and it has images specific to the college, it can be safe to infer that the purpose of the booklet is not just to aid students in the college application process, but to hint that Wellesley is the right school for their readers. The booklet is most likely directed to prospective college students, such as high school juniors and seniors.

The biggest goal for most high school students is -- well, everything. High school students dream of having good grades, spending time with friends, finding suitable careers, and making their family proud, all at the same time. Wellesley shows a great sensitivity to these goals by demonstrating their students have what readers want. It is important to note that the title first emphasizes that the students are relaxed. Even though these students are excitedly moving into accomplished positions, they are still able to have fun and enjoy free time. In the image, the three girls comfortably have their feet up and laughing with each other. The focus in this visual is not Wellesley's campus, academic programs, or financial aid. It is instead on the individual students and their futures. Only the students' first names are provided, which creates an intimate atmosphere with the reader. Students looking at the booklet will picture themselves at Wellesley, with a similar contentment in life and impressive resume. Because these things are what students want, readers will then have a positive connotation with the college. The visual primarily relies on appeals to pathos by including a small text caption and letting the image of the students speak for itself.