@Yale makes a mark on Instagram

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Yale was named one of the “most popular American universities on Instagram” by the social media blog Nitrogram on July 12. “There are plenty of American Universities on Instagram,” the blog stated, with Yale near the top of those “worth following.”

In August, BuzzFeed called Yale one of the top “college campuses that were made for Instagram.” Others seem to agree, as the Yale Instagram account gained its 10,000^th follower on Dec. 7 — making Yale the first Ivy League school to reach that number.

Yale’s Instagram activity began in earnest in the summer of 2012, spurred by Wesley E. Dixon ’15, a summer intern in the Yale Office of Public Affairs and Communications (OPAC). The account features photographs taken by OPAC staff, including student interns, as well as images shared by other students, faculty, staff, alumni, and neighbors in New Haven. The most liked post to date is an a panoramic nighttime view across the New Haven Green to campus, shared by the popular local photo website “I Love New Haven.”

Updated, Dec. 11: subsequent to this story’s first posting, and thanks to the engagement of followers on Instagram, this post of a campus moment captured by OPAC student intern Philipp Arndt ‘16 set a new mark for the most-liked post so far on the Yale account, with over 1,350 likes and comments so far.

Occasionally, pictures are curated from the archives, notably for “throwback Thursday” posts. A new series of posts — “#YaleDayInTheLife” — was launched this semester, featuring stories of students in and out of the classroom.

“Yale is an especially creative, joyful, and connected community,” notes Michael J. Morand, deputy chief communications officer of the university. “It’s a natural place to thrive on social media, a place where awesome content, easily shareable reigns supreme. We’re delighted that so many current students, alumni, neighbors, friends, and prospective Yalies — nearby and around the world — have connected with Yale on Instagram and other channels.”

He points out that Kevin Systrom, the founder of Instagram, has said, “When I think about what Instagram is, I think about moments.”

“On the university’s Instagram,” Morand says, “we look to share some of Yale’s creative, joyful moments and help make the people and places of Yale more accessible to audiences both on campus and at a distance.”

Students, staff, faculty, alumni, neighbors, and friends of Yale are all encouraged to connect with the university on its Instagram page. All are welcome to submit original photos for consideration for posts on the Yale Instragram page. Submissions can be sent to socialmedia@yale.edu