Dartmouth College identity system

Dartmouth College’s updated identity system by Original Champions of Design centers around two typefaces, Dartmouth Ruzicka (an exclusive customized version of Study) and National 2. Study has a historical link to the university, who published Rudolph Ruzicka’s 1968 book Studies in Type Design, the inspiration for the typeface.

Excerpts from Dartmouth’s visual identity guidelines by OCD:

Originally designed by Rudolph Ruzicka, Dartmouth Ruzicka is a typeface that speaks to the legacy and history of Dartmouth. Type designer Jesse Ragan picked up where Ruzicka left off to modernize Ruzicka’s typeface and bring it into the 21st century. Using Dartmouth Ruzicka as the main typeface for communication materials highlights the cultured, scholarly side of the College.

National 2 is a deceptively simple sans-serif with subtle details that give it a distinctive, but not distracting, personality. While National 2 travels through and touches on a lot of historical material, it is designed to thrive in our contemporary typographic climate. Using National 2 as the main typeface on communication materials plays up the strong, bold spirit of the Dartmouth brand.

Different combinations of the typefaces evoke different facets of Dartmouth’s personality. Dartmouth Ruzicka communicates the legacy and prestige of the college while National 2 has a clean, modern presence. No matter which combination of typefaces you choose, always use contrasting weights and sizes to create a hierarchy of information.

The all-caps “Dartmouth” logotype is based on other lettering by Ruzicka, which is not available as a typeface.