The Queen’s Alumni Review has been declared the best magazine in the country by the National Magazine B2B awards. The magazine swept the competition at an awards ceremony in June, taking home top honours in several categories, including the most prestigious prize in the competition – Best Magazine.
The competition is the premier awards program for trade and professional magazines in Canada. The magazine, which launched its redesign in the spring of 2021, picked up accolades for writing, photography, design, podcast, and as a total package, bringing home five gold awards and two silvers – more than any other magazine in the country.
Heading into the competition the Review led all finalists with 17 nominations across categories.
The Review also received five nominations in the National Magazine Awards, in which it competes against newsstand magazines such as Maclean’s, Toronto Life, and Chatelaine. The Review bested all other alumni magazines with nods for photography, art direction, and its Fall 2022 cover (featuring a rare archival image of The Tragically Hip), which took home an Honourable Mention in the Cover Grand Prix category. The magazine took Gold for Best Photograph for Wade Hudson’s portrait of alumnus Elamin Abdelmahmoud and Silver for Art Direction for a Single Article for “Hall of Presidents,” a feature story about the Alma Mater Society that was designed by Wendy Treverton. The magazine also received Honourable Mentions for Art Direction of a Single Article for “Lake Effects,” a story of alumni involved in efforts to promote and protect the Great Lakes, and “Rewilding of the Castle,” which told the story of Bader College’s efforts to restore the Castle grounds to their natural state. Both layouts were also designed by Wendy Treverton.
“Between its extremely high-quality design and engaging features, Queen’s Alumni Review could fit perfectly alongside any major newsstand magazine. You don’t have to be alumni to enjoy it.”
The Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) also announced the winners of its annual Circle of Excellence Awards in June. The Review picked up a Silver in the Magazines category for alumni/general interest. The judges offered generous praise for the magazine’s look and feel: “Engaging, clean design. Beautiful features, editorial sits nicely next to the advertising, nice visuals. The attention to detail in the magazine was extraordinary. Nice differential on how they highlighted directly on campus and off campus. Nice infographic presentation.”
The magazine, which has been on a roll since it was redesigned two years ago, also took home a Silver for its Summer 2022 cover illustration by freelance illustrator Tim Zeltner. Judges said the illustration of Queen’s researchers in the field was “an excellent example of an illustration that captures the essence of its subject matter while also showcasing the illustrator’s creativity and skill,” noting they were “impressed with the use of inspiration from 19th-century landscape painters and how it added depth and dimension to the piece.”
CASE is the global non-profit association “dedicated to educational advancement professionals – in alumni relations, communications, development, marketing, and advancement services – who share the goal of championing education to transform lives and society.”
