We competed against the world’s best Universities and won!

Earlier this month, UNIS Hanoi received international recognition from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), earning a Silver Circle of Excellence Award for Through a Child’s Eyes: Authentic Student-Led Storytelling at UNIS Hanoi in the category Videos on a Shoestring (Promotional).

The CASE Circle of Excellence Awards recognise outstanding work in communications, marketing, fundraising, alumni relations, and advancement from schools, colleges, and universities around the world. In 2025, teams from 640 institutions in 33 countries entered the awards, submitting 4,460 entries. The 93 award categories span all advancement disciplines, including magazines and publications, fundraising campaigns, alumni initiatives, special events, marketing, leadership, video, and more.

For our small Marketing and Communications team, this recognition feels especially meaningful not because of a huge production budget or elaborate studio setup, but because of the people behind the camera, and the community in front of it. At the heart of the project was a simple idea: let students tell the story themselves.

The award-winning video captured the energy, humour, honesty, and perspective of UNIS Hanoi through authentic student voices. According to CASE judges:

“This video is fun and tone-perfect for the audience, proving that you don’t always need a big budget to make something effective and engaging. The production, shooting, and editing all worked together seamlessly to create a final product that felt both polished and professional.”

While viewers see the final polished result, what they do not always see is the extraordinary teamwork required to make moments like this happen.

For every scene captured, there are countless unscripted conversations, spontaneous interviews, hallway moments, camera resets, lighting challenges, and gentle persuasion from a Communications team asking students, parents, faculty, and staff to “just say one quick thing on camera.” Some people naturally love the spotlight. Many absolutely do not. Yet time and again, our community says yes and that willingness is what makes authentic storytelling possible.

Special recognition goes to Tung Dao, whose calm creativity, technical skill, instinct for storytelling, and eye behind the camera helped bring the project to life. From filming and editing to shaping the rhythm and tone of the final piece, Tung’s work reflects the quiet craftsmanship that often goes unseen in communications work. Great storytelling is rarely accidental. It comes from patience, trust, emotional intelligence, and an ability to capture genuine moments as they unfold.

The project was also shaped collaboratively by the wider Communications team, who worked behind the scenes on scripting, planning, logistics, coordination, and the countless details required to transform a simple concept into a meaningful piece of storytelling.

Ironically, one thing many people may not realise is that Communications professionals are usually the people least interested in being on camera themselves. We are far more comfortable behind the lens than in front of it. Our greatest joy comes from helping others shine and creating space for the voices of our community to be heard.

Most importantly, this award belongs to the entire UNIS Hanoi community.

To every student who shared their voice, every parent who paused during a busy day to help, every faculty or staff member who agreed to be filmed at short notice, and every person who trusted us to tell their story thank you. Your openness, warmth, humour, and authenticity are what made this project special. Because in the end, the real story was never about the video itself. It was about seeing UNIS Hanoi through a child’s eyes.