5 Alumni Engagement Ideas for Stronger Alumni Relations

Alumni’s role in institutional advancement has become essential now. With connections, skills and experience they can fill in the gaps that hinder your institution’s growth. It is no secret that alumni can be leveraged to drive admissions, bring in placements & internships, guide and mentor students, raise funds and more. Yet, most of the alumni associations struggle to come up with ideas to engage them.

For alumni to feel connected and give back, they should understand the value of being connected with the alma mater. And, these alumni engagement ideas are a giant leap for the institutions to renew alumni’s trust. So, here are five interesting alumni engagement ideas for your institution to choose from!

#1 Alumni Events

Alumni events are the quintessential engagement tactics that are used by every institution and alumni association across the globe. These alumni meets are a good opportunity to reignite alumni’s interest in their alma mater.

There are a wide range of events your institution can organize for your alumni. They can be nostalgic and entertaining like chapter and batch-wise alumni reunions, homecomings and family get – togethers. Events like networking meetings, workshops, and mentoring sessions will help alumni grow their network and create new opportunities.

Here are some interesting alumni event ideas to drive alumni engagement!

If your institution doesn’t have the bandwidth to host physical alumni events, do it virtually. Virtual alumni events are as entertaining & effective as the in-person ones. Tailor the event ideas according to your institution’s interests.

Pro Tip: Encourage alumni to get involved in the alumni event planning.

#2 Share Alumni’s Achievements

When you celebrate alumni’s success, they feel valued. It creates a sense of pride and loyalty for the alumni, strengthening their connection with their alma mater.

Regularly share alumni achievements on social media and the institution’s website. Create a compelling piece by highlighting their journey, hardships, insights and accomplishments. Feature alumni from diverse fields and tag them for more visibility.

Launch an Alumni Spotlight section in the monthly newsletters to feature alumni excelling in their respective fields. It could be a Q&A where the alumni can briefly explain about their achievements. Encourage alumni to nominate their peers for the next edition. Invite alumni for webinars and speeches, present awards. Send a congratulatory message/mail to make their day.

Recognizing alumni’s achievements is a great branding exercise for the institution. It cements your institution as a pioneer in producing superb talent and inspires students to join.

Pro Tip: Always take alumni’s permission before publishing success stories about them.

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#3 Highlight Member Benefits

As I mentioned in the beginning, alumni should see tangible value in maintaining a relationship with their alma mater. Some might like staying in touch, others would need benefits if not they will sever ties. This is where member benefits come into play.

Highlight all the exclusive benefits your institution is offering to all the members of your alumni association. It can be closed door networking opportunities, privileged access to career opportunities or resources, discounts on merchandise, travel and accommodation benefits.

Communicate about the perks through emails, newsletters, and get testimonials from alumni who have utilized these services. Emphasize that through a token membership fee, alumni can get access to all the exclusive perks you are offering. If alumni feel reluctant, give them a taste of these perks for a limited time to encourage them.

Learn about some of the exclusive benefits alumni associations offer to its life members!

#4 Provide Support to Alumni

In our proprietary alumni engagement framework BEHA (Build-Engage-Help-Ask), we have carved out 4 alumni personas into which every institution’s alumni fall into. And, each alumni persona might have specific kinds of needs which your institution can cater to. Anticipating alumni’s needs and providing assistance will help you score brownie points with your alumni community.

For example, Millennials (21-25 y/o alumni) who just graduated may seek job opportunities. They might also prepare for post graduation or want to learn new skills. You can leverage senior alumni for placements, upskilling webinars. Connect millennials with alumni pursuing or completing Masters abroad via Special Interest Groups (SIGs) on the alumni portal.

Vagabonds (26-34 y/o alumni) might be switching careers or migrating to new places. Your institution can ease the transition by introducing them to alumni in similar fields. Chapters (location-based alumni communities) can help the alumni moving to new places with accommodation.

#5 Take Feedback from Alumni

None of your alumni engagement strategies are complete without feedback and suggestions from alumni. Obtaining feedback can help the institution to grow and have a better bond with your alumni community. Conduct surveys, polls about alumni’s experience with all the engagement activities.

For example, send short questionnaires to the attendees after the alumni event to understand alumni’s perspective. Obtaining suggestions will help your institution to come up with a more refined alumni engagement plan by taking alumni’s interests, preferences into consideration.

Alumni’s valuable feedback can be used in academic areas like curriculum improvement, practical learning and educational programs. Taking their inputs makes alumni feel valued and further strengthens their connection.

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In Short

Alumni engagement is all about building a mutually beneficial relationship with alumni. There are many ways to do that. You can conduct events, demonstrate value or involve them in academic planning and research.

Whatever your strategy might be, ensure your alumni are thoroughly engaged. Because, engaged alumni have the true potential to boost your institution’s reputation and success.

There is no right time to start doing it. Start reaching out to alumni and you will see the results eventually.