College Alumni and Student Recruitment
College Alumni and Student Recruitment
Introduction
Colleges have always loved their alumni — those passionate, committed graduates who serve their alma maters by recruiting new students, acting as mentors, making corporate contacts, and providing financial support. Strategically speaking, alumni can bring great talent and wisdom to the institution. Alumni are the best people to promote the brand — in many respects they are the brand.
Schools are putting efforts into making sure that their alumni love them back. They aren't wooing their grads by sending chocolates and flowers, but by providing them with opportunities to connect — with the classmates, faculty, programs, and campuses where students spent some of their most memorable days. Alumni organizations have special opportunities to influence the experience of prospective and current college students.
Impacts of the Recent Cap to International Student Permits
The Canadian government's decision to reduce the number of international students has had a significant financial impact on colleges and universities. These impacts include layoffs, hiring freezes, and program cuts.
Financial Impact
Tuition Revenue: International students pay higher tuition fees than domestic students, so the reduction in international students has led to a loss of tuition revenue.
Local Businesses: The loss of international students has also led to lost spending on local businesses and housing.
Provincial Tax Revenue: The loss of international students has also led to a loss of provincial tax revenue.
Program Cuts
Colleges and universities have had to cut programs and close campuses
Some schools have had to put in hiring freezes
Some schools have had to put on hold facilities renewal and student residences being built
Other Impacts
The reduction in international students has caused confusion and uncertainty for students planning to begin or continue their studies in Canada.
The reduction in international students has forced colleges and universities to decide which programs and services they can live without.
College leaders argue that Ottawa’s one-size-fits-all approach fails to consider the realities of regional labour market needs. They’ve also expressed concerns about the tone, rhetoric, and rapid rollout of these changes, citing significant and far-reaching economic and social consequences, including:
Harm to Canadians and Their Communities: Restricting access to skilled talent, failing to recognize Canada’s regional differences and demographic pressures, and neglecting to invest in public colleges and institutes hurt Canada’s ability to meet local labour market needs, fill workforce gaps, and drive innovation in key growth sectors.
Damage to Canada’s Global Reputation: The rapid, confusing rollout of these reforms has created uncertainty and damaged Canada’s image as a welcoming, stable destination for international students, weakening its position in the global education and talent market.
Threats to the future of programming for Canadian students: The ongoing policy changes jeopardize colleges ability to maintain and offer programs to Canadian students, especially those in rural, remote, and Indigenous communities.
Impact on Colleges’ Reputations: The rhetoric surrounding these reforms has, at times, unfairly placed singular responsibility on colleges and institutes for broader and longstanding national policy challenges like housing and healthcare shortages. This undermines the critical role schools play as workforce solution providers to these very challenges and to the urgent labour market needs in their regions.
Collectively, the cuts have placed financial and operational strains on Canadian colleges and universities, prompting them to adapt to a rapidly changing educational landscape. One of these adaptations is seeking to increase volunteer and financial support from alumni.
Opportunities for Alumni Engagement
Alumni are the only asset guaranteed to grow every year. However, alumni relations is often treated as the stepchild of advancement, when it should be treated as the cornerstone of advancement. Alumni are the single largest sources of philanthropic support for many, if not most, universities and colleges, and their value extends well beyond financial contributions. They are advisors, advocates, and allies in support of institutional mission, highly motivated not only by loyalty, but also by a vested interest in seeing the equity of their diplomas grow over time.
It is clear that polytechnics and colleges can benefit from increased alumni engagement in multiple ways. First, because alumni often live in the same community as their alma mater, they can be advocates and ambassadors. They can recommend the school as a high quality, affordable education. They can offer internships and hire graduates. They can also serve on advisory boards and committees and represent examples of success for current and prospective students.
Successfully addressing student and alumni needs requires, in part, adapting some traditionally accepted norms. For example, rather than siloing alumni by their class year or according to their former student organizations, some schools have reimagined the benefits of having students and alumni all together at one time. Rather than a traditional class reunion approach, events may be expanded to bring together groups of people who may not otherwise have the opportunity to connect. This multi-audience approach fosters an environment of inclusivity and also hopefully instills the tradition in future generations of alumni.
Regional alumni networks also offer these types of connections, presenting the opportunity for former students with decades worth of differences in their graduation dates to become friends, learn from each other, and perhaps even work together. One idea is to have the college website feature an alumni-owned-business directory, highlighting companies and organizations around the world that are managed by school alumni.
Mentoring
An attribute often associated with career success is the identification of a mentor who will assist students in their transition from college to the work world. Alumni are particularly well-suited to the task. They are able to draw on their experiences in helping undergraduates explore the world of work, network, find jobs, and more. Indeed, there are several benefits to having alumni work closely with students, especially as they make their initial career decisions. Alumni are in a unique position to provide practical instruction and guidance to students who are majoring in disciplines that correlate with the careers of alumni. Along with the personal satisfaction that comes from contributing
to the development of another person, the participating alumni are provided with an opportunity to observe students who might eventually be candidates for positions in their own organizations. A number of alumni organizations sponsor job-shadowing and mentoring programs, summer job placement or internship opportunities for currently enrolled students, and help connect alumni employers with potential job candidates for their organizations.
There is growing literature in higher education that discusses the potential benefits of integrating alumni more closely within the university community. These benefits include access to resources through philanthropy or industry collaboration, marketing and promotion of the university, and alumni's potential to help students to support graduate employability. Alumni have the potential to be key stakeholders and can offer a wide variety of value to currently enrolled students and can be utilized to recruit new students.
Alumni associations for institutions located in metropolitan areas are in a fortunate position to facilitate direct contact between students and mentors throughout the academic year. At the University of Cincinnati, for example, the alumni organization's Career Explorations program brings together alumni who reside in the greater metropolitan area with students interested in particular career fields. Volunteers and staff review applications from career explorers (students) and mentors (alumni) as well as conduct interviews with interested students to help determine which mentors and proteges make the best matches. Once the mentoring match assignments are made, the pairs are encouraged to meet in person two to four times throughout an academic year.
The findings that exist on alumni mentoring programs have been largely positive, particularly for student outcomes. Studies have found that student participants in professional/alumni mentoring programs are more likely to graduate with a job and have higher levels of satisfaction of their college experience than students who did not participate. Studies exploring the outcomes of mentoring in university settings show that students believed mentoring programs were worth the time and had benefits such as providing students with a better picture of life after graduation. Mentoring at colleges has also been linked to retention. Similarly, a study with business students and alumni found that students who were mentored reported higher levels of psychosocial support.
One strategy to help prepare students to find mentors and understand the importance of mentorship is establishing mentoring initiatives in an academic curriculum. Educational institutions prepare students to enter the workforce, and mentors have been shown to positively impact career development and success. Helping students find mentors and developing mentor relationships while still in college helps them to develop an additional support network before entering the professional workplace. Having established relationships with mentors will positively prepare students for success in their professional careers.
It is not only student retention, student graduate employability, and student experience that may be linked to mentoring programs. Increasingly, post-secondary education is also interested in understanding the precursors and the impact of mentoring on the mentors themselves, as alumni have been shown to be beneficial as sources of information and financial support for the school and its students. Graduates with high levels of financial resources have been shown to be more likely to donate funds. Other factors that research have sought to link to alumni engagement behaviour have included: student governance, community engagement, multicultural activities, financial aid, quality of instruction, enhanced abilities, satisfaction, perceived impact, overall evaluation and willingness to enroll again. A student's satisfaction with their learning experience also affects their likelihood of volunteering and giving financially to the university, supporting the concept that alumni engagement and student experience are interrelated.
Alumni make excellent career counselors because they provide valuable insights into the political and cultural dimensions associated with various professions, industries, and individual companies. Career-related programs offer other benefits to students and alumni. Students receive professional guidance from their mentors, including advice about career paths and advancement strategies from internship supervisors. These programs are highly praised by students who seek to hone their skills in real-world settings and to increase their self-confidence. The students develop important networking and professional contacts, as well as an employment history, to draw on when they are ready to seek full-time employment.
There are many potential benefits of investing and supporting alumni mentoring programs within postsecondary education – benefits that serve the students, the alumni, and the university community. Within the limits of what is practical, enabling students to make links with alumni, even intermittently, can enrich their learning in many ways. Students will also know that, when they have graduated, the departmental and institutional communities remain open to them.
Alumni as New Student Recruiters
Many college alumni wear their love for their alma maters on their sleeves, if not their sweatshirts. They're practically a walking advertisement for the college. So it often makes sense to rely on them when recruiting. Alumni can be an invaluable asset and a strong selling-point of the college to prospective students.
Today's student and alumni affairs professionals are actively engaged in a number of mutually beneficial institutional activities on behalf of students. These collaborative efforts include programs designed to improve the overall quality of student life, strategies designed to orient and welcome new students to campus, and initiatives designed to attract students to, and subsequently retain them within, the institution.
Success in these fundamental endeavors is critical to institutions that aspire to maintain strong enrollments of qualified students, guarantee high levels of academic quality and achievement, and ensure that graduates are successful in obtaining appropriate employment once they receive their diplomas. Alumni who have a strong sense of the mission of the institution from which they graduated and are visibly supportive of that mission in a variety of tangible ways, are essential to achieving all these goals.
It is becoming increasingly evident that student and alumni affairs professionals must work creatively and in concert with each other if the institution's total wellbeing is to be integrated effectively with that of its students. One of the principal advantages precipitated by greater collaboration between alumni and student affairs is the opportunity that such collaboration affords to share resources that are becoming increasingly scarce at many colleges. In essence, the efficient sharing of key assets (including operating costs and personnel) is becoming more of a necessity than a luxury within institutions that are working to provide programs and services that are effective both now and in the future. In postsecondary education, cooperation really is an indispensable prerequisite to continual improvement.
Ideally, alumni can, and should, be involved extensively in all phases of student recruitment, admissions, and the orientation process. Institutions that offer their alumni opportunities for involvement benefit graduates by providing not only meaningful volunteer service experiences but current information on academic program offerings, student life events, and campus activities. And as they work to maintain and even enhance enrollments at their alma mater, these kinds of experiences often serve to enrich the lives of alumni in myriad ways.
Alumni admissions programs vary in scope from institution to institution. At many schools, alumni admissions volunteers work individually to host student recruitment activities and represent their schools at "college night" programs. Alumni, particularly those who had a very positive experience as undergraduates at the college, may be asked to speak or write to prospective students in their communities about their undergraduate experiences and encourage prospective students to consider attending the institution after completing high school.
Key Strategies to Leverage Alumni for Recruitment
To use alumni to help recruit new students, you can leverage their personal experiences and professional networks by inviting them to participate in events like information sessions, campus tours, meet-and-greets, providing testimonials for marketing materials, connecting with prospective students in their industry, and facilitating "shadow a professional" opportunities, allowing potential students to see the real-world application of their chosen field through an alumni lens. Some key strategies include:
Alumni Panels and Information Sessions: Organize events where alumni from different industries and backgrounds share their experiences at the institution and answer questions from prospective students.
Campus Tours with Alumni Guides: Pair current students with alumni to lead prospective student tours, providing a unique perspective on campus life and alumni connections.
Industry-Specific Networking Events: Host targeted events where alumni in a particular field can connect with potential students interested in that industry.
"Shadow a Professional" and Internship Programs: Facilitate opportunities for prospective students to shadow alumni in their workplaces and/or serve as interns to gain firsthand insight into career paths.
Alumni Testimonials and Success Stories: Utilize alumni stories in marketing materials, brochures, and website content to showcase the impact of the education and highlight career achievements.
Social Media Engagement: Encourage alumni to share their positive experiences on social media, tagging the institution and using relevant hashtags to reach potential students.
Alumni Referral Program: Establish a system where alumni can refer prospective students and receive incentives for successful enrollments.
Regional Alumni Events: Organize events in different geographic locations to connect with prospective students in their area and provide information about the institution.
Important Considerations when Utilizing Alumni for Recruitment
Targeted Outreach: Segment alumni based on their industry, location, and graduation year to ensure they are connecting with relevant prospective students.
Training and Support: Provide alumni with training on how to effectively represent the institution and engage with prospective students.
Clear Communication: Ensure alumni are aware of the institution's recruitment goals and expectations for their involvement.
Recognition and appreciation: Acknowledge and thank alumni for their contributions to recruitment efforts.
By actively engaging alumni in the recruitment process, institutions can benefit from their real-world experiences, professional networks, and passionate advocacy to attract high-quality students.
Best Practices in Alumni Recruiting: The TER Approach
When examining how to approach alumni recruiting, Stanley Kania III, Assistant Dean of Admissions and Enrollment at Drexel University, found that an approach he created, the TER (Target, Engage, and Retain) Approach, is very effective for engaging alumni in a recruiting program. Here are some best practices for TER:
Target
Target a robust, diverse group of alumni that each add to the overall composition of your alumni recruiting team. Some suggested demographics of alumni to consider are geographic location, graduation year (target younger alumni from the past ten years), academic programs, mid-level and senior managers, alumni/trustee board members, and graduates from under-represented groups. Be sure to always have alumni that would be a good match for a student, such as pairing them up based on program of study or profession of interest. This allows for the best possible networking opportunity to occur between students and alumni.
Begin searching for alumni on social media sites (i.e. Facebook, LinkedIn, etc.), institutional alumni registries, and student records. Indicating to them that they have a unique opportunity to become engaged and network with students is very attractive to many alumni as they enjoy telling their story and affinity with the institution. Work in collaboration with your institution’s alumni relations/development office to gather alumni registry names and work on developing a quality program.
Engage
Provide a wide array of options for alumni to assist with recruiting. Some common ways alumni can help with recruiting are contacting students via phone calls or e-mails. This allows alumni to add their personal touch to communication pieces and highlight their experiences. Additionally, alumni can attend Open Houses, recruiting fairs/events, and other university events, such as student orientation. Some alumni may actually host a prospective student informational session on campus or in their workplace. This is especially beneficial if their geographic location is outside of the main recruiting territory. Be sure to provide a wide array of volunteer opportunities for your alumni and let them choose what they want to do.
Work in collaboration with other offices on campus to see if they can provide additional volunteer opportunities for your alumni. Some alumni may enjoy volunteering during student orientations or during student graduation. Increasing volunteer opportunities not only helps increase human resources, but it also can reduce budget expenses and staffing issues.
Retain
Be sure to recognize your alumni recruiting volunteers. You don't have to go overboard with this. Something as simple as listing their names on your website as an alumni recruiting volunteer goes a long way. Some schools may have a recognition event with food and refreshments or provide them with a college alumni recruiter shirt. This is all dependent on what you would like to do to recognize your alumni volunteers. In addition, as previously stated, having a wide array of volunteer opportunities for alumni to chose from increases engagement and continued participation in your alumni recruiting program.
Summation
Developing an alumni recruiting program can be quite beneficial to an institution. The added perspective from alumni can resonate well with applicants and students, which can make a positive impact on their decision to enroll at an institution. A TER Approach can be utlized when targeting, engaging, and retaining alumni. Alumni are one of your best marketing tools to not only prospective students, but other alumni, which can increase alumni participation in a program. If your department does not have an alumni recruiting program, explore developing one. Coordinate with other departments on campus and your enrollment management leaders to create an alumni recruiting strategy. Find a few alumni and "test the waters" at an Open House or student orientation event. Start small and expand the program from there. See what things work well at your school and what needs some fixing. It may take some time to develop a strong and robust alumni recruiting program, but it will be well worth the time and effort when it is successful.
Alumni Participation Post-Enrolment
After a student has been accepted and has decided to attend a particular institution, alumni organizations can play a key role in the process of orienting the new recruit to college. Many institutions routinely collect data regarding the perceptions of their graduating seniors and alumni concerning the extent to which academic, personal, social, and vocational goals were met while in college. The perspectives of alumni can be invaluable to new students as they learn to negotiate the campus environment and make decisions that have the potential to make an impact on their collegiate as well as post-collegiate careers. These types of alumni-student interactions, when facilitated in conjunction with orientation activities, provide students with the opportunity to learn from alumni while developing greater loyalty to the institution.
One model of student alumni organizations permits current students to enroll in their school’s general alumni association. Like alumni, student members pay dues and receive the benefits of membership while enrolled. Students receive the benefits of association membership, including discounts, a subscription to the alumni magazine, and the chance to support the alumni scholarship program. Membership organizations have the added benefit of providing current students with the chance to enhance their leadership skills. Students also learn more about the heritage of their institution and the accomplishments of its graduates by attending general alumni events, and they establish personal and professional contacts that may serve as resources while they are enrolled as well as after graduation.
Regardless of their organizational structure, student alumni organizations exist to reinforce and support the historical educational experience provided by the institution. Their services and activities help to perpetuate institutional values from one generation to the next, which in turn tends to instill within students and alumni a deep sense of connectedness to the institution. It is this connectedness that generates positive alumni feelings about the institution and motivates them to assist with future endeavors.
Some admissions programs use alumni to connect with potential students through such varied activities as interviews, college-admissions fairs, and receptions for accepted students. Alumni who serve as volunteer ambassadors can multiply the reach of any admissions office. Once they are involved with recruiting, they can be tapped for other activities, such as advising recent graduates on careers or serving on volunteer boards. Another major benefit: Alumni who donate their time may in turn donate their money too. Although it takes commitment and financial support, nurturing an alumni recruitment program can be an excellent investment. Dollar for dollar, nurturing an alumni recruitment program is a better investment than placing an advertisement.
Colleges and Universities with Alumni as Recruiters Programs
Rochester Institute of Technology
Conclusion
The college years hold an intrinsic and unique value — one founded in specialized, vocational training and essential personal development. But colleges and universities are also focusing on the opportunity to continue developing students beyond graduation by establishing meaningful relationships among their alumni. As the world continually shifts, economies fluctuate, and careers are reimagined, purposeful alumni networks will not only allow graduates to better adapt, they will also provide them with relational support and the resiliency that emerges from such strong ties. Those in academic leadership, as well as traditional advancement offices, need to become fully engaged in helping to realize the potential that exists with fully developed and active alumni societies, networks, and recruitment programs.
It is important to note that the partnerships facilitated between student and alumni programs have benefits for sponsoring institutions. These programs provide opportunities to expose currently enrolled students to the behavior and actions of involved alumni. These modeled behaviors by current alumni (assisting students and the institution with time, advice, and financial support) may help the alumni-in-residence develop an understanding of institutional expectations for its graduates. In addition, the more that colleges are able to connect alumni with currently enrolled students, the better alumni will understand why the institution asks for financial support. Student alumni programs help give a human face to scholarships and other campus programs needing private support.
Student alumni programs should always reinforce the institution's educational values that have endured over time, values that alumni help pass on to students from one generation to the next. Whenever alumni and students have the occasion to interact, both groups, as well as the institution they have in common, tend to benefit significantly. These interactions provide participants with opportunities for interpersonal and professional growth and development. The colleges that are able to link their alumni with prospective and current students enhance their reputations as quality educational institutions. The understanding of the need for private support is increased through these efforts. For these reasons, institutions are welladvised to consider developing and investing in partnership opportunities that connect alumni with potential students and student life.
Resources
“4 Tips for Leveraging Alumni Networks for Recruitment.” European Association for International Education. Accessed at https://www.eaie.org/resource/leveraging-alumni-networks-recruitment.html.
“4 Ways to Use Alumni to Recruit Prospective Students.” YouVisit. Accessed at https://www.youvisit.com/learning-center/blog/4-ways-to-use-alumni-to-recruit-prospective-students/
Anderson, Rachel. “What Younger Alumni Want from Their Alma Mater.” Alumni Spaces. Accessed at https://blog.alumnispaces.com/what-younger-alumni-want-from-their-alma-mater-7380ea368690
Bieger, Thomas. “The Role of Alumni in the Development of Their University.” Global Focus. Accessed at https://www.globalfocusmagazine.com/the-role-of-alumni-in-the-development-of-their-university.
Coville, Andrea. “Why You Should Use Alumni to Win Future Students.” University Business. Accessed at https://universitybusiness.com/alumni-love-their-alma-mater-why-not-use-them-to-win-future-students/.
“Developing, Sustaining & Utilizing an Alumni Network for Student Recruitment & Retention.” YouTube. Accessed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fBp8KYWP7RI.
Dollinger, Mollie; Arkoudis, Sophia; Marangell, Samantha. “University Alumni Mentoring Programs: A Win-Win?” Journal of Higher Education Policy & Management. August 2019.
Fogg, Piper. “How Colleges Use Alumni to Recruit Students.” Chronicle of Higher Education. May 2008.
“How Can Your Alumni Improve Your Student Recruitment Strategy?” Quacquarelli Symonds Limited. Accessed at https://www.qs.com/insights/articles/how-can-your-alumni-improve-student-recruitment-strategy/.
“How to Work with Your Alumni to Recruit Students.” stori. Accessed at https://stori.works/our-blog/how-involved-are-alumni-in-student-recruitment.
Kania III, Stanley. “Alumni Engagement in the Recruiting Process: Enrollment Management Best Practices.” Accessed at https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/alumni-engagement-recruiting-process-enrollment-best-kania-mba/.
Lechleiter, Maryanne. “The Power of Alumni Success Stories as Social Proof for Student Recruitment and Retention.” Maryanne Lechleiter Consulting Group. Accessed at https://www.themaryanne.group/blog/the-power-of-alumni-success-stories-as-social-proof-for-student-recruitment-and-retention.
Mosqueira Villegas, Juliana. “Here’s How to Engage your Alumni and Facilitate Lifelong Learning.” EAB. Accessed at https://eab.com/resources/blog/adult-education-blog/engage-alumni-facilitate-lifelong-learning/.
Notermans, Manno. “The Role of Alumni in University Marketing to Attract New Students Locally and Internationally.” Think Orion. Accessed at https://www.thinkorion.com/blog/alumni-marketing-strategies-higher-education
Peterson, Erin. “The Kids Are All Right.” University Business. May 2007.
Rapozo, Chris. “8 Ways to Engage Alumni in Higher-Ed Marketing.” Hannon Hill. Accessed at https://www.hannonhill.com/blog/2023/8-ways-to-engage-alumni-in-higher-ed-marketing.html.
“Research Finds Growing Interest Among Alumni to Engage in Recruitment, Mentoring Opportunities.” Anthology. Accessed at https://www.anthology.com/news/anthology-research-finds-growing-interest-among-alumni-to-engage-in-recruitment-mentoring-opportunities.
Shimm, Sharon. “To Alumni with Love.” BizEd. May/June 2013.
Slater, Sam. “Ways to Use Alumni to Recruit Students.” Concept 3D. Accessed at https://concept3d.com/blog/map-software/ways-to-use-alumni-to-recruit-students.
Smith, Everrett; Gearhart, David; Miller, Michael. “Understanding Alumni Relations Programs in Community Colleges.” International Journal of Higher Education. 2019.
Sperico, Jodie. “How Alumni Can Help Drive Student Enrollment and Retention.” EvoLLLution. Accessed at https://evolllution.com/revenue-streams/market_opportunities/how-alumni-can-help-drive-student-enrollment-and-retention.
Stonefish, Twiladawn, et al. “The Recruitment of Under-represented Groups to Ontario Colleges: A Survey of Current Practices.” Higher Education Quality Council of Ontario. Accessed at https://heqco.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Recruitment-of-URGs-ENG.pdf.
“Using Alumni to Increase Engagement and Enrollment.” AMNY Education Marketing. Accessed at https://www.advancemediany.com/alumni-enhance-enrollment/.
Warrner, Jennifer. “Creating Connections: The Importance and Impact of Mentoring Students.” American Association for Adult and Continuing Education. 2023.