what role do alumni play in applicant community support and conversion?
There are a number of different stakeholders in the conversation with any given offer-holder or applicant, each providing different perspective and value. These conversations influence prospects’ pre-enrolment experience and, ultimately, their decision to enrol.
While applicant-ambassador (and to a lesser extent applicant-applicant) peer-to-peer strategy is well-established, there doesn’t tend to be a clear process as to how to engage alumni in these critical prospective student conversations.
A growing trend
There has recently been an upturn in pre-enrolment students asking questions, or looking for reassurance related to options and opportunities beyond graduation. Alumni, and recent graduates in particular, are best placed to answer these questions.
For an international offer-holder like the example below, connecting with an alumni and a current student is hugely significant.
How do you involve alumni in offer-holder conversations?
The list below provides some techniques and strategies that we have seen work from our experience with offer-holders, alumni ambassadors, and recruitment teams.
Discuss alumni opportunities early and often with your current students and ambassadors, identify candidates that best meet your criteria and promote opportunities to them prior to their graduation.
Build and nurture a network of potential alumni ambassadors up to and after their graduation. Recent graduates are often the best contacts for prospects. Their experience of the university is highly relevant.
Engage with your alumni office with regards to the type of activity that you’d like alumni to undertake; alumni teams are always looking for more meaningful ways for graduates to give back.
Develop a ‘volunteer spec’ that outlines the type of activity that you’d like your alumni to be involved in, e.g. The University of Toronto organise Skype calls between alumni and prospects. Alumni are short on time but their contributions are so valuable, choose activities where they have maximum impact.
Tell alumni how much you value their time and how their contribution is impacting on the student experience;’ they can be the driving force behind your conversion activities.
Profile your alumni so that prospects get an idea of who they are, what their experience is etc.
Prospects want to talk to alumni that study the same subject they have applied for. Align Alumni with this in mind and be sure to manage their workload carefully.