4 Quick Tips for Connecting Students with Alumni Services Before Graduation

As a college career services professional, you know it's important to establish strong connections with students. In fact, you stopped on this post because you constantly look for ways to improve the ways you serve the college community. However, how-to content is frequently dialed in on successfully preparing students to enter the workforce following graduation.?

That’s it. But that’s not where career readiness and growth end for graduates.

It’s just as critical to foster positive relationships that encourage the use of alumni resources down the road. Building a rapport with college students helps them feel more comfortable asking for advice about their futures and encourages them to stay engaged with alumni activities after college. But if your communication with students lacks exposure to alumni resources, they are unlikely to consider them in future job shifts.

Fortunately, it’s easy to show students the connection between the job search resources they use now and the tools available to them in your career service center for years to come.?

Forge connections between students and alumni

The first step in building connections is getting out into the college community. Attend student events, career fairs, and other related gatherings to be seen and make yourself known as a resource. For any events that are open to alumni, be sure to send out personalized messages to invite everyone to attend. You can even use CareerShift to find your alumni.

Alumni can mix and mingle with students and share their experiences since entering the workforce, providing real-life best practices and tips for making the best use of career services. They also benefit from networking at events and keeping connections strong. Furthermore, students see alumni services in action and can look forward to returning for similar events after graduation.

Make finding information easy and social

Additionally, advertise online via social media networks like LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook so college students and alumni can easily keep track of on and off-campus career service events. Keep lines of communication open where students and alumni can interact and benefit from the same job search information.

Keep information clear and concise and be conscious of not tagging @everyone in your groups if an event or resource is not relevant to one group. Being mindful of everyone’s time means fewer people are likely to turn off your social media notifications.?

Map out life after college?

Don’t limit connecting with students to social media, no matter how engaging your content is. Connect with college students on a one-on-one basis to get an understanding of their career goals. Often, their responses are short-sighted, “I want to get a job at X company, or in X industry.” Press them to consider where they want to be in 5+ years after graduation, and what they need in order to reach them.

Use their responses to open conversations about the kind of resources career services can provide at different stages of their career growth. You can also encourage them to connect with alumni with similar interests and goals to learn about their career paths. Make introductions to help students and alumni grow their networks together, and keep alumni resources front of mind.

Build ‘post graduate’ toolboxes

Finally, encourage college students to take advantage of alumni services that help prepare them for “life” after college. There’s more to balance beyond graduation than just finding a career.?

Introduce them to mentoring programs, financial services, mental health services, or online communities that can provide invaluable guidance long after college graduation. These resources are invaluable and often services graduates struggle to connect with on their own.

Explain the importance of staying connected with fellow alumni to help build future business and personal connections—this kind of relationship-building will come in handy later down the road.

By connecting with college students and arming them with the knowledge of useful resources through alumni services and networks, you can help college students get the most out of your college career center and truly prepare them for life after college.

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Be sure to check out the CareerShift blog for more great resources.