Edition 20 - Alumni

Welcome back, we've made it to Edition 20, which I guess puts this newsletter in that zone where it's been going on for too long to stop now, so we might as well celebrate getting this far!

If you're new here, welcome, if you've been part of this community for a while then welcome back - this little newsletter is my very self-indulgent way of collating and clarifying my thoughts on paper (mac, actually) each week.

This week, I've been thinking a lot about how to harness alumni in career development and education programs, so that's pretty much the focus for this week. I'll explain how I feel about using alumni, then share some great examples of using alumni in practice from our community, and then outline my ideas for how you can start to harness the power of alumni in your own programs.

Happy reading :)

How can we use alumni in career development?

I always go on about alumni, and for good reason – alumni are living, breathing examples who show us exactly where we could end up down the track.

They are tangible, concrete, and understandable, and much more impactful than a list of potential future careers.

Compare the pair:

“After you finish your commerce degree, you could go into accounting or become a financial advisor…”

This first statement is uninspiring. Neither accounting nor financial advising sound like my idea of fun, and I feel like there are a few too many unknowns for me to want to take the leap into commerce.

OR

“This is Terri, she finished her Bachelor of Commerce a couple of years ago, now she’s working as a Commercial Banking Specialist for one of the big banks in the city. She helps manage loans for small and medium enterprise customers, and earns around $220k each year.”

This second statement is exciting!

You can relate to Terri, especially if she graduated from the same school as you, and her job sounds important and exciting. Personally, I could visualise myself working in her job, and quite like the idea of earning her salary a couple of years out of school.

Alumni build a relatable narrative

Alumni allow us to tell a story, to build a picture of what literally has been possible in the past, and demonstrate what may again be possible in the future. As humans, we relate to stories, and storytelling underpins some of the most enduring cultures on earth, so it's no surprise that using real-life stories to illustrate career pathways is more impactful than just sharing data.

Alumni are also a great source of real-world career information.

They’re connected to your school, but out there working, and they are often willing to share their learnings and experiences with students. And, because there are lots of them, there’s also a better than average chance that you’ll be able to find an alumni working in just about every field a student could show interest in.

Michelle Lee Cooper has been holding alumni panel sessions all year, based around the six Career Clusters, which have done just this - she managed to secure speakers from a range of industries and Clusters which has really brought the range of possible pathways to life for students.

They can also make great networking practice for students (and they need all the practice they can get), if you invite them along to events and encourage them to speak with students.

For example, at The Priory Learning Trust under the leadership of James Wilmot this week, alumni led a session for Year 8 students, called 'Priory Pathways'. The benefits for the students are huge, but there's also something special about being celebrated in this way as an alumni.

Alumni don't even need to actually turn up to have impact though; I'm constantly amazed at the impact a simple poster can have, and Lis McGuire RCDP shared this example by Louise Badelow MA, QCG from Eltham College this week:

These posters are bright, engaging, relatable, and showcase recent alumni, which makes them incredibly valuable for current students, and there are also links so you can find out more.

Keeping track of alumni is hard...

There are lots of them, they disperse once school/college/university is over, their official email no longer works, and to keep track of them you need to allocate a dedicated Alumni Manager, which is beyond the scope of most schools.

An Alumni Manager is the best case scenario - these people can keep track of alumni and then share that information with people like the Career Development team (and probably the PR person as well).

Here’s the role description from one school:

The Alumni Manager will:

• Develop and implement an annual Alumni strategic plan in collaboration with the Director of Community Engagement and the Past Students Association;
• Plan and organise regional, interstate and international alumni events and reunions in collaboration with the Events team; and
• Manage the Past Students website, e-newsletter, social media accounts and associated communications in collaboration with the Communications team.

All of this sounds amazing, but to do this well would be a full-time gig for at least one person.

So, how can you use alumni in your setting?

Last year I was lucky enough to hear Bianca New share how Toorak College, Mt Eliza use a LinkedIn group to manage their alumni and connect them with students. Now managed by Coco Callanan/McKay , they have a great set of guidelines for staff, students, and alumni to use the group, and they give students the skills to set up a profile but also manage their online presence.

Engaging with alumni doesn't need to be difficult - it can be as simple as setting up and managing an alumni group on LinkedIn , but I know that when time gets short it can be something that's left for another time. You might also want to enlist someone like Tyson Day to deliver sessions on personal branding and using Linkedin for your current students, so they have the skills to be able to engage with alumni professionally once you have everything set up.

With that in mind, I've collected some ideas for using alumni (if you already have them), and for collecting alumni (if you don't):

Ideas for Using Alumni (If You Have Them)

#1 - Alumni Panel Events

As Michelle did with her panels based on the Career Clusters, you can bring groups of alumni together into a panel session. Hold these during lunch break, or after school, and encourage open dialogue between the panel members and the students to really build a picture of what the future might look like.

I always find that it's less daunting being on a panel than speaking by yourself, so you might find it easier to enlist alumni in panel events as well.

#2 - Informational Interviews, Job Shadowing, and Work Experience

Group events and panels are great, but sometimes you have a student who just needs to talk to someone already doing the job they're thinking about, which is when you can tap into your database of alumni to find someone similar.

I've seen some schools use social media groups to great effect for this - it's easier to simply post a bit about the type of alumni you're looking for or the questions you have, and then alumni can share their relevant experiences with the student directly. Even if you don't have an alumni with that specific role, they may be able to put you on the right track.

The same goes for coordinating placements and work experience - you have an additional pool of people to draw on for placements.

#3 - Networking with Students

We know that students need to learn how to network, but it's often easier said than done. External networking events can be daunting and aren't always student friendly, but hosting networking events with senior students and alumni can give them the opportunity to hone their conversation skills in a 'safe' environment.

If you hold them on the school grounds, the alumni can also have a mini-reunion while they're at it.

#4 - Posters with Alumni Stories

It's no surprise that I'm a fan of posters, because they hang around (literally) for ages and have very few barriers to engagement. Students don't need to ask for permission to read a poster - it's just there, on the wall, ready for them to engage with when they're ready.

Place alumni posters strategically around the school, especially near classrooms that focus on relevant subject areas, which can also help students relate their subjects to the places they could lead.

#5 - Skill-Building Workshops and Mock Interviews

Alumni, especially recent alumni, have first-hand experience of navigating the workplace, which can make them valuable allies when holding skill-building workshops. Invite alumni to walk students through how they found their jobs, ask them to help you review resumes, or even hold mock-interviews with alumni, as Elif Atalay Macpherson did as part of a Year 11 student futures day recently:

All of these activities also help the alumni develop their own skills, as they will also one day be interviewing candidates and managing their teams.

Ideas for collecting alumni (if you don't have many)

#1 - Collect Their Details Before They Leave

Starting an alumni network doesn't have to be a monumental task. A simple yet effective first step is to collect students' non-school email addresses before they graduate. You don't need to dive into a full-blown destination survey right away, but having a reliable way to reach out to them later can set the stage for more detailed data collection down the line.

#2 - Create Groups on Social Media Platforms

Social media, especially LinkedIn, can be your best friend when it comes to keeping tabs on alumni. LinkedIn has a feature that lets you invite anyone who's listed your school in their profile, making it a breeze to start building your alumni community. It's a low-effort, high-reward way to keep the lines of communication open and share opportunities and advice among alumni.

#3 - Host Events and Link in with Reunions

Events are a win-win for everyone involved. Not only do they offer a chance for alumni to reconnect with their school community, but they also give you an opportunity to update your database. If you time these events to coincide with existing reunions, you can kill two birds with one stone: alumni get to catch up, and you get to collect valuable data.

#4 - Use a Database to Keep Everything in One Place

Let's talk databases. While there are specialised tools designed for alumni management, you don't need to get fancy. A well-organised Excel or Google Sheets can do the job when you're starting out. Having all the information in one place makes it easier to coordinate mentorship programs, plan events, and keep everyone in the loop.

By adopting these straightforward strategies, you're laying the foundation for a robust alumni network that can be an invaluable asset for your career development programs. It's all about taking manageable steps that yield long-term benefits, enriching the educational experience for current students while keeping alumni engaged.

That's it!

Thanks for coming along for another week, and, as always, please join the conversation and share your thoughts and experience with alumni. I'm always interested to hear your ideas :)